Music
Back to SubjectsMusic lessons at The Hurst allow students the opportunity to explore both the familiar and un-familiar, and the chance to develop and use new skills creatively. Students develop self-confidence and perseverance, and the art of focussed critical listening. Our ethos in achieving these aims is that all music lessons are practical; students should expect to create music in music lessons.
During the school year, the music department puts on a variety of concerts and performances, including in conjunction with the drama department, a major show. This collaboration with drama extends to our West End theatre trip to London, where students have seen musicals and also the rarer experience of a backstage tour of a theatre. Whether on stage or off, there is an opportunity for students to enjoy music as part of our school community.
The music department offers extra-curricular music lessons delivered by Hampshire Music Service and Good Vibes Music Academy. We currently have students studying everything from piano to guitar to double bass.
Music is housed within a self-contained block with two main classrooms, four practise rooms with drum kits, electric/acoustic/bass guitars, and a recording studio. One room is equipped with PCs running a variety of music software and we also have a number of Apple Macintosh computers. Both rooms have full sets of ukuleles and samba instruments, plus an ever-expanding assortment of other instruments for students to use.
The department runs GCSE Music for key stage 4, encouraging students to perform and develop their knowledge of music further. Students who take this course often go on to college to study A Levels in music or music technology, or other performing arts courses. Students follow the OCR course.
To read our Music Development Plan, please click on the link below:
To find out more about our extra-curricular music lessons, please see the documents below:
Department Staff
Head of Department - Mr Lines |
Teacher - Mrs Long |
Key Stage 3
Key Stage 4
Key Stage 4 - GCSE Music
A GCSE in Music provides an accessible and creative musical education, integrating the three main components : performing, composing and appraising. Students broaden their musical horizons within five areas of study as they explore musical context, language, performance and composition. GCSE Music follows the OCR course.
Year 10
Unit 1: Composition
This unit covers:
• Melody writing, harmony and harmonisation
• Modal Tonality
Unit 2: Conventions of popular music
This unit covers:
- Rock and Roll
- Rock Anthems
- Ballads
Unit 3: Concerto through time
This unit covers:
- The Baroque Period
- The Classical Period
- The Romantic Period
Unit 4: Film Music
This unit covers:
- Composing for Picture
Unit 5: Developing composition skill
This unit covers:
- Composing to a self-derived belief
Unit 6: Rhythms of the world
This unit covers:
- Samba
- Bhangra
Year 11
Unit 1: Composing to a brief
Unit 2: Developing composition skill
This unit covers
- How to respond to a given stimulus
Unit 3: Rhythms of the world
This unit covers:
- Music of the Middle East
- Indian Classical music
Unit 4: Developing performance skill
This unit covers:
- Raising standards of solo performance
- Raising standards of ensemble performance
Unit 5: Development of listening and appraisal skills