Music study guides

A complete overview of Edexcel GCSE Music Area of Study 1, Instrumental Music 1700 to 1820. Covers the Baroque and Classical styles, the two set works (Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 finale and Beethoven's Pathetique Sonata), and how to compare them for the Component 3 appraising exam.

A complete overview of Edexcel GCSE Music Area of Study 2, Vocal Music. Covers word-setting and word-painting, the two set works (Purcell's Music for a While and Queen's Killer Queen), and how to compare a Baroque song with a rock song for the Component 3 appraising exam.

A complete overview of Edexcel GCSE Music Area of Study 3, Music for Stage and Screen. Covers how music supports drama, leitmotif and underscore, the two set works (Schwartz's Defying Gravity and Williams's Star Wars main title), and how to compare musical theatre with film music for the Component 3 exam.

A complete overview of Edexcel GCSE Music Area of Study 4, Fusions. Covers what a fusion is and common world-music features, the two set works (Afro Celt Sound System's Release and Esperanza Spalding's Samba Em Preludio), and how to compare an electronic dance fusion with an acoustic jazz fusion for the Component 3 exam.

A complete overview of Edexcel GCSE Music Component 1 (Performing). Covers the solo and ensemble performances, the timing and non-doubling rules, how each is marked out of 30 for accuracy and interpretation, the approaches that lift a performance, and the role of music technology.

A complete overview of Edexcel GCSE Music Component 2 (Composing). Covers the composition to a Pearson-set brief, the free composition, the timing and marking rules, the techniques for developing musical ideas, and the methods of notating a composition score.

A complete overview of the Edexcel GCSE Music Component 3 appraising exam skills: the structure of Sections A and B, the multiple-choice and short-answer questions, the melodic and rhythmic dictation, the unfamiliar-piece question with a skeleton score, and the 12-mark Section B comparison.

A complete overview of the musical elements for Edexcel GCSE Music, built around the MAD T-SHIRP framework (melody, articulation, dynamics, texture, structure, harmony, instrumentation, rhythm and pitch). Explains the vocabulary the Component 3 appraising exam rewards and how to use the elements to analyse any extract.