Music
STUDY LEVEL
A level
CONTACT DETAILS
Alison Richards , Head of Department richards _ a @ sjd . ac . uk
This course is great if you enjoy playing and composing music and have a desire to learn more about how it actually works . You will enhance your performance and creative composition skills and develop your understanding and appreciation of a wide variety of musical styles and genres .
Music students can enjoy some of the best facilities available with dedicated practice rooms , a recital room , a range of musical instruments , recording studios and the latest computer technology . There are also opportunities to perform at prestigious venues across Cheshire .
What will I study ?
You will enhance your performance skills and composition skills and develop a deeper understanding of a number of specific musical styles and genres . These will include vocal and instrumental music ; music for film ; popular music and jazz ; fusions ; and new directions . Creative composition tasks will ultimately lead towards the compilation of a small portfolio of original work , and the development of practical performance skills will result in a showcase recital at the end of the course .
Classroom activities are necessarily varied . It is very important that wherever possible , new concepts and ideas are explored practically as well as theoretically , in order to enhance understanding .
Co-curricular activities ?
The concert band , choir , brass group and wind ensemble rehearse weekly and perform regularly . There are also opportunities for smaller chamber ensembles and groups to rehearse together . It is hoped that music students will contribute fully towards the extra-curricular musical activities available , both as performers and even as directors . Indeed , over the past two years students have led a brass ensemble , saxophone group and folk group , all of which have then performed at the main College concerts .
Where might it lead ?
Music is an incredibly diverse subject and allows you to develop a wide variety of highly marketable skills that will be of use in other subjects , as well as in Higher Education and eventual employment . A number of past A level Music students have gone on to gain coveted places at specialist music colleges , conservatoires and Oxbridge , as well as highly competitive courses such as medicine .
An appreciation and understanding of music is also something , of course , that you can keep with you and enjoy for a lifetime .
C SirJohnDeanes A SirJohnDeanes www . sjd . ac . uk 11