COURSEWORK

Coursework makes up 75% of the GCSE!!!!!!!

Music coursework falls into three categories:-
COMPOSING 25% - making up your own music
PERFORMING 25% - playing pieces of music
INTEGRATED ASSIGNMENT 25% - composing a piece of music in ten weeks (during Yr11)

Let's look at each of these in turn . . .

COMPOSING

By Easter in Yr11, you will need to have completed two good quality compositions to submit to the examiners.

So that we get to choose your best work, we do as many compositions as possible during the course (usually 1 per term).

The pieces you write need to fall into the 'Areas of Study' below -

Music for Dance
Orchestral Landmarks
Music for Film
Music for Special Occasions
Popular Song since 1960

All pieces must be composed by you on your own. Group work isn't allowed. However, you don't have to be able to play your piece - just come up with the ideas and tell people what you want them to play!

Each composition must be recorded - and you need to write an evaluation saying how you went about composing the piece (doesn't have to be long!)

One of the compositions that you hand in at the end of the course must come under the title Music for a Special Occasion.

PERFORMING

At the end of the course you will need to submit two performances. One solo performance and one group performance.

Solo performance - this means either playing or singing a piece of music on your own. This can be any piece of music that you like - and you can have an instrument accompanying you - or a backing track.

It must be really well rehearsed and show the highest standard you are capable of.

Group (ensemble) performance - this means playing or singing as part of a group. A group can be any size (more than two!!!!) but your part must be different to everyone else's. For example, if you're singing a song in parts, you must be the only person singing that part . . .

Group performances are all about how you work as part of a team - how you listen to the other players and blend your part in successfully.

All performances must be recorded.

INTEGRATED ASSIGNMENT

After Christmas in Yr11, the examiners send us an exam paper which has a number of different ideas for compositions on it. All of these are related to the Areas of Study listed above.

You have to choose one of the options and you then have about 10 weeks to compose a piece of music in response to the option you have chosen.

It's really not that scary - they give you loads of choice so there's something to suit everyone!!