Music

'Everyone, no matter what vocation they are looking at, should add music as an essential to their curriculum. Music can be a very important part of your soul and your growth as a human being. It is so powerful'

Quincy Jones

Director of Music: Mr. Parsons

Our Vision

We have been recognised by the Arts Council as an Artsmark Gold school for our innovative, inclusive and diverse curriculum, enriched by many musical partnerships beyond the classroom. We believe that every student is inherently musical given the right conditions. We want to prepare our students for a lifetime love, understanding and appreciation of music by opening up a vast world of music making, spanning different times, places and cultures. We enable all our students to interact with music in a multitude of ways; as vocalists, instrumentalists and composers using industry standard music technology. We want to give our students the skills and knowledge to access their creativity. We believe that music teaches us to listen, not only to our own 'voices' but those of others.

Our Curriculum

Each Scheme of Learning (SOL) is planned across a half term and built around performing or composition and listening. The curriculum is broken down into knowledge and skills. Instrumental skills are learnt through the Band Project in which all students learn a band instrument of their choice with a goal that all students are GCSE ready with instrumental fluency, accuracy and expression. This alternates with Music Technology SOL starting with simple sequencing through to more complex composition and production. Knowledge is built around the national curriculum's interrelated dimensions of music: melody, harmony, texture, rhythm, timbre and dynamics with each SOL having a particular focus

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Key Stage 3

The Music Curriculum at KS3 gives pupils a grounding in aspects of the national curriculum through developing performance skills and theoretical knowledge in synchrony.

Key Stage 4

At Key Stage 4, pupils follow the Edexcel GCSE Specification. They have opportunities throughout the course to continue 1-2-1 musical tuition with peripatetic teachers to enhance their performance skills.

Assessment

At Key Stage 3, we regularly complete formative assessments throughout each unit, taking into account either performance or composition and theoretical skills. These are reported twice a year to families.

At Key Stage 4, our assessments meet the schedule of the GCSE mock examinations, and are an aggregation of ongoing assessment of the coursework components, alongside performance in the written examinations.

Homework

At Key Stage 3 and 4, we encourage students to practice their band instruments, work with the music technology at lunchtimes or after school and to join extra curricular music activities. Students are given pieces of music to listen actively to.

At Key Stage 4, we supplement the course with GCSE practice and revision. Students receive free 1:1 instrumental lessons with our wonderful Bravo teachers and are expected to practice regularly.