Music

Our Vision

“Where words fail, Music Speaks.” (Hans Christian Anderson.)

Here at the Cedars, we want to learn and understand more deeply how “Music Speaks” through exploring the various disciplines of Music Creation, Performance, Appraisal and Production analysis.

“Music is life itself” (Louis Armstrong-Famous Jazz Trumpeter)

Here at the Cedars, we want Music to become “life itself” for our learners. Opportunities are there for students to participate within lessons, but also in our afterschool enrichment programme which includes instrumental tuition as well as group activities to get involved in.

We look to enable our students to become:

  • Confident students who are able to enjoy a lifetime connection and appreciation of the Performing Arts disciplines.
  • Confident in social skills and are able to engage positively in collaboration alongside self-reliance.
  • Creative thinkers who are able to independently adapt, problem solve and offer solutions.
  • Resilient students who are able to face challenges within and outside the Performing Arts.
  • Reflective students who are analytical and able to evaluate their own and others performances and written work.
  • Metacognitive learners who demonstrate self-motivation and self-regulation.
  • Motivated and determined students who are fascinated with the world around them and how the arts contribute to their everyday lives.

Mrs. Bish,
Head of Department


Studying Music at KS3
1 Hour Per Week
Outline of Music throughout KS3

Year 7
Have you ever asked the question, “What is life without Music?” The typical answer is that life would be boring without it! Well at Cedars, it is anything but boring in our music lessons.
In Year 7, we will listen to, read and translate Basic Pitch and rhythm notation, whilst exploring different styles of music. We will gain basic skills on the Keyboard. We will gain an overview of the Orchestra throughout time. We will form our own bands, school of Rock style using Keys, Ukuleles and Drumkit, and develop our singing voices. We will make music out of junk and also explore how Music influences us through its use within Adverts and Television. We will create our own Musical Advert for a product we design and end the year with an inter-tutor Advert and Jingle Competition. Each Term, there will be a Performance, Composing and Listening and Appraising Assessment Focus.

Year 8:
“What makes for a good song?” will kick us off as our big idea for Year 8. We will explore Song Structure, re-visit concepts learnt in Year 7 with retrieval activities based around Pitch and Rhythm Notation listening, reading and writing and develop our Performance skills. We will begin to explore Music in the style of the Blues and learn to create our own Christmas Song in the style of Rock and Roll/Blues. We will explore using Music Technology, the world of Music in Video Games, and learning to create Music for our own Video Game. We will finish the year exploring music from around the world and learn how to re-create it for ourselves and to fuse it with other classical/popular genres.
Each Term, there will be a Performance, Composing and Listening and Appraising Assessment Focus.

Year 9:

  • Gain An introduction to Music Production within the Music Industry and creating your own club dance track for a Class Album to stream onto an Internal Cedars Radio Station.
  • Performance Skills assessment Focus: Learning to sequence Insomnia (Faithless) using Garage Band/ Band Lab and Muse Score
  • Composing Skills Assessment Focus: Compose your own Anthem for a Club Dance track
  • Listening Skills Assessment Focus: Identifying Composing techniques using Music Technology in Club Dance Music.