Music
Music AQA
Course Outline and Content
There are three components and four areas of study:
Components:
Component 1 – Understanding Music
Component 2 – Performing Music
Component 3 – Composing Music
Areas of study:
AOS 1 – Western Classical Tradition 1650-1910
AOS 2 – Popular Music
AOS 3 – Traditional Music
AOS 4 - Western Classical Tradition since 1910
Understanding music is a listening examination and performing and composing are coursework components. All components use the areas of study.
Understanding Music – Examination 40%
This is a listening examination in two parts. Part one is where you will answer questions on unfamiliar music from the four areas of study. You will be expected to identify and accurately describe:
- Musical elements
- Musical contexts
- Musical language including being able to read staff notation
Part two is where you will critically appraise the study pieces from AOS 1 and one other AOS (we will do AOS 2). This will include being able to write about why the piece was written, how the composer uses musical elements to make the piece successful and to describe the piece using the correct terminology for the genre of the music.
This is the music you will study. It will help massively if you can begin to listen to this music on YouTube or Spotify (etc.) before September.
AOS 1 – Western Classical Tradition 1650-1910
Coronation anthems and oratorios of Handel
Orchestra music of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven
Piano music of Chopin and Schumann
Requiems of the late Romantic period
Study piece
Haydn Symphony No101 in D Major (The Clock), Movement 2
AOS 2 – Popular Music
Music of Broadway 1950s – 1990s
Rock music of the 1960s & 1970s
Film and computer gaming music 1990s – present
Pop music 1990s - present
Study piece
The Beatles – Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
Tracks: With a Little Help from My Friends; Within You, Without You; Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
AOS 3 – Traditional music
Blues music from 1920-1950
Fusion music incorporating African and/or Caribbean music
Contemporary Latin music
Contemporary folk music of the British Isles
AOS 4 - Western Classical Tradition since 1910
Orchestral music of Copland
British music of Arnold, Britten, Maxwell Davies and Taverner
Orchestral music of Kodaly and Bartok
Minimalist music of Adams, Reich and Riley
Performing Music – Coursework 30%
You must produce a live performance of a minimum of four minutes. One minute must be an ensemble performance and you must have a solo performance. You can play any style or genre of piece. Your performance need not be related to the AOS.
You can perform either:
Instrumental including vocal/DJ
Production via technology (sequencing and recording using a computer and recording studio)
Composing Music – Coursework 30%
You will produce two compositions with a combined minimum length of three minutes.
Composition One – to a brief set by AQA
Composition Two – free composition; you set your own brief
The style and genre of the music you compose is entirely up to you and need not relate to any of the AOS.
You must ensure your music employs four types of musical element
Two from: metre, rhythm, texture, melody, structure, form
And Two from: harmony, tonality, timbre, dynamics, phrasing, articulation
For further information see
Dr N Carey ncarey@sharnbrook.beds.sch.uk
For KS3 assessment criteria please click here.