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Flying start: A level MusicMusic is part of the wider VAPAM (Visual and Performing Arts and Media)
Faculty, within this faculty sit all the creative subjects and we all work together successfully. We have Instagram accounts where you can update yourself on
current work, recommendations and other updates.
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Thank you for showing an interest in studying A level Music at Thomas Rotherham College. We are very keen to see what you can do, and this pack
should help you get you off to a ‘flying start’.
This Flying Start pack contains:
1) Information about the course2) A variety of activities to do at home3) A working weekly planner for you to use
and track the activities4) Useful links and resources
Music is an exciting and creative A Level where you can develop your performance skills, learn about and experiment with different compositional techniques & styles and broaden your knowledge and understanding of music through analysis
of a wide range of genres & styles.
If you have any questions, or require any support, you can email:
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We are looking forward to meeting you in September!
Information about the A Level Music course
A-level Music explores a wide range of genres and styles of music through performance, composition and appraisal.
The music studied ranges from Baroque music to the present day. Students can perform and compose in any genre or style including classical, pop, musical theatre, jazz and folk....there are no restrictions! The appraisal of music centres around a collection of eighteen set works that are contained in an anthology published by Pearson, copies of which will be provided.
The set works cover six areas of study: Vocal Music, Instrumental Music, Music for Film, Popular Music & Jazz, Fusions and New Directions.
These pieces are then used as a stimulus for wider listening that may include any style or genre of music which interests you.
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Your Own Working Weekly Planner
PlannerThe following plan is meant as a guide to help you structure the activities in this flying start pack between June and August. However, if you would like to complete this at a different pace and/or spend less or more time on each activity this is entirely your choice.
Activity number Page number Time allocation Complete?
1What makes a great
performer?5 30-45 minutes
2Which performances do
you enjoy listening to/watching?
6 30-45 minutes
3How’s your Italian?
7 30-45 minutes
4How well do you know
your instruments?
8 45-50 minutes
5Discovering more about
the Baroque period
9/10 1-2 hours
6So what is Classical
music?11/12 1-2 hours
7What is Romanticism?
It’s not just about love! 13/14 1-2 hours
8 The language of music 15-17 1-2 hours
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9All that Jazz! 18/19 1-2 hours
10Popular music from the
1950s to the present20/21 1-2 hours
ACTIVITY 1: What makes a great performer?
Everyone has their differing opinions on what makes a good performer, some of which is down to personal preference. However there are some performers who are universally acclaimed as great performers the world over.
Below are three links to examples of performers from different styles and eras of music who are or have been hailed as great performers.
Watch and listen to the performers carefully and consider what makes the artists great performers. What do they have in common and what characteristics are unique to each performance? (Try to be objective and not too influenced by your preference for a particular type of music....you will have opportunity in Activity 2 to take a more subjective view! Try to come up with at least five points and explain your observations clearly.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWzrABouyeELouis Armstrong singing ‘What a Wonderful World’ by Bob Thiele and George David Weisshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yWLUzJXZcIAlison Balsom performing Allegro, from Concerto in D for Trumpet and Organ by J S Bachhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a87-SYfD0js (from 18:50 to end)Freddie Mercury performing ‘We Will Rock You’ at Live Aid 1985
Notes on findings - Use this space and on the following page to make notes about your thoughts. It is up to you how you take notes e.g. bullet points, full sentences, single words ….. whatever allows you to express your thoughts most effectively.
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*BONUS ACTIVITYIt would be great to hear a performance from you before we start the course! If you’re feeling brave, send us either a video or audio performance recording of yourself. This could be just one piece or if you want to put together a short recital of up to 10 minutes, that would be even better. You don’t need to wait until the course starts....we’d love to hear from you at any time between now and the beginning of the course so send your recording as soon as it’s ready!
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Please send your recording to the email address below or if the file is too large you might want to use Dropbox. If you require any further guidance on this, please contact us at the same email address.
[email protected] 2: Which performers do you enjoy listening to/watching?
Tastes in music vary tremendously. Some people are very definite about their likes and dislikes and are not always very open to discovering new styles and genres; but familiarity is everything in music....sometimes when you are exposed to unfamiliar music repeatedly eg. in advertisements or background music in films and documentaries, people can grow to enjoy music that they may not previously have chosen to explore.
The A level Music course encourages you to learn about a core set of diverse pieces but then to use those as a starting point to explore a wide range of other music to broaden your musical experiences, inspire your own creativity through composition and to stimulate your interest in performing a more diverse repertoire.
For this task you need to choose either one piece of music or one artist which you particularly enjoy listening to and explain the reasons for your choice. Sometimes people find it difficult to narrow down their choice to just one piece or artist so if you find it difficult, you may broaden your explanation to no more than three pieces. Again, try to come up with a minimum of five observations for each performer, with clear explanations.
Notes on findings - Use this space and on the following page to make notes about what you find out. It is up to you how you lay this out e.g. bullet points, full sentences, single words or even inserted images....whatever helps you to express your thoughts!
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ACTIVITY 3: How’s your Italian?As you may be aware, traditional music notation uses Italian terms to explain features of the music such as speed, volume and mood.
Why did Italian become established as the main language of musicians?
In the table below, complete the meaning of the Italian words and then try to discover the answer to the question above. There are myriad websites that give you explanations of Italian musical terms: see how many you can get without help and type them in green and any you have to look up in red. (You won’t be judged if they’re all red but try to be honest!)
Italian Englishfortissimoallegromoderatotutticalandomolto vivacecrescendosul tastotre cordelargogiocosopiù pianolegatoportamentostringendosubito pianissimotranquillomaestosoprestissimogravefuriosodolcemorendoda capograziosoSo why did Italian become established as the main language of musicians?
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ACTIVITY 4: How well do you know your instruments?
Could you recognise most instruments by their sound and appearance?
Can you list all the instruments of a typical modern orchestra and explain which family they belong to?
What about instruments from other cultures?
In the grid below, fill in as many instruments as you can think of and allocate them to the appropriate family? Try starting from what you already know and then do some research to expand your lists in each category.
Woodwind Brass
Strings Tuned percussion
Untuned percussion Keyboard and electronic instruments
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ACTIVITY 5: Discovering more about the Baroque period.
Of the eighteen set works on the A level Music course, thirteen were composed in the 20th & 21st centuries. However, in order to put music in context, it is essential to know something about the preceding periods of music history as obviously composers of the 20th & 21st centuries often take their inspiration, knowledge and understanding of music from their predecessors.
In this activity you are encouraged to develop your understanding of the Baroque period of music history.
Where does the word Baroque come from and what does it imply? What dates are we talking about, who were the prominent composers of the day and what are some of the most enduring works? Who were their contemporaries in the other arts, politics and royalty?Are there any instruments that are unique to the Baroque era?What are some of the typical features of Baroque music?
There is a wealth of information online on this topic; below are a few suggestions to get you started but explore more widely yourself and do lots of listening....while you work! Baroque music is in many ways the most accessible of all classical music.
http://www.baroquemusic.org/
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=baroque+music
https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/periods-genres/baroque/
Notes on findings - Use this space and on the following page to make notes about what you find out. Try to answer some of the questions raised above but focus particularly on the music and the musicians. You may also add anything else that you discover of interest. Include illustrations if you feel it would enhance your presentation.
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ACTIVITY 6: So what is Classical music?
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A good question! It means different things in different contexts.
What’s the difference between Classical music and classical music?Where does the word come from and what does it imply?In what ways is Classical music different from Baroque music?What changed in the way that composers used instruments?
In a similar way to how you approached the previous task, research Classical music but in the context of what you have discovered about the Baroque era. What are the similarities and differences?
Notes on findings - Use this space and on the following page to make notes about what you find out. Try to answer some of the questions raised above but again, focus particularly on the music and the musicians. You may also add anything else that you discover of interest. Include illustrations if you feel it would enhance your presentation.
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ACTIVITY 7: What is Romanticism? It’s not just about love!
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Many people would associate the word ‘romantic’ with love, but historically the advent of Romanticism is much broader and had an impact on how people viewed many aspects of life. It was reflected in arts and literature starting in the late 18th century and had a huge impact throughout the 19th century.
In this task you are invited to explore the influence of ‘Romanticism’ on music.
How did it change Classical music?What effect did it have on musical genres?What new types of pieces emerged?How did it influence composers’ use of instruments?Why are there so many well known Romantic composers when compared to earlier periods?Is ‘Romantic’ music still composed today?
Notes on findings - Use this space and on the following page to make notes about what you find out. Try to answer some of the questions raised above but again, focus particularly on the music and the musicians. You may also add anything else that you discover of interest. Include illustrations if you feel it would enhance your presentation.
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ACTIVITY 8: The language of music If you have taken GCSE or BTEC level 2 Music or have taken graded music practical and theory exams you may be familiar with some of the language which is peculiar to music; some of the language was mentioned earlier in Task 3: How’s your Italian?
However, at A level you will be expected to analyse music in a much more comprehensive way using an increasingly complex language. You will find that if you
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are familiar with some of the main vocabulary you will be much better armed to write well-constructed essays and respond effectively to shorter questions in the exam.
This task is to encourage you to broaden your musical vocabulary.
Exam boards tend to assess students understanding of music and analytical skills by discussing the main elements of music.
In the table below you are required to come up with a concise definition of the musical vocabulary under each heading. Find a suitable definition for the heading in addition to the underlying words. Try to avoid copying directly from the internet but rather use your own words to describe as simply as you can the meaning of each word. The list only gives a flavour of the more commonly used words....there are many more to learn but that can wait until you start the course in September!
Musical vocabulary
Definition
MELODY
conjunct
disjunct
chromatic
diatonic
sequence
triadic
ornamentation
countermelody
inversion
range
fragmented
STRUCTURE
binary form
ternary form
outro
segue
middle 8
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hook
coda
codetta
cadenza
TEXTURE
homophonic
polyphonic
contrapuntal
monophonic
imitation
doubling
unison
TONALITY
modulation
tonal
modal
atonal
pentatonic
wholetone
bitonalHARMONY
consonant
dissonant
pedal
drone
cadence
harmonic rhythm
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functional
power chord
parallel harmony
arpeggio
cluster chord
RHYTHM
tempo
metre
syncopation
cross rhythm
ostinato
anacrusis
sextuplets
common time
augmentation
diminution
stop time
ACTIVITY 9: All that Jazz!
Jazz has had a huge influence on music since the end of the 19th century but how much do you know about it? We will be studying three jazz compositions by a
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contemporary artist but it would be very helpful to have some background to the origins of jazz to help make more sense of the music.
Where did jazz originate?In what way is it associated with one of the greatest human tragedies?What are some of the main characteristics of jazz?Which instruments feature in most jazz music?Who are some of the main composers and performers of jazz (including the man pictured above)?How has it influenced other styles of music?
Jazz provides a wealth of interesting music to listen to and learn about. Do some research and listening and summarise your findings in the space below. It’s a huge topic so you might be wise to restrict your discussion to some of the key musicians from each era of jazz: aim to include at least three performers in your discussion.
There are many websites on this topic; a few starting points could include the following links:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=jazz
http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20170224-the-mysetrious-origins-of-jazz
Notes on findings - Use this space and on the following page to make notes about what you find out. Try to answer some of the questions raised above but again, focus particularly on the music and the musicians. You may also add anything else that you discover of interest. Include illustrations if you feel it would enhance your presentation.
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ACTIVITY 10: Popular music from the 1950s to the present.
How would you define ‘pop’ music?When did it start?Is rock, pop?Who are the greatest pop musicians?
These are questions that are difficult to answer definitively.
In this final task it would be interesting to talk to parents and older relatives and friends about their experiences of popular music. What did they enjoy listening to? Do they still listen to the same music now? How does the music of their generation compare to current trends? Do you enjoy listening to pop from earlier decades?
Again, this is a huge topic so try to pick a solo artist or group from each decade starting with the 1950s and present your findings in the space below. You can present your information in any way you think appropriate but try to include some information about the artists’ background(s) and some of their most prominent tracks.
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Notes on findings - Use this space and on the following page to make notes about what you find out. Try to answer some of the questions raised above but again, focus particularly on the music and the musicians. You may also add anything else that you discover of interest. Include illustrations if you feel it would enhance your presentation.
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Well done for attempting all the activities! Please bring the work you have completed to your first Music class in September - you will find many of the activities useful
straight away! 😊
Please see the ‘culture vulture’ link on the website for further activities/entertainment!
