Music

Curriculum Intent

The music curriculum develops skills in performing, listening and composing, exposing students to a range of genres, styles and traditions. Students will sing and use their voices and instruments to perform and compose music in response to different stimuli and styles and learn to evaluate the work they listen to and have produced. Our new spiral music curriculum focuses on building skills for beyond the KS3 classroom. We aim for all students to be competent at reading music notation and basic keyboard skills by the end of the 3 year program as well as gaining a wider understanding of music and appraising skills. All students work through the RSL piano method in year 7 in order to gain basic keyboard skills and these and additional skills are developed over year 8 & 9 so students are equipped for KS4 as well as supporting our enrichment program and students’ engagement with music beyond the classroom.

Key Stage 3

Music is taught for one hour a week in Years 7, 8 and 9 and curriculum lessons are closely linked to our instrumental and vocal lessons which are available to all students if they choose. Key Stage 3 music is also placed within the wider performing arts curriculum with many units closely linking to content taught in students’ drama and dance lessons to give a richer insight into the performing arts. Students will occasionally work on joint workshops/performance pieces of work across the disciplines.

Each unit of work ends with a performance or extended piece of work to show knowledge and skills learnt within the unit.

Units covered:

Year 7

‘La la land: Rhythm and Jazz’

Students will develop an understanding of rhythm values, what a beat is and basic Jazz techniques.

‘Music videos: Something like this/What makes you beautiful’

Students will be able to read and perform a song using notes C, D & E on the keyboard and singing.

‘Folk Music’

Students will understand what folk music is and recognise musical features used in folk music.

‘When the saints: Songs using 5 notes’

Students will be able to read and perform a song using notes C-G on the keyboard and singing.

‘Matilda: The bass clef’

Students will be able to read and perform from Matilda the musical using Bass clef notes C-G on the keyboard and singing.

‘Songs using 2 hands/thirds!’

Skills: Students will be able to read and perform a song using 2 hands together 3/4 time, Dotted Notes and Thirds.

Year 8

‘Ukulele: Major and Minor chords and Shakespeare’s music’

Students will be able to play basic major and minor chords on the ukulele and basic songs using these chords. They will also learn music linked to Shakespeare.

‘John Lewis Christmas Advert: Soundtracks

Students will create the soundtrack to their own John Lewis Christmas advert!

‘Rock and Roll/60s music’

Students will learn Rock and roll and music from the 60’s and common features used in the music such as the ‘12 bar blues’.

‘Western Classical Music’

Pupils will develop an understanding of the wider picture of Western Classical Music and build a framework to place pupils’ understanding of previous and future listening music within.

‘Eastern Music’

Students will continue to develop their listening and appraising skills/Elements of music through learning about Traditional Chinese Music, Indonesian Gamelan and Hindustani (North Indian) Classical music.

‘West Side Story: Instruments of the Orchestra’

Students will gain an understanding of the different orchestral instruments, how they work and their functions particularly looking at the musical ‘West Side Story’. 

Year 9

‘Hamilton: Rap and Hip Hop’

 Students will gain an understanding of the history and context of Rap music and how it is constructed using the music from ‘Hamilton’ as a starting point. Students will compose a Rap using key rapping techniques learnt.

‘Writing about music’

Students will learn how to write about music using the elements.

‘Film Music’

Students will understand techniques used in film music and study famous film scores looking at techniques used by composers which they will use in their own work.

‘Jazz’

Students will learn common features used in Jazz through listening and theory linked to the musical ‘Chicago’.

‘Eastern Music’ (2024 only)

Students will continue to develop their listening and appraising skills/Elements of music through learning about Traditional Chinese Music, Indonesian Gamelan and Hindustani (North Indian) Classical music.

‘New Directions’

Students will learn modernist music from 1950s onwards such as minimalism, the features used and how music broke away from previous traditions.

Key Stage 4

Students choosing to study music at key stage 4 take the EDEXCEL GCSE music course through year 10 and 11 which is comprised of 3 components.

Component 1 – Performing

Students will understand the techniques needed for their instrument/voice and be able to read the sheet music for their performance (as appropriate). Students learn and prepare a solo and ensemble performance recording.

Component 2 – Composition

Students study compositional devices used and how these work together. Students compose a free composition for a film clip and set brief composition in a song style (as appropriate to the brief set by the exam board)

Component 3 – Appraising

Students will study the elements of music and how these are used in 8 set works. Students will be able to recognise and write critically about how composers use the elements of music in the set works studied.

Progression Pathway

Performing Arts Subject Progression Pathways