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2Studying A-level Music (Edexcel) Presentation.pdfKey skills developed by the A level Music course and valued by universities/employers include:
Key skills developed by the A level Music course and valued by universities/employers include:
The ability to analyse unfamiliar, complex material, identifying patterns and relationships within (developed through analysis of musical scores and audio recordings).
The ability to understand interrelated laws and principles and apply them to solve problems (developed through completing techniques of composition exercises following the conventions established by composers including J.S. Bach).
The ability to write concisely and persuasively using technical language (developed through writing essays analysing familiar and unfamiliar music).
The ability to present confidently to an audience (developed through performing an eight minute recital on a chosen instrument or voice).
The ability to develop ideas with imagination and creativity which are framed within given conventions (developed through completing free compositions, inspired by the work of other composers).
The ability to deal with ambiguities and use language to frame these (developed through reading and making multiple analyses of the set works studied).
The ability to listen critically (developed through all of the units of the A level music course).
If you love music, you regularly play or sing, and you have studied the subject at GCSE, then you are already brilliantly prepared for the A level music course. If, however, you would like to do even more, please choose from the list of activities below to further develop your knowledge and skill before the A level course begins.
Keep practising your first-study musical instrument / voice. Try regularly to play / sing a programme of any music lasting at least 8 minutes in total.
Try to include in your programme as many 'More Difficult' pieces as you can. By the end of the A level course you will aim to perform a programme in which all of the music is 'More Difficult' (music with a difficulty level of Grade 8 or above).
Listen to music you enjoy. Where possible, try to find and read notated scores (sheet music) for the music as you listen. Many can be found here: https://imslp.org/
Choose one or more pieces of music which you love, and which you would like to study further during the A level music course to inspire your first composition.
You may wish to read / listen to some of these models to inspire you.
Use these exercises to practise identifying pitches, keys and chords, preparing to study Bach's chorales, and to learn similar techniques to complete your own harmonisations.
Listen to all of the set works while following the notated score. Add the set works to a playlist so that you can listen when you're on the move.
Read some of the analyses provided by Edexcel. (You may wish to start with set works 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a and 6a).
Read some of the model questions and answers found on this site.
1A-level Music Students Course Guide 2024.pdfPage updated
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