WJEC GCSE Music (Wales): complete guide to the units, areas of study and exam

WJEC GCSE Music for Wales (specification 3660) is a linear course assessed by two practical units and one written exam at the end of the course. This page is the index: below is a map of the three units, the four areas of study, the two set works, the musical elements toolkit, and how to revise. WJEC's Wales specification is distinct from its England-facing Eduqas brand, so always revise from the current 3660 specification and WJEC's own past papers and recordings.

The three units

Music is split into three units. Two are practical coursework and one is a written exam, all taken at the end of the course.

• Unit 1: Performing. 35 percent, a non-examined assessment. A solo and an ensemble performance (with at least one piece linked to an area of study) plus a programme note, marked on accuracy, control, expression and ensemble rapport.
• Unit 2: Composing. 35 percent, a non-examined assessment. Two compositions, one free and one to a WJEC-set brief linked to an area of study, plus an evaluation, marked on creativity, control of the elements, structure and coherence.
• Unit 3: Appraising. 30 percent, a written listening exam of about one hour worth 72 marks, with eight questions, two on each of the four areas of study, including the two set works.

So 70 percent of the GCSE is practical and 30 percent is the written Appraising paper. The assessment objectives reward performing (AO1), composing (AO2), applying knowledge (AO3) and appraising and evaluating (AO4).

The four areas of study

The same four areas of study run through all three units, and the Appraising paper sets two questions on each.

• Area of Study 1: Musical Forms and Devices. The Western Classical Tradition (about 1650 to 1910): forms (binary, ternary, minuet and trio, rondo, variations, strophic), devices (sequence, ostinato, pedal, imitation, canon) and harmony (primary chords, cadences, modulation, tonality).
• Area of Study 2: Music for Ensemble. Chamber music, musical theatre, jazz and blues, and Welsh traditions such as cerdd dant, with the textures and groupings that combine the parts.
• Area of Study 3: Film Music. How music supports storytelling, atmosphere and character through leitmotif, thematic transformation, underscore and the musical elements.
• Area of Study 4: Popular Music. Pop, rock, soul, hip-hop and fusion, the common forms (verse-chorus, twelve-bar blues, AABA) and features (riffs, hooks, sampling).

The set works

Two of the eight Appraising questions are on prescribed set works, which must be studied in detail.

• Area of Study 1: Anitra's Dance, from Grieg's Peer Gynt Suite No.1, a light orchestral dance for strings and triangle in triple-time mazurka style.
• Area of Study 4: Everything Must Go, by the Manic Street Preachers, an anthemic pop-rock song in verse-chorus form for a rock band enriched by strings.

The musical elements toolkit

Every Appraising answer is built from the musical elements: melody, harmony, tonality, rhythm and metre, tempo, dynamics, texture, timbre (sonority) and structure. The examiner rewards the correct technical word for what you hear, supported by basic notation for the short printed extracts.

How to study WJEC Music

Music rewards trained ears and disciplined exam technique alongside practical skill.

1. Learn the elements toolkit. You cannot describe what you cannot name, so master the nine families of element and their vocabulary.
2. Know the set works in depth. Two questions reward detailed knowledge of Anitra's Dance and Everything Must Go.
3. Drill listening on unfamiliar extracts. Six questions test transferable skills, so practise against past papers and varied recordings.
4. Master the Welsh dimension. Cerdd dant, Welsh choral singing and the Welsh set work are board-specific.
5. Plan the practical units early. Choose performance pieces, link work to an area of study, and complete the programme note and evaluation.

The areas of study, dot point by dot point

Each area of study and the exam skills have an overview guide, dot-point answer pages and a quiz. Browse the full set at /wjec-gcse/music/syllabus.

For the official specification

WJEC publishes the full specification (3660), guidance for teaching, past papers, mark schemes and recordings at wjec.co.uk. Always revise from the current specification and WJEC's own materials, because the areas of study, the set works and the Welsh dimension are board-specific.