Head of Department: Miss Pitman
Music is celebrated at Sandhurst School with great enthusiasm. An eclectic mix of musical styles is studied and played including classical, orchestral, swing, jazz, world, rock and pop. Curricular music is taught throughout the school at Key Stage 3 and 4. It is also available at AS and A2 level.
Both individual musicians and all of the music groups regularly make use of the practise rooms and we hope that they will further develop their performance skills at school assemblies and ceremonies during the academic year. Music is as much an activity as it is an academic subject and students have the opportunity to take a wide range of instrumental lessons within school hours which are taught by nine qualified peripatetic teachers from the Berkshire Maestros Service.
Many platforms for performance are created and styles are diverse. There are three larger concerts yearly that celebrate the music students have been working on that term and students have also taken part in Battle of the Bands, raising money for the school’s Reaching Rwanda Campaign. Some of our groups have also been active in promoting music at local primary schools to great acclaim and the variety concerts are always popular with the students.
The Music Department is self-contained and contains two classrooms, and five practice rooms which students can book for lunchtime use and also after school. The four smaller practice rooms all have upright pianos, three of which have been purchased after receiving funds from the Ernest Cook Trust. The department was also fortunate to receive an upright piano from the Bockett-Pugh family, which is a real gem. This is housed in the larger practice room, which is used for instrumental lessons.
With so much happening, it is not surprising that Sandhurst’s Music department is a thriving and exciting place to be!
Music in the Curriculum
Miss Pitman and Miss Martin teach in the Music Department. In Key Stage 3, students receive two 60-minute lessons of music every two-week cycle. We offer a stimulating and challenging course for both KS3 and KS4 pupils including traditional and world music, Blues and popular music, keyboard studies and music theory. Music lessons are always a mixture of listening, composing and performing work
We listen and talk about how music has been composed, how sounds and ideas have been used, how different parts fit together and what the music might be used for. Students compose their own music using the techniques they have spotted in listening work. They learn to play pieces that are good examples of the style they are studying.
KS3 Curriculum
Year 7- The Elements of Music
- Melody Madness
- Vocalise
Year 8
- African music
- Music and Mood
- Rock 'n' Roll
- Popular music
- Music in Advertising
Year 9
- Britpop music
- The Blues
- Film Music
- Motif and Motific Development
- Suspense Music
At Key Stage 4 students follow the Edexcel GCSE syllabus and have five music lessons over the fortnight. They are able to compose their own music on a range of instruments. They must perform two pieces, one solo and one ensemble, throughout the course on an instrument of their choice. The course covers a myriad of musical styles from dance music such as the waltz and disco to fusion styles such as bhangra, salsa and minimalism.
