Why study Music?
The Music department maintains a high performance profile within the school and prides itself on quality A Level Music teaching, resulting in a significantly high ‘high grade’ pass rate when compared with the national average.
Music at A Level is well-respected by universities as a creative subject with both academic rigour and important skill development. Students lay the foundations for further study or a musical career, and develop self-confidence, communication skills, creative skills, critical analysis and evaluation skills. Music is a complementary subject for a range of other subjects, often including Maths, Physics, History, French, English Literature and Art.
The Music industry is thriving in the UK with plenty of opportunities for careers in either the performance/composing side or in production. Careers after university have enormous variety and musicians are to be found working in Teaching, Banking, and the Computer Gaming industry as well as in Broadcasting and the Music industry itself.
Areas of Study
Students will further enhance their knowledge and musical ability through the study, creation and performance of music from a wide range of styles and genres. Components include:
1. Appraising music
- Listening
- Analysis
- Contextual Understanding
2. Performance
- Solo and/or ensemble and/or music production (via technology)
3. Composition
- To a brief
- Free composition
Entry Guidelines
In addition to the Sixth Form entry criteria, students wishing to study this subject are required to have a minimum grade 6 in Music at GCSE (or equivalent). Although a formal grade on your instrument/voice is not essential, we would advise that you can play music to at least Grade 5 standard.
