Performance Activities

Sharing your music through performance is an integral part of Music in Year 10. 

This year we aim to help build your confidence to perform in both group and individual settings. 

You will participate in a number of smaller performances/workshops over the course of the year and build towards a final more substantial performance.

If you don’t have an instrument you specialise on, you will have some time to experiment and choose one of the instruments available in the department. you must choose an instrument to focus on for the year. You will discuss this with your teacher. 

Note, we do not have enough of any instrument for you to all play the same, so you may need to compromise around this. 

Your teacher will have a range of resources available to help you. 

Your teacher will provide you with details of each of the performances you will undertake. 

You will receive feedback on the following elements: 

• Technical ability - this is the nuts and bolts of being able to play your instrument and will be based on your experience. 

• General Musicianship - this is being able to play in time, recognise if you are out of tune, play dynamics etc. 

• Musical understanding - is there evidence that you understand the music you are playing, and play it accordingly. 

• Performance conventions - this includes things like introducing yourself and piece, acknowledging your audience, etc. 

• Ensemble awareness (for group performances) - do you understand your role in the group, balance and blend with rest of the group, etc. 

Practice!

You will not improve without practising. You will have some time in class to practice, but you will probably need to do some of your own practice also. Music rooms are open throughout intervals and lunchtimes for you to practice. Your teacher will show you how to book these. 

Your teacher will give you some details about what they will be focusing on for each performance. Remember, these should be accumulative, so each successive performance should include the things you focused on previously.

Your Performance Activities will fall into one of two categories: 

Performance Workshops - these are for feedback - you will have at least one of these per term. In your early workshops you will only need to perform a shorter excerpt of the piece you are working on. As you progress, you will perform more. Use this as performance practice and take on the feedback from your peers and teacher. 

Summative Performance(s) - this will be the culmination of your hard work and practice. The majority of your learning progression will be based on this performance (though we may take in to account your earlier workshop performances). You should aim to use all the feedback you have been given throughout the year and take this performance seriously. 

Use the table below to self assess your progress: