Qualification

GCSE

Exam Board

OCR

Course Leader

Miss Zoboky

Course summary

The subject content for GCSE Music is divided into three sections:

1. Integrated Portfolio (30%)
2. Practical Component (30%)
3. Listening and Appraising (40%)

Students can choose an instrument to specialise in for their solo and ensemble performances.

What will students learn?

Integrated Portfolio: This consists of a solo or ensemble performance and a free composition where students can write their own music in any style they choose. Students will learn performance and composition skills during practical lessons.

Practical Component: Students will complete an ensemble performance on their chosen instruments. They will also complete a composition based on a brief set by OCR relating to one of the four theory areas of study.

Listening and Appraising: Students will learn about the following areas of study:

• Concerto through time
• Rhythms of the World
• Film Music
• Conventions of Pop

In each area of study, students will learn about the key features of the music, referring to the musical elements. Students will complete listening exercises to prepare them for their listening exam at the end of year 11.

How will students be assessed?

Integrated Portfolio (30%): 60 marks non-exam assessment, broken into 30 marks for a solo or ensemble performance and 30 marks for a free composition to a brief written and decided by the student.

Practical Component (30%): 60 marks non-exam assessment, broken into 30 marks for an ensemble performance and 30 marks for a composition to a brief set by OCR.

Listening and Appraising (40%): 90 minute listening exam (80 marks) based on the areas of study (concerto through time, rhythms of the world, film music and conventions of pop).

Qualification

BTEC

Exam Board

Pearson

Course Leader

Miss Zoboky

Course summary

Course summary: This course is split into 3 components:

Component 1: Exploring Musical Products and Styles (30%)

Component 2: Music Skills Development (30%)

Component 3: Responding to a Music Brief (40%)

Students will develop performance, production and composition skills through the 3 components. Students will also develop their knowledge on different genres of music.

What will students learn?

Component 1: students will study 5 genres of music, relating to the elements of music. They will learn how to write about the styles of music and how to find musical examples to back up their points. In component 1, students will also develop their performance and composition skills and will create three 30-60 second musical products using these skills.

Component 2: Students will learn how to develop their musical skills in both performance and composition. They will take part in workshops that include how to practice, how to identify strengths and weaknesses in existing skills, and more. Students will create a diary of their development throughout the component, working on a composition and a performance.

Component 3: Component 3 uses all existing knowledge from the previous components to give students the skills to turn an existing piece of music into a different genre. Lessons will include a recap of a variety of genres of music, as well as recapping basic BandLab skills. Students can take either the production or performance route in this component, and will use technology to edit a song into a given style, using their knowledge of that genre.

How will students be assessed?

Each component is coursework based and will be completed in lesson time.

Component 1: Students will create a PowerPoint explaining their knowledge on 4 music genres of their choice, describing how each element of music within it, backed up my musical examples. Students will also be marked on the quality of their three 30-60 second music products, consisting of performance and composition items.

Component 2: Students will create a PowerPoint that shows their development of both composition and performance over the course of the component. They will need to provide video evidence of them focussing on specific targets and their journey of how they have improved each week. The final part of this presentation should be a final performance and a final composition recording with a written reflection on how they thought it went, with strengths, weaknesses and next steps.

Component 3: Students will have to submit a piece of music production or a performance of a song from a list provided by Pearson that has been turned into a different genre, also from a set list provided by Pearson. Students will also have to submit an initial response of how they plan to approach the brief, and a commentary that includes logs and screenshots to show how they created their final music product.