Music

What makes the Music Curriculum so special?

The vision of the Music Department at Castle Mead Academy is to provide a broad and engaging curriculum of musical academia and performance opportunities while enriching scholars’ lives through Castle Character Time and Music Scholarships which offers a range of experiences and opportunities. We focus on developing what we consider to be The Attributes of the Accomplished Musician through which scholars will reap the wider benefits of musicianship which include increased academic and social development, creativity, professionalism, confidence, teamwork, and emotional development.

The Attributes of the Accomplished Musician:

• Instrumentalist and Performer, Composer and Creator, Music Theorist, Analyst and Appraiser,
• Cultural and Historical Scholar.

Our schemes of work and co-curriculum allow students to practice and refine The Attributes of the Accomplished Musician and form a personal and meaningful relationship with music which can be enjoyed by twinning theoretical, historical, and cultural scholarship with skills in performing and composing. Listening to, analysing, appraising, and appreciating music of various styles and genres allows students to identify “what makes music, music” and celebrate our world’s musical diversity and the togetherness music can bring to our own communities. Exposure to a range of musical instruments and vocal skills, composition technology and performance facilities provides musical opportunities for scholars to take ownership of and take pride in.

How is the Music Curriculum enacted in a way that honours its beauty, richness, and distinctiveness?

“I wish I had learned to play that when I was at school” – This is something said by many parents and carers every year when Parents Evening arrives. At Castle Mead Academy the Music Department strives to equip scholars with the knowledge to learn instruments independently, rather than focus on how to learn an individual instrument. Equipped with the Attributes of the Accomplished Musician, scholars can explore the various genres and instruments that music has to offer and explore everything music has to offer themselves. When they leave Castle Mead Academy, it is our ambition that they can explore the beauty, richness, and distinctiveness themselves.

How does the Music Curriculum equip scholars with knowledge that provides them with new ways of thinking about the world and has the capacity to take them beyond their own original experiences?

Music as a subject of study, discipline or personal interest is something which is deeply entrenched in thousands of cultures, traditions, and religions across the world. The Music Curriculum at Castle Mead Academy has been designed to encompass as many of these different styles, genres and viewpoints whilst keeping the musical theory relevant and consistent throughout. Scholars can experience musical styles outside of their own experiences, whilst being able to apply their theoretical musical knowledge practically. Musical genres that may be unfamiliar to them are introduced and approached respectfully, and a historical or cultural context is provided to give them an understanding of how and why the worlds music is so varied.

How does the Music Curriculum reflect intelligent interdisciplinarity, to allow scholars to explore meaningful connections?

Music as a discipline requires the same amount of focused practice, dedicated rehearsal, and meticulous study as all specialised subjects. The approach of ‘Chunk, Repeat, Refine’ in our rehearsal process allows scholars to reflect on the actual structured process of rehearsing, and not just the motions. The comparison of sports professionals warming up, painters refining a specific brush technique, or doctors dedicating themselves to sound theoretical study is used for scholars to see how the discipline of music is a transferable skill. Our Music Scholarship takes this to another level, with scholars immersing themselves in practice diaries, and dedicating themselves to the daily discipline of rehearsing.

Subject Leader/s