Music

Purpose of study

Music is a universal language that embodies one of the highest forms of creativity. A high-quality music education should engage and inspire pupils to develop a love of music and their talent as musicians, and so increase their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement. As pupils progress, they should develop a critical engagement with music, allowing them to compose, and to listen with discrimination to the best in the musical canon.

The St Edmund Campion Music Curriculum

At St. Edmund Campion we aim to deliver a high-quality music education which is designed to inspire all children to make music with others, to learn to sing, and to have the opportunity to progress to musical excellence if they wish to. Music can help children develop co-ordination, communication and confidence whilst they are having lots of fun!  We provide children with the opportunity to learn and play a variety of instruments whilst developing an understanding of musical composition and how to organise and manipulate musical ideas. Music can enhance children’s sensory development, improve and support learning in other curriculum areas and allow children to explore a range of musical genres.

 

KS1

Children begin to use their voices expressively and creatively by singing songs and speaking chants and rhymes. They create soundscapes using vocal and body percussion. They learn to play and explore tuned and untuned instruments and practise listening with concentration and understanding to a range of music. They start to experiment with, create, select and combine sounds using the inter-related dimensions of music. Also, they produce excellent quality musical performances.

 

KS2

Children are taught to sing with increasing confidence, fluency, expression, and accuracy of pitch. They learn to play an orchestral instrument with increasing confidence, control and accuracy. Children are encouraged to listen with attention to detail, to analyse and recall sounds with increasing knowledge and understanding of the inter-related dimensions of music. They have opportunities to improvise and compose music for a range of purposes on tuned and unturned percussion instruments, and vocal and body percussion. Children will have exposure to a wide range of high-quality live and recorded music drawn from different traditions and from great composers and musicians which will enable them to develop an understanding of the history of music. Throughout the key stage there are numerous opportunities for performance involving music from a variety of cultures.

 

Every year in July we stage a major song and dance performance at Norden Farm, the local theatre and arts centre. This is a prestigious venue and all children in Years 4-6 take part accompanied by and working alongside professional musicians. These performances help embed the children and audience’s understanding of the principles of Catholic Social Teaching as they are focused on sustainability themes covering a wide range of issues. Wed we also incorporate an art exhibition to enhance the children’s learning. The musical content of the shows is challenging and varied, encompassing many different styles and genres and music from around the world. All our Y5 and Y6 children are offered opportunities to showcase their talent by singing solos, duets or in small groups.