In this course, students are prepared for Edexcel Music GCSE (1MU0). The following eight units are studied sequentially across Years 10 and 11.
| Unit | Content |
|---|---|
| 1
| In this unit, students learn about music for stage and screen, studying an extract from John Williams's score to the film Star Wars (1977) and undertaking wider listening from other film scores by composers including Bernard Herrmann, Debbie Wiseman and Howard Shore. Students develop their composing skills in the context of a Dorian-mode composition and advance their performing skills through individual practice on their chosen instrument. Key knowledge developed:
Key skills developed:
Assessment: Students benefit from immediate oral feedback from the teacher in lessons. They receive peer feedback and have the opportunity to assess themselves according to established criteria. Knowledge of the John Williams set work is tested in the Year 10 and Year 11 mock exam series, and finally assessed in the listening exam, which is worth 40% of the available marks. Students' composing and performing work contributes to a non-exam assessment portfolio, internally marked and externally moderated, worth the remaining 60% of the available marks. |
| 2 | In this unit, students learn about vocal music, studying 'Music for a While' from Henry Purcell's incidental music to John Dryden and Nathaniel Lee's play Oedipus (1692) and engaging in wider listening that includes arias by G.F. Handel and J.S. Bach. Students develop their composing skills in the context of a Dorian-mode composition, which they bring to completion in this unit, and advance their performing skills through individual practice on their chosen instrument. Key knowledge developed:
Key skills developed:
Assessment: Students benefit from immediate oral feedback from the teacher in lessons. They receive peer feedback and have the opportunity to assess themselves according to established criteria. Knowledge of the Henry Purcell set work is tested in the Year 10 and Year 11 mock exam series, and finally assessed in the listening exam, which is worth 40% of the available marks. Students' composing and performing work contributes to a non-exam assessment portfolio, internally marked and externally moderated, worth the remaining 60% of the available marks. |
| 3 | In this unit, students deepen their knowledge of music for stage and screen, studying 'Defying Gravity' from Stephen Schwartz's musical Wicked (2004) and undertaking wider listening from other musicals including Matilda and Hairspray. Students develop their composing skills in the context of a chord-based composition and advance their performing skills through individual practice on their chosen instrument. Key knowledge developed:
Key skills developed:
Assessment: Students benefit from immediate oral feedback from the teacher in lessons. They receive peer feedback and have the opportunity to assess themselves according to established criteria. Knowledge of the Stephen Schwartz set work is tested in the Year 10 and Year 11 mock exam series, and finally assessed in the listening exam, which is worth 40% of the available marks. Students' composing and performing work contributes to a non-exam assessment portfolio, internally marked and externally moderated, worth the remaining 60% of the available marks. |
| 4 | In this unit, students learn about instrumental music, 1700-1820, studying the third movement of Bach's Brandenburg Concerto no. 5 in D major and undertaking wider listening including concerti grossi by Vivaldi and Handel. Students develop their composing skills in the context of a chord-based composition, which they bring to completion in this unit, and advance their performing skills through individual practice on their chosen instrument. Key knowledge developed:
Key skills developed:
Assessment: Students benefit from immediate oral feedback from the teacher in lessons. They receive peer feedback and have the opportunity to assess themselves according to established criteria. Knowledge of the Brandenburg Concerto is tested in the Year 10 and Year 11 mock exam series, and finally assessed in the listening exam, which is worth 40% of the available marks. Students' composing and performing work contributes to a non-exam assessment portfolio, internally marked and externally moderated, worth the remaining 60% of the available marks. |
| 5 | In this unit, students deepen their knowledge of vocal music, studying 'Killer Queen' from Queen's 1974 album Sheer Heart Attack and undertaking wider listening which includes songs by the Beach Boys and Pink Floyd. Students develop their composing skills in the context of a composition made to fulfil a brief chosen from a list of five options and advance their performing skills through individual practice on their chosen instrument. Key knowledge developed:
Key skills developed:
Assessment: Students benefit from immediate oral feedback from the teacher in lessons. They receive peer feedback and have the opportunity to assess themselves according to established criteria. Knowledge of 'Killer Queen' is tested in the Year 10 and Year 11 mock exam series, and finally assessed in the listening exam, which is worth 40% of the available marks. Students' composing and performing work contributes to a non-exam assessment portfolio, internally marked and externally moderated, worth the remaining 60% of the available marks. |
| 6 | In this unit, students learn about musical fusions, studying 'Samba em Prelúdio' as recorded by Esperanza Spalding in 2008 and undertaking a range of wider listening, including music from African, Turkish, Afro-Cuban Jazz and Latin traditions. Students develop their composing skills in the context of a composition made to fulfil a brief chosen from a list of five options, which they bring to completion in this unit. They advance their solo and ensemble performing skills through individual practice on their chosen instrument in preparation for the Year 10 showcase. Key knowledge developed:
Key skills developed:
Assessment: Students benefit from immediate oral feedback from the teacher in lessons. They receive peer feedback and have the opportunity to assess themselves according to established criteria. Knowledge of 'Samba em Prelúdio' is tested in the Year 11 mock exam series, and finally assessed in the listening exam, which is worth 40% of the available marks. Students' composing and performing work contributes to a non-exam assessment portfolio, internally marked and externally moderated, worth the remaining 60% of the available marks. |
| 7 | In this unit, students deepen their knowledge of instrumental music, 1700-1820, studying the first movement of Beethoven's Piano Sonata no. 8 in C minor, Op. 13, 'Pathétique' and undertaking wider listening including piano sonata movements by Haydn and Mozart. Students develop their composing skills in the context of a piece composed to fulfil one of the briefs published by Edexcel at the start of Year 11. They advance their performing skills through individual practice on their chosen instrument in preparation for the Year 11 showcase. Key knowledge developed:
Key skills developed:
Assessment: Students benefit from immediate oral feedback from the teacher in lessons. They receive peer feedback and have the opportunity to assess themselves according to established criteria. Knowledge of Beethoven 'Pathétique' Sonata is tested in the Year 11 mock exam series, and finally assessed in the listening exam, which is worth 40% of the available marks. Students' composing and performing work contributes to a non-exam assessment portfolio, internally marked and externally moderated, worth the remaining 60% of the available marks. |
| 8 | In this unit, students deepen their knowledge of musical fusions, studying 'Release' from the album Volume 2: Release by Afro Celt Sound System and undertaking a range of wider listening including music from African, Turkish, Afro-Cuban Jazz and Latin traditions. Students develop their composing skills in the context of a piece composed to fulfil one of the briefs published by Edexcel at the start of Year 11, which they bring to completion in this unit. They advance their solo and ensemble performing skills through individual practice on their chosen instrument in preparation for the Year 11 showcase. Key knowledge developed:
Key skills developed:
Assessment: Students benefit from immediate oral feedback from the teacher in lessons. They receive peer feedback and have the opportunity to assess themselves according to established criteria. Knowledge of 'Release' by Afro Celt Sound System is tested in the Year 11 mock exam series, and finally assessed in the listening exam, which is worth 40% of the available marks. Students' composing and performing work contributes to a non-exam assessment portfolio, internally marked and externally moderated, worth the remaining 60% of the available marks. |
