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GCSE

Edexcel GCSE in

Music

First examination 2008

Issue 2

February 2006

Specification

Ed

ex

cel

GC

SE i

n

Mu

sic

Edexcel Limit ed is one of t he leading examining and awarding bodies in t he UK and

t hroughout t he world. It incorporat es al l t he qual if icat ions previously awarded under

t he Edexcel and BTEC brands. We provide a wide range of qual if icat ions including

general (academic), vocat ional , occupat ional and specif ic programmes for

employers.

Through a net work of UK and overseas of f ices, our cent res receive t he support t hey

need t o help t hem del iver t heir educat ion and t raining programmes t o learners.

For furt her informat ion please cal l Cust omer Services on 0870 240 9800 (cal ls may be

recorded for t raining purposes) or visit our websit e at www.edexcel.org.uk

This specif icat ion guide is Issue 2. Key changes t o requirement s are sidel ined.

Cent res wil l be informed of any necessary fut ure changes t o t he specif icat ion. The

lat est issue can be found on t he Edexcel websit e, www.edexcel.org.uk

Acknowledgement s

This specif icat ion has been produced by Edexcel on t he basis of consult at ion wit h

t eachers, examiners, consult ant s and ot her int erest ed part ies. Edexcel recognises

and values al l t hose who cont ribut ed t heir t ime and expert ise t o t he development of

GCSE specif icat ions.

Aut horised by Jim Dobson

Prepared by Jane Anslow

Publ icat ions code UG017100

Al l t he mat erial in t his publ icat ion is copyright

© Edexcel Limit ed 2006

Contents

Introduction 1

Key feat ures 1

Summary of t he specif icat ion cont ent and scheme of assessment 2

Int roduct ion t o Areas of St udy 3

Availabil i t y of ext ernal assessment 3

Prior learning and progression 3

Forbidden combinat ions and l inks wit h ot her subj ect s 4

Specification aims and assessment objectives 5

Nat ional Qual if icat ions Framework crit eria 5

Aims 5

Knowledge, skil ls and underst anding 5

Assessment obj ect ives 5

Scheme of assessment 6

Relat ionship of assessment obj ect ives t o ext ernal assessment 6

Int ernal assessment moderat ion procedures 6

Qualit y of writ t en communicat ion (QoWC) 6

Awarding and report ing 6

Assessment language 6

Access arrangement s and special considerat ions 7

Specification content 9

Cont ent of Areas of St udy 9

Paper 1: Performing (30%) 18

Paper 2: Composing (30%) 24

Composit ion and arrangement t asks and sample briefs 29

Paper 3: List ening and appraising (40%) 33

Musical vocabulary 35

Internal assessment 41

Paper 1 — Performing 41

Paper 1A/ B — Performing 42

Levels of dif f icul t y for inst rument s, voice and sequencing 57

Paper 2 — Composing 83

Grade descriptions 95

The wider curriculum 97

Key skil ls 97

Spirit ual, moral, et hical, social and cul t ural issues 97

Educat ion for cit izenship 98

Informat ion and communicat ion t echnology (ICT) 98

Environment al educat ion, healt h and safet y educat ion and t he European

and global dimension 99

Textbooks and other teaching resources 101

Support and training 103

Training 103

Edexcel publ icat ions 103

Appendix 105

Appendix 1 — Key skil ls 107

Introduction

The revised Edexcel GCSE in Music is designed t o al low t he st udy of music t hrough

t he int egrat ion of performing, composing, l ist ening and appraising wit h opport unit ies

t o use music t echnology. It recognises t hat we l ive in an age of cul t ural diversit y and

t he Areas of St udy cover a wide range of music: classical music, world music, and

popular music. This f lexibly st ruct ured course al lows st udent s t o capit al ise on t heir

dif ferent int erest s. As an ext ension of classroom work done in Key St age 3 of t he

Nat ional Curriculum, it cat ers for a wide spect rum of musical abil i t ies and

requirement s. It gives st udent s t he opport unit y t o make music, bot h individual ly and

in groups, t o develop a l i fe-long int erest in music and t o progress t o furt her st udy.

Key features

• Cont inues t he philosophy of t he current syl labuses in music.

• Int egrat es performing, composing, l ist ening and appraising.

• Is f lexible and encourages a diversit y of approaches t o t he t eaching of music.

• Offers a broad range of Areas of St udy.

• Encourages a range of ensemble work.

• Encourages t he use of music t echnology in performance and as a composit ional

t ool.

• Is a good preparat ion for furt her musical st udy and a sol id foundat ion for

Advanced Subsidiary and Advanced GCE.

UG017100 – Specif icat ion – Edexcel GCSE in Music – Issue 2 – February 2006 1

Summary of the specification content and scheme

of assessment

Part or

component

Requirements Mode of assessment Weighting

Paper 1:

Performing

Solo performing Candidat es wil l perform one

solo piece

15% int ernal ly

assessed/ ext ernal ly

moderat ed

Ensemble

performing

Candidat es wil l

perform/ direct one

ensemble piece

15% int ernal ly


moderat ed

30%

Paper 2:

Composing

Composit ion 1 One composit ion, writ t en t o

a brief , based on one of t he

Areas of St udy

15% int ernal ly


moderat ed

Composit ion 2 One composit ion, writ t en t o

a brief based on a dif ferent

Area of St udy

15% int ernal ly


moderat ed

30%

Paper 3: Listening

and appraising

Writ t en paper

List ening and

appraising

1 hour 30 minut es 40% ext ernal ly

assessed

40%

Candidat es t o answer

quest ions on al l four Areas of

St udy

Al l grades are available and dif ferent iat ion wil l be by out come.


Introduction to Areas of Study

Area of Study 1 Area of Study 2 Area of Study 3 Area of Study 4

Structure in

Western classical

music 1600-1899

Changing

directions in

Western classical

music from 1900

Popular music in

context

Indian raga,

African music and

fusions

Through t he st udy

of :

• ground bass

and variat ions

• t ernary form

• rondo.

Through t he st udy

of :

• expressionism

and serial ism

• minimal ism

• experiment al

and elect ronic

music.

Through t he st udy

of :

• dance music

1985 — present

day

• songs f rom

musicals

• Brit pop and it s

inf luences.

Through t he st udy

of :

• Indian raga

• African music

• fusions.

The t hree aspect s of musical knowledge (performing, composing and l ist ening) are

relat ed t o each ot her t hrough t he Areas of St udy.

In List ening and appraising (Paper 3) al l candidat es wil l be expect ed t o respond t o

music f rom a variet y of st yles and t radit ions across al l four Areas of St udy. For

Composing (Paper 2) candidat es creat e t wo pieces each writ t en t o a brief based on

t wo of t he Areas of St udy, or t he specif ic t opics wit hin t hese areas, t hus relat ing

List ening and appraising, and Composing.

As part of Performing (Paper 1), candidat es must perform music f rom t he same Area

of St udy as one of t heir composit ions. This may be t heir composit ion or any ot her

music of t heir choice. Candidat es are required t o complet e a proforma

‘ Underst anding t he Brief ’ (Paper 2) which appraises t heir composing act ivit ies in

relat ion t o t he brief and t he Area of St udy, t hus t ying t oget her each of t he

assessment obj ect ives.

Availability of external assessment

First assessment for t his specif icat ion wil l be in summer 2008. Assessment wil l be

available in each summer examinat ion session t hereaf t er.

Prior learning and progression

This specif icat ion builds on t he knowledge, underst anding and skil ls est abl ished by

t he Nat ional Curriculum at Key St ages 1, 2 and 3. It provides a sol id basis for

Advanced Subsidiary and Advanced GCE and a preparat ion for furt her musical st udy

at Levels 2 and 3 in t he Nat ional Qual if icat ions Framework.

The highest grades are accessible by t hose candidat es who may not receive special ist

music lessons out side t he classroom. This specif icat ion is also aimed at mat ure

st udent s who wish t o broaden t heir experience and deepen t heir underst anding of

bot h l ive and recorded music as part of Lifelong Learning.


Forbidden combinations and links with other subjects

Every specif icat ion is assigned a nat ional classif icat ion code indicat ing t he subj ect

area t o which it belongs. Cent res should be aware t hat st udent s who ent er for more

t han one GCSE qual if icat ion wit h t he same classif icat ion code wil l have only one

grade (t he highest ) count ed for t he purpose of t he school and col lege performance

t ables.

The classif icat ion code for t his specif icat ion is 7010.


Specification aims and assessment objectives

National Qualifications Framework criteria

This specif icat ion is based on t he common crit eria and t he GCSE crit eria, which are

prescribed by t he regulat ory aut horit ies including QCA and are mandat ory for al l

awarding bodies. It is also derived f rom t he prescribed subj ect crit eria for Music.

Aims

This specif icat ion aims t o give st udent s opport unit ies t o:

• develop t heir underst anding and appreciat ion of a range of dif ferent kinds of

music

• ext end t heir own int erest s and increase t heir abil i t y t o make j udgement s about

musical qual it y

• develop broader l i fe-skil ls and at t r ibut es including crit ical and creat ive t hinking,

aest het ic sensit ivit y and emot ional and cult ural development .

Knowledge, skills and understanding

This specif icat ion aims t o give st udent s opport unit ies t o acquire t he knowledge, skil ls

and underst anding needed t o:

• make music, bot h individual ly and in groups

• develop a l i fe-long int erest in music, eg t hrough communit y music making

• progress t o furt her st udy, eg Advanced GCEs and ot her equivalent qual i f icat ions,

and/ or t o fol low a music-relat ed career, where appropriat e.

Assessment objectives

AO1 Singing and/ or playing an individual part wit h t echnical cont rol , expression,

int erpret at ion and, where appropriat e, a sense of ensemble — performing

skil ls.

AO2 Creat ing and developing musical ideas in relat ion t o a brief — composing

skil ls.

AO3 Analysing and evaluat ing music using a musical t erminology — appraising

skil ls.


Scheme of assessment

Relationship of assessment objectives to external

assessment

Paper Component A01 A02 A03 Total

Solo performing 15% 15% Paper 1

Ensemble performing 15% 15%

Composit ion 1 15% 15% Paper 2

Composit ion 2 15% 15%

Paper 3 List ening and

appraising

40% 40%

Tot al 30% 30% 40% 100%

Internal assessment moderation procedures

Coursework is cent re-assessed using t he crit eria on pages 41–93, and is ext ernal ly

moderat ed by Edexcel. To assist cent res and t o provide al l t he informat ion required

wit hin t his document , det ailed int ernal assessment procedures are given in t he

informat ion sent out t o exams of f icers in May each year.

Quality of written communication (QoWC)

Assessment obj ect ive AO3 al lows opport unit ies t o:

• present relevant informat ion in a form t hat suit s it s purpose

• ensure t ext is legible and t hat spel l ing, punct uat ion and grammar are accurat e,

so t hat meaning is clear

• use a suit able st ruct ure and st yle of writ ing.

Awarding and reporting

The grading, awarding and cert if icat ion of t his specif icat ion wil l comply wit h t he

requirement s of t he GCSE and GCE A/ AS Code of Pract ice for courses st art ing in

Sept ember 2006, which is publ ished by QCA. Qual if icat ions wil l be graded and

cert if icat ed on an eight grade scale f rom A* t o G.

Assessment language

Assessment of t his specif icat ion wil l be available in Engl ish only. Assessment

mat erials wil l be publ ished in Engl ish only and al l writ t en and spoken work submit t ed

for examinat ion and moderat ion must be produced in Engl ish.


Access arrangements and special considerations

Edexcel ’ s pol icy on access arrangement s and special considerat ions for GCE, VCE,

GCSE, GNVQ, Ent ry Level and key ski l ls aims t o enhance access t o t he qual if icat ions

for learners wit h disabil i t ies and ot her dif f icul t ies (as def ined by t he Disabil i t y

Discriminat ion Act 1995 and t he amendment s t o t he Act ) wit hout compromising t he

assessment of skil ls, knowledge, underst anding or compet ence being measured.

Please see Edexcel ’ s websit e (www.edexcel.org.uk/ sfc) for det ails on:

• t he JCQ pol icy Ar rangement s and Special Considerat ions, Regulat ions and

Guidance Relat ing t o Candidat es who are El igible f or Adj ust ment s in

Examinat ions

• t he forms t o submit for request s for access arrangement s and special

considerat ions

• dat es for submission of t he forms.

Request s for access arrangement s and special considerat ions must be addressed t o:

Special Requirement s

Edexcel

One90 High Holborn

London WC1V 7BH


Specification content

Content of Areas of Study

The specif icat ion cont ent is def ined by t he l ist s of forms and st yles for each Area of

St udy.


Structure in

Western classical

music 1600-1899

Changing

directions in

Western classical

music from 1900

Popular music in

context

Indian raga,

African music and

fusions

Through t he st udy

of :

• ground bass

and variat ions

• t ernary form

• rondo.

Through t he st udy

of :

• expressionism

and serial ism

• minimal ism

• experiment al

and elect ronic

music.

Through t he st udy

of :

• dance music

1985 — present

day

• songs f rom

musicals


inf luences.

Through t he st udy

of :

• Indian raga

• African music

• fusions.

The specif icat ion encourages t he int egrat ion of t he various musical discipl ines t hat

have t radit ional ly been st udied more or less in isolat ion. Thus every Area of St udy

provides opport unit ies not only for st udy of repert oire but also for t he development

of musical ideas t hrough composing and performance act ivit ies. The t hree aspect s of

musical knowledge (performing, composing and l ist ening) are relat ed t o each ot her

t hrough t he Areas of St udy.

Similarly t here are opport unit ies t o make l inks bet ween t he dif ferent Areas of St udy

where t he underst anding developed in one Area of St udy (or t opic) can be appl ied t o

anot her, eg t he use of t echnology in elect ronic and experiment al music or t he use of

repeat ed pat t erns in minimal ism, ground bass and Af rican music.

Det ails of t he specif icat ion cont ent for each Area of St udy are found on t he fol lowing

pages.


Area of Study 1

Structure in Western classical music 1600-1899

This Area of St udy requires st udent s, t hrough performing, composing and appraising,

t o develop aural percept ion and musical knowledge and underst anding of t he

fol lowing t opics: ground bass and variat ions, t ernary form and rondo.

Ground bass and variations

St udent s should examine pieces using ground bass where t here are cont inuously

varying t ext ures around t he ost inat o t heme (or ground). They should explore t he

dif ferent devices which int roduce variet y in each repet it ion of t he t heme and

examine t he fol lowing musical charact erist ics: prominent bass; varying t ext ure,

melody, and harmony; and increasing complexit y. They should underst and t he

cont ext in which t he music was performed f rom t he sevent eent h cent ury onwards (as

chamber music and in t he concert hal l ), and t he inst rument al resources deployed

(keyboard, chamber and orchest ral music).

St udent s should examine works using variat ions where a piece opens wit h t he

st at ement of a simple t heme which is t hen elaborat ed in various ways. They should

explore t he dif ferent ways in which variet y is int roduced in t he variat ions such as

purely melodic decorat ion or mot ivic development . They should recognise and

experiment wit h changes in harmony, rhyt hm, met re, dynamics, t empo, t ext ure and

key. Variat ion form is found t hrough al l periods of music and st udent s should l ist en t o

a range of examples.

Ternary form

St udent s should examine pieces in t ernary form. They should explore t he way in

which pieces in t his form fal l int o t hree dist inct and recognisable sect ions wit h t he

middle sect ion (t he episode) cont rast ing wit h t he out er sect ions. They should explore

t he use of keys and should examine t he dif ferent ways in which cont rast is achieved

t hrough changes in harmony, rhyt hm, met re, dynamics, t empo, t ext ure and key.

They should underst and t hat t ernary form has a long hist ory and is found in much

Baroque vocal music in t he da capo aria, and in t he Classical period as minuet and

t r io form, for example.

Rondo

St udent s should examine pieces in rondo form where a main sect ion recurs and

al t ernat es wit h cont rast ing sect ions (episodes). They should explore ways in which

cont rast is achieved t hrough changes in harmony, rhyt hm, met re, dynamics, t empo,

t ext ure and key and should examine such formal charact erist ics as l inks bet ween

sect ions and codas. They should underst and t he cont ext in which t he music was

performed wit h, for example, i t s f requent use as t he last movement in symphonies

and concert os.


Area of Study 2

Changing directions in Western classical music from 1900



fol lowing t opics: expressionism and serial ism, minimal ism and experiment al and

elect ronic music.

Expressionism and serialism

St udent s should examine expressionism and serial ism t hrough t he work of composers

f rom t he Second Viennese School , namely, Schoenberg, Berg and Webern. They

should look at t he cont ext in which Expressionist music was composed and

underst and t hat i t was a t erm, original ly borrowed f rom visual art and l i t erat ure.

Art ist s (not ably Kandinsky and Munch) creat ed vivid pict ures, dist ort ing colour or

shape t o express innermost emot ions. In a similar way, composers poured int ense

emot ional expression int o t heir music.

The int roduct ion of melodic or harmonic dist ort ion for expressive ef fect should be

examined. St udent s should be able t o recognise and describe t he use of

chromat icism, angular melodies, a high level of dissonance and ext reme cont rast s of

dynamics. They should recognise t hat expressionist music largely avoids cadence,

repet it ion, sequence or balanced phrases and t here are const ant ly changing t ext ures

and ideas.

St udent s should examine t he break wit h t onal it y in t he f irst decade of t went iet h

cent ury wit h Schoenberg and his disciples; as harmonies became increasingly

chromat ic t his event ual ly result ed in at onal it y.

They should also examine t he development of serial ism (a met hod of composing using

a series of pit ches, or ot her musical element s, heard only in a part icular order) which

gave Schoenberg a new syst em of achieving order t o replace t onal it y. St udent s

should have an underst anding of 12-t one composit ions and should be able t o

experiment wit h dif ferent ways of t reat ing t he series. They should be able t o

describe serial ist t echniques such as prime order, inversion, ret rograde and

ret rograde inversion, vert ical isat ion, augment at ion and diminut ion.

St udent s should also be aware of t ot al serial ism where, not only t he pit ch, but ot her

musical element s such as rhyt hm and dynamics were also cont rol led by t he principles

of serial ism.

Suggest ed composers — Schoenberg, Alban Berg and Ant on Webern.

Tot al serial ism — Boulez, Mil t on Babbit t .


Minimalism

St udent s should examine minimal ism where t he music undergoes a gradual process of

change involving rhyt hmic and melodic t ransformat ion, repeat ed pat t erns and pure

t onal harmony.

They should underst and it s origins on t he West coast of America in t he 1960s wit h

composers such as Terry Riley and St eve Reich and it s lat er development in America

and Europe.

St udent s should underst and t hat t he basic musical component s and cel ls used by

minimal ist composers are of t en t onal combining arpeggios, broken chords and scales

wit h regular repeat ed rhyt hms. St udent s should underst and t he inf luence of non-

West ern music on t he genre, for example, t he paral lels wit h t he mesmeric ef fect s of

gamelan music and Af rican drumming.

St udent s should underst and t he dif ferent processes t hrough which minimal ist music is

const ruct ed, i t s layers of ost inat i and int erlocking repeat ed phrases and rhyt hms.

They should explore various processes such as phase shif t ing (gradual ly separat ing

part s f rom an opening rhyt hmic unison), t ape loops, addit ion/ subt ract ion, and

melodic or rhyt hmic t ransformat ion. Gradual changes in t ext ure and dynamics should

be explored.

St udent s should be aware of t he cont rast bet ween t he complexit y of expressionist

music and t he simpl icit y and clarit y of minimal ist writ ing. They should also be aware

of some of t he paral lels in club dance music in it s use of , for example, repet it ion and

loops.

Suggest ed composers — Terry Riley, St eve Reich, Phil ip Glass and John Adams.

Experimental and electronic music

St udent s should examine experiment al music ie music t hat eschews musical

convent ion of t en wit h out comes t hat are in part unpredict able. They should explore

aleat oric (or indet erminat e) music — music which is t he result of chance operat ions

and is consequent ly dif ferent every t ime it is performed. They should be aware of

performance art — mult i-media l ive art such as t he happenings of t he 1960s and

1970s.

They should examine t he use of unconvent ional inst rument s (such as household

obj ect s) and t he unconvent ional use of convent ional inst rument s such as prepared

piano and ext ended vocal and inst rument al t echniques which enable t he performer

t o wring unusual and unexpect ed sounds f rom t heir inst rument s.

St udent s should examine elect ronic music ie music based on t echniques t hat

generat e and manipulat e sounds elect ronical ly. They should be aware of t he

milest ones in t he development of elect ronic music, principal ly t he invent ion of t ape,

and t he advent of t he synt hesiser. They should examine early explorat ions in

elect ronic music such as musique concrèt e (music made f rom recording non-musical

noises and sounds).

St udent s should be aware of resources such as sequencers, and synt hesisers and of

processes such as mult i-t rack recording, sampling, looping, edit ing and vari-speeding.

Cont inued over leaf


Experimental and electronic music (cont inued)

St udent s should examine and experiment wit h t he innovat ive not at ional syst ems t hat

arose t o cope wit h t he demands of elect ronic and experiment al music (ie 3-l ine

st aves, graphic not at ion, and prose scores where a descript ive l ist of musical event s

is given).

St udent s should examine t he relat ionship bet ween composer and performer. They

should underst and t he impact t hat music t echnology has had wit h it s pot ent ial for

t ot al cont rol of sounds t hus rul ing out t he performer, in cont rast wit h experiment al

music where some pieces al low t he performer t o t ake part in t he creat ion of t he

piece.

Suggest ed composers — Karlheinz St ockhausen, John Cage, Cornel ius Cardew, Gavin

Bryars, Luciano Berio.


Area of Study 3

Popular music in context



fol lowing t opics: Dance music 1985-present day, songs f rom musicals and Brit pop.

Dance music 1985 — present day

St udent s should examine club dance music in it s dif ferent forms. They should explore

t he root s of t he st yle in 1970s Jamaican dub, funk, disco, European synt h-pop and

hip-hop before looking at how t hese fused t o become t he house music of Chicago.

St udent s should have a working knowledge of t he main genres, ie house, t echno,

garage, drum and bass and t he main feat ures used t o ident if y t hem (t hey do not need

t o know al l t he sub-genres). For example, st udent s should underst and t hat house

music is def ined by four-four beat s, short repeat ing pat t erns, rasping hi-hat s,

art i f icial hand claps, bass loops and drum rol ls.

St udent s should underst and t he role of t he DJ and t he import ance of t he t ypes of

venues in which t he dif ferent st yles of music are played. They should have an

underst anding of t he dif ferent t echniques used by DJs, for example mixing and

scrat ching.

An underst anding of t he social cl imat e t hat gave birt h t o club dance music (including

t he rave cul t ure of t he lat e 1980s) is required. St udent s should explore t he

development and wide availabil i t y of relat ively cheap hardware, sof t ware and t he

int ernet which has made t he creat ion of music possible for an individual rat her t han

a whole group and how t his availabi l i t y has af fect ed t he development of t he genre.

St udent s should examine t he main ef fect s used in club dance music. The use of

samplers, Vocoders and scrat ching as wel l as t he dif ferent ef fect s used in producing

a t rack such as reverb, chorus, EQ, dist ort ion and quant izat ion should be explored.

They should underst and t he formal st ruct ure of dance music including t he use of

breakdowns and build-ups, for example. St udent s should also look at remixing where

new versions of dance t racks are made by manipulat ing t he original dat a.

Suggest ed art ist s — Lee Scrat ch Perry (dub), James Brown (funk), Adonis (house and

acid house), Run DMC (hip hop), Roni Size (drum and bass), Dizzee Rascal (garage).


Songs from musicals

St udent s should underst and t hat a musical is a piece of t heat re in which music has a

cent ral role and t hat t he music is in a popular st yle wit h orchest ral or band

accompaniment . They should examine t he t ypes of songs which appear in musicals in

t he West End and on Broadway — solo songs, duet s and choruses, usual ly separat ed

by spoken dialogue. St udent s should underst and t hat t he songs t ake t wo main

format s: act ion songs which move t he plot forward and charact er songs which enable

a charact er t o express t heir feel ings.

St udent s should be aware of t he import ance of lyrics in relat ion t o bot h t he plot of

t he musical and t he st ruct ure of t he song. They should examine t he verse and chorus

st ruct ure wit h it s use of middle eight , diat onic harmony, element s of j azz (and

somet imes rock) and symmet rical 8-bar phrases. They should be famil iar wit h t he

t erms hook, int ro and out ro.

They should be aware of t he popul ist appeal of musicals and examine a range of

songs f rom t he early Broadway musicals of t he1920s t o t hose current ly being st aged

in t he West End. St udent s should also be aware of musicals which are based on t he

work of popular art ist s such as Abba and Queen where t he st ory-l ine is creat ed

around exist ing songs.

Suggest ed composers — Cole Port er, Rodgers and Hammerst ein, Lloyd Webber,

St ephen Sondheim, Kander and Ebb.

Britpop and its influences

St udent s should examine t he Brit pop explosion which occurred in t he mid-1990s.

Brit pop was a nost algic movement looking back t o t he heyday of Brit ish pop music in

t he 60s and st ret ching back t o bands l ike The Kinks, The Who and especial ly The

Beat les.

They should underst and t he def ining charact erist ics of Brit pop, such as t he guit ar-

driven band wit h l i t t le use of t echnology, t he st ruct ure of t he songs (t ypical ly verse,

chorus and middle eight ), t he use of t radit ional chord sequences, st rong melodic

vocal l ines, and musical references (including direct quot es) t o bands f rom t he 1960s.

They should consider t he subj ect cont ent of songs of t his period, predominant ly lyrics

of social observat ion — everyday l i f e in provincial England. St udent s should examine

music by Oasis, Blur, Suede and Pulp, amongst ot hers, and compare t his t o recordings

by The Kinks, The Beat les and The Who.

St udent s should underst and t hat Brit pop music of t he mid-1990s was in part a

backlash against dance music and American pop which predominat ed t he chart s of

t he 1980s and early 1990s. They should also consider t he inf luence of Manchest er and

t he earl ier ‘ Madchest er’ sound t ypical of bands such as The St one Roses and The

Happy Mondays who also borrowed f rom t he 1960s.

Suggest ed art ist s: Oasis, Pulp, Blur, St one Roses, The Smit hs, The Beat les, The Who,

Suede, The Kinks and The Happy Mondays.


Area of Study 4

Indian raga, African music and fusions



fol lowing t opics: Indian raga, Af rican music and fusions.

Indian raga

St udent s should examine music belonging t o t he Indian classical t radit ion. They

should underst and t hat Indian musicians improvise according t o t he st rict rules of

raga (sequences of not es similar t o scales but wit h much more rhyt hmic variet y, a

cross bet ween a scale and a melody).

St udent s should underst and t hat each raga, of which t here are many, is associat ed

wit h a part icular mood and t ime of day or season, and t hat harmony in Indian music

consist s of r ising and fal l ing improvisat ion sounding against t he cont inual ly sounding

drone. They should explore and underst and t he use of t ala (rhyt hmic cycles of

beat s).

St udent s should st udy t he t radit ional formal st ruct ure of Indian classical music wit h

it s four main sect ions: t he alap (slow int roduct ion wit h no percussion and no regular

met re); t he j hor (similar t o t he alap, but t his t ime wit h a basic pulse — t hough no

st rong beat s); t he gat which is a pre-composed f ixed sequence al lowing al l t he

inst rument al ist s t o int eract ; and t he cl imax, t he j hala (where t he players improvise

around t he melody and rhyt hm).

St udent s should be aware and recognise t he sound of t he main inst rument s used in

Indian raga — t he sit ar, sarod, sarangi, t abla and t he drone (usual ly t ambura or

harmonium).

They should underst and t he cont ext in which t he music is performed, wit h it s

mast er-st udent t radit ion based on l ist ening and memorising, and concert s which may

last for several hours.

St udent s should be aware t hat Indian music is not not at ed and t hat i t is passed down

oral ly t hrough t he generat ions.

Suggest ed art ist s — Ravi Shankar, Imrat Khan (sit ar), Al i Akban Khan (sarod), Ram

Narayan (sarangi), Zakir Hussein (t abla).

African music

St udent s should examine music f rom sub-Saharan Af rica including singing, drumming

and inst rument al pieces. They should be aware t hat in Af rica, music is cent ral t o

every aspect of t radit ional l i fe, f rom rit uals t o ent ert ainment , and t hat most of t he

music is passed on t hrough oral t radit ion rat her t han t hrough not at ion.

They should examine t he maj or element s which make-up Af rican music, namely

repet it ion, improvisat ion, polyphony, cross-rhyt hms, variat ions, and cal l and

response.

St udent s should explore and experiment wit h t he rhyt hmic complexit y of Af rican

drumming wit h it s rhyt hmic count erpoint and cal l and response st ruct ure. The

import ance of repet it ion wit h variat ion and cross-rhyt hms should be underst ood.

St udent s should underst and t he role of improvisat ion in Af rican music.



African music (cont inued)

St udent s should examine t he role of t he mast er drummer and be aware of t he wide

range of drums and t heir uses. They should also be famil iar wit h ot her percussion and

t he more common Af rican melodic inst rument s such as t he mbira or t humb piano, t he

balophon and t he kora.

St udent s should explore Af rican song wit h it s use of cal l and response (found in t he

worksong and Af rican church music) and widespread use of t he pent at onic scale.

Suggest ed art ist s — Toumani Diabet e (kora), Must apha Tet t ey Addy, Mast er drummers

of Dagbon, Ladysmit h Black Mambazo (choir).

Fusions

St udent s should examine music which draws on t he fusions of Indian t radit ions wit h

music f rom ot her cult ures and t he fusions of Af r ican t radit ions wit h music f rom ot her

cult ures. They should underst and t hat wit h advances in recording t echnology and

t went iet h cent ury global isat ion has come an increased mixing of musical cul t ures.

They should be aware of t he hybrid st yles which have developed as musicians f rom

one cult ure have been exposed t o sounds and inst rument s f rom anot her, eg bhangra,

Bol lywood and highl ife.

St udent s should be able t o recognise and ident if y t he dif ferent musical element s

where t wo or more st yles have been brought t oget her.

St udent s should underst and t he inf luence of non-West ern music on composers of t he

classical t radit ion who have drawn inspirat ion f rom Indian or Af rican music, eg some

minimal ist pieces which have inf luences f rom Af rican drumming.

Suggest ed composers and performers: David Fanshawe, St eve Reich, Panj abi MC,

Sangeet a, Youssou N’ Dour, Osibisa, Sal if Keit a.


Paper 1: Performing (30%)

This paper enables st udent s t o develop t heir ski l ls in performing. During t he course,

al l st udent s should be given t he opport unit y t o t ake part in ensemble performances

as wel l as performing solo.

Al l candidat es must of fer bot h Solo performing (one piece) and Ensemble performing

(one piece). However, i t is a requirement t hat either the solo or ensemble

performance must be from the same Area of Study as composition 1. Candidat es

may perform t heir composit ion if t hey wish but t his is no longer a requirement .

Candidat es must t herefore plan t heir performing pieces and composit ions careful ly t o

ensure t hat t his requirement is met .

Any inst rument or voice is accept able for t his paper (including music t echnology).

The composit ions wil l be marked by t he t eacher examiner and made available for

moderat ion as required.

The Solo performing and t he Ensemble performing pieces wil l be recorded.

Performances may t ake place at any t ime during t he course. The t eacher examiner

must be able t o aut hent icat e t he recordings. The recordings wil l be made available

t o Edexcel ’ s moderat or for t he purposes of st andardisat ion. For bot h Solo performing

and Ensemble performing, t he moderat or wil l require a copy of t he scores (or a copy

of t he original professional recording t hat provided t he st imulus for t he performance)

so t hat t he accuracy of t he performance can be assessed.

Solo performing (15%)

Candidat es wil l perform (ie play, sing or sequence) one solo of t heir own choice, wit h

or wit hout accompaniment , in any t radit ion or st yle. There is no minimum t ime l imit ,

but t he piece should be of suf f icient lengt h and dif f icul t y t o represent adequat ely

t he candidat e’ s st andard of performance. It should not exceed f ive minut es.

Candidat es of fering music t echnology (sequencing only for t his component ) must use

a minimum of three simult aneously sounding voices or t imbres. Improvised

performances wil l be accept ed for t his part of t he unit only if a chord scheme or

ot her st imulus is suppl ied, t oget her wit h as much informat ion as possible about t he

candidat e’ s working met hods.

A recording on t ape, CD or minidisc must be submit t ed for moderat ion purposes.

A solo it em is considered t o be a piece in which t he candidat e’ s part is undoubled

and plays a signif icant or leading role. For example, t he viol inist in a viol in concert o

or sonat a would be considered t he soloist , but t he cel l ist in t he orchest ra or t he

pianist accompanying t he sonat a would not .

Candidat es who play inst rument s for which t radit ional solo music is very dif f icul t t o

come by (drummers or classroom percussion inst rument al ist s for example) may play

as part of a group provided t hat t heir part cont ains suf f icient f i l ls, solo breaks et c so

as t o play a clearly signif icant solo role in t he group.

There is no minimum t ime l imit for a performance, but i t should be of suf f icient

lengt h and dif f icul t y t o demonst rat e t he candidat e’ s abil i t y. If a piece last ing

bet ween one and t wo minut es al lows candidat es t o demonst rat e t heir ski l ls

adequat ely, t his is accept able. The piece should not exceed f ive minut es. It has been

found t hat candidat es of t en f ind it dif f icul t t o maint ain t he high levels of

concent rat ion required for more lengt hy pieces.


Candidat es may of fer t heir own composit ions as a solo performance, but t he piece

must give t hem ample opport unit ies t o demonst rat e t heir t echnical and

int erpret at ive skil ls. It must be emphasised t hat a suit able score must be submit t ed

for t he assessment of accuracy of al l performances, including inst ances where a

candidat e’ s own composit ion is submit t ed as a solo performance.

Solo improvisation

Candidat es should not choose improvising as a ‘ sof t opt ion’ al t ernat ive t o learning a

piece in t he t radit ional way. Improvised performances need t o have a clear st ruct ure

and sense of direct ion including development of t he original st imulus mat erial i f t hey

are t o be awarded high marks. If candidat es at t empt t his rout e t hen t hey should be

t aught improvising t echniques over t he durat ion of t he course. Candidat es who come

f rom a musical background in which improvising plays a maj or role may benef it f rom

t aking t his rout e, but t hey wil l st i l l need guidance on how best t o st ruct ure t heir

improvisat ions.

This opt ion should be marked using t he Improvising as a solo performance mark

grid. Levels of dif f icul t y for improvising are t o be j udged on t he out come of t he

performance. If t he candidat e has improvised a piece t hat , i f i t were not at ed and

performed as a st raight forward solo performance, conforms t o t he More Dif f icul t

level descript ors for t he chosen inst rument , t hen t he marks are t o be scaled using

t he More Dif f icul t column of t he scal ing grid.

Candidates offering music technology

Sequenced performances are accept able as solo performances. A sequenced

performance is considered t o be a piece t hat has been recorded using a sequencer

(eit her as a comput er program or as an onboard feat ure of a keyboard/ synt hesiser),

including a minimum of t hree individual ly sounding part s. Keyboards (including

organ, piano and harpsichord) and drum kit s are considered t o be one individual part .

A percussion part in addit ion t o a drum part would be t hought of as anot her

individual part . Piano and synt h st rings would be considered t o be t wo individual

part s. The most st raight forward way t o count part s is t o consider how many

individuals would be required t o perform t he sequenced part s l ive. Each individual

would count as one part .

Sequenced performances can be recorded using a MIDI keyboard t o play t he part s,

layering one at a t ime and lat er edit ing t hem for accuracy or by using a mouse t o

input t he not es and lat er edit ing t hem for musical it y. Accuracy is wort h 10 out of a

possible 25 marks wit h int erpret at ion making up t he remaining 15 marks, so care and

at t ent ion must be given t o det ails such as dynamics, balance bet ween part s,

art iculat ion and phrasing, panning and ef fect s (reverb and chorus part icularly).

Candidat es should consider how t he acoust ic inst rument produces sound and t ry t o

imit at e it as best as possible (for example, a f lut e cannot play t wo not es at once, so

overlapping not es wil l sound unreal ist ic, but an acoust ic guit ar almost always has

mult iple st rings ringing int o each ot her, so programming one not e at a t ime would

sound unreal ist ic).

The fact t hat a candidat e can ent er t he not es manual ly using a mouse gives t hose

who have never had inst rument al lessons t he opport unit y t o show t heir musical it y by

edit ing t heir sequences t o make t hem sound real ist ic and musical.


The fol lowing should be edit ed t o ensure a musical sequence.

• The st art ing t imes of not es and t heir durat ion t o achieve phrasing ef fect s. This is

best done in t he piano rol l / mat rix/ edit page by using t he pencil t ool t o al t er t he

lengt hs of t he boxes represent ing t he not es.

• The t empo might be subt ly al t ered, giving t he impression of sl ight ly holding back

at t he ends of phrases, or by a sl ight push in t he chorus et c. This can be achieved

in t he t empo edit or. It is best t o keep t empo changes subt le or t hey can spoil t he

overal l musical it y of a sequence.

• The not e velocit y or loudness of t he not e as it is f irst sounded — if t hese values

were al l equal (as would be t he default when ent ering by mouse) t hen t he piece

would immediat ely lack any l i fe or art iculat ion. These can be edit ed in a window

at t he bot t om of t he piano rol l / mat rix/ edit page or by al t ering t he value in t he

l ist edit page.

• The volume of t he not es af t er t hey have been sounded, or t he gradual shaping of

crescs and dims using Cont rol ler 7 — Main Channel Volume. This can of t en be

drawn in using t he pencil t ool in a window at t he bot t om of t he piano

rol l / mat rix/ edit page. This is t he way t o achieve a volume swel l during t he

durat ion of a not e.

• The balance bet ween individual part s; t he lead part should always be t o t he

foref ront (al t hough not t oo much), but al l support ing part s should have t heir

volumes al t ered so t hat t hey are at t he correct level wit h respect t o t he ot her

part s. This can be achieved by ent ering values for Cont rol ler 7 in t he l ist edit

page or by using t he mixer page.

• The choice of t imbre for each part should be appropriat e. This may af fect t he

choice of piece for sequencing. For example, i f t he solo st ring sounds are

part icularly bad t hen a st r ing quart et should not be sequenced, but i f t he

woodwind sounds are part icularly real ist ic t hen a wind quint et might be a good

choice.

• The t imbres should be placed real ist ical ly in t he lef t and right speakers so as t o

resemble what t he l ist ener would experience were t hey t o sit at t he f ront row of

a concert . A piano, viol in and cel lo t r io would be placed sl ight ly t o t he lef t and

right of cent re, not t o ext remes, but a ful l orchest ra or wind band might use

more of t he ext reme values. This ‘ st ereo placement ’ is achieved using t he Pan

cont rol ler (no.10) and can be al t ered using t he appropriat e boxes at t he lef t of

t he main arrange page or by ent ering an init ial value in t he l ist edit page.

• Reverb and chorus should be added as appropriat e. Reverb gives an impression of

dist ance f rom t he l ist ener and chorus gives t he impression of mult iples of t he

inst rument in quest ion (a st ring sect ion would have quit e a lot of chorus, for

example). These values should not be changed over t he durat ion of t he piece.

It is accept able for a candidat e’ s own composit ion t o be submit t ed as a solo

sequence.

Please not e t hat only MIDI sequences are accept able for t his component owing t o t he

dif f icul t y in assessing pieces assembled f rom loops and samples t hat have been pre-

recorded. There are many music-making programs commercial ly available and

t eachers are expect ed t o exercise discret ion as t o what programs st udent s use.

Teachers are advised t o writ e t o t he Music Assessment Team, at t he main Edexcel

address, i f t here is any doubt as t o t he suit abil i t y of t he comput er program.


Music t echnology solo performance work must be entirely the candidate’s own work

and must not include any t racks performed by anyone else, including sampled or

looped t racks bundled wit h t he comput er program or a part played in by t he t eacher.

Ensemble performing (15%)

For t he purposes of t his examinat ion, an ensemble must be t wo or more people

performing independent part s t oget her. This may be wit h or wit hout addit ional

accompaniment and/ or backing t rack.

For Ensemble performing t here is also a f ree choice of st yle. However, i t is a

requirement t hat either the solo or ensemble performance must be from the same

Area of Study as composition 1. Candidat es have t he opport unit y t o perform on a

second inst rument . Performances wit h ot her players may t ake place in t he

classroom, in school music groups or out side t he school (for example in local choirs,

bands, orchest ras or rock groups) but al l MUST be in t he presence of t he t eacher.

In sit uat ions where a soloist is accompanied by anot her inst rument such as t he piano,

t he accompanying candidat e may submit t his performance as an ensemble but t he

soloist may not .

Each candidat e wil l submit det ails of t heir Ensemble performance on t he Record

Sheet provided by Edexcel. The t eacher examiner must be present for t he

performance. A recording must be submit t ed of t he performance for moderat ion

purposes. The performances wil l be marked by t he t eacher examiner and made

available for moderat ion as required. Furt her det ails about t he assessment of work

are given on pages 41–93.

Candidat es can of fer any of t he fol lowing act ivi t ies for Ensemble performance:

• performing an undoubled part wit hin an ensemble or group

• direct ing an ensemble

• improvising as part of an ensemble

• ensemble performance using music t echnology (mult i-t rack recording).

For t hose candidat es of fering music technology:

An ensemble performance using music t echnology is considered t o be one of t he

fol lowing:

• a mult i-t rack recording in which t he candidat e t o be assessed has played one or

more of t he part s

• a mult i-t rack recording in which t he candidat e t o be assessed has not performed

any of t he part s

• a mult i-t rack recording t hat cont ains some element of sequencing (by t he

candidat e) in addit ion t o some recorded part s.

Please note that sequencing is not acceptable as an ensemble performance using

music technology unless it forms part of a multi-track recording in which other,

live performances have been recorded by the candidate.


A mult i-t rack recording is considered t o be a recording t hat has capt ured dif ferent

inst rument s on separat e t racks of a recording device (an 8-t rack MiniDisc recorder,

for example) so t hat each can be al t ered in some way (volume adj ust ed, EQed,

ef fect s added et c) wit hout af fect ing t he ot her t racks. The recording of t he

inst rument s/ voices may have been done al l at one t ime, wit h each inst rument / voice

having an individual microphone t o capt ure it while at t empt ing t o exclude t he ot her

sound sources, or i t may have been layered one t rack at a t ime (overdubbing). A

mult i-t rack recording is dist inct f rom a sequence in t hat i t deals wit h audio rat her

t han MIDI. There are t wo st raight forward ways of drawing a dist inct ion bet ween t he

t wo:

• no edit ing of individual not e lengt hs, pit ches et c is readily available for audio

af t er i t has been recorded, whereas t his t ype of edit ing is almost expect ed of

MIDI informat ion

• audio is carr ied on st andard microphone leads or j ack-j ack inst rument cables. If a

5-pin MIDI cable is being used t o carry informat ion t hen t he piece uses MIDI rat her

t han audio.

If keyboard playing is recorded by t aking a lead f rom it s audio out put t hen it is

considered t o be part of a mult i-t rack recording (it has been Direct Inj ect ed or DIed).

If keyboard playing is recorded int o an int ernal sequencer or using a MIDI lead t o a

comput er sequencer t hen it is considered t o be part of a sequence.

There are several ski l ls involved in making a mult i-t rack recording. The candidat e

must f irst ensure t hat t he performers are suf f icient ly rehearsed so as t o be able t o

perform t he piece wel l . The candidat e is responsible for checking t he t uning of al l

t he inst rument s before t he recording as, in most cases, t his is impossible t o f ix

af t erwards. Careful placement of microphones wil l ensure t hat t he best possible

sound is capt ured on t he mult i-t rack recording device, af t er which a considerable

amount of ef fort should be put int o mixing down t o a st ereo mast er recording. This

should include careful at t ent ion t o t he relat ive balance bet ween inst rument s, t he

panning of inst rument s (in general ly t he same way as for sequencing), appl icat ion of

EQ and ef fect s (in moderat ion) and ensuring t hat t he want ed signal is as loud as

possible wit hout any dist ort ion.

Many of t hese skil ls require a great deal of musical it y, especial ly in t he init ial

rehearsing st ages and at t he mixdown st age.

• mult i-t rack recordings must include at least t hree independent t racks sounding

simult aneously.

Candidat es of fering mult i-t rack recording may include ot her performers and may

combine various t echnologies (ie sequencing, sampling, or recording) but t here

should st i l l be t hree simult aneous t racks or t imbres.

The Ensemble performance wil l be recorded (on t ape, CD or minidisc) for submission

t o Edexcel for t he purpose of moderat ion.

General

For bot h solo and ensemble performances, t he st andard of performance and t he level

of dif f icul t y of t he music wil l be assessed. Three levels of dif f icul t y are ident if ied:

• Easier

• St andard

• More Dif f icul t .


Examples of levels of dif f icul t y and assessment crit eria for solo performing and

ensemble performing can be found on pages 41–93. Dif ferent iat ion wil l be by

out come and moderat ion wil l be by post al sample. Final marks wil l be required by

May in t he year of t he examinat ion.

Please not e t hat t he solo and ensemble performances must be of t wo dif ferent

pieces.


Paper 2: Composing (30%)

In t his paper candidat es develop musical ideas in t he form of composit ions or

arrangement s. They wil l compose and submit for assessment two pieces last ing at

least three minutes in total. Bot h pieces must be composed according t o a brief

which may be set by t he t eacher or chosen by t he candidat e. The briefs must be

based on t wo dif ferent Areas of St udy. Edexcel wil l not provide sample briefs eit her

in 2008 or subsequent ly but t he sample briefs on t his specif icat ion may be used.

Group compositions are not acceptable. The composit ions wil l be marked by t he

t eacher examiner and made available for moderat ion as required.

Each submission should comprise:

a not at ed score (eit her hand-writ t en or print ed) or writ t en comment ary

and

a recording (on CD, minidisk or casset t e t ape)

and

a complet ed ‘ Underst anding t he brief ’ pro forma.

Candidat es may compose for eit her convent ional or elect ronic inst rument s. The use

of t echnology may be assessed where appropriat e using t he opt ional cri t eria (see

pages 87and 93). Such use may include amplif ied inst rument s and ef fect s, elect ronic

inst rument s (including MIDI workst at ions, samplers and record decks) and any

t echnological procedures which are int egral t o t he composit ional process or t he

musical idiom and st yle, for example sequencing, mixing, sound synt hesis and

processing. The Areas of St udy include t wo t echnology-specif ic t opics; experiment al

and elect ronic music and dance music 1985–t he present day. It should be not ed t hat

t he use of t echnology t o produce and print scores wil l not be assessed. The recording

qual it y wil l not normal ly be assessed unless recording and mixing procedures are

int egral t o t he int ent ion and out comes of t he composit ional brief .

Composit ions may be complet ed at any t ime during t he course and must be

submit t ed for moderat ion in May. When recordings are made on a minidisk recorder

which of fers mult iple recording modes, t he short play or st andard recording mode

must be used (as opposed t o t he long-play mode).

Composition 1 must be from the same Area of Study as either the Solo

performance or Ensemble performance.

Arrangement(s) may be submit t ed in l ieu of composit ion(s). An arrangement is t he

creat ion of a new version of a piece, usual ly for dif ferent resources. It may involve

changes t o any or al l of t he musical element s, but t o score high marks an

arrangement should be signif icant ly dif ferent f rom t he original and should consist of

more t han a simple t ranscript ion of not es for dif ferent inst rument s. The original

st imulus for t he arrangement must be included in each candidat e’ s submission of

coursework t o permit accurat e evaluat ion of t he ext ent of ef fect ive change.

Candidates may offer either two compositions, two arrangements or one of each.

Understanding the brief — for bot h composit ions, candidat es wil l also complet e a

pro forma, ‘ Underst anding t he brief ’ , in which t hey appraise t he brief and evaluat e

t heir composit ion. Through t his piece of writ ing t hey make connect ions bet ween

t heir composit ion, i t s performance (where appropriat e) and t he Area of St udy.


They wil l answer t he fol lowing quest ions.

• What was your composit ion (or arrangement ) brief?

• How does your composit ion (or arrangement ) meet t he brief?

• What improvement s did you make t o your work when you were composing or

arranging it ? This could include any adj ust ment s you made af t er performances of

i t .

Edexcel wil l provide a pro forma. There are separat e pro formas for composing and

arranging.


Composition 1 (15%)

Composit ion 1 must be writ t en according t o a brief based on one of the Areas of

Study or one of the topics from within the Area of Study. It may be for one or more

inst rument s and/ or voices and/ or may involve music t echnology. This composit ion

must be f rom t he same Area of St udy as eit her t he solo performing piece or t he

ensemble performing piece submit t ed for paper 1. Candidat es may perform

composit ion 1 t o ful f i l t his crit eria, but t his is no longer compulsory.

Composition 2 (15%)

Composit ion 2 must be writ t en according t o a brief based on one of the topics from

a different Area of Study. It may be for one or more inst rument s and/ or voices

and/ or may involve music t echnology.

The fol lowing informat ion appl ies t o composit ion 1 and composit ion 2.

Composition briefs

The briefs may be given by t he t eacher or chosen by t he candidat e wit h t he

t eacher’ s guidance and approval . Every brief wil l relat e t o an Area of St udy. It may

be part icular t o one of t he ‘ t opic areas’ provided below for each Area of St udy or it

may relat e t o t he Area of St udy heading. The brief must describe t he st imulus for t he

composit ion and provide a clear indicat ion of t he candidat e’ s int ent ions. It should

include reference t o some or al l of t he fol lowing: purpose, resources, ef fect , t ime

and place. Every brief should ful f i l t he requirement s for t he t ask associat ed wit h t he

t opic.

• Area of St udy 1: St ruct ure in West ern classical music 1600–1899 — ground bass

and variat ions, t ernary form, rondo

• Area of St udy 2: Changing direct ions in West ern classical music f rom 1900 —

expressionism and serial ism, minimal ism, experiment al and elect ronic music

• Area of St udy 3: Popular music in cont ext — dance music 1985 — present day,

songs f rom musicals, Brit pop and it s inf luences

• Area of St udy 4: Indian raga, Af r ican music and fusions — Indian raga, Af rican

music and fusions

More det ails about composit ion and arrangement t asks and sample briefs can be

found on pages 29–32.

The score may be handwrit t en or comput er generat ed. Candidat es must submit t heir

work in a format appropriat e t o t he st yle. This may be a ful ly not at ed score, a lead

sheet or chord chart , t rack sheet s, t ables or diagrams.

Candidates not enclosing a score must submit a written commentary. It should

give a det ailed descript ion of t he composit ion (or arrangement ) and t he performance

det ails. It should refer t o t he musical cont ent t hroughout . Comment aries must not be

a padded out version of t he brief — t hey should cont ain similar informat ion t o t hat in

a score; det ails of performance indicat ions and t he composer’ s int ent ions. A good

comment ary cont aining suf f icient informat ion for an accept able real isat ion of t he

composer’ s int ent ions is accept able for any st yle of music.


Lyric sheet s alone are not accept able as scores/ comment aries. Lyric sheet s wit h

pit ch and rhyt hm informat ion, chords, and some indicat ion of accompaniment st yle,

are accept able.

What ever format or combinat ion of format s is chosen, t he present at ion must be

suf f icient ly clear for t he examiner t o be able t o make an assessment of t he

composit ion.

Candidates must submit a score or written commentary to fulfil the requirements

of the specification. Candidates’ work will not be moderated if they infringe this

requirement .

The recording: composit ions and arrangement s may be complet ed and recorded at

any t ime during t he course. They may be real ised t hrough convent ional inst rument s

or music t echnology. The qual it y of recorded performances wil l not be assessed.

Dif ferent iat ion wil l be by out come. Moderat ion wil l be by post al sample.


Assessment criteria

There are dif ferent assessment crit eria for composing and for arranging. These

crit eria are on pages 83 t o 93.

It is expect ed t hat t eachers wil l give general suggest ions and advice about

coursework t asks and ensure t hat work is complet ed wit hin specif icat ion

requirement s. They must provide suf f icient supervision t o enable t hem t o give

assurances t hat submissions are t he candidat es’ own unaided work and be able t o

aut hent icat e bot h recordings and scores or comment aries.


Composition and arrangement tasks and sample briefs

Area of Study 1

Structure in Western Classical music 1600-1899

Ground bass

Sample composit ion

briefs

Compose a piece based on an eight -bar ground bass for an

inst rument al quart et and percussion represent ing a

marching band get t ing closer, passing by and t hen

marching int o t he dist ance.

Your piece should begin wit h t he ground bass played solo,

building t o a busy, t hick t ext ure, gradual ly becoming

sparser as t he piece goes on unt i l only t he ground bass

remains.

Sample arrangement

brief

You have been asked t o provide music for your school

speech day. Make an arrangement of some or al l of a

piece which uses a ground bass (or relat ed genre), eg

Pachelbel, Canon; Purcel l , Chaconny in G minor ; Bach;

Passacagl ia in C Minor .

Ternary form

Sample composit ion

brief

Compose a fanfare for t wo wind inst rument s for a

ceremony t o mark t he opening of a new sport s cent re. The

A sect ion should be at t ent ion grabbing, t he B sect ion

quiet er while guest s are greet ed at t he door, and t he

repeat ed A sect ion should end wit h a spir it ed coda while a

celebrit y guest st eps up t o cut t he ribbon and ent er t he

new building.

Sample arrangement

brief

Make an arrangement of a piano piece for t he school brass

group. The select ed st imulus piece should make st rong

cont rast s bet ween dif ferent mat erial . Make t he most of

t hese cont rast s by using dif ferent inst rument at ion for each

sect ion.

Rondo

Sample composit ion

brief

Compose a piece in rondo form for a combinat ion of

inst rument s (no more t han f ive) played by members of

your class. This piece is t o be performed in a concert for

visit ing primary schools t o demonst rat e t he pot ent ial of

t he inst rument s.

The t heme sect ions should involve al l t he inst rument s, but

each episode should highl ight one of t hem.

Sample arrangement

brief

Make an arrangement of a piece which was not original ly

in rondo form, select ing a t heme f rom t he melodic

mat erial in t he st imulus piece and making st rong cont rast s

bet ween t his and t he episodes. Enhance t hese cont rast s

by using dif ferent inst rument at ion for each sect ion.


Area of Study 2

Changing directions in Western Classical music from 1900


Sample composit ion

briefs

Compose an 8-not e row based on perfect fourt h and minor

3rd int ervals.

Compose a piece in a serial st yle, using only your row and

t he main t ransformat ions of your row (including at least

one t ransposit ion), concent rat ing on t ext ural and dynamic

cont rast . It is t o be used in a f i lm ent it led Clowns and

Night mares.

Sample arrangement

brief

Make an arrangement for chamber orchest ra of an at onal

piano piece t o be used as mood music for a radio

adapt at ion of Dracula. You should use t he ful l range of t he

inst rument s in your piece, concent rat ing on t ext ural and

dynamic cont rast .

Minimalism

Sample composit ion

brief

Compose a piece for percussion ensemble and elect ric

guit ar for performance during t he school art fest ival on

t he t heme Changes. Your piece should ref lect t he art work

which feat ures images of gradual ly t ransforming shapes

and colours.

Sample arrangement

brief

Make an arrangement for st r ing quart et of a minimal ist

piano piece (eg Glass Met amorphosis) t o accompany a

si lent f i lm about early t ransport .

Electronic and experimental music

Sample composit ion

brief

Record 10 dif ferent sounds t hat represent t he word

‘ wint er’ . These could be a combinat ion of spoken words,

samples of music or sound ef fect s.

Experiment wit h t ransformat ions of t hese sounds using t he

ef fect s and audio edit ing t ools available in a sequencing

program.

Combine your t ransformat ions so t hat t he original sounds

become increasingly dist ort ed as t he piece progresses.

Sample arrangement

brief

The local art gal lery is mount ing an exhibit ion of musical

scores. You have been asked t o make an arrangement

(real isat ion in convent ional not at ion) of some or al l of one

of t he graphic scores, eg Cardew, Treat ise.


Area of Study 3

Popular music in context

Dance music 1985 — the present day

Sample composit ion

brief

Compose a piece of dance music using short vocal samples

(eit her your own or import ed f rom a sample CD) and

several manipulat ions of t hese samples using sequencing

sof t ware. You should include at least t wo keyboard rif f s

composed by you.

Use t he comput er t o arrange t he t racks including at least

one ‘ breakdown’ sect ion.

Sample arrangement

brief

Make a remix of a recent chart hit set t ing it in a dif ferent

key wit h a new keyboard rif f . You should give t he piece a

new st ruct ure and include signif icant new mat erial t o

t ransform t he mood of t he original.

Songs from musicals

Sample composit ion

brief

Compose a bal lad for a new rock musical cal led ‘ Cit y Life’ .

Your song should focus on one area of cit y l i fe as seen

t hrough t he eyes of t he main charact er in t he musical.

Keep t he verses simple, wit h t he charact er singing t o a

keyboard or guit ar accompaniment but build t he

inst rument s in t he chorus.

Sample arrangement

brief

Arrange a medley of t unes f rom a wel l known st age

musical (or musicals) for a concert ent it led ‘ Songs f rom

t he Shows’ . You should use only t he import ant t hemes

f rom each song rat her t han t he whole number. You should

writ e appropriat e l ink mat erial bet ween each t heme.

Britpop and its influences

Sample composit ion

brief

Compose a bal lad for vocal accompanied by acoust ic

guit ar and/ or piano for performance at an ‘ Unplugged’

concert , inf luenced by t he slower, more t hought ful

Beat les, Smit hs and Suede t racks. Your song should

include a verse, chorus and inst rument al sect ion.

Sample arrangement

brief

Arrange a medley of songs f rom one Brit pop band ent it led

‘ The best of ’ . You should use only t he import ant t hemes

f rom each song rat her t han t he whole number. You should

writ e appropriat e l ink mat erial bet ween each t heme.


Area of Study 4

Indian raga, African music and fusions

Indian raga

Sample composit ion

brief

Compose a piece of music for west ern inst rument s for t he

t i t le sequence of a Bol lywood f i lm ent it led Sunrise over

India. The piece should be based on a suit able morning

raga and use a 16 beat rhyt hmic cycle. It should begin

wit h a slow sect ion fol lowed by a fast er one.

Sample arrangement

brief

Not appl icable.

African music

Sample composit ion

brief

Compose a piece for xylophone orchest ra, based on

inst rument al Af rican music you have l ist ened t o in class,

t o be performed at a Christ mas celebrat ion. It should

include cal l and response and cross rhyt hms and t he

pit ches should be t aken f rom a pent at onic scale.

Sample arrangement

brief

Your school is t o have an Af rica Awareness fort night

looking at issues such as t rade, heal t h and povert y. Make

an arrangement of any piece of Af rican music you have

l ist ened t o, t ransferring t he dif ferent musical element s t o

ot her inst rument s (eg keyboard sounds).

Fusions

Sample composit ion

brief

Compose a piece t hat combines t he t radit ional sounds of

Indian raga wit h club dance music. You may include t ablas

in your drum loops and should use a t radit ional rag in t he

composit ion of t he melodies and/ or r i f f s.

Sample arrangement

brief

Make an arrangement of a recent chart hit , t ransforming it

by using t he inst rument at ion and rhyt hmic feat ures of

Highl ife.


Paper 3: Listening and appraising (40%)

1 hour 30 minutes

Candidat es wil l respond t o quest ions based on recorded ext ract s of music on a CD in

an examinat ion last ing 1 hour 30 minut es. Al l candidat es wil l be expect ed t o respond

t o music f rom a variet y of st yles and t radit ions across all four Areas of Study (see

below). The paper wil l be ext ernal ly marked.

Candidat es wil l be given t en minut es t o read t he quest ions which wil l be print ed in a

quest ion/ answer booklet . Each ext ract wil l be repeat ed a number of t imes

appropriat e t o t he demands of t he quest ion and a suit able pause wil l be given af t er

t he f inal playing for candidat es t o complet e t heir answers before t he next quest ion is

int roduced. Candidat es wil l be informed on t he quest ion paper of t he number of

t imes each ext ract is t o be played.

A range of quest ion t ypes including mult iple choice, melody complet ion, grid

complet ion and f ree response quest ions wil l be used as appropriat e t o t he musical

ext ract select ed. Dif ferent iat ion wil l be achieved t hrough a range of quest ions of

varying dif f icul t y. Candidat es wil l be asked t o respond t o t he quest ions based on t he

ext ract s heard on t he examinat ion CD and also topic areas they have studied in

class. Credit wil l be given for references t o appropriat e examples.

Areas of Study

The specif icat ion cont ent is def ined by t he l ist s of forms and st yles for each Area of

St udy. Candidat es wil l st udy t he way sound is organised t hrough relevant musical

element s, devices, inst rument al resources, t onal it ies, st ruct ures, not at ions and

cont ext ual inf luences.


Structure in

Western classical

music 1600-1899

Changing

directions in

Western classical

music from 1900

Popular music in

context

Indian raga,

African music and

fusions

Through t he st udy

of :

• ground bass

and variat ions

• t ernary form

• rondo.

Through t he st udy

of :

• expressionism

and serial ism

• minimal ism

• experiment al

and elect ronic

music.

Through t he st udy

of :

• dance music

1985 — present

day

• songs f rom

musicals


inf luences.

Through t he st udy

of :

• Indian raga

• African music

• fusions.


In Paper 3 candidat es wil l be expect ed t o respond t o music f rom a variet y of st yles

and t radit ions across t he four Areas of St udy t hrough:

• displaying a knowledge of t he musical element s def ined by t he Nat ional

Curriculum:

− pit ch

− durat ion

− dynamics

− t empo

− t imbre

− t ext ure

and t he use of t he above wit hin

− st ruct ure

• ident if ying how resources are used in dif ferent combinat ions

• ident if ying musical charact erist ics

• ident if ying dif ferent devices, t onal it ies and st ruct ures

• relat ing music t o t he cont ext in which it was creat ed

• expressing and j ust if ying opinions and preferences

• using appropriat e musical vocabulary

• demonst rat ing an underst anding of relevant not at ions including convent ional st af f

not at ion

• ident if ying convent ions used in dif ferent t imes and places

• underst anding how and why musical st yles and t radit ions change in dif ferent

t imes and places.

The l ist of general musical vocabulary (see pages 35–40) provides a guide t o t he

breadt h, dept h and range of underst anding required across t he specif icat ion. It does

not necessari ly include al l t he special ist vocabulary which wil l be specif ic t o each

t opic eg names of inst rument s and formal and composit ional devices. The vocabulary

may be used in t he const ruct ion of quest ions and candidat es may also f ind it useful in

t heir responses. However, credit wil l be given for t he use of any language which

adequat ely describes t he music heard and answers t he quest ions. Quest ions wil l

highl ight feat ures t o which candidat es experienced in general l ist ening skil ls wil l be

able t o respond readily.


Musical vocabulary

Alt hough t his l ist of musical vocabulary is specif ical ly ment ioned under t he heading

of List ening and appraising, i t is int ended t o support t he whole specif icat ion.

Candidat es wil l be expect ed t o have encount ered most of t he concept s included and

t o use some of t hem in Performing and Composing. The l ist is not exhaust ive and

candidat es may wish t o use ot her t erms for which t hey wil l be given ful l credit . It

does not necessari ly include al l t he special ist vocabulary which wil l be specif ic t o

each t opic, eg names of inst rument s and formal and composit ional devices.

Pitch

Pitch Melody Harmony and tonality Notation

pit ch names

sharp, f lat

oct ave

int ervals wit hin an

oct ave

range

regist er

nat ural

unison

inversion

(diat onic) key

t onic

sub-dominant

dominant

t ones

semi-t ones

t essit ura

blues scale

blue not es

pent at onic

raga (Indian)

series/ not e row

movement :

st ep

leap

scal ic

int erval

enharmonic

chromat ic

gl issando

ornament at ion

repet it ion

port ament o

consonance

dissonance

diat onic harmony

maj or

minor

modal

at onal

concept and

recognit ion of

cadences:

perfect , imperfect ,

plagal, int errupt ed

concept and

recognit ion of

modulat ion of relat ed

keys

IV, V and relat ives

t ranspose

pedal

drone

chord pat t ern

arpeggio/ broken chord

t r iads

f igured bass

convent ional st af f

not at ion:

st ave, score

clefs (t reble and

bass)

bar

double bar l ine

key signat ure

t ime signat ure

not e values

phrase

art iculat ion marks

dynamic signs

ornament signs

passing not e

t r i l l

t urn

grace not e

non-st andard

not at ion

3-l ine st aves

showing relat ive

pit ch

graphic not at ion

prose score

oral t radit ion


Duration and tempo

Duration Metre Tempo

instructions

not e values

pulse/ beat

t r iplet

dot t ed rhyt hm

phrase (lengt h and

shape)

phrase st ruct ure

anacrusis

simple duple

simple t r iple

simple quadruple

compound duple

irregular

regular

t ala (Indian)

f ree

syncopat ion

of f beat

cross rhyt hm

rhyt hmic

count erpoint

swing rhyt hm

polyrhyt hm

adagio

largo

andant e

moderat o

al legro

vivace

prest o

accelerando

rit ardando/ ral lent ando

al largando

rubat o

si lence

pause

Dynamics and articulation

fort issimo

fort e

mezzo fort e

mezzo piano

piano/ pianissimo

crescendo

diminuendo

subit o

accent / sforzando

si lence

legat o

st accat o

t remolo

pizzicat o

arco

col legno

Timbre

Vocal sounds and vocal

combinations

Instrumental families Instrumental

combinations/ ensembles

t reble

soprano

al t o/ cont ral t o

t enor

bass

falset t o

a cappel la

choir

chorus

backing vocals

word paint ing

brass

percussion

st rings

woodwind

elect ric

keyboard

piano

harpsichord

elect ric piano

organ

elect ronic

sampler

synt hesiser

drum machine

sequencer

st ring orchest ra

orchest ra

chamber orchest ra

st r ing quart et

concert ant e

t ut t i

wind band/ mil i t ary

brass band

rock band

drum and bass

dance band


Texture

monophonic

het erophonic

homophonic

polyphonic

melody and accompaniment

solo

unison

doubl ing

2/ 3/ 4 part

t ut t i

count er melody

descant

cont rapunt al

Structure

ground bass

rondo

t heme, variat ions

t ernary form

binary form

minuet and t r io

chaconne

passacagl ia

mot ifs

scherzo and t r io

concert o

repet it ion

recapit ulat ion

decorat ion

sequence

imit at ion

canon

basso ost inat o

rif f s

mot ivic

development

episode

answering phrase

symmet rical phrase

int roduct ion

coda

t ernary

st rophic

rit ornel lo

sequence

da capo

obbl igat o

raga

alap

j hor

j hala

gat

bandish

t hrough-composed

aleat oric/ chance

cal l and response

verse and chorus

middle eight

int erlude

hook

int ro/ out ro

break

t ape loop

improvised

dance music

sect ions

mix in

main breakdown

reprise

mix out


Instrumental/ vocal techniques

arco

pizzicat o

col legno

double st opping

t r iple st opping

con sordino

sl iding/ gl issando/

port ament o

ululat ion

sprechst imme

sprechgesang

vocal ise

colorat ura

whispering

humming

hammer ons

pul l of fs

st r ing bending

palm mut ing

harmonics


t one row

not e row

prime row

prime order

inversion

ret rograde

ret rograde inversion

vert ical isat ion

augment at ion

diminut ion

canon/ imit at ion

point i l l ism

oct ave displacement

at onal

serial ism

Minimalism

ost inat i

int erlocking phrases

phase shif t ing

addit ion

subt ract ion

drone

repet it ion

melodic t ransformat ion

rhyt hmic t ransformat ion

polyrhyt hm

cycl ic

layering

repet it ion

loops

cel ls/ short mot ifs

Experimental and electronic music

sequencers

synt hesizers

analogue synt h

mult i-t racking

sampling

looping

edit ing

vari-speeding

pan

environment al noise

aleat oric

indet erminacy

graphic score

virt ual model l ing


Dance music

Jamaican dub

funk

disco

European synt h-

pop

hip hop

house

t echno

t rance

j ungle/ drum ‘ n’

bass

garage

DJ

mixing

scrat ching

samplers

vocoders

4 t o t he f loor

EQ

reverb

chorus

dist ort ion

quant izat ion

breakbeat s

delay

f langer

pan

velocit ies

sound modules

at t ack

decay

pit ch shif t / pit ch

bend

gat ing

f i l t ering

hook

l ick

breakdown

groove

horn sect ion

int ro

st ab

break

middle eight

mix in

main

breakdown

reprise

mix out

Songs from musicals

verse

chorus

middle eight

symmet rical 8 bar phrases

hook

int ro

out ro

burlesque

opéra-bouf fe

(opera buf fa)

vaudevil le

operet t a

ext ravaganza

melodrama


Indian raga

improvisat ion

drone

t ala

(t ala, t aal)

chaal

bols

mant ras

meend (mind)

rasa

sam

shenai

t an (t aan)

t eent al

gharana

bansui

syncopat ion

Rag (raga, raag)

alap

j hor (j or, j od)

bandish

gat

j hala

bols

sit ar

sarod

sarangi

t abla

harmonium

dhol

t ampura

(t ambura)

African music

dj embe

mast er drum

t alking drum (donno, t ama)

agogo bel l (double bel l , gankogui)

dundun

vocal l ines

cal l and response

cross rhyt hms

polyrhyt hms

polyphony

membraphones

vocables

griot

t one languages

hosho

mbira

balophon

(balafon, balofon)

kora

bir imint ingo

isicat hamiya

kumbengo

kushaura

kut sinhira


Internal assessment

Paper 1 — Performing

Performance assessment is divided int o t wo areas: Solo performing and Ensemble

performing. Bot h are marked out of 25. The total mark for t his paper is 50.

Assessment of bot h Solo performing and Ensemble performing is a six st ep process:

1 Choose the appropriate assessment grids for each performance area (pages

42–56).

• Solo performing

Eit her : Solo performance or Solo performance using a sequencer

• Ensemble performing

Eit her

Ensemble performance/ direct ing an ensemble, or

Improvising as part of an ensemble, or

Ensemble performance using music t echnology

2 Assess t he candidat e’ s solo performing using t he t wo assessment grids t o arr ive at

a mark out of 25 (by adding t he 10 mark grid t o t he 15 mark grid).

3 Decide on a level of dif f icul t y for t he piece/ s or part played using t he examples

given on pages 57–82 as guidance.

4 Scale t he mark out of 25 using t he Levels of di f f icul t y gr id on page 42 t o arrive at

a f inal mark out of 25. Do not round up any hal f marks unt i l Stage 6.

5 Mark t he Ensemble performing piece using st eps 1–4.

6 Add t oget her t he marks for Solo performing and Ensemble performing t o achieve

a f inal mark out of 50. Round up any half marks. This mark should be submit t ed

t o Edexcel.

The recordings, along wit h t he marks awarded and t he t eacher examiner comment s,

wil l be made available for moderat ion as required. Pro forma wil l be provided by

Edexcel.


Paper 1A/ B — Performing

Performance assessment is divided int o t wo areas: Solo performing and Performing

during t he course. Bot h are marked out of 25. The t ot al mark for t his paper is 50.

Levels of difficulty grid

Assess t he candidat e’ s performance using t he performance grids t o arrive at a mark

out of 25.

Assess t he level of dif f icul t y of t he music played using t he guidance on pages 57-82 t o

arrive at a level of dif f icul t y, ie Easier, St andard or More Dif f icul t .

Combine t hese, using t he grid below, t o achieve a f inal mark out of 25.

Difficulty levels

Total mark Easier Standard More Difficult

1 1 1 4

2 1 2 5

3 1 3 6

4 1 4 7

5 2 5 8

6 3 6 9

7 4 7 10

8 5 8 11

9 6 9 12

10 7 10 13

11 8 11 14

12 9 12 15

13 10 13 16

14 11 14 17

15 12 15 18

16 13 16 19

17 14 17 20

18 15 18 21

19 16 19 22

20 17 20 23

21 18 21 24

22 19 22 25

23 20 23 25

24 21 24 25

25 22 25 25


Solo performance

Mark Accuracy (ie notes, rests, ties, rhythm)

9-10 The performance is accurat e and f luent — any sl ips are inconsequent ial .

Int onat ion is secure.

7-8 The performance is mainly accurat e and f luent — only occasional smal l

sl ips. Int onat ion is general ly secure.

5-6 The performance is broadly accurat e — but errors int errupt t he f low.

Int onat ion is insecure.

3-4

Accuracy is only achieved in t he more st raight forward passages of t he

performance. Fluency is repeat edly af fect ed by errors. Int onat ion is

seriously insecure.

1-2 Basic accuracy and f luency are only occasional ly evident in t he

performance. Int onat ion is severely def icient .

Mark Interpretation

13-15

A performance t hat is bot h convincing and idiomat ic — a secure sense of

st yle wit h det ailed at t ent ion t o art iculat ion, phrasing and dynamic

cont rast .

10-12

A performance wit h a clear, but not ent irely convincing, sense of st yle —

t he meaning of t he music is adequat ely conveyed and most opport unit ies

t o shape t he music wit h art iculat ion, phrasing and dynamic cont rast are

observed.

7-9

An awareness of st yle is displayed during some expressive passages —

shaping t hrough art iculat ion, phrasing and dynamic cont rast is observed

t o some ext ent .

4-6 A basic awareness of st yle — only l imit ed at t empt s t o shape t he music

t hrough art iculat ion, phrasing and dynamic cont rast occur.

1-3 No conscious sense of st yle — l it t le underst anding of how t o shape t he

music t hrough art iculat ion, phrasing or dynamic cont rast is evident .


Improvising as a solo performance

NB: Improvised performances will be accepted for this part of the unit only if a

musical motif, a rhythmic pattern or a chord scheme is supplied.

Mark Improvising

9-10

An accurat e performance of t he st imulus. The original idea is exploit ed

wit h f luency and imaginat ion showing cont rast , development , a sound sense

of st ruct ure and t he pot ent ial of t he inst rument . Int onat ion is secure.

7-8

An accurat e performance of t he st imulus. The original idea is exploit ed

wit h f luency and some imaginat ion, cont rast , development , sense of

st ruct ure and some awareness of t he pot ent ial of t he inst rument .

Int onat ion is general ly secure.

5-6

A broadly accurat e performance of t he st imulus. Exploit at ion of t he original

idea is lacking in some of t he aspect s of f luency, imaginat ion, cont rast ,

development , sense of st ruct ure and in a l imit ed awareness of t he pot ent ial

of t he inst rument . Int onat ion is insecure.

3-4

A l imit ed response in performing t he st imulus. Any exploit at ion of t he

original idea is now af fect ed by excessive repet it ion, hesit ancy, l i t t le sense

of st ruct ure and minimal awareness of t he pot ent ial of t he inst rument .

Int onat ion is seriously insecure.

1-2 The st imulus is ignored. The present ed performance has some merit in it s

st ruct ure.

Mark Interpretation

13-15



cont rast .

10-12


t he meaning of t he music is adequat ely conveyed and most opport unit ies t o

shape t he music wit h art iculat ion, phrasing and dynamic cont rast are

observed.

7-9


shaping t hrough art iculat ion, phrasing and dynamic cont rast is observed t o

some ext ent .

4-6 A basic awareness of st yle — only l imit ed at t empt s t o shape t he music


1-3 No conscious sense of st yle — l it t le underst anding of how t o shape t he

music t hrough art iculat ion, phrasing and dynamic cont rast is evident .


Solo performance using music technology (sequencing)

Mark Accuracy (of pitch and rhythm)

9-10 The accuracy of t he performance is excel lent — any sl ips are

inconsequent ial .

7-8 There are occasional, smal l sl ips wit hin t he performance which do not

det ract f rom t he performance.

5-6 There are some not iceable errors, which det ract f rom t he performance.

3-4 There are signif icant , int rusive errors evident in t he performance, but

accuracy is achieved in t he more st raight forward passages.

1-2 Accuracy is only occasional ly evident / no at t ent ion t o accuracy of not e

input .

Mark Interpretation — 1) Articulation and Phrasing, 2) Dynamics, 3) Timbre,

4) Panning

13-15 A convincing and st yl ish performance — wit h det ailed and musical

at t ent ion t o t he four areas of int erpret at ion. Dynamics have been shaped

in addit ion t o basic dynamic cont rast s.

10-12 A good performance — at t ent ion has been given t o al l four areas t o

produce a musical ly sat isfying sequence wit h some sense of st yle.

7-9 A general ly successful performance — some at t ent ion given t o t hree of t he

four areas. Some sense of st yle.

4-6 An adequat e performance — some at t ent ion has been given t o t wo of t he

four areas. A l imit ed sense of st yle.

1-3 A basic performance — t here is l i t t le evidence of at t ent ion t o musical

det ail or st yle.

Please note: this grid is only to be used when the candidate has sequenced a

piece written by someone other than themselves. If the piece to be submitted is a

candidate’s own composition then the following mark scheme should be used.


Solo performance using music technology (sequencing) — when the piece

to be submitted is the candidate’s own composition

Mark Articulation and phrasing

9-10 Excel lent — det ailed and musical art iculat ion and phrasing bringing t he

sequence t o l i fe.

7-8 Good — musical ly sat isfying art iculat ion and phrasing.

5-6 Adequat e — some at t ent ion has been given t o producing a musical result .

3-4 Funct ional — some at t ent ion has been given t o art iculat ion and phrasing,

but t here are misj udgement s.

1-2 Lit t le or no at t ent ion has been given t o art iculat ion and phrasing.

Mark Interpretation — 1) Dynamics, 2) Timbre, 3) Panning

13-15 A convincing and st yl ish performance — det ailed and musical at t ent ion t o

t he t hree areas of int erpret at ion. Dynamics have been shaped in addit ion

t o basic dynamic cont rast s.

10-12 A good performance — at t ent ion has been given t o al l t hree areas t o

produce a musical ly sat isfying sequence wit h some sense of st yle.

7-9 A general ly successful performance — some at t ent ion given t o t wo of t he

t hree areas. Some sense of st yle.

4-6 An adequat e performance — some at t ent ion has been given t o one of t he

areas of int erpret at ion. A l imit ed sense of st yle.

1-3 A basic performance — t here is l i t t le evidence of at t ent ion t o musical

det ail or st yle.


Ensemble performance

Mark Accuracy (ie notes, rests, ties, rhythm)


Int onat ion is secure.


sl ips. Int onat ion is general ly secure.

5-6 The performance is broadly accurat e — errors int errupt t he f low.

Int onat ion is insecure.

3-4

Accuracy is only achieved in t he more st raight forward passages of t he

performance. Fluency is repeat edly af fect ed by errors. Int onat ion is

seriously insecure.

1-2 Basic accuracy and f luency are only occasional ly evident in t he

performance. Int onat ion is severely def icient .

Mark Ensemble skill

13-15



cont rast .

React s and adj ust s t o ot her part s and displays an excel lent awareness of

balance t hroughout .

10-12


t he meaning of t he music is adequat ely conveyed and most opport unit ies

t o shape t he music wit h art iculat ion, phrasing and dynamic cont rast are

observed.

General ly react s and adj ust s t o ot her part s and displays a good

awareness of balance t hroughout .

7-9


shaping t hrough art iculat ion, phrasing and dynamic cont rast is observed

t o some ext ent .

Dif f icul t ies in react ing and adj ust ing t o ot her part s. Displays a reasonable


4-6

A basic awareness of st yle — only l imit ed at t empt s t o shape t he music


Frequent dif f icul t ies in react ing and adj ust ing t o ot her part s. Displays a

l imit ed awareness of balance t hroughout .

1-3

No conscious sense of st yle — l it t le underst anding of how t o shape t he


Lacks an underst anding of t he demands of ensemble performance.


Improvising as part of an ensemble

Mark Improvising

9-10

The playing is f luent and imaginat ive. It demonst rat es an abil i t y t o exploit

t he original ideas, incorporat ing a sense of st ruct ure and development and

a ful l awareness of t he pot ent ial of t he inst rument . Int onat ion is secure.

7-8

The playing is f luent wit h a degree of imaginat ion. It demonst rat es an

abil i t y t o incorporat e a sense of st ruct ure and development as wel l as some

awareness of t he pot ent ial of t he inst rument . Int onat ion is general ly

secure.

5-6

The playing is reasonably f luent wit h only sl ight hesit at ion. It demonst rat es

a basic sense of st ruct ure and development as wel l as a l imit ed awareness

of t he pot ent ial of t he inst rument . Int onat ion is of t en insecure.

3-4

The playing is rat her hesit ant , l imit ed by excessive repet it ion and lacks a

sense of st ruct ure and development . There is a minimal awareness of t he

pot ent ial of t he inst rument . Int onat ion is insecure.

1-2

The playing is increasingly hesit ant and very l imit ed, wit h excessive

repet it ion, no sense of st ruct ure and a very minimal awareness of t he

pot ent ial of t he inst rument . Int onat ion is seriously insecure.

Mark Interpretation

13-15



cont rast .

React s and adj ust s t o ot her part s and displays an excel lent awareness of

balance t hroughout .

10-12


t he meaning of t he music is adequat ely conveyed and most opport unit ies t o

shape t he music wit h art iculat ion, phrasing and dynamic cont rast are

observed.

General ly react s and adj ust s t o ot her part s and displays a good awareness

of balance t hroughout .

7-9


shaping t hrough art iculat ion, phrasing and dynamic cont rast is observed t o

some ext ent .

Dif f icul t ies in react ing and adj ust ing t o ot her part s. Displays a reasonable


4-6

A basic awareness of st yle — only l imit ed at t empt s t o shape t he music


Frequent dif f icul t ies in react ing and adj ust ing t o ot her part s. Displays a

l imit ed awareness of balance t hroughout .

1-3

No conscious sense of st yle — l it t le underst anding of how t o shape t he


Lacks an underst anding of t he demands of ensemble performance.


Directing an ensemble

NB: A candidate should offer ‘Directing an ensemble’ only if the performers in the

group have the technique to give a satisfactory performance of the music.

The evaluat ion of t his opt ion must concent rat e on t he musical out come achieved by

t he ensemble as a result of t he t echnical cont rol and t he direct ion given by t he

candidat e.

The group must consist of a minimum of t hree performers (excluding t he direct or).

The provision of a score and a video recording of t his performance are mandat ory.

Mark Preparation

9-10 Obviously wel l rehearsed af t er t hought ful preparat ion, exhibit ing

t horoughly det ailed knowledge of t he score.

7-8 Obviously quit e wel l rehearsed, exhibit ing reasonable preparat ion of t he

score.

5-6 Obviously insuf f icient ly rehearsed and t he score inadequat ely prepared.

3-4 Obviously very poorly rehearsed and wit hout due at t ent ion t o preparat ion

of t he score.

1-2 Lit t le evidence of any preparat ion of t he score and of any serious

rehearsal.


Mark Directing skill

13-15

Displays an aut horit at ive approach, el icit ing an excel lent and obvious

response f rom t he performers. Correct t empo is clearly indicat ed wit h a

precise beat .

Exercises posit ive and sensit ive cont rol of t he int erplay bet ween t he

part s and of al l performance det ails.

Achieves a secure, st yl ish and idiomat ic performance wit h an excel lent

awareness of balance, t onal qual it y and secure int onat ion.

10-12

Displays a conf ident approach, el icit ing an ef fect ive response f rom t he

performers. Correct t empo is indicat ed al t hough t he beat could be more

precise.

The ent ries and int erplay bet ween t he part s are quit e wel l cont rol led

and performance det ails reasonably wel l execut ed.

The overal l performance ref lect s a good awareness of balance and is

general ly st yl ish. Good t onal qual it y is achieved wit h general ly secure

int onat ion.

7-9

Displays a less conf ident approach, af fect ing t he response f rom t he

performers. Tempo is af fect ed by an imprecise beat .

Cont rol of ent ries and t he int erplay bet ween t he part s is indecisive and

not al l performance det ails are observed.

Al t hough an awareness of st yle is st i l l evident , t here are several

inst ances of faul t y int onat ion and t he balance is very uncert ain.

4-6

Displays a dif f ident approach wit h a correspondingly unsure response

f rom t he performers. Tempo is seriously af fect ed by fai lure t o maint ain a

const ant beat .

Few performance det ails are observed and t here are numerous

inaccuracies in pit ch and rhyt hm.

Wit h inef fect ive cont rol of ent ries and t he int erplay bet ween t he part s,

and only a basic awareness of st yle and balance, t he overal l performance

lacks cohesion.

1-3

Gives l i t t le or no posit ive indicat ion t o t he performers so t hat

performance det ails and int erplay bet ween t he part s are haphazard or

non-exist ent .

The qual it y of t he performance cannot be at t r ibut ed t o t he direct ion.


Ensemble performance using music technology

Multi-track recording where candidate has performed one or more of the live

tracks

Mark Accuracy (mark the best live track performed by the candidate)



sl ips.

5-6 The playing is broadly accurat e — t here are some small blemishes, which

int errupt t he f low.

3-4 Accuracy is achieved in t he more st raight forward passages — at t imes t he

accuracy of t he music may be achieved at t he expense of f luency and

t empo.

1-2 Basic accuracy is occasional ly evident .


Mark Recording skills*

13-15 A convincing, musical recording.

Balance/ st ereo: al l t racks are wel l balanced and good use has been made

of t he st ereo f ield.

EQ: t he ful l f requency range has been ut i l ised t hrough j udicious use of EQ.

Signal t o noise: good signal t o noise rat io. No dist ort ion or ot her noise.

FX: appropriat e and wel l cont rol led — adds t o t he recording.

10-12 A good recording, but one or t wo of t he fol lowing det ract sl ight ly f rom t he

overal l qual it y.

Balance/ st ereo: one of t he t racks is overbearing or very quiet / rest rict ed

st ereo widt h.

EQ: one of t he t racks is poorly EQed/ sl ight overal l problem (eg lack of

bright ness/ t oo harsh or boomy).

Signal t o noise: some not iceable hiss or occasional noise/ dist ort ion, but

not overly int rusive.

FX: sl ight ly overdone/ some t racks t oo dry.

7-9 A general ly successful recording, but t hree or four of t he fol lowing det ract

f rom t he overal l qual it y.


st ereo widt h.






4-6 An adequat e recording, but one or t wo of t he fol lowing signif icant ly

det ract f rom t he overal l qual it y.

Balance/ st ereo: muddy mix/ serious problems wit h t wo or more t racks/ no

use of panning.

EQ: t wo or more t racks poorly EQed/ serious overal l rest r ict ion of

f requency range (eg very bassy or t rebly recording).

Signal t o noise: very hissy or occasional int rusive noise.

FX: inappropriat ely overdone or none used at al l .

1-3 A basic recording — l it t le at t ent ion has been given t o any of t he four areas,

eg al l panned t o one side/ some inst rument s can’ t be heard at

al l / ext remely quiet recording.

*In mult i-t rack recording t he ensemble skil l is t he abil i t y t o make t he t racks work

wel l t oget her by appropriat e use of t he available t echnology.



Multi-track recording where candidate has not performed any of the tracks

Mark Unity of ensemble

9-10 Accurat e, musical performance.

Al l t racks are in t ime and compliment each ot her wel l .

7-8 Mainly accurat e — occasional smal l sl ips.

Ensemble bet ween t racks is mainly successful .

5-6 Some blemishes which det ract f rom t he overal l performance.

Occasional loss of ensemble bet ween t racks.

3-4 Signif icant , int rusive errors in performance.

Unit y of ensemble evident in st raight forward passages only.

1-2 Accuracy in performance is only occasional ly evident .

Tracks are out of t ime wit h each ot her.


Mark Recording skills








overal l qual it y.


st ereo widt h.









st ereo widt h.









use of panning.










Multi-track recording which includes an element of sequencing (candidate may

perform any combination of the live instruments or none at all, but must have

input the sequenced track/ s)

Mark Accuracy (of pitch and rhythm in sequenced track/ s)

9-10 Excel lent — any sl ips are inconsequent ial .

7-8 Occasional, smal l sl ips which do not det ract f rom t he performance.

5-6 Some not iceable errors, which det ract f rom t he performance.

3-4 Signif icant , int rusive errors evident , but accuracy is achieved in t he more

st raight forward passages.

1-2 Accuracy is only occasional ly evident / no at t ent ion t o accuracy of not e

input .


Mark Recording skills








overal l qual it y.


st ereo widt h.









st ereo widt h.









use of panning.









Levels of difficulty for instruments, voice and

sequencing

It is not possible t o provide examples for al l inst rument s. The fol lowing pages should

be used as general guidance.

Every ef fort has been made t o cont act t he copyright holders where possible. In some

cases, every ef fort t o cont act copyright holders has been unsuccessful and Edexcel

wil l be happy t o rect if y any omissions of acknowledgment s at f irst opport unit y.


VOICE

Easier level

The St reet s of Laredo (American t radit ional)

• Syl labic set t ing at a moderat ely slow t empo

• Mainly conj unct melody wit h one oct ave range

• Accompaniment (i f used) doubles voice

• Rest rict ed range of rhyt hm pat t erns

• Limit ed opport unit y for cont rast s

• Phrases t hat require ski l l in breat h cont rol

Standard level

Where is Love? (Lionel Bart )

• Mainly syl labic, plus simple mel ismas

• Slow t empo requiring sust ained l ines

• Range of a nint h and opport unit y for clear cont rast s

• More varied rhyt hm pat t erns, but of t en repeat ed

• Melody pat t erns are mainly sequent ial

• Accompaniment does not always double voice

More Difficult level

I Feel Pret t y (Bernst ein)

• Variet y of more complex rhyt hm pat t erns

• Range of a t welf t h wit h a high ending

• Vividly cont rast ed dynamics, much charact erisat ion



VOICE (cont inued)

• Fast t empo requiring clear enunciat ion

• Modulat ions in t he middle sect ion

• Accompaniment does not double voice at t he unison


STRINGS

Easier level

Viol in: Reel (Tradit ional)

• Simple met re

• Easy key for t he inst rument


• Open st rings and very simple f ingerings

• Minimal bowing t echnique wit h st raight forward art iculat ion of not es

Standard level

Violoncel lo: Sai lor ’ s dance (Timot hy Baxt er)

• Simple met re, but fair ly fast

• Occasional accident als

• Basic not e lengt hs, but used in more varied pat t erns

• More co-ordinat ion bet ween lef t hand and bow

• More varied f ingering and st ring crossing, but st i l l wit hin a fair ly l imit ed

range



STRINGS (cont inued)


Viola: Valse (Michael Rose)

• More complex rhyt hms, wit h dot t ed and t ied not es

• A range of dynamic shadings

• Occasional use of 3rd posit ion

• A more chal lenging key for t he inst rument

• Pit ch range of t wo and a half oct aves

• More det ailed and varied art iculat ion of t he bow


WOODWIND

Easier level

Flut e: St udy (Gariboldi)

• Simple met re

• Pit ch range of one oct ave

• St raight forward art iculat ion

• No not e short er t han a crot chet

• Simple key and no accident als

• No cont rast s required

Standard level

Clarinet : The Sun f rom t he East (Anon. )

• Simple met re

• Pit ch range of a t welf t h

• A variet y of art iculat ion (including slurs across t he break)

• Use of quavers in various groupings

• Occasional accident als

• Simple dynamic cont rast s


Oboe: Sarabande (M. Locke)

• A range of rhyt hm pat t erns

• A range of art iculat ion and dynamic cont rast

• A variet y of accident als

• Reasonably independent accompaniment


RECORDER

Easier level

Ton relon t on t on (Anon. ) descant recorder

• Uses a very l imit ed range of not es

• Only easy f ingering progressions

• Rhyt hmical ly very st raight forward

• Simple on-not e t onguing

Standard level

Tunes f or t he Canary (No 3) f rom ‘ The Bird Fancyer ’ s del ight ’ t reble recorder

• Use of t he upper 8ve and some st raight forward movement bet ween

unpinched and pinched not es

• There are no awkward f ingerings

• General ly simple rhyt hm pat t erns, but some use of quaver movement

• Some pot ent ial for simple int erpret at ion


Sonat a in F Op 1 No 11 (Handel) 3rd/ 4t h movement s t reble recorder

• Wide range of pit ch (which may

include chromat icism)

• Wide variet y of art iculat ion and

expression

• Cont rol led phrasing

• Independent accompaniment


BRASS

Easier level

Trumpet : On Parade (t he Real ly Early Trumpet Book, Faber)

• Simple met re

• Range l imit ed t o one oct ave, plus a single low B

• Repet it ive, t r iadic st ruct ure wit h regular rest s


• Simple key wit h F# (2nd valve) as only accident al

• Four-bar phrases facil i t at e breat h cont rol

Standard level

Trombone: Music Hal l (The Real ly Early Trombone Book, Faber)

• Occasional f irst beat rest s and f ive-beat t ied not es

• Pit ches avoid long 6t h and 7t h posit ions

• Simple key (‘ home key’ for t he t rombone)

• Cent ering on 3rd/ 4t h posit ions provides a chal lenge

• Breat hing pat t ern, as t he piece cont inues, requires t hought in order t o make

physical and musical sense



BRASS (cont inued)


Horn in F: Minuet (Handel)

• Quaver rhyt hms at a moderat e t empo

• Some longer phrases

• Cont rast ing art iculat ion

• Oct ave leap and use of C/ D area needs secure pit ch

• Requires paced breat hing t o maint ain cont rol

• Shaded dynamic changes


PIANO

Easier level

Unt i t led (Alan Ridout )

• Simple met re and st eady speed

• Easy key

• Basic f ive-f inger posit ion for each hand

• Very narrow range of rhyt hm pat t erns

• Some cont rast s in art iculat ion and dynamic shading

• Range of a fourt h in each hand

Standard level

Mikrokosmos (Bart ok)

• Simple met re and st eady speed

• Easy key

• Only a few changes of hand posit ion


• Some cont rast s in art iculat ion and dynamic shading

• Co-ordinat ion bet ween t he hands required



PIANO (cont inued)


Gavot t e (Graupner)

• Simple met re but fair ly fast ‘ gavot t e’ t empo

• Accident als and bass clef leger l ines

• Frequent but logical changes of hand posit ion

• Mainly simple, but busy, rhyt hm pat t erns

• Det ailed and cont rast ing art iculat ion

• Bot h hands fair ly independent


ELECTRONIC KEYBOARD

Easier level

Amazing Grace (Tradit ional)

• Simple met re and fair ly slow t empo

• Pent at onic melody using j ust t he whit e keys


• Monophonic melody wit hout chords but requir ing careful f ingering t o maint ain a

legat o l ine

Standard level

Oh Susanna (St ephen Fost er)

• Simple met re and fair ly brisk t empo

• Easy key

• Range of a 6t h wit h few changes of hand posit ion


• Limit ed variet y of chords, and wel l spaced out (chords could be single f ingered)


Br ing Me Sunshine (Art hur Kent )

• Simple met re and l ively t empo wit h a f inal r i t

• Easy key, but wit h some chromat ic not es

• A number of f ingering dif f icul t ies

• Tied not es and syncopat ion

• Great er variet y of chords (shrouds could st i l l be single f ingered)


CLASSICAL GUITAR

Easier level

La Mant ovana (Anon. , arr. J. Whit wort h)

• Monophonic melody


• Simple rhyt hmic pat t erns

• Rest rict ed pit ch range wit h no changes of hand posit ion

• Few st rings used (melody spread across t wo or t hree st rings)

Standard level

St udy no.2 f rom 24 Easy St udies (F. Sor)

• Bass not es simult aneously sounding wit h melody, requiring great er r ight hand

agil i t y

• Some variet y of art iculat ion (in t his case, a pul l -of f , but could include sl ides, or

hammer-ons)

• No posit ion shif t s required


• Range of pit ches covers f ive st rings

• Most ly simple chord shapes

• Some st ring damping required

• Fairly slow t empo



CLASSICAL GUITAR (cont inued)


Cancion O Tocat a (de Murcia)

• Fairly fast moving

• Independent bass and melody part s

• Some posit ion shif t s required

• A variet y of art iculat ion

• St ring damping required

• More dif f icul t key for t he inst rument

• Chord shapes occasional ly quit e dif f icul t


ACOUSTIC GUITAR

Easier level

Knocking on Heaven’ s Door (Dylan)

• Easy chord shapes in f irst posit ion

• Repet it ive

• Simple st rumming pat t ern wit h l i t t le variet y

• Chord changes predict able and inf requent


• Simple met re

Standard level

Angels (Wil l iams and Chambers)

• Some barre chords int roduced

• Undemanding but varied st rumming pat t ern

• Simple met re

• A wider range of chords used including chords wit h bass not es ot her t han t he root

• More dif f icul t key for t he inst rument



ACOUSTIC GUITAR (cont inued)


Sweet Dreams My LA Ex (Dennis, Karlsson, Jonback and Wennberg)

• Chal lenging rhyt hmic accompaniment pat t ern

• Variet y of rhyt hmic pat t erns

• Many chords barred

• Requires st ring dampening

• Fast t empo

• Fast chord changes required in places

• Some alt ered or ext ended chords used


ELECTRIC GUITAR

Easier level

• All in one posit ion

• Pit ch range only covers t hree st rings

• Simple rhyt hmic pat t erns

• Simple met re

• Fairly slow t empo for st yle

• Limit ed art iculat ion required (no hammer-ons, pul l -of fs, sl ides or bends)

Standard level

• All in one posit ion (or simple posit ion shif t s required)

• Pit ch range covers f ive st rings

• Some art iculat ion required (hammer-ons, pul l -of fs, sl ides or simple bends)

• Some double and t reble st opping

• Fairly fast t empo

• Rif fs based on pent at onic or blues scales



ELECTRIC GUITAR (cont inued)


Apache (The Shadows)

• Fairly fast t empo

• Requires quick posit ion shif t s

• A range of art iculat ion including some bends or use of t remolo arm

• Some more dif f icul t and int r icat e picking required

• Some palm mut ing required

• A range of rhyt hmic pat t erns

• Vibrat o required on some longer not es


TIMPANI

Easier level

• Simple met re and fair ly slow t empo

• To t une t wo drums a 4t h or 5t h apart (eg D-A)


• No damping, cross-st icking, rol ls or grace not es

Standard level

• Simple met re, fast er t empo

• To t une t wo drums a 3rd, 4t h or 5t h apart

• Dynamic cont rast

• Wider variet y of rhyt hm pat t erns

• Damping, single-st roke rol ls and cross-st icking


f rom A Young Person’ s Guide t o t he Orchest ra (Brit t en)

• More complex met re

• To t une t hree drums t o a maj or t r iad

• Det ailed art iculat ion and dynamic cont rol

• Rhyt hm pat t ern include t r iplet s, t ied not es, et c

• Rolls and damping required


SNARE DRUM

Easier level

• Simple met re, rest rict ed range of not e values

• No rol ls or decorat ions

Standard level

• Simple met re, wider range of rhyt hm pat t erns

• Tied and dot t ed not es

• Double-st roke rol ls, f lams, drags, paradiddles (single, double and t r iple)


Bolero (Ravel)

• Complex rhyt hm pat t erns

• Dynamic cont rol (ppp t o f f f )

• Triplet s

• Flams, paradiddles, ruf fs (3-st roke and 4-st roke)


XYLOPHONE/ MELODIC PERCUSSION

Easier level

Ode t o Joy (Beet hoven, 9t h Symphony)

• Simple met re

• No accident als

• Crot chet not es and rest s

• No double st rokes or damping

Standard level

Skye Boat Song

• Wider range of rhyt hm pat t erns

• Some leaps in t he melodic l ine

• Simple key

• Some dot t ed not es

• St raight forward phrasing

• Single st roke rol ls


f rom Carmen (Bizet )

• Fast er t empo

• More complex key, wit h some accident als

• Rhyt hm pat t erns repet it ive, but using semiquavers

• Manual dext erit y and l ively art iculat ion required


DRUM KIT

Notation

Easier level

• Simple met re and medium t empo

• Simple rhyt hm pat t erns requir ing basic co-ordinat ion

• Simple f i l ls st art ing at t he beginning of t he bar

Standard level

• Simple met re and wider range of rhyt hm pat t erns

• Use of double st icking and paradiddles t o aid movement around t he kit

• More decorat ion in t he f i l ls st art ing f rom dif ferent part s of t he bar

• Good use of accent s



DRUM KIT (cont inued)


• Complex but repet it ive rhyt hm pat t ern

• Fast t empo

• Good lef t foot cont rol (hi-hat )

• Det ailed wel l phrased f i l ls

• Good dynamic cont rol


SITAR

Easier level

Simple int roduct ory exercises f rom VN Bhat hande’ s Kramik Pust ak Mal ika Vol 1

• Simple 2–2 or 4–4 met re

• Singing and playing t he not es of t he scale: Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni Sa

• Able t o t une inst rument correct ly

• Able t o demonst rat e t he dif ferent r ight hand st rokes: Dam Ra and Dir i

• Correct sit t ing and playing post ure

Standard level

Ra` ga Bhupal i: madhyalaya (middle t empo), Gat in Trit ala (16 beat cycle

divided 4/ 4/ 4/ 4)

• Able t o use mir

• One simple t ihai

• 4 t an-s

• Secure int onat ion and phrasing


Ra` ga Bhupal i: madhyalaya (middle t empo), Gat in Trit ala (16 beat cycle

divided 4/ 4/ 4/ 4)

• Short alap and simple vist ar

• 4 t an-s and 2 t ihai-s f rom dif ferent mat ra-s

• Fluent phrasing

• Good melodic shaping and t echnical dext erit y


TABLA

Easier level

• Correct handl ing of t he t abla

• Laya GyanL able t o demonst rat e each beat wit h claps in slow, medium and fast

speeds

• Product ion of t en basic bol-s and combined bol-s

• Dadra and Keharva t alas, wit h claps and playing t abla

Standard level

• Tala-s at medium speed: Teent al , Keharva and Dadra

• Int roduct ion of kaydas

• Thah, Dugan wit h Laggi and t ihai in Dadra and Keharva

• Teent al syl lables

• 3 kaydas, 3 palt as each kayda wit h t ihai in Teent al

• Speaking t he kaydas wit h claps showing bars and division


• More complex kayda-s, t ukra-s, Mohra wit h simple improvisat ion in t he kayda-s in

Teet al , Jhapt al , Ekt al and Rupak

• Basic knowledge of t ala not at ion (Bhat kande syst em)

• Singing — Raga Bhupal i wit h t he prescribed t an-s


Sequencing

Easier Standard More Difficult

Two independent part s Three independent part s Four independent part s,

which should include t wo

dif ferent inst rument s

Treble or bass clef only Treble or bass clef only Bot h t reble and bass clef

No accident als Key signat ures wit h one

sharp or f lat

Key signat ures of t hree

sharps or f lat s or more

Simple met re Simple met re Same t ime signat ure

t hroughout

St eady speed t hroughout St eady speed t hroughout Some changes of t empo

No dynamic variat ion Lit t le dynamic variat ion Some general dynamic

variat ion

Much repet it ion and

doubl ing

Much repet it ion and/ or

doubl ing

Some repet it ion and/ or

doubl ing

Up t o 12 bars 13-24 bars 24 bars or more

Simple rhyt hms and not e

values t hroughout

Most ly simple rhyt hms and

not e values

Some syncopat ion or

t r iplet s

The level of dif f icul t y should be t aken as t he nearest mat ch.


Paper 2 — Composing

Each composition is marked separately out of 30

20 marks (4 x 5) are available for t he core crit eria

10 marks (2 x 5) are available for crit er ia which wil l be chosen by t he t eacher

examiner in relat ion t o t he nat ure of t he composit ion.

Compulsory core criteria (4 x 5 = 20 marks)

These crit eria focus on t he creat ive, imaginat ive and development al aspect s of

composit ion:

Crit erion A Use and development of ideas 5 marks

Crit erion B Exploit at ion of t he medium 5 marks

Crit erion C St ruct ural int erest 5 marks

Crit erion D Underst anding t he brief 5 marks

Optional criteria (2 x 5 = 10 marks)

Crit erion E Melody 5 marks

Crit erion F Harmony/ accompaniment 5 marks

Crit erion G Text ure 5 marks

Crit erion H Rhyt hm 5 marks

Crit erion I Dynamics 5 marks

Crit erion J Use of t echnology 5 marks

Any two opt ional cr it eria may be chosen as appropriat e t o t he piece. Candidat es

should indicat e t he t wo opt ional crit eria t hat t hey wish t o be marked on t he pro

forma ‘ Underst anding t he brief ’ . Teachers should advise t hem on which crit eria t o

select .

Level descript ions for t he four core crit eria and for t he opt ional crit eria fol low.


Compulsory core criteria (Composing)

A: Use and development of ideas

Marks Description

5 Makes imaginat ive use of ideas and convent ions.

4 Some development of ideas and good use of st andard convent ions.

3 Makes adequat e use of st andard convent ions.

2 Makes some at t empt at real ising and developing ideas.

1 Makes a minimal at t empt at real ising and/ or developing ideas.

B: Exploitation of the medium

Marks Description

5 Demonst rat es excel lent and ef fect ive select ion and handl ing of

resources, exploit ing t heir pot ent ial .

4 Demonst rat es a good select ion and handl ing of resources, real ising t heir

pot ent ial .

3 Manages t o real ise t he pot ent ial of most resources.

2 Uses t he resources in a funct ional manner.

1 Makes only a very l imit ed use of resources.

C: Structural interest

Marks Description

5 The overal l st ruct ure is int erest ing and t he part s are appropriat e t o t he

piece — shows imaginat ive use of st ruct ural devices.

4 The overal l st ruct ure has a sense of proport ion and development and

good use of st ruct ural devices.

3 The st ruct ure is simple but clear, making use of appropriat e st ruct ural

devices.

2 At t empt s t o use and cont rol most st ruct ural devices most of t he t ime,

but wit h some misj udgement s.

1 Makes only minimal use of st ruct ural devices.


D: Understanding the brief

Marks Description

5 Produces a det ailed descript ion and percept ive evaluat ion of t he

composit ion and is able t o place it in cont ext .

Makes crit ical j udgement s using an accurat e and ext ensive musical

vocabulary.

4 Good use of musical vocabulary wit h j ust if icat ion and possibly examples.

3 Appropriat e use of musical vocabulary.

2 Musical vocabulary has been used but some has been misappl ied.

OR

No musical vocabulary has been used but t here is an adequat e

descript ion of t he composit ion.

1 Limit ed descript ion of t he composit ion and no musical vocabulary used.


Optional criteria (Composing)

The choice of criteria should take account of the candidate’s given or chosen

brief and should be appropriate to the composition concerned.

E: Melody

Marks Description

5 Excel lent — displaying st yle, charact er and appropriat eness.

4 Melodic l ines are wel l const ruct ed.

3 Melodic l ines have a sense of shape.

2 The melodic l ines work most of t he t ime, but display some

misj udgement s.

1 Melodic l ines have l i t t le sense of shape or form.

F: Harmony/ accompaniment

Marks Description

5 Appropriat e t o st yle of writ ing and mood, showing ext ended repert oire of

chords/ accompaniment st yle.

4 Demonst rat es a good harmonic repert oire/ accompaniment st yle.

3 Harmonic repert oire/ accompaniment is l imit ed but t here are no

signif icant misj udgement s.

2 Shows an awareness of harmony/ accompaniment but wit h some

misj udgement s.

1 The piece shows a l imit ed harmonic underst anding or uses an

inappropriat e accompaniment .

G: Texture

Marks Description

5 Sensit ive awareness of t ext ural mat t ers, exploit ing t ext ure t o good

ef fect .

4 Shows a good and clear awareness of t ext ure.

3 The t ext ure is general ly appropriat e.

2 Displays some awareness of t ext ure al t hough wit h some misj udgement s.

1 Displays only a very l imit ed awareness of t ext ure.


H: Rhythm

Marks Description

5 Excit ing, wel l chosen and showing some original it y.

4 Good choice of rhyt hm t hroughout .

3 Appropriat e choice of rhyt hm.

2 Some appropriat e choices of rhyt hm but wit h a few misj udgement s.

1 There is only a very l imit ed awareness of rhyt hm.

I: Dynamics

Marks Description

5 Careful , sensit ive and appropriat e, t he dynamics real ly enhance t he

composit ion.

4 Good range of dynamics which are used ef fect ively in t he composit ion.

3 Dynamics are given t hroughout and used appropriat ely.

2 Dynamics are general ly indicat ed but not always used appropriat ely.

1 Dynamics are somet imes indicat ed but are used inappropriat ely.

J: Use of technology

Marks Description

5 Conf ident and imaginat ive handl ing of t echnological resources and

processes.

4 Technological resources handled general ly wel l wit h no signif icant

misj udgement s.

3 Compet ent use of t echnology wit h only a few misj udgement s.

2 Has made some at t empt t o apply t echnological processes t o t he

composit ion but wit h misj udgement s.

1 Demonst rat es a very l imit ed awareness of t echnological processes.


Assessment criteria for Paper 2: Arranging

Each arrangement is marked separately out of 30

20 marks (4 x 5) are available for t he core crit eria.

10 marks (2 x 5) are available for crit er ia which wil l be chosen by t he t eacher

examiner in relat ion t o t he nat ure of t he arrangement .

Compulsory core criteria (4 x 5 = 20 marks)

These crit eria focus on t he creat ive and imaginat ive aspect s of arrangement :

Crit erion A Ext ent of ef fect ive change/ choice

of mat erial

5 marks

Crit erion B Exploit at ion of t he medium 5 marks

Crit erion C Impact 5 marks

Crit erion D Underst anding t he brief 5 marks

Optional criteria (2 x 5 = 10 marks)

Crit erion E Melodic int erest / part -writ ing 5 marks

Crit erion F Harmony 5 marks

Crit erion G Text ure 5 marks

Crit erion H Rhyt hm 5 marks

Crit erion I Dynamics 5 marks

Crit erion J Technical problems 5 marks

Crit erion K Use of t echnology 5 marks

Any two opt ional cr it eria may be chosen as appropriat e t o t he piece. Candidat es

should indicat e t he t wo opt ional crit eria t hat t hey wish t o be marked on t he pro

forma ‘ Underst anding t he brief ’ . Teachers should advise t hem on which crit eria t o

select .

Performance descript ions for t he four core crit eria and for t he opt ional crit eria

fol low.


Compulsory core criteria (Arranging)

A: Extent of effective change/ choice of material

Marks Description

5 Original very wel l chosen — has excel lent pot ent ial for arrangement .

Arrangement has ef fect ively produced a new piece.

4 Good choice of original — considerable pot ent ial for arrangement .

A signif icant number of ef fect ive addit ions/ subt ract ions.

3 Original can be arranged t o l imit ed ef fect .

Some addit ions/ subt ract ions.

2 Mat erial has some pot ent ial for arrangement .

Original has changed sl ight ly.

1 Mat erial has a l i t t le pot ent ial for arrangement .

Very l i t t le change t o original.

B: Exploitation of the medium

Marks Description

5 Demonst rat es excel lent and ef fect ive select ion and handl ing of

resources, exploit ing t heir pot ent ial .

4 Demonst rat es appropriat e select ion and handl ing of resources, real ising

t heir pot ent ial .

3 At t empt s t o real ise t he pot ent ial of most resources.

2 Uses t he resources in a funct ional manner.

1 Makes l imit ed use of resources.


C: Impact

Marks Description

5 Arrangement works except ional ly wel l in new medium wit h a very

imaginat ive approach t o mat erial .

4 Arrangement works wel l and t he approach displays some degree of

imaginat ion/ original it y.

3 Arrangement general ly successful and signif icant ly dif ferent f rom

original.

2 Arrangement makes some impact on t he l ist ener most of t he t ime.

1 Arrangement makes l i t t le impact on t he l ist ener some of t he t ime.

D: Understanding the brief

Marks Description

5 Produces a det ailed descript ion and percept ive evaluat ion of t he

arrangement and is able t o place it in cont ext .

Makes crit ical j udgement s using an accurat e and ext ensive musical

vocabulary.

4 Good use of musical vocabulary wit h j ust if icat ion and possibly

examples.

3 Appropriat e use of musical vocabulary.

2 Musical vocabulary has been used but some has been misappl ied.

OR

No musical vocabulary has been used but t here is an adequat e

descript ion of t he arrangement .

1 Limit ed descript ion of t he arrangement and no musical vocabulary

used.


Optional criteria (Arranging)

Account should be taken of the extent to which the candidate has fulfilled the

given or chosen brief.

E: Melodic interest/ part writing

Marks Description

5 Arrangement largely cont rapunt al — new part s very successful .

4 Arrangement has a number of ef fect ive new count er-melodies/ melodic

t ouches.

3 Some use of count er-melody/ melodic part -writ ing/ passing not es.

2 Some at t empt at melodic part -writ ing using not es t aken f rom t he

harmony.

1 A l i t t le at t empt at melodic part -writ ing using not es t aken f rom t he

harmony.

F: Harmony

Marks Description

5 Piece is complet ely and ef fect ively (re)harmonised.

4 A signif icant amount of new harmonisat ion apparent .

3 Some new harmonisat ion.

2 Lit t le new harmonisat ion.

1 Uses original harmony.

G: Texture

Marks Description

5 Sensit ive awareness of t ext ural mat t ers, exploit ing t ext ure t o good

ef fect .

4 Shows a clear awareness of t ext ure.

3 The t ext ure is general ly appropriat e.

2 Displays some awareness of t ext ure.

1 Displays a l imit ed awareness of t ext ure.


H: Rhythm

Marks Description

5 Displays innovat ive use of rhyt hmic element s in producing new version

of original.

4 Makes sensit ive use of st andard rhyt hmic pat t erns t o produce new

version.

3 New version has several examples of rhyt hmic change t hough

somet imes mechanical.

2 New version shows some rhyt hmic changes.

1 Shows a l imit ed awareness t o t he possibi l i t ies of rhyt hmic change.

I: Dynamics

Marks Description

5 Careful , sensit ive and appropriat e, t he dynamics real ly enhance t he

composit ion.

4 Good range of dynamics which are used ef fect ively in t he

composit ion.

3 Dynamics are given t hroughout and used appropriat ely.

2 Dynamics are general ly indicat ed, but not always used appropriat ely.

1 Dynamics are somet imes indicat ed, but are used inappropriat ely.

J: Technical problems

Marks Description

5 Excel lent handl ing of t echnical problems present ed by mat erial .

Shows a high level of awareness of pot ent ial and l imit at ions of new

medium.

4 Most t echnical problems handled wel l .

Shows suf f icient awareness of pot ent ial of new medium t o solve most

problems.

3 Shows some abil i t y t o deal wit h t echnical problems.

Is aware of some of t he dif f icul t ies creat ed by t he choice of medium.

2 Shows a l imit ed awareness of problems present ed by new medium.

1 One or t wo t echnical problems are resolved.


J: Use of technology

Marks Description

5 Conf ident and imaginat ive handl ing of t echnological resources and

processes.

4 Technological resources handled general ly wel l wit h no signif icant

misj udgement s.

3 Compet ent use of t echnology wit h only a few misj udgement s.

2 Has made some at t empt t o apply t echnological processes t o t he

composit ion, but wit h misj udgement s.

1 Demonst rat es a very l imit ed awareness of t echnological processes.


Grade descriptions

The f ol lowing grade descr ipt ions indicat e t he level of at t ainment charact er ist ic of

t he given grade at GCSE. They give a general indicat ion of t he required learning

out comes at each speci f ied grade. The descr ipt ions should be int erpret ed in relat ion

t o t he cont ent out l ined in t he speci f icat ion; t hey are not designed t o def ine t hat

cont ent . The grade awarded wi l l depend in pract ice upon t he ext ent t o which t he

st udent has met t he assessment obj ect ives overal l . Shor t comings in some aspect s of

t he examinat ion may be balanced by bet t er per f ormances in ot hers.

Grade F

Candidat es sing and/ or play music wit h some f luency and cont rol of t he resources

used. They compose music t hat shows some abil i t y t o organise musical ideas and use

appropriat e resources in response t o a brief . They describe musical feat ures using a

simple musical vocabulary; make improvement s t o own work and of fer some

j ust if icat ion of opinions expressed.

Grade C

Candidat es sing and/ or play music wit h cont rol , making expressive use of phrase and

dynamics appropriat e t o t he st yle and mood of t he music. They compose music t hat

shows abil i t y t o develop musical ideas, use convent ions, explore t he pot ent ial of

musical st ruct ures and resources and ful f i l a brief . They make crit ical j udgement s

about own and ot hers’ music using a musical vocabulary.

Grade A

Candidat es explore t he expressive pot ent ial of musical resources and convent ions

used in select ed genres, st yles and t radit ions. They sing and/ or play music wit h a

sense of st yle, command of t he resources used and making appropriat e gradat ions of

t empo, dynamics and balance. They compose music t hat shows a coherent and

imaginat ive development of musical ideas and consist ency of st yle and ful f i ls a brief .

They make crit ical j udgement s about own and ot hers’ music using an accurat e and

ext ensive musical vocabulary.

In al l grades, candidat es must demonst rat e musical knowledge and underst anding as

described on page 5.


The wider curriculum

Key skills

This specif icat ion wil l provide opport unit ies, as appropriat e, t o develop t he key skil ls

of communicat ion, informat ion t echnology, improving own learning and performance,

working wit h ot hers and problem solving.

Examples of such opport unit ies are signpost ed t hroughout t he specif icat ion. It is

import ant t hat t hese opport unit ies fal l nat ural ly int o a programme of st udy, and it

may be t hat not al l t he examples are appropriat e for al l programmes. The examples

of fered may be adapt ed t o suit part icular sit uat ions, and it wil l be possible t o devise

many al t ernat ive opport unit ies and approaches. The development of key skil ls can

enhance t eaching and learning st rat egies and can be a st imulus t o new approaches,

and increase levels of st udent involvement .

Key skil ls opport unit ies are det ailed more ful ly in Appendix 1.

Spiritual, moral, ethical, social and cultural issues

This specif icat ion cont ribut es t o an underst anding of :

• spiritual issues

Creat ivit y is t he process of aest het ic expression drawing on original it y,

invent iveness and imaginat ion. Paper 3 gives t he opport unit y t o develop crit ical

and creat ive t hinking and t o increase t he abil i t y of candidat es t o make

j udgement s about musical qual it y. Music is of t en referred t o as t he rout e t o t he

soul and candidat es need t o be aware of t he spiri t ual ef fect i t can have on bot h

t hemselves and on ot hers. This specif icat ion aims t o ext end imaginat ive,

int el lect ual and emot ional horizons. Music is a cent ral component of worship in

many fait hs, and candidat es wil l have t he opport unit y t o perform, compose and

l ist en t o some of t he music used in t his way.

• moral and ethical issues

Moral issues may be a subj ect for discussion in music in relat ion t o music t heat re

and t o t he lyrics of popular music. Similarly, t he use (or misuse) of music as a

pol it ical t ool may be considered.

• social issues

Music is a source of art ist ic experience; t o some ext ent al l music involves t he

communicat ion of feel ing, knowledge or mood. St udent s perform wit h ot hers t hus

developing an awareness of audience, venue and occasion and aiding int er-

personal and cult ural underst anding. Composit ion and performance are nat ural

means of expression which can play a benef icial part in t he l ives of individuals

and schools, and in t he general l i fe of t he communit y.

• cultural issues

Exploring music in a variet y of st yles wil l encourage recognit ion and

underst anding of t he values of ot her individuals and communit ies. As st udent s

perform, compose and l ist en t o music in a variet y of st yles i t is hoped t hat t hey

wil l develop an appreciat ion of t he richness of our cul t ural herit age.


Paper 3 relat es music t o it s social , hist or ical and cult ural cont ext and wil l provide

opport unit ies t o explore and discuss cult ural issues. This wil l encourage

candidat es t o consider how cult ure inf luences how individuals t hink, feel and act

and t o develop respect and t olerance for people of dif ferent cul t ures.

Education for citizenship

This specif icat ion makes a cont ribut ion t owards coverage of t he Key St age 4

programme of st udy for Cit izenship. Music GCSE provides many opport unit ies for

st udent s t o t ake part in group music-making t hus encouraging t hem t o part icipat e in

t he musical l i fe of t he school, col lege or communit y. In part icular t he unit s in

Performing and List ening and Appraising, give st udent s opport unit ies t o:

• develop skil ls of part icipat ion and responsible act ion t hrough performing wit h

ot hers. St udent s wil l learn how t o consider t he experiences of ot hers, t ake part

responsibly in act ivit ies and ref lect on t he process of part icipat ion

• play an ef fect ive role in societ y at a local level, and perhaps even at nat ional and

int ernat ional levels

• consider issues of cul t ural diversit y, t heir value and expression t hrough t he st udy

of music f rom dif ferent cul t ures

• respect dif ferent nat ional, rel igious and et hnic ident it ies

• ref lect on t opical , spir i t ual , moral, pol it ical , social and cult ural issues.

Information and communication technology (ICT)

The digit isat ion of music is now wel l developed and st udent s can record, manipulat e

and produce music. There are opport unit ies t o use ICT in Papers 1 and 2 and t o

develop an underst anding of t he impact of ICT in music in Paper 3. St udent s may use

comput er sequencers, mult i t rack recorders, digit al recording, sampl ing, and signal

processing in t he preparat ion and present at ion of composit ions. They may also use

t echnology t o record work on t ape, minidisc or CD and t o produce print ed scores and

ext ract part s. Candidat es may of fer sequencing as part of t heir solo performing and

sequencing and recording for ensemble performing.

For Paper 3 List ening and Appraising t hey wil l need t o underst and t he impact ICT has

had on music in t hree of t he Areas of St udy. For Area of St udy 2 (Changing direct ions

in West ern classical music f rom 1900) candidat es should underst and t hat ICT has

opened up a new world of possibil i t ies for t he composer wit h t he pot ent ial t o rule

out t he performer. They should be aware of t he milest ones in t he development of

elect ronic music, principal ly t he invent ion of t ape and t he advent of t he synt hesiser.

For Area of St udy 3 (Popular music in cont ext ) t hey should underst and t he inf luence

of ICT on popular music not only in t erms of t he new palet t e of sound creat ed by

elect ric guit ars and keyboards but also where t he increased sophist icat ion and

availabil i t y of music t echnology has led direct ly t o t he rise of dif ferent forms eg club

dance music. Area of St udy 4 (Indian raga, Af rican music and fusions) includes a t opic

‘ fusions’ . Candidat es need t o underst and t hat advances in global communicat ion

have led t o hybrid st yles, such as bhangra, when musicians f rom one cult ure have

been exposed t o sounds and inst rument s f rom anot her.

Throughout t he course t here are opport unit ies t o use t he int ernet t o explore music,

wordprocessing t o record ideas and email t o communicat e ideas.


Environmental education, health and safety education

and the European and global dimension

This GCSE Music specif icat ion aims t o of fer opport unit ies t o support environment al

educat ion, t he European dimension in educat ion, and healt h educat ion in connect ion

wit h t he report Environment al Responsibi l i t y, an Agenda for Furt her and Higher

Educat ion (HMSO, 1993) and t he Resolut ions of t he Council of Minist ers (EC, 1988) in

so far as it is appl icable. Much of t he music st udied for each paper wil l have been

creat ed by European musicians: Area of St udy 1: St ruct ure in West ern classical music

1600-1899 (ground bass and variat ions, t ernary form and rondo); Area of St udy 2:

Changing direct ions in West ern classical music f rom 1900 (expressionism and

serial ism, minimal ism and experiment al and elect ronic music); and Area of St udy 3:

Popular music in cont ext (dance music 1985-present day, songs f rom musicals and

Brit pop). St udent s wil l be expect ed t o observe safe working pract ices when using

music t echnology equipment . Environment al educat ion wil l be al luded t o if

candidat es wish t o use t his as a st art ing point for a composit ion or wish t o st udy t he

work of composers concerned wit h i t .


Textbooks and other teaching resources

Resources available for t eaching are const ant ly changing. Any suggest ions made here

wil l doubt less be superseded but t hey wil l at least serve as a guide t o t he select ion

of mat erials available. Cent res should choose according t o t heir requirement s and

t heir means. Some of t he books included in t he fol lowing l ist are int ended t o help

t eachers wit h t heir planning rat her t han t o be used as t ext books.

The Edexcel New Ant hology cont ains examples and recordings of most of t he t opics

l ist ed under t he Areas of St udy and wil l be a useful resource.

General

Bennet t R — A Dict ionary of Music (Cambridge Universit y Press, 1995)

Bennet t R — Fort issimo! (Cambridge Universit y Press, 1996)

Sadie S — The Cambr idge Music Guide (Cambridge Universit y Press, 1990)

Paper 2

Aschmann L — 500 Songwr i t ing Ideas (Music Books Plus, 1997)

Baker D — Ar ranging and Composing f or t he Smal l Ensemble: Jazz, R & B, Jazz Rock

(Alf red Publ ishing, 1988)

Binns C — Composing — A St udent ’ s Guide (Nelson, 1996)

Cit ron S — Songwr i t ing: A Complet e Guide t o t he Craf t (Amazon, 1990)

Cole B — The Composer ’ s Handbook (Schot t , London, 1996)

Paynt er J — Sound & St ruct ure (Cambridge Universit y Press, Cambridge, 1992)

Penfold R A — A Beginner ’ s Guide t o Midi (Bernard Babani, 1993)

Runswick D — Rock, Pop and Jazz Arranging (Faber, 1992)

St urman P — Creat ing Music around t he Wor ld (Cambridge Universit y Press, 1988)

St urman P — Harmony, Melody, Composi t ion (Cambridge Universit y Press, 1995)

Papers 2 and 3

Bennet t R — Form and Design (Cambridge Universit y Press, Cambridge, 1988)

Bowman D — Aural Mat t ers (Schot t , London, 1995)

Bowman D and Cole B — Sound Mat t ers (Schot t , London, 1989)

Burnet t M — Explor ing Music of t he Wor ld (Heinemann)

Cole W — The Form of Music (ABRSM, London, 1997)

Copland A — What t o List en f or in Music (Penguin, USA, 1998)

Cripps C — Popular Music (Cambridge Universit y Press, Cambridge, 1989)

Cripps C — Score Reading (Cambridge Universit y Press, Cambridge, 1988)

Dunbar-Hal l P and Hodge G — Music around t he Wor ld (Science Press, Sydney)


Harvey E — Jazz in t he Classroom (Boosey and Hawkes, London, 1988)

Machl is J — Int roduct ion t o Cont emporary Music (Dent & Son, London)

Sharma S — Music Wor ldwide (Cambridge Universit y Press, Cambridge, 1998)

Turnbul l D — Aural Time (Boswort h, London, 1995)

Warner S — Rockspeak! (Blandford, 1996)

Music technology

Bart let t B and Bart let t J — Pract ical Recording Techniques (Focal Press, 1997)

Clacket t D — Handbook of MIDI Sequencing (Cimino Publ ishing Group, 1996)

Lloyd W and Terry P — Music in Sequence (Musonix, 1991)

Lloyd W — Rock in Sequence (Musonix, 1996)

Additional resources for GCSE music

Paper 2

Russel l B and Harris T — The GCSE Composi t ion Course (Edit ion Pet ers, 2004)

Papers 2 and 3

Brown A and Dil lon S C — Ret ro Rock St yle Guide: St yles f rom t he 1960s t o t he 1990s

(Currency Press Pt y Lt d, 2001)

Harris J — Br i t pop! Cool Br i t annia and t he Spect acular Demise of Engl ish Rock (Da

Capo press, 2004)

Morley P — Words and Music: A Hist ory of Pop in t he Shape of a Ci t y (Bloomsbury,

2003)

Wint erson J (edit or) — Pop Music t he Text Book (Edit ion Pet ers, 2004)

Music technology

Prochak M — Basic Cubase SX (SMT, 2003)

Prochak T and M — How t o Get t he Sound You Want (IMP, 2002)

Prochak T and M — How t o Get t he Sound You Want , Second Edi t ion (IMP, 2004)


Support and training

Training

A programme of Professional Development and Training courses covering various

aspect s of t he specif icat ions and assessment wil l be arranged by Edexcel each year

on a regional basis. Ful l det ails may be obt ained f rom:

Professional Development and Training

Edexcel

One90 High Holborn

London WC1V 7BH

Telephone: 0870 240 9800

Fax: 0845 359 1909

Email : t [email protected]

Edexcel publications

Support mat erials and furt her copies of t his specif icat ion can be obt ained f rom:

Edexcel Publ icat ions

Adamsway

Mansf ield

Not t s NG18 4FN

Telephone: 01623 467467

Fax: 01623 450481

Email : publ icat ions@linneydirect .com


Appendix

Appendix 1 — Key skills 107


Appendix 1 — Key skills

The GCSE in Music of fers a range of opport unit ies for st udent s t o:

• develop t heir key skil ls

• generat e assessed evidence for t heir port fol io.

In part icular, t he fol lowing key skil ls can be developed and assessed t hrough t his

specif icat ion at Level 2:

• communicat ion

• informat ion t echnology

• improving own learning and performance

• working wit h ot hers

• problem solving.

St udent s requiring appl icat ion of number may be able t o develop t his skil l t hrough

ot her part s of t heir GCSE course or t hrough st and-alone sessions.

Copies of t he key skil ls specif icat ions can be ordered f rom Edexcel Publ icat ions.

The individual key skil ls unit s are divided int o t hree part s.

• Part A: what you need t o know — t his ident if ies t he underpinning knowledge and

skil ls required of t he st udent .

• Part B: what you must do — t his ident i f ies t he evidence t hat st udent s must

produce for t heir port fol io.

• Part C: guidance — t his gives examples of possible act ivit ies and t ypes of

evidence t hat may be generat ed.

This GCSE specif icat ion signpost s development and int ernal assessment opport unit ies

which are based on part B of t he Level 2 key skil ls unit s. For t hose st udent s working

at Level 1, t hese Level 2 opport unit ies can also be used t o generat e evidence at

Level 1. Reference should be made t o t he appropriat e Level 1 st at ement s in t he key

skil ls specif icat ions.

The evidence generat ed t hrough t his GCSE wil l be int ernal ly assessed and cont ribut e

t o t he st udent ’ s key skil ls port fol io. In addit ion, in order t o achieve t he Key Skil ls

Qual if icat ion, st udent s wil l need t o t ake t he addit ional ext ernal t est s associat ed wit h

communicat ion, informat ion t echnology and appl icat ion of number. Cent res should

check t he current posit ion on proxy qual if icat ions as some st udent s may be exempt

f rom part or al l of t he assessment of a specif ic key skil l .

Each paper wit hin t he GCSE in Music wil l provide opport unit ies for t he development

of al l f ive of t he key skil ls ident if ied. This appendix ident if ies t he key skil ls evidence

requirement s and also provides a mapping of t hose opport unit ies. St udent s wil l need

t o have opport unit ies t o develop t heir ski l ls over t ime before t hey are ready for

assessment . This appendix cont ains i l lust rat ive act ivit ies for each key skil l t hat wil l

aid development and facil i t at e t he generat ion of appropriat e port fol io evidence. To

assist in t he recording of key skil ls evidence Edexcel has produced recording

document at ion which can be ordered f rom Edexcel Publ icat ions.

The fol lowing grid maps t he knowledge covered in t he Edexcel GCSE in Music against

t he element s of key skil ls and wider key skil ls.


A t ick indicat es at least part ial coverage of t he key skil l or wider key skil l .

A blank space indicat es no coverage of t he key skil l or wider key skil l .


Ma

pp

ing o

f k

ey

sk

ills

: Su

mm

ary

ta

ble

Ke

y s

kil

ls (

Le

ve

l 2

) P

ap

er

1

Pa

pe

r 2

P

ap

er

3

Co

mm

un

ica

tio

n

C2

.1a

C2

.1b

C2

.2

C2

.3

Info

rma

tio

n t

ech

no

logy

IT2

.1

IT2

.2

IT2

.3

Imp

rov

ing o

wn

le

arn

ing a

nd

pe

rfo

rma

nce

LP

2.1

LP

2.2

LP

2.3

Pro

ble

m s

olv

ing

PS2

.1

PS2

.2

PS2

.3

Wo

rkin

g w

ith

oth

ers

WO

2.1

WO

2.2

WO

2.3

UG

01

71

00

– S

pe

cif

ica

tio

n –

Ed

exce

l G

CSE

in

Mu

sic –

Iss

ue

2 –

Fe

bru

ary

20

06

1

09

Co

mm

un

ica

tio

n l

ev

el

2

Fo

r th

e c

om

mu

nic

ati

on

ke

y s

kil

l, s

tud

en

ts a

re r

eq

uir

ed

to

ho

ld d

iscu

ssio

ns

an

d g

ive

pre

sen

tati

on

s, r

ea

d a

nd

su

mm

ari

se i

nfo

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tio

n,

an

d w

rite

do

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me

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. Stu

de

nts

wil

l b

e a

ble

to

de

ve

lop

all

of

the

se s

kil

ls t

hro

ugh

an

ap

pro

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ate

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ach

ing a

nd

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arn

ing p

rogra

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e b

ase

d o

n t

his

GC

SE

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cif

ica

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Ke

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ort

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vid

en

ce

req

uir

em

en

t

GC

SE

Pa

pe

rs

Op

po

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ve

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nt

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.1a

T

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Ma

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f th

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op

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in t

his

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ecif

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n a

re s

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s th

e b

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gro

up

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cu

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n.

Th

e d

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uld

be

ab

ou

t a

str

aig

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ard

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bje

ct.

Th

is m

ay b

e a

su

bje

ct

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th

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wil

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ng t

he

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sho

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.

C2

.1b

G

ive

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alk

of

at

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st f

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r

min

ute

s.

1,

2 a

nd

3

Fo

llo

win

g a

pe

rio

d o

f re

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stu

de

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co

uld

be

giv

en

th

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talk

to

th

e r

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of

the

ir g

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Du

rin

g t

he

ta

lk s

tud

en

ts s

ho

uld

sp

ea

k c

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rly i

n a

wa

y

tha

t su

its

the

su

bje

ct

an

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itu

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. T

he

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ho

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ke

ep

to

th

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Th

e s

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f

the

ta

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uld

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lp l

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le a

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y m

igh

t b

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ivin

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ab

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t o

ne

syst

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of

no

tati

on

usi

ng m

usi

ca

l e

xa

mp

les

an

d m

ap

s.

C2

.2

Re

ad

an

d s

um

ma

rise

info

rma

tio

n f

rom

tw

o

exte

nd

ed

do

cu

me

nts

ab

ou

t

the

sa

me

su

bje

ct.

Ea

ch

do

cu

me

nt

mu

st b

e a

min

imu

m o

f 5

00

wo

rds.

3

Stu

de

nts

wil

l h

ave

a n

um

be

r o

f o

pp

ort

un

itie

s to

re

ad

an

d s

yn

the

sise

in

form

ati

on

fro

m

two

exte

nd

ed

do

cu

me

nts

, fo

r e

xa

mp

le,

as

pa

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f th

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pre

pa

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on

fo

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n

an

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, o

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s p

rep

ara

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n f

or

a p

iece

of

wri

tte

n w

ork

fo

r th

eir

GC

SE

. E

xte

nd

ed

do

cu

me

nts

ma

y i

nclu

de

te

xtb

oo

ks

an

d r

ep

ort

s a

nd

art

icle

s o

f m

ore

th

an

th

ree

pa

ge

s.

Stu

de

nts

wil

l n

ee

d t

o s

ele

ct

an

d r

ea

d r

ele

va

nt

ma

teri

al.

Fro

m t

his

in

form

ati

on

th

ey w

ill

ne

ed

to

id

en

tify

accu

rate

ly t

he

lin

es

of

rea

son

ing a

nd

ma

in p

oin

ts f

rom

th

e t

ext

an

d

ima

ge

s. S

tud

en

ts w

ill

the

n n

ee

d t

o s

um

ma

rise

th

is i

nfo

rma

tio

n i

n a

fo

rm t

ha

t su

its

the

pu

rpo

se,

eg f

or

a t

alk

, d

iscu

ssio

n o

r a

n e

ssa

y.

A p

oss

ible

acti

vit

y m

igh

t b

e r

ese

arc

hin

g

into

a c

ho

sen

gro

up

of

mu

sica

l in

stru

me

nts

usi

ng g

rap

hic

an

d m

usi

ca

l il

lust

rati

on

s.

UG

01

71

00

– S

pe

cif

ica

tio

n –

Ed

exce

l G

CSE

in

Mu

sic –

Iss

ue

2 –

Fe

bru

ary

20

06

1

10

Ke

y s

kil

l p

ort

foli

o e

vid

en

ce

req

uir

em

en

t

GC

SE

Pa

pe

rs

Op

po

rtu

nit

ies

for

de

ve

lop

me

nt

or

inte

rna

l a

sse

ssm

en

t

C2

.3

Wri

te t

wo

dif

fere

nt

typ

es

of

do

cu

me

nts

ea

ch

on

e g

ivin

g

dif

fere

nt

info

rma

tio

n.

On

e

do

cu

me

nt

mu

st b

e a

t le

ast

50

0 w

ord

s lo

ng.

3

Stu

de

nts

are

re

qu

ire

d t

o p

rod

uce

tw

o d

iffe

ren

t ty

pe

s o

f d

ocu

me

nt.

At

lea

st o

ne

of

the

se s

ho

uld

be

an

exte

nd

ed

do

cu

me

nt,

fo

r e

xa

mp

le a

re

po

rt o

r a

n e

ssa

y o

f a

t le

ast

50

0 w

ord

s. T

he

do

cu

me

nt

sho

uld

pre

sen

t re

leva

nt

info

rma

tio

n i

n a

n a

pp

rop

ria

te f

orm

.

Th

e i

nfo

rma

tio

n i

n t

he

do

cu

me

nt

sho

uld

be

cle

arl

y s

tru

ctu

red

eg t

hro

ugh

th

e u

se o

f

he

ad

ings,

pa

ragra

ph

s, e

tc.

Stu

de

nts

sh

ou

ld e

nsu

re t

ha

t th

e t

ext

is l

egib

le a

nd

th

at

spe

llin

g,

pu

nctu

ati

on

an

d g

ram

ma

r a

re a

ccu

rate

. A

po

ssib

le a

cti

vit

y m

igh

t b

e w

riti

ng

an

ess

ay a

bo

ut

the

ori

gin

s o

f th

e 1

2 b

ar

blu

es

wit

h m

usi

ca

l e

xa

mp

les

on

ta

pe

, C

D o

r

min

idis

c.

Ev

ide

nce

Stu

de

nt

evid

en

ce

fo

r co

mm

un

ica

tio

n c

ou

ld i

nclu

de

:

• tu

tor

ob

serv

ati

on

re

co

rds

• p

rep

ara

tory

no

tes

• a

ud

io/

vid

eo

ta

pe

s

• n

ote

s b

ase

d o

n d

ocu

me

nts

re

ad

• e

ssa

ys.

UG

01

71

00

– S

pe

cif

ica

tio

n –

Ed

exce

l G

CSE

in

Mu

sic –

Iss

ue

2 –

Fe

bru

ary

20

06

1

11

Info

rma

tio

n t

ech

no

logy

le

ve

l 2

Wh

en

pro

du

cin

g w

ork

fo

r th

eir

GC

SE

in

Mu

sic s

tud

en

ts w

ill

ha

ve

nu

me

rou

s o

pp

ort

un

itie

s to

use

in

form

ati

on

te

ch

no

logy.

Th

e i

nte

rne

t, C

D R

OM

,

etc

co

uld

be

use

d t

o c

oll

ect

info

rma

tio

n.

Do

cu

me

nts

ca

n b

e p

rod

uce

d u

sin

g r

ele

va

nt

soft

wa

re a

nd

im

age

s m

ay b

e i

nco

rpo

rate

d i

n t

ho

se

do

cu

me

nts

. E

arl

y d

raft

s o

f d

ocu

me

nts

co

uld

be

em

ail

ed

to

tu

tors

fo

r in

itia

l co

mm

en

ts a

nd

fe

ed

ba

ck.

In a

dd

itio

n,

stu

de

nts

wil

l b

e a

ble

to

use

info

rma

tio

n t

ech

no

logy t

o g

en

era

te e

vid

en

ce

fo

r th

e c

om

mu

nic

ati

on

ke

y s

kil

l. F

or

exa

mp

le t

he

exte

nd

ed

do

cu

me

nt

wit

h i

ma

ge

s, r

eq

uir

ed

fo

r

C2

.3,

co

uld

be

ge

ne

rate

d u

sin

g a

pp

rop

ria

te s

oft

wa

re.

As

pa

rt o

f th

eir

Mu

sic p

rogra

mm

e s

tud

en

ts m

ay n

ot

be

ab

le t

o g

en

era

te s

uff

icie

nt

evid

en

ce

re

qu

ire

d f

or

this

pa

pe

r, f

or

exa

mp

le w

ork

ing w

ith

nu

mb

ers

th

rou

gh

th

e u

se o

f a

sp

rea

dsh

ee

t a

pp

lica

tio

n,

or

som

e a

spe

cts

of

da

tab

ase

use

. In

th

is s

itu

ati

on

, st

ud

en

ts m

ay u

se s

tan

d-a

lon

e I

T

sess

ion

s fo

r d

eve

lop

me

nt

an

d e

vid

en

ce

ge

ne

rati

on

an

d/

or

oth

er

pa

rts

of

the

ir G

CSE

co

urs

e.

Ke

y s

kil

l p

ort

foli

o e

vid

en

ce

req

uir

em

en

t

GC

SE

Pa

pe

rs

Op

po

rtu

nit

ies

for

de

ve

lop

me

nt

or

inte

rna

l a

sse

ssm

en

t

IT2

.1

Se

arc

h f

or

an

d s

ele

ct

info

rma

tio

n t

o m

ee

t yo

ur

ne

ed

s.

Use

dif

fere

nt

info

rma

tio

n

sou

rce

s fo

r e

ach

ta

sk a

nd

mu

ltip

le s

ea

rch

cri

teri

a i

n a

t

lea

st o

ne

ca

se.

1,

2 a

nd

3

Stu

de

nts

wil

l n

ee

d t

o i

de

nti

fy s

uit

ab

le s

ou

rce

s o

f in

form

ati

on

an

d e

ffe

cti

ve

ly s

ea

rch

fo

r

info

rma

tio

n u

sin

g m

ult

iple

cri

teri

a.

Info

rma

tio

n s

ele

cte

d s

ho

uld

be

in

terp

rete

d a

nd

stu

de

nts

sh

ou

ld d

ecid

e w

ha

t is

re

leva

nt

for

the

ir p

urp

ose

. A

po

ssib

le a

cti

vit

y m

igh

t b

e

sea

rch

ing f

or

exa

mp

les

of

da

nce

mu

sic u

sin

g t

he

in

tern

et,

MP

3,

CD

s, C

D R

OM

s a

nd

rad

io.

Ev

ide

nce

Stu

de

nt

evid

en

ce

fo

r in

form

ati

on

te

ch

no

logy c

ou

ld i

nclu

de

:

• tu

tor

ob

serv

ati

on

re

co

rds

• n

ote

s o

f so

urc

es

use

d

• p

rin

t-o

uts

wit

h a

nn

ota

tio

ns

• d

raft

do

cu

me

nts

.

UG

01

71

00

– S

pe

cif

ica

tio

n –

Ed

exce

l G

CSE

in

Mu

sic –

Iss

ue

2 –

Fe

bru

ary

20

06

1

12

Imp

rov

ing o

wn

le

arn

ing a

nd

pe

rfo

rma

nce

le

ve

l 2

Wit

hin

GC

SE

in

Mu

sic p

rogra

mm

es,

stu

de

nts

wil

l h

ave

op

po

rtu

nit

ies

to d

eve

lop

an

d g

en

era

te e

vid

en

ce

th

at

me

ets

pa

rt o

f th

e e

vid

en

ce

req

uir

em

en

t o

f th

is k

ey s

kil

l. T

o a

ch

ieve

th

is k

ey s

kil

l, s

tud

en

ts w

ill

ne

ed

to

pro

vid

e a

t le

ast

tw

o e

xa

mp

les

of

me

eti

ng t

he

sta

nd

ard

re

qu

ire

d.

Stu

de

nts

are

als

o r

eq

uir

ed

to

im

pro

ve

th

eir

pe

rfo

rma

nce

th

rou

gh

stu

dyin

g a

str

aig

htf

orw

ard

su

bje

ct

an

d t

hro

ugh

le

arn

ing t

hro

ugh

a

stra

igh

tfo

rwa

rd p

racti

ca

l a

cti

vit

y.

Th

is G

CSE

in

Mu

sic w

ill

pro

vid

e o

pp

ort

un

itie

s fo

r st

ud

en

ts t

o s

tud

y a

str

aig

htf

orw

ard

su

bje

ct.

Evid

en

ce

fo

r

lea

rnin

g t

hro

ugh

a p

racti

ca

l a

cti

vit

y m

ay c

om

e f

rom

oth

er

GC

SE

s in

th

e s

tud

en

ts’

pro

gra

mm

e o

r fr

om

en

rich

me

nt

acti

vit

ies.

Acti

vit

ies

tha

t

ge

ne

rate

evid

en

ce

fo

r th

is s

kil

l sh

ou

ld t

ake

pla

ce

ove

r a

pe

rio

d o

f a

fe

w w

ee

ks.

Ove

r th

e p

eri

od

of

the

acti

vit

y t

he

re w

ill

be

tim

es

wh

en

th

e

stu

de

nts

sh

ou

ld w

ork

wit

ho

ut

clo

se s

up

erv

isio

n.

Ho

we

ve

r, s

tud

en

ts s

ho

uld

se

ek a

nd

re

ce

ive

fe

ed

ba

ck,

fro

m t

uto

rs a

nd

oth

ers

, o

n t

he

ir t

arg

et

sett

ing a

nd

pe

rfo

rma

nce

. A

ny p

roje

ct

wo

rk (

inclu

din

g c

ou

rse

wo

rk)

is a

su

ita

ble

le

arn

ing a

cti

vit

y a

nd

ma

y b

e u

sed

to

ge

ne

rate

evid

en

ce

fo

r th

is

ke

y s

kil

l.

Ke

y s

kil

l p

ort

foli

o e

vid

en

ce

req

uir

em

en

t

GC

SE

Pa

pe

rs

Op

po

rtu

nit

ies

for

de

ve

lop

me

nt

or

inte

rna

l a

sse

ssm

en

t

LP

2.1

H

elp

se

t sh

ort

-te

rm t

arg

ets

wit

h a

n a

pp

rop

ria

te p

ers

on

an

d p

lan

ho

w t

he

se w

ill

be

me

t.

1 a

nd

2

Stu

de

nts

pla

n h

ow

th

ey a

re t

o m

ee

t sh

ort

-te

rm t

arg

ets

wit

h a

n a

pp

rop

ria

te p

ers

on

, e

g

agre

ein

g a

pro

ject

wit

h t

he

ir t

uto

r. T

his

wil

l in

clu

de

se

ttin

g r

ea

list

ic t

arg

ets

an

d a

cti

on

po

ints

. R

evie

w d

ate

s w

ith

, fo

r e

xa

mp

le,

the

ir t

uto

r sh

ou

ld b

e b

uil

t in

to t

he

pla

n.

A

po

ssib

le a

cti

vit

y m

igh

t b

e t

he

pre

pa

rati

on

fo

r a

pe

rfo

rma

nce

.

LP

2.2

T

ake

re

spo

nsi

bil

ity f

or

som

e

de

cis

ion

s a

bo

ut

yo

ur

lea

rnin

g,

usi

ng y

ou

r p

lan

an

d

sup

po

rt f

rom

oth

ers

to

he

lp

me

et

targ

ets

.

1 a

nd

2

Th

e p

lan

sh

ou

ld b

e i

mp

lem

en

ted

wit

h p

erf

orm

an

ce

re

vie

ws

an

d s

ho

uld

in

clu

de

wo

rkin

g

for

sho

rt p

eri

od

s w

ith

ou

t clo

se s

up

erv

isio

n,

eg p

racti

sin

g a

pie

ce

fo

r so

lo p

erf

orm

an

ce

UG

01

71

00

– S

pe

cif

ica

tio

n –

Ed

exce

l G

CSE

in

Mu

sic –

Iss

ue

2 –

Fe

bru

ary

20

06

1

13

Ke

y s

kil

l p

ort

foli

o e

vid

en

ce

req

uir

em

en

t

GC

SE

Pa

pe

rs

Op

po

rtu

nit

ies

for

de

ve

lop

me

nt

or

inte

rna

l a

sse

ssm

en

t

LP

2.3

R

evie

w p

rogre

ss w

ith

an

ap

pro

pri

ate

pe

rso

n a

nd

pro

vid

e e

vid

en

ce

of

yo

ur

ach

ieve

me

nts

1 a

nd

2

Stu

de

nts

sh

ou

ld r

evie

w t

he

ir o

wn

pro

gre

ss w

ith

th

e h

elp

of

the

ir t

uto

r. T

he

y s

ho

uld

ide

nti

fy,

(wit

h e

vid

en

ce

) ta

rge

ts m

et,

wh

at

an

d h

ow

th

ey h

ave

le

arn

ed

an

d t

he

y s

ho

uld

pro

vid

e i

nfo

rma

tio

n o

n w

ha

t h

as

go

ne

we

ll a

nd

wh

at

ha

s go

ne

le

ss w

ell

. A

po

ssib

le

acti

vit

y m

igh

t b

e t

he

jo

int

eva

lua

tio

n w

ith

a t

uto

r o

f a

so

lo p

erf

orm

an

ce

.

Ev

ide

nce

Stu

de

nt

evid

en

ce

fo

r im

pro

vin

g o

wn

le

arn

ing a

nd

pe

rfo

rma

nce

co

uld

in

clu

de

:

• tu

tor

reco

rds

• a

nn

ota

ted

acti

on

pla

ns

• re

co

rds

of

dis

cu

ssio

ns

• le

arn

ing l

og

• w

ork

pro

du

ce

d.

UG

01

71

00

– S

pe

cif

ica

tio

n –

Ed

exce

l G

CSE

in

Mu

sic –

Iss

ue

2 –

Fe

bru

ary

20

06

1

14

Pro

ble

m s

olv

ing l

ev

el

2

To

ach

ieve

th

is k

ey s

kil

l, s

tud

en

ts w

ill

ne

ed

to

pro

vid

e a

t le

ast

tw

o e

xa

mp

les

of

me

eti

ng t

he

sta

nd

ard

re

qu

ire

d.

Th

ey n

ee

d t

o s

ho

w t

ha

t th

ey

ca

n i

de

nti

fy p

rob

lem

s, p

lan

an

d t

ry o

ut

op

tio

ns

an

d c

he

ck w

he

the

r th

e p

rob

lem

ha

s b

ee

n s

olv

ed

.

Ke

y s

kil

l p

ort

foli

o e

vid

en

ce

req

uir

em

en

t

GC

SE

Pa

pe

rs

Op

po

rtu

nit

ies

for

de

ve

lop

me

nt

or

inte

rna

l a

sse

ssm

en

t

PS2

.1

Ide

nti

fy a

pro

ble

m,

wit

h h

elp

fro

m a

n a

pp

rop

ria

te p

ers

on

,

an

d i

de

nti

fy d

iffe

ren

t w

ays

of

tackli

ng i

t.

1,

2 a

nd

3

Stu

de

nts

wil

l n

ee

d t

o i

de

nti

fy t

he

pro

ble

m a

nd

de

scri

be

its

ma

in f

ea

ture

s a

nd

ho

w t

o

sho

w i

t h

as

be

en

so

lve

d.

Th

ey n

ee

d t

o i

de

nti

fy d

iffe

ren

t w

ays

of

tackli

ng t

he

pro

ble

m

an

d w

ays

of

ide

nti

fyin

g s

ucce

ss.

Th

ey s

ho

uld

use

th

e h

elp

of

oth

ers

, fo

r e

xa

mp

le t

he

ir

tuto

r, a

s a

pp

rop

ria

te.

A p

oss

ible

acti

vit

y m

igh

t b

e r

esp

on

din

g t

o a

co

mp

osi

tio

n b

rie

f.

PS2

.2

Pla

n a

nd

try

ou

t a

t le

ast

on

e

wa

y o

f so

lvin

g t

he

pro

ble

m.

1,

2 a

nd

3

Stu

de

nts

sh

ou

ld c

on

firm

wit

h t

he

ir t

uto

r, f

or

exa

mp

le,

the

ir c

ho

sen

op

tio

n a

nd

ho

w

the

y w

ill

imp

lem

en

t it

. U

po

n i

mp

lem

en

tati

on

re

leva

nt

task

s sh

ou

ld b

e o

rga

nis

ed

an

d

ch

an

ge

s m

ad

e a

s n

ece

ssa

ry.

Su

pp

ort

sh

ou

ld b

e o

bta

ine

d w

he

n n

ee

de

d.

A p

oss

ible

acti

vit

y m

igh

t b

e t

o c

rea

te a

nd

de

ve

lop

co

mp

osi

tio

n i

de

as

thro

ugh

th

e i

nte

rpre

tati

on

of

a s

tim

ulu

s.

PS2

.3

Ch

eck i

f th

e p

rob

lem

ha

s b

ee

n

solv

ed

an

d i

de

nti

fy w

ays

to

imp

rove

pro

ble

m s

olv

ing

skil

ls.

1,

2 a

nd

3

Stu

de

nts

sh

ou

ld c

he

ck i

f th

e p

rob

lem

ha

s b

ee

n s

olv

ed

usi

ng a

gre

ed

me

tho

ds,

fo

r

exa

mp

le b

y t

est

, o

bse

rva

tio

n,

insp

ecti

on

, e

tc.

Th

e r

esu

lts

of

this

sh

ou

ld b

e d

esc

rib

ed

wit

h a

n e

xp

lan

ati

on

of

de

cis

ion

s ta

ke

n.

Stu

de

nts

sh

ou

ld i

de

nti

fy t

he

str

en

gth

s a

nd

we

akn

ess

es

of

the

ir a

pp

roa

ch

an

d h

ow

th

ey w

ou

ld d

o t

hin

gs

dif

fere

ntl

y i

f th

ey m

et

a

sim

ila

r p

rob

lem

. A

po

ssib

le a

cti

vit

y m

igh

t b

e t

o i

de

nti

fy a

nd

ap

ply

art

isti

c a

nd

tech

nic

al

de

vic

es,

an

d t

o e

va

lua

te t

he

fin

al

co

mp

osi

tio

n.

Ev

ide

nce

Stu

de

nt

evid

en

ce

fo

r p

rob

lem

so

lvin

g c

ou

ld i

nclu

de

:

• d

esc

rip

tio

n o

f th

e p

rob

lem

• tu

tor

reco

rds

an

d a

gre

em

en

t o

f st

an

da

rds

an

d a

pp

roa

ch

es

• a

nn

ota

ted

acti

on

pla

ns

• re

co

rds

of

dis

cu

ssio

ns

• d

esc

rip

tio

ns

of

op

tio

ns

• re

co

rds

of

revie

ws.

UG

01

71

00

– S

pe

cif

ica

tio

n –

Ed

exce

l G

CSE

in

Mu

sic –

Iss

ue

2 –

Fe

bru

ary

20

06

1

15

Wo

rkin

g w

ith

oth

ers

le

ve

l 2

To

ach

ieve

th

is k

ey s

kil

l, s

tud

en

ts a

re r

eq

uir

ed

to

ca

rry o

ut

at

lea

st t

wo

acti

vit

ies.

On

e e

xa

mp

le m

ust

sh

ow

th

at

the

y c

an

wo

rk i

n o

ne

-to

-on

e

situ

ati

on

s a

nd

on

e e

xa

mp

le m

ust

sh

ow

th

at

the

y c

an

wo

rk i

n a

s a

me

mb

er

of

a g

rou

p.

Stu

de

nts

wil

l p

lan

th

eir

wo

rk w

ith

oth

ers

an

d c

on

firm

wo

rkin

g a

rra

nge

me

nts

; w

ork

co

-op

era

tive

ly t

ow

ard

s a

ch

ievin

g i

de

nti

fie

d o

bje

cti

ve

s, a

nd

exch

an

ge

in

form

ati

on

on

pro

gre

ss.

Ke

y s

kil

l p

ort

foli

o e

vid

en

ce

req

uir

em

en

t

GC

SE

Pa

pe

rs

Op

po

rtu

nit

ies

for

de

ve

lop

me

nt

or

inte

rna

l a

sse

ssm

en

t

WO

2.1

P

lan

wo

rk w

ith

oth

ers

. 1

Stu

de

nts

sh

ou

ld i

de

nti

fy t

he

ob

jecti

ve

s o

f w

ork

ing t

oge

the

r a

nd

th

e t

ask

s, r

eso

urc

es

an

d t

ime

sca

les

req

uir

ed

to

me

et

the

se o

bje

cti

ve

s. I

nfo

rma

tio

n s

ho

uld

be

exch

an

ge

d t

o

cla

rify

re

spo

nsi

bil

itie

s, f

or

exa

mp

le s

ugge

stin

g w

ays

he

lp c

an

be

giv

en

, a

skin

g w

ha

t

oth

ers

ca

n d

o,

ch

eckin

g t

he

ir o

wn

an

d o

the

rs’

resp

on

sib

ilit

ies.

Th

e g

rou

p n

ee

ds

to

co

nfi

rm r

esp

on

sib

ilit

ies

an

d w

ork

ing a

rra

nge

me

nts

. A

po

ssib

le a

cti

vit

y m

igh

t b

e

reh

ea

rsin

g a

n e

nse

mb

le p

iece

.

WO

2.2

W

ork

co

-op

era

tive

ly w

ith

oth

ers

to

wa

rds

ach

ievin

g

ide

nti

fie

d o

bje

cti

ve

s.

1

Stu

de

nts

wil

l n

ee

d t

o o

rga

nis

e t

ask

s so

th

at

resp

on

sib

ilit

ies

ca

n b

e m

et,

fo

r e

xa

mp

le

ob

tain

ing r

eso

urc

es,

co

mp

leti

ng t

ask

s o

n t

ime

, e

tc.

Ta

sks

sho

uld

be

co

mp

lete

d

accu

rate

ly a

nd

sa

fely

. C

o-o

pe

rati

ve

wa

ys

of

wo

rkin

g s

ho

uld

be

su

pp

ort

ed

th

rou

gh

, fo

r

exa

mp

le,

an

ticip

ati

ng t

he

ne

ed

s o

f o

the

rs,

avo

idin

g a

cti

on

s th

at

off

en

d,

etc

. A

dvic

e

fro

m o

the

rs,

inclu

din

g g

rou

p m

em

be

rs,

tuto

r, e

tc s

ho

uld

be

so

ugh

t w

he

n n

ee

de

d.

A

po

ssib

le a

cti

vit

y m

igh

t b

e p

lan

nin

g a

co

nce

rt p

erf

orm

an

ce

or

gig

.

WO

2.3

R

evie

w y

ou

r co

ntr

ibu

tio

ns

an

d a

gre

e w

ays

to i

mp

rove

wo

rk w

ith

oth

ers

.

1

On

ce

co

mp

lete

d t

he

fu

ll g

rou

p n

ee

ds

to r

evie

w o

utc

om

es

aga

inst

th

e a

gre

ed

ob

jecti

ve

s. I

n d

oin

g t

his

th

ey s

ho

uld

id

en

tify

wh

at

ha

s go

ne

we

ll a

nd

wh

at

ha

s go

ne

le

ss

we

ll.

Stu

de

nts

sh

ou

ld l

iste

n a

nd

re

spo

nd

to

pro

gre

ss r

ep

ort

s fr

om

oth

ers

an

d a

gre

e

wa

ys

of

imp

rovin

g w

ork

wit

h o

the

rs t

o h

elp

ach

ieve

ob

jecti

ve

s. A

po

ssib

le a

cti

vit

y

mig

ht

be

eva

lua

tin

g a

pe

rfo

rma

nce

.

Ev

ide

nce

Stu

de

nt

evid

en

ce

fo

r w

ork

ing w

ith

oth

ers

co

uld

in

clu

de

:

• tu

tor

ob

serv

ati

on

re

co

rds

• p

rep

ara

tory

no

tes

• re

co

rds

of

pro

ce

ss a

nd

pro

gre

ss m

ad

e.

81

8sb

17

01

06

S:L

T\P

D\G

CSE

Sp

ecif

ica

tio

ns\

UG

01

71

00

Mu

sic I

ss2

.do

c.1

-12

1/

13

UG

01

71

00

– S

pe

cif

ica

tio

n –

Ed

exce

l G

CSE

in

Mu

sic –

Iss

ue

2 –

Fe

bru

ary

20

06

1

16

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Publications Code UG017100 February 2006

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