Exploring Music in Context Practical Exercises
Creating exercise
The creating exercise can be seen as a kind of musical sketch, rather than a highly
sophisticated reinterpretation of the source material. The final sketch should express some
of the wider musical conventions of the source material. The creating exercise should be
based on pieces already referred to in the report.
Creating conventions
Careful analysis of the specific stylistic conventions of the selected musical material can
help students select creating conventions and demonstrate their comprehension of the
conventions through their musical creations. When analyzing, students can look for
accepted norms of creating music according to a chosen style, which could include
musical characteristics and/or musical elements.
Performed adaptation
Recommendations
• The performed adaptation should be based on pieces explored in section 1 (exploration
of a diverse musical material).
• Students are more likely to be successful if the source material is played on an
instrument/voice that has significant di<erences from their own instrument/voice.
This will encourage students to overcome certain obstacles as they negotiate aspects such
as sustain, phrasing, tone colour, articulation and specific cultural performance
conventions.
• The performed adaptation becomes a kind of musical problem-solving exercise that
provides students with a window into performance practice.
• The main content of the written section accompanying the adaptation should outline
how the student transferred performing practices from the original instrument to their
chosen instrument.
Music technology considerations
• The outcome must demonstrate active use of performance aspects, such as triggering
of sounds in real-time and other physical techniques controlling parameters such as
dynamics, tone and rhythm.
◦ As audio uploads are required for assessment purposes, a student engaging in music
technology performance should detail in the report how they engaged in live performance
with the technology, and this should be authenticated by the teacher in the Music—
Coursework authentication form (6/MCAF).
• Adaptations that blur the lines between performance and composition are not likely to do
well.
Exploring as CREATOR
Exploring music as a creator means to engage with creating conventions in practical ways.
For creators, musical findings can be gained through arranging, improvising, notating or
creating music according to specific stylistic conventions.
Students should develop their ability to convey musical intentions eMectively through
notation according to musical conventions.
Students will learn to eMectively explain the implications of their research findings on
creating exercises through clear and concise writing that addresses:
• the stylistic creating conventions or practices that are demonstrated
• specific points of interest within the exercise, for example, places where conventions
have been specifically realized or demonstrated
• challenges of the exercise (if applicable).
Note about assessment
For the assessment task in “Exploring music in context”, students select one example of
a creating exercise and one example of a performed adaptation as evidence of their
practical understanding.
For the assessment submission, these two examples will need to be chosen from
diMerent areas of inquiry. Teachers are therefore encouraged to consider this when
setting the practical exercises throughout the course.
Creating conventions
Specific prompts to reflect on creating conventions could include the following.
• Which compositional devices have been used? For what purpose or eMect have they been
used?
• What textures can I identify? What does that tell me about the nature of the work?
• What kind of notation has been used? Can I read the notation to identify musical
elements and compositional devices?
• How has improvisation been used?
• How has ornamentation been used?
• How has tonality been used in the work?
• How has harmony been used in the work?
• How have dynamics been used to express musical meaning?
• How has rhythm been used throughout the work? Why has rhythm been used in this way?
• How have structures and forms been used throughout the work? Why have they been
used in this way?
• How has melody been used throughout the piece? Why has it been used in this way?
• Which tuning system has been used? What is unique about the use of pitch in this piece?
How does this aMect the character of the piece?
• What electronic devices and eMects can I identify? What impact does their use have on
the nature of the work?
Exploring as PERFORMER
Exploring music as a performer means to access and engage with music in practical ways
through playing and practising music from unfamiliar contexts. In this course, students
gain musical findings as performers by adapting and playing music from local and global
contexts on their own instruments, voiced or chosen medium. This will help students to
know and better understand conventions and practices of musical styles, and how
these relate to their own practice.
Through practical exercises, students will explore the performing conventions and
practices of stimulus music, and will adapt these to their own instruments, voices or
chosen medium. The adaptations will be:
• based on the findings of performing conventions and practices
• based on stimulus music from local or global contexts
• adapted for the students’ own instruments, voices or chosen medium
• performed by the student.
The exercises are not intended to accurately reproduce music, but to enhance learning and
understanding.
Students will learn to eMectively explain the implications of their research findings on
performed adaptations through clear and concise writing that addresses:
• the performing conventions or practices that are demonstrated
• specific points of interest in the adaptation of the excerpt, for example, places where
conventions have been particularly well realized
• challenges of the exercise and how these were resolved, for example, where adapting a
stylistic element for their own instrument has caused challenges.
Note about assessment
When students adapt music from a local or global context for their own instrument, it is
recommended that students select music written for a diMerent instrument, voice or
medium as it may be easier to demonstrate understanding and explain implications in
music that is less related to their own instrument.
Performance practices
Specific prompts for reflecting on performance practices could include the following.
• What are typical instrumental techniques in the music? What are the demands of the
piece? What do I especially need to work on?
• What accompaniment is typical for the music? How am I managing the demands and
challenges of communicating with the accompaniment?
• What are common practices for this ensemble? What roles do various instruments play in
this ensemble? What is unique or innovative about the music of this ensemble?
• How do I perform a piece stylistically?
• What is the appropriate articulation for this piece, and what is the purpose or eMect of
that?
• What is typical about the communication in this style or genre? How does the piece or
programme communicate the musical intention?
Performance technique and interpretation
Specific prompts for reflecting on performance technique and interpretation could include
the following.
• Which instrumental techniques am I using?
• Which techniques need further development? What will be an eMective way to improve
my technique?
• Which features are important to mention regarding my personal interpretation and
communication?
• Which features do I need to develop further to improve my interpretation and
communication? What will be an eMective way to improve my interpretation and
communication?
• Which aspects, passages or sections do I need to develop further to improve my
performance? How will I analyse and practise these aspects, passages or sections
eMectively?
• What is achievable? What is working well? What are my strengths?
