Music

Key Stage 3

Music in Key Stage 3 ensures that those students planning to enter IGCSE music in year 10 have an adequate background in a wide range of musical learning and experiences. Music in Key Stage 3 is divided similarly to previous Key Stages into an academic component and a practical component.

(a) In the Academic component some units from the English National Curriculum are used but other relevant and important topics are also introduced, including some theory of music.

(b) The practical component in this Key Stage diversifies from only strings and begins in Year 7 with instruments used in rock bands – guitar, keyboard and drums. As the students progress to Year 8 and 9 they also learn more difficult music for each of the instruments they play. For example - guitar in Year 7 begins with simple chords and simple strumming patterns, progressing to more complex chords and strumming patterns in Year 8 (including the beginning of reading notes for guitar), progressing to reading and playing some easy ‘classical’ guitar pieces in Year 9.

Key Stage 4

Students who choose to continue with music in year 10 and 11 are students intending to sit for the IGCSE exam, which is a two year course. These students have 5 lessons per week, one which is dedicated to the practical component of the course. The other 4 lessons encompass learning required for the listening and the composing components of the IGCSE exam.

IGCSE – Music Years 10-11

Charter International School offers Cambridge IGCSE Music to suitable students in Year 10 and 11.

The Cambridge IGCSE Music Syllabus is designed as a two-year course for examination at age 16-plus.

The aims of the syllabus are to:

• enable candidates to acquire and consolidate a range of basic musical skills, knowledge and

understanding, through the activities of listening, performing and composing

• help candidates develop a perceptive, sensitive and critical response to the main historical periods

and styles of Western music

• help candidates to recognise and understand the music of various non-Western traditions, and thus

to form an appreciation of cultural similarities and differences

• provide a foundation for the development of an informed appreciation of music

• provide a foundation for further study in music at a higher level

Assessment structure

Cambridge IGCSE Music candidates take three components:

Component Weighting Duration

1 Listening c 40% c 1 hour 15 minutes

2 Performing c 30% Coursework

3 Composing c 30% Coursework

Aims

The aims of the syllabus are to:

enable candidates to acquire and consolidate a range of basic musical skills, knowledge and understanding, through the activities of listening, performing and composing

help candidates develop a perceptive, sensitive and critical response to the main historical periods and styles of Western music

help candidates to recognise and understand the music of various non-Western traditions, and thus to form an appreciation of cultural similarities and differences

provide a foundation for the development of an informed appreciation of music

provide a foundation for further study in music at a higher level

3.2 Assessment objectives

The three assessment objectives are:

A Listening

B Performing

C Composing

The examination rewards candidates for positive achievement in the following areas:

A Listening

Aural awareness, perception and discrimination in relation to Western music of the baroque, classical, romantic and 20th-century periods.

Identifying and commenting on a range of music from cultures in different countries.

Knowledge and understanding of one Western Prescribed Work and one Prescribed Focus from a non- Western culture.

B Performing

Technical competence on one or more instruments.

Interpretative understanding of the music performed.

C Composing

Discrimination and imagination in free composition.

Notation, using staff notation and, if appropriate, other suitable systems.

Schemes of Work

Overview

The syllabus has been broken down into nine units with suggested teaching activities and learning resources to use in the classroom. The three core musical skills (performing, composing and listening) are, for pragmatic reasons, assessed as separate components in the IGCSE course, but their interdependence cannot be over-emphasised: music is composed so that others may perform it and audiences may listen to it. Composers in turn listen to other people’s music to inform their own creative decisions. Performers must listen critically to themselves to improve their accuracy and style, and to others to improve their sense of ensemble. Listening to music is enhanced by an understanding of its context and an awareness of how it has been composed and performed. Teachers should therefore seek to make links wherever possible between the different components in the syllabus. In particular, there are a number of musical features which are found in music of all periods and from around the world: these are addressed in Unit 1: General listening skills, but it is expected that they will be incorporated in all areas of the course. Recommended prior knowledge

Students embarking on this Cambridge IGCSE Music course will be required to perform, compose and listen to music, and they should therefore have an active interest in a range of musical activities. Most students would normally have some prior experience of either playing an instrument or singing; however, the syllabus does not specify any minimum standard for the level of performing, as the music that is performed is chosen by the student, and should be appropriate for their own level of musical and technical competence at the time of assessment (although the mark awarded for performing will be related to the skills demonstrated). It would be helpful (although not essential) to students if their school music curriculum, before embarking on this Cambridge IGCSE course, had included some exposure to composing (perhaps in a group, not necessarily individually). The listening and composing components of the course will require an ability to read and write musical notation; most students would normally be able to read music before starting the course and this scheme of work assumes that they can: if they can’t, this skill should be taught as quickly as possible in the early stages of the course.

Outline In this scheme of work, the listening component is mainly divided into units based around repertoire from different musical periods or areas of the world. However, there are certain musical features which are found in all music, and these are described in Unit 1, which should be seen as an ongoing (rather than self-contained) unit. For the western music topics, three or four representative works have been suggested which between them cover all of the styles and genres listed in the syllabus, but students should be encouraged to listen to further examples of each. In a number of cases extra repertoire is suggested under the heading ‘comparing different styles’; it is important that students understand that concertos, for example, are found in all music periods, even if your teaching focuses in detail on a concerto from the baroque era only. Teachers will note that the units are not strictly chronological; for many students the classical and romantic styles may be the most accessible at the beginning of the course, but teachers should feel free to teach the units in chronological order if they prefer. Units 8 and 9 are concerned with the performing and composing components; these should be seen as ongoing skills which are developed throughout the course.

The units within this scheme of work are:

Unit 1: General listening skills (ongoing)

Unit 2: Music in the Classical period

Unit 3: Music in the Romantic period

Unit 4: Baroque music

Unit 5: Twentieth century music

Unit 6: World music (general)

Unit 7: World music – Prescribed focus and Western set work

Unit 8: Performing (ongoing)

Unit 9: Composing (ongoing)

Differentiation

Opportunities for differentiation are indicated throughout the scheme of work where activities are labelled as basic or challenging. Timings for activities and feedback are left to the judgement of the teacher, according to the level of the students and size of the class. Length of time allocated to a task or activity is another possible area for differentiation.

Formative assessment

Opportunities are indicated throughout the scheme of work.

Teacher support

The up-to-date resource list for Cambridge IGCSE Music, syllabus 0410, can be found on the University of Cambridge International Examinations website

www.cie.org.uk. In addition, the password-protected Cambridge Teacher Support website at http://teachers.cie.org.uk provides access to examiner reports and a discussion forum for teachers of music. Past question papers with accompanying CDs are available from Cambridge Publications at

www.cie.org.uk/profiles/teachers/orderpub. We offer online and face-to-face training; details of forthcoming training opportunities are posted on the website.

Resources

Book:

Sharma, E Music Worldwide Cambridge University Press, UK

ISBN: 9780521376228; Accompanying CD ISBN: 9780521374811

Past question papers

Paper 1 and CD (available from Cambridge Publications at www.cie.org.uk/profiles/teachers/orderpub).

University of Cambridge International Examination notes for guidance on set works:

www.cie.org.uk/qualifications/academic/middlesec/igcse/subject?assdef_id=875

Recordings:

A recording of the following pieces will be needed; at the time of writing all could be found online free of charge, or individual tracks could be purchased from a supplier such as iTunes. If using online recordings, please adhere to any copyright regulations applicable to your region.

Mozart: Rondo from Horn Concerto No. 4

Haydn: Minuet and Trio (Poco allegretto) from String Quartet in B flat, Op. 50, No. 1

Mozart: Allegro from Piano Sonata in C, K. 545

Beethoven: Funeral March from Symphony No. 3, Eroica

Chopin: Étude in E, Op. 10. No. 3

Johann Strauss: Roses from the South

Purcell: Ah, Belinda from Dido and Aeneas

Vivaldi: Autumn from The Four Seasons

Handel: Behold, a virgin shall conceive and O Thou that tellest good tidings to Zion from Messiah

Debussy: Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune

Schoenberg: Variations for Orchestra, Op. 31

Prokofiev: Allegro from Symphony No. 1, Classical

Gershwin: I got rhythm

Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet (Fantasy Overture) OR Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K488 (first movement) [set works for 2013: these change regularly so please check syllabus for the year your candidates will be taking the examination]

Scores:

http://erato.uvt.nl/files/imglnks/usimg/f/ff/IMSLP05805-Haydn_-_Op._50__No._1.pdf

http://erato.uvt.nl/files/imglnks/usimg/2/2f/IMSLP70214-PMLP01855-KV_545.pdf

http://petrucci.mus.auth.gr/imglnks/usimg/6/6e/IMSLP00608-Beethoven_-_Symphony_No.3_Mov_2.pdf

http://petrucci.mus.auth.gr/imglnks/usimg/a/a2/IMSLP00307-Chopin_-_OP10_3.PDF

http://216.129.110.22/files/imglnks/usimg/6/6f/IMSLP64335-PMLP22613-Strauss__Johann_-_Roses_in_the_South__Op._388__orch._score_.pdf

http://erato.uvt.nl/files/imglnks/usimg/1/17/IMSLP36466-PMLP05472-Purcell-Z626vsNov.pdf

http://216.129.110.22/files/imglnks/usimg/4/42/IMSLP11099-AutumnScore_Vivaldi.pdf

http://216.129.110.22/files/imglnks/usimg/4/47/IMSLP11182-

Handel_Messiah_No.8_Behold_No.9_O_Thou_That_Tellest.pdf

http://petrucci.mus.auth.gr/imglnks/usimg/4/40/IMSLP14736-Debussy_-_Pr__lude____l_apr__s-midi_d_un_faune__orch._score_.pdf

http://imslp.info/files/imglnks/usimg/9/9b/IMSLP17106-Tchaikovsky_-_Romeo_and_Juliet_-_Eulenburg.pdf

http://216.129.110.22/files/imglnks/usimg/4/48/IMSLP25720-PMLP15393-Mozart_Pf_Concerto_23_K488.pdf

Key signature chart:

http://musicmattersblog.com/wp-files/KeySignatureChart.pdf

Four Seasons poem:

http://inkpot.com/classical/vi4sonnets.html

Impressionist painting:

www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/claude-oscar-monet-the-gare-st-lazare

Tone-row:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Schoenberg_-_Variations_for_Orchestra_op._31_tone_row.png

Websites: