Music
GCSE Music develops students’ skills in the three key areas:
- Performing: the ability to control an instrument or voice in order to communicate
- Composing: the ability to create and develop musical ideas which communicate
- Listening: the ability to observe and describe how music communicates
These areas are almost equally weighted, so successful candidates must be prepared to work at them all. The course’s emphasis on creativity, personal responsibility, problem solving and teamwork makes it a relevant qualification for any career – in the arts or elsewhere.
PERFORMING: Students must record performances of three pieces of music. One of these must be an original composition, and of the other two, one must be an ensemble performance. This is a coursework activity, so students decide when they are ready to record their work.
The expected standard of work in this paper is around Grade 4 or equivalent, but there is no need for students to have taken any grade examinations. Lessons from a specialist instrumental teacher are clearly an advantage, as is the ability to read basic musical notation, but students can start from scratch and reach the expected standard over two years of the course. There is no requirement to be of a particular standard before the course starts, nor for any theory grades to have been taken.
GCSE students are expected to take a leading role in the musical life of the school through participation in ensembles and concerts. There will also be showcase evenings for the work completed on the course.
COMPOSING: Students compose an original work in each of the four areas of study (see below), and submit the best two of these for the exam. The main difference from Key Stage 3 is that students compose individually rather than in groups. The process begins with improvising workshops led by teachers, with students gradually shaping their own ideas into completed pieces. Music technology facilities will enable GCSE students to create, edit, record and publish their compositions using multi-tracking and sampling.
LISTENING: The board specifies four Areas of Study, which are taught in preparation for the listening examination. These are:
- Classical Music before 1900
- 20 th Century Classical Music
- Pop Music
- World Music
In the examination, students listen to recorded extracts of music and answer various types of question. The test is of students’ ability to understand and describe what they hear, not of their historical or theoretical knowledge. Teaching and learning focus on how the elements of music (pitch, rhythm, etc) are used at different times and in different places.
