Exam Board
AQA
Entry Requirements
Grade 6 in GCSE Music or a minimum of Grade 5 instrumental/vocal exam plus Grade 5 theory.
Why Choose Music?
Music is regarded by the top universities as a rigorous A-level as it covers a wide range of skills over the course. These include studying the historical context of various styles of music and the inherent traditions of the era; being able to read notation fluently enough to be able to analyse a musical score; using a wide range of technical vocabulary to describe musical features; the self discipline required to progress on an instrument through independent practice; manual dexterity and not forgetting a passion for playing and listening to a wide range of music.
You should enjoy playing or singing – especially in a group, as this enhances your ensemble skills. You should be prepared to embrace new styles of music, new concepts and be able to appreciate the technicalities of creativity in terms of structure and devices used by composers of all genres.
What is Involved?
You will study one compulsory area of study: Western Classical tradition 1650-1910. This involves becoming very familiar with the music aurally, analysing the score and learning about the historical context. There is a written exam with sound extracts. The strands are:
- Baroque solo concerto
- The operas of Mozart: The Marriage of Figaro
- Romantic piano music: Brahms, Chopin and Grieg
You will then choose two further areas of study after discussion with staff, chosen from the following:
- Pop Music: Stevie Wonder, Joni Mitchell, Muse, Beyonce, DaftPunk, Labrinth
- Music for Media: Hermann, Zimmer, Giacchino, Newman, Uematsu
- Music for Theatre: Weill, Rodgers, Sondheim, Schonberg, Brown
- Jazz: Armstrong, Ellington, Parker, Davis, Metheny, Simcock
- Contemporary Traditional Music: Piazzolla, Diabete, Shankar, Mariza, Bellowhead
- Art Music since 1910: Shostakovitch, Messiaen, Reich, MacMillan
You will also give a recital of solo/ensemble music for a minimum of 10 minutes which should be around grade 6-8 standard.
There are also two compositions to complete – one that is chosen from a given brief and one free composition.
what we've been up to...
Northwest ESAA Track and Field
This week saw some of our Year 9 and 10 athletics’ stars head to the Northwest ESAA Track and Field Championships in Manchester. An extremely successful outing means they are now off to the National Finals in Essex. Well done girls we are very proud of you all.
Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Trial Expedition 2023
86 WKGS students spent the weekend in Wales completing their trial expedition for the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh award. With such beautiful weather a good time was had by all learning essential skills for survival in the open air!
Spanish Exchange
The Spanish Department resumed 2019’s successful student exchange with our partner secondary school, IES Garcilaso de la Vega a mixed secondary school located in Torrelavega, a town in Cantabria in northern Spain: The Spanish Exchange presents students with a unique opportunity to improve their spoken Spanish and see Spanish daily life at first hand. Students from Calday Grammar School collaborated with us and students were accompanied by teaching staff from West Kirby Grammar School and Calday Grange Grammar School. The Spanish students hosted their English partners and a programme of events was organised during the school day for the visiting students. The students visited Santander, experienced a day at the Altamira Museum, an exact replica of the Altamira Caves with Palaeolithic cave paintings. They took part in a workshop in which they learned how to make and throw spears to hunt deer and bison. This was followed by a visit to Santillana del Mar. During their visit they also visited El Soplao, a site of great geographical importance, and the beautiful Santillana del Mar and the Parque Naturaleza de Carbaceno.
Year 12 North West Regional Forum European Youth Parliament at L
The North West European Forum 2023 is one of the fourteen regional EYP forums which take place in the UK, with many more taking place in other countries. There were a number of debates throughout the day. The forum gave students an opportunity to debate a range of topics affecting young people across Europe. Two schools were selected at this regional forum and to also send a team of eight students over the age of sixteen to either the Summer or Autumn National Selection Conference, held at Liverpool Hope University for a long weekend in July 2023. Big well done to both of our EYP teams who performed at a consistently high standard throughout the debates. Special congratulations to our 2nd team who made it through to the national finals in July!
With one more week to go, we are really looking forward to our first #WKGS PTA Quiz / Fish & Chips Night. Tickets are still available from: ticketsource.co.uk/west-kirby-gra… https://t.co/bsxLFRr7Ko
We are very proud of Mia, Grace, Peggy and Hannah (#WKGSY12) who have made the finals of the Samsung 'Solve for Tomorrow' competition. They have made the last 5 in their age group. We wish them the best of luck for their final pitch which takes place next month. https://t.co/LIrkB9eLik
We are very proud of Mia, Grace, Peggy and Hannah (#WKGSY12) who have made the finals of the Samsung 'Solve for Tomorrow' competition. They have made the last 5 in their age group. We wish them the best of luck for their final pitch which takes place next month. https://t.co/5OJXnqatwU
A photo stop on the Great Wall of China, July 2015 for this week's #ThrowbackThursday https://t.co/Wp4YLzTHlA
We are delighted to announce the release of the second episode of our WKGS Student Podcast. Episode 2 will be live on Friday 28th April and will feature local artist (and former #WKGS student) Michael Aldag. Subscribe to our Student Podcast now at: spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/ogLOQbBw7yb https://t.co/u2O0Brp90O
Congratulations to Mia (#WKGSY12) and her horse MS Mastro who competed in the National Schools Equestrian Association dressage at Kelsall Hill. Mia won her Novice class and has qualified for the National Championships at Hickstead in May. We wish Mia every success. https://t.co/qiK2vL2FmG
Congratulations to Mia (#WKGSY12) and her horse MS Mastro who competed in the National Schools Equestrian Association dressage at Kelsall Hill. Mia won her Novice class and has qualified for the National Championships at Hickstead in May. We wish Mia every success. https://t.co/r3ADJ8ZnP4
A walk to Hilbre Island with German Exchange partners (around 1994) for this week's #ThrowbackThursday https://t.co/dYjHAwt6TU
It's back to 2018 for this week's #ThrowbackThursday for a Student Fashion Show.... https://t.co/uiNwudPObr
Drama visit to Paris
Students from our GCSE Drama group visited Paris to see a theatre production and take part in a Drama workshop. They also had the fantastic opportunity to experience a guided backstage tour of the Opera Garnier, the inspiration for Phantom of the Oprea. The visit included a guided tour of Paris exploring the sights and shops; they saw a production of the Lion King – The Musical at Théâtre Mogador and enjoyed a day in Disneyland Paris.
Wishing our students and staff a happy Easter break. All year groups will return on Monday 17th April which will be a Week A. https://t.co/IbnomcGX4a