Music at RPA
"Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything."
Plato
Who's who in the team
Ms B Wardlaw - Subject Leader
Ms S Humphrey
The Music Department plays an integral and dynamic role within the community, both inside and outside of the classroom. Our goal is to foster a stimulating and creative environment for music-making, offering students the chance to explore a broad range of musical styles and traditions. We encourage students to discover and refine their musical talents through both performance and composition. Our mission is to inspire and support each student in reaching their full musical potential in an engaging and exciting setting.
The Music BTEC program provides students with valuable hands-on experience, preparing them for direct entry into the music industry. This practical and creative course at Key Stage 4 equips students with the skills and knowledge that are highly valued by employers, while building the confidence needed for a rewarding career in the creative sector.
For those choosing Music GCSE, the course focuses on investigating, analysing, and evaluating music and its features. Through practical approaches, students are encouraged to take a holistic view of their performance, compositional skills, and overall musical knowledge. The set works studied for the external exam allow students to dive deeper into various musical styles and genres, placing them in a broader context. Students will develop their ability to perform, compose, and appreciate diverse types of music, while enhancing critical and creative thinking, cultural and emotional awareness, and the ability to collaborate both individually and in groups.
Trips and Experiences
The music department at RPA prides itself on the plethora of trips and workshops. In the last five academic years (Autumn 2016 to Summer 2024), these are an example of some of the opportunities open to students at our school:
Year 8/9 trip to see ‘Dear Evan Hansen’
Year 7 trip to see ‘Illuminate’ at Richmond College
Year 7 trip to see ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ in the West End
Year 7 trip to see ‘The Light Princess’ at the National Theatre
Year 8 trip to see ‘Matilda’ in the West End
Year 9 trip to see ‘Memphis’ in the West End
Year 9 trip to see ‘Phantom of the Opera’ in the West End
Year 10 GCSE Music students attend the St Paul’s School Springboard Composition Course to help with their GCSE composition skills annually. This is run by the Royal Academy of Music
Year 11 GCSE trip to see Mathew Bourne’s Swan Lake at the New Wimbledon Theatre
Key Stage 4 trips to Sadler’s Wells to see ‘Blayze’, Matthew Bourne’s Edward Scissorhands’, Matthew Bourne’s ‘Lord of the Flies’, Matthew Bourne’s ‘Nutcracker’ and ‘Cirque Eloise’
Year 9 and 10 trip to see ‘Miss Saigon’ in the West End
Year 7-12 trip to see Matthew Bourne's 'The Red Shoes' at Sadler's Wells
Year 7 trip to see 'Aladdin' at the Prince Edward Theatre
Year 9 trip to see 'Addam's Family' at the New Wimbledon Theatre
Key Stage 4 trip to see 'Dreamgirls' at the Savoy Theatre
Key Stage 5 trip to see 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime' at the Gielgud Theatre
Key Stage 4 trip to see 'Wicked' at the Apollo Victoria Theatre
Instrumental and vocal tuition in school (see information below with link to Richmond Music Trust).
African drumming workshops for Key Stage 3 every October.
Rap and vocal workshops led by professionals to support Key Stage 4 pupils studying music.
‘SIX’ at the Vaudeville Theatre
‘Legally Blonde’ at Regent Park Theatre
‘Frantic Assembly's Othyello’ at the Lyric
‘Back to the future’ at the Adelphi Theatre
‘Metamorphosis’ at the Lyric
‘Everybody’s Talking about Jamie’ at the peacock Theatre.
Annual Performances
Winter Concert: Performances in the annual Winter Concert in December involved all the musicians and vocal talent. Last year 1/4 of the school performed in the concert which was held in our new hall
School musical: ‘Matilda’ performed Summer 2022. ‘Legally Blonde’ Summer 2023 and ‘High School Musical’ scheduled for Summer 2024.
Key Stage 4 Music Showcase: Year 10 and 11 GCSE and BTEC students perform as one of the requirements for both courses.
RPA Live Summer Concert.
Performing Arts Review: two performances organised by the sixth form for their BTEC course.
Instrumental Recital: An opportunity for musicians (especially pianists) to showcase their work.
Live @ The Rose vocal performance with the Richmond Music Trust. Our choir performs alongside others from the Borough at The Rose Theatre in Kingston. Many of our students have been awarded solo roles in this fantastic summer opportunity
Richmond Prom orchestral performance with the Richmond Music Trust. Our orchestra performs a concert alongside other instrumental ensembles from the Borough.
Bi-anual Creative Arts Showcase in the Summer Term showing off our brilliant faculty and the hard work of Y11 and Y13.
We believe that through the arts subjects such as music we can shape our understanding of how we see ourselves and each other. There is always a challenge, a new perspective or an unlikely response. These are subjects where students can feel safe to explore their unique perceptions.
Plans for 2024/25
Winter Concert: Performances in the annual Winter Concert in December involved all the musicians and vocal talent. Last year 1/4 of the school performed in the concert which was held in our new hall
School musical: ‘Matilda’ performed Summer 2022. ‘Legally Blonde’ Summer 2023 and ‘High School Musical’ scheduled for Summer 2024. 2025 school musical TBC.
Key Stage 4 Music Showcase: Year 10 and 11 GCSE and BTEC students perform as one of the requirements for both courses.
RPA Live Summer Concert.
Performing Arts Review: two performances organised by the sixth form for their BTEC course.
Instrumental Recital: An opportunity for musicians (especially pianists) to showcase their work.
Live @ The Rose vocal performance with the Richmond Music Trust. Our choir performs alongside others from the Borough at The Rose Theatre in Kingston. Many of our students have been awarded solo roles in this fantastic summer opportunity
Richmond Prom orchestral performance with the Richmond Music Trust. Our orchestra performs a concert alongside other instrumental ensembles from the Borough.
What we do when
Year 7
In Year 7, students study music on a carousel. They will have a 120 minute lesson, once a week for 9 weeks in each subject area. During this time they will complete three units of work.
Understanding Treble Clef Notation - Performance on the keyboard (solo)
Understanding Rhythm - Composition and performance on the African drums and voice (group)
Music Theatre exploration of ‘Matilda’ - Vocal performance (group)
Year 8
In Year 8, students study music on a carousel. They will have a 120 minute lesson, once a week for 9 weeks in each subject area. During this time they will complete three units of work.
Pop Music and the Axis of Awesome - Performance on the keyboard hands together.
Understanding African Drumming - Composition and performance on the African drums and voice (group)
Music Theatre exploration of ‘Hamiltons’ - Vocal performance (group)
Year 9
In year 9, students study music on a carousel. They will have a 120 minute lesson, once a week for 9 weeks in each subject area. During this time they will complete three units of work.
Ragtime - Solo performance on the keyboard
Samba Drumming - Group composition on the Samba drums
Musical Futures - own guided performance.
Each project set will focus on building key skills needed for KS4 within each subject area.
Key Stage 4
At Key Stage 4, students can take qualifications in either GCSE Music or BTEC Music.
Music GCSE (Edexcel)
Performance as a soloist and as an ensemble.
Composition (two compositions submitted, one from a brief set by the exam board).
Analysis of eight set works, unheard works and diction exercises examined in a listening exam.
BTEC Tech Awards: Music Practice (2022)
Students in KS4 have two 120 minute lessons a week. All will receive homework on a regular basis. Due to the nature of the practical subjects there will often be project work to do and students will be expected to work on this in class and in their own time. Students will be regularly assessed using the GCSE and vocational award assessment criteria throughout Year 10 and 11, practice exam questions and past papers will be used where appropriate.
Future Careers
Music producer
Music therapist
Musician
Private music teacher
Secondary school teacher
Sound designer
Sound engineer
Sound technician, broadcasting/film/video
Special effects technician
Jobs where your degree would be useful include:
Arts administrator
Broadcast engineer
Community arts worker
Event manager
Marketing executive
Radio broadcast assistant
Radio producer
Talent agent
Theatre stage manager
