Music

Music is a universal language that embodies one of the highest forms of creativity.

A high-quality music education should engage and inspire pupils to develop a love of music and their talent as musicians, and so increase their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement. As pupils progress, they should develop a critical engagement with music, allowing them to compose, and to listen with discrimination to the best in the musical canon.

Key Stage 3

In Key Stage 3 students will:

  • play and perform confidently in a range of solo and ensemble contexts using their voice, playing instruments musically, fluently and with accuracy and expression
  • improvise and compose; and extend and develop musical ideas by drawing on a range of musical structures, styles, genres and traditions
  • use staff and other relevant notations appropriately and accurately in a range of musical styles, genres and traditions
  • listen with increasing discrimination to a wide range of music from great composers and musicians
  • develop a deepening understanding of the music that they perform and to which they listen, and its history

Students will do this by engaging in a wide range of musical activities including performances and composition projects alongside listening and analysing music from many different backgrounds and time periods. Over the course of KS3 students will engage with the elements of music, develop their musicianship skills, recreate and perform popular songs, and learn about west African drumming traditions, minimalism, alongside other musical styles.

Students are also offered the opportunity to learn an instrument by signing up for instrumental lessons with tutors from the Hackney Music Service. These lessons are offered to students free of charge and represent an incredible opportunity for students to develop a new skill and work towards obtaining grades with the Trinity exam board as well as performing in ensembles.

What will students learn?

Year 7

Year 8

Year 9

Term 1

  • Elements of Music
  • Musicianship – Keyboard and ukulele skills

Term 2

  • Music Tech 1 – Composing With Loops
  • Instruments of The Orchestra

Term 3

  • Theme & Variation
  • Pop Song Performance 1 – Human by Rag n Bone Man

Term 1

  • Music Tech 2 – Arranging
  • Pop Song Performance 2 – Riptide by Vance Joy

 

Term 1

  • Music Tech 3 – Composing an Original Piece
  • Pop Song Performance 3 – Blinding Lights by The Weeknd

How will students be assessed?

In Key Stage 3 each topic is summatively assessed by a performance in class which is recorded by the teacher. In performance-focussed units these take the form of live paired or group performances in front of the rest of the class in a dedicated assessment lesson. In composition-focussed units this takes the form of a ‘Listening Gallery’ where the composition of each pair of students is played for the rest of the class to listen to. In addition, written assessments which closely mirror the format of the GCSE listening paper are conducted during the school-wide assessment weeks.

Key Stage 4

In Key Stage 4 students study the two year AQA GCSE course.

This course is split into three assessed areas:

  1. Understanding Music
  2. Performing Music
  3. Composing Music

Over the two years students will prepare for two performances (one solo and one ensemble) and compose two pieces of music (one to a brief set by the exam board, and one in any style they would like).

They will develop their understanding of music by studying a wide range of styles across four areas of study:

  1. Western Classical Tradition 1650 - 1910
  2. Popular Music
  3. Traditional Music
  4. Western Classical Tradition since 1910

 

In addition to these broad areas of study students will study two works in depth: Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto and a selection from the album Graceland by Paul Simon.

What will students learn?

Year 10

Year 11

Term 1

  • Elements of Music
  • AoS 1: Western Classical Tradition 1650 - 1910

Term 2

  • AoS 2: Popular Music
  • AoS 3: Traditional Music

Term 3

  • AoS 4: Western Classical Tradition since 1910
  • Revision

Term 1

  • Set Work 1: Mozart Clarinet Concerto
  • Cousework

Term 2

  • Coursework
  • Set Work 2: Paul Simon Graceland

Term 3

  • Revision

How is the course assessed?

This course is split into three assessed areas:

  1. Understanding Music
  2. Performing Music
  3. Composing Music

By the end of year 11 students will have submitted two performances and two compositions to the exam board as coursework for assessment in Performing and composing. Understanding is assessed in a written listening paper with questions on each of the areas of study along with longer answer questions on both the set works.

Students progress is regularly assessed in weekly GCSE past paper written questions conducted in class along with performance and composition assessments every half term.

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