Page 31 - Kingham Hill School Sixth Form Prospectus

Course Catalogue A-Z

Music
(Edexcel)

As a creative subject, Music at Sixth Form level is both challenging and rewarding. It
covers a broad range of skills from essay-writing and musical analysis to performance and
composition. The most important requirements are a willingness of pupils to expand their
own musical creativity and a readiness to explore the music of others.
The A level Music course consists of the following units:
1. Performance
Pupils can choose to either sing or play a solo instrument (with or without accompaniment)
or perform as part of an ensemble or band, as long as they have their own unique part to
play within the group. They will be required to perform a 15-minute recital in the second
year of the course. Pieces need to be of a Grade 6 standard or higher. These can be solos or
performances as part of a school ensemble, e.g. choir, band, or orchestra.
2. Composition
Pupils will need to write two pieces of music, composed as coursework during the second
year of the course. One piece is composed to one of a choice of set briefs given by the exam
board, the other is a free choice composition. Pastiche harmonisation (writing in the style
of another composer) is another option for one of the composition pieces. Preparatory work
will be undertaken during the first year of the course, and all the writing and production of a
finished score must take place during the final year.
3. Developing Musical Understanding
This unit focuses on listening to familiar music and understanding how it works. Pupils will
learn in-depth about ten pieces of music: four instrumental pieces and six vocal pieces.
Pupils will assess the common threads running through these works in comparison
questions, and be required to answer an essay question in greater detail about one of them.
The examination also includes a Listening component where they will hear extracts from two
of the ten pieces they have studied, answering questions on what they have learned.
Entry requirements:
Grade 6 at GCSE.

31

Kingham Hill 2018 Sixth Form Prospectus A5 40pp.indd 31 10/11/2017 12:04