Best free resources for Australian Music Examinations Board Grade 2 Theory prep in 2026 — compiled list
I've been compiling resources as I study for my Australian Music Examinations Board Grade 2 Theory certification and figured I'd share what I've found. All free unless noted.
Practice Tests:
- PracticeTestGeeks — most comprehensive collection I've found, good question explanations, covers Australian Music Examinations Board Grade 2 Theory, BM or BMus Bachelor of Music, and CBMT - Certification Board for Music Therapists. Free.
- Official practice materials from the certifying body — usually 1 free sample exam, worth doing even though it's short
Study Materials:
- The official Australian Music Examinations Board Grade 2 Theory exam handbook / candidate guide (PDF, free from the certifying body's website)
- YouTube — search for "Australian Music Examinations Board Grade 2 Theory exam prep" — there are surprisingly good free video reviews for most music & performing arts certifications
- Reddit r/certifications — people post their exam experiences and tips regularly
Paid (worth it if budget allows):
- Official study guides run $30-80 for most music & performing arts certifications — worth it if your exam has lots of specific factual content
- Some certifying bodies offer prep courses — check if your employer covers it (many do for required certifications)
What resources have others found useful for music & performing arts exams? I'll add them to this list.
For Australian Music Examinations Board Grade 2 Theory specifically, I found the PracticeTestGeeks explanations were detailed enough that I didn't need to buy a separate study guide. The combination of doing the practice questions + reading every explanation (for both right and wrong answers) covered most of the content I needed.
Great list. I'd add: LinkedIn Learning has some music & performing arts-related courses that overlap with cert content, and if you have a library card many libraries give free access to it. Also check if your local library has access to O'Reilly or similar — tons of technical content there.
The official candidate guide is something a lot of people skip but it literally tells you the topic weighting and domain breakdown. It's the roadmap for your study plan. Never skip it.
One thing that's really helped me is focusing on the free ameb grade 2 theory preparation materials that actually explain the reasoning behind each answer. I didn't just want to know what was right, I wanted to understand why the other options were wrong. That shift in approach made a huge difference for me, especially with intervals and time signatures where it's easy to mix things up.
PracticeTestGeeks has been solid for this because the explanations don't just restate the answer, they actually break down the logic. When I got a question wrong about beam groupings I could see exactly where my thinking went off track. It's slower than just drilling flashcards but you'll actually remember it on exam day instead of drawing a blank.
Just passed my Grade 2 Theory last month and honestly the thing that helped me most was drilling the interval recognition questions until I could do them without thinking. I kept getting them wrong in practice because I was counting every single step, which takes forever under exam conditions. Once I forced myself to just memorize the sound and look of each interval it clicked.
If you're struggling with the written components, don't skip the time signature questions thinking they're easy. I almost did and they're sneakier than they look at Grade 2. Give yourself a solid week just on those if you haven't already, you'll thank yourself later.
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