Music

The Music Department at Thetford Grammar School is at the heart of the school community. The Department takes an active part in the very busy musical life of the school, performing in many concerts and events in the local area. We have a team of highly experienced visiting teachers and operate as a centre for Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music practical and theory exams. Music GCSE can be taken in the options blocks or as a twilight subject.

Music is seen by employers and universities as a subject that fosters a number of valuable skills: teamwork and communication, self-motivation, discipline and creative thinking to name but a few. Music GCSE is considered an interesting subject to see on a job or university application. If you wish to specialise, the music business is one of the biggest in the UK, with a wide range of opportunities. You may wish to take the study of Music further to A level or beyond and Music GCSE is a good preparation. Specialist jobs include Music Therapy, Teaching, Production Promotion, Recording Engineer, Composer, Publisher, Music Management and Performance.

Course Outline

There are three main elements to the course:

1. Listening exam 40%. Pupils take final exam at the end of Year 11 based on the study of several pieces of music and musical language.

2. Performing coursework 30%. Prepare and record one solo and one ensemble performance for a final assessment. Pupils will continually work on their performance during the course. Where Music is taken in the options blocks there will also be opportunities to study Music Technology.

3. Composing coursework 30%. Compose two pieces totalling a minimum of 3 minutes duration. One must be based on ideas from a selection of composition briefs and one is of your own free choice. These could be in any style. Pupils compose five pieces throughout the course during practical lessons and select the best two for submission.

Assessment Information

Performing and composing are marked through non –exam assessment. As each piece of work is produced it is marked internally by Music Department staff. It is returned to the pupil for review and development. Pupils will submit their best examples of work to the exam board at the end of the course. The listening exam is based on the set works and topic areas studied throughout the course. This is marked externally.