Music

Year 10

Broadway or Bust is the Semester 1 unit for Year 10 10 Music, which explores how characters and identities are constructed in musical scores to accompany the storytelling on stage.  Through an analysis of pieces from Legally Blonde, Les Misérables, Matilda, and West Side Story, the students have begun building an understanding of how characters are portrayed through the manipulation of the music elements.  This knowledge has assisted them in preparing their own piece from a Broadway musical for their performance assessment.  In addition to the musicals mentioned, students have chosen songs from Mamma Mia, Dear Evan Hansen, and The Greatest Showman.  Next term, while continuing their learning about this topic, they will turn their attention to completing an extended written response which analyses how composers portray emotion through their music.

Year 8

In Year 8 Music, the students have been exploring how composers manipulate the music elements to create a mood, character, or storyline in music that accompanies the screen. In particular, they have looked at Shrek, The Lion King, and Star Wars.  The knowledge that they have gained through these studies has guided them in preparing their own vocal and/or instrumental performances for their assessment.  There is a variety of music being produced: TV theme songs, movie soundtracks, and game music.  Next term, the students will continue to learn about music that accompanies the screen; however, they will shift their focus to composing their own segment music to accompany a movie scene.

Year 7

Eight weeks into high school and the Year 7 Music students have nearly completed their learning journey about the Nuts and Bolts of Music.  Through focusing on one music element per week, students have gained an in-depth knowledge of how musicians perform and compose their own music and make artistic choices.  Through studying a range of repertoire, they have also gained skills in reading, composing, performing, and writing about music.  Currently, students are writing a paragraph that compares the original version of Greig’s In The Hall Of The Mountain King to Deficio’s electronic dance remix.  These students are proving to be keen and enthusiastic learners and we hope to see them continue to flourish in their future Music studies. 

Daniella Curcuruto

Music Teacher