Reviewing our Singing syllabuses
Ali Bowen-Davies, our Head of Assessment and Curriculum, introduces some small but important changes to our Singing repertoire lists.
Our Singing syllabuses for Practical and Performance Grades contain just under 900 art, folk, musical theatre and religious songs from a wide range of historical periods and geographical locations, and in a variety of musical styles. They cater for singers of all ages, as well as for different voice types. Given this huge breadth of repertoire, it is unsurprising that there are some lyrics that can be seen as problematic in different social or cultural contexts, or as society changes and develops over time.
As part of our ongoing work to make our syllabuses and publications more inclusive, and to ensure that we respect different cultures, traditions and experiences, we have reviewed the songs on the syllabus for suitability and appropriateness.
We looked at the title, lyrics, themes and content for every song, and following rigorous evaluation and discussion, have decided to remove ten songs. We’ve also added content warnings for 15 others which may have the potential to cause offence to some learners, parents or teachers. Candidates who have been preparing the removed songs can still sing these in their exams.
It’s worth keeping in mind that the songs in the Singing syllabuses reflect a wide variety of experiences – ranging from love, loss and abandonment to exalted religious experience - and the act of singing can bring these experiences to life in a very immediate and sometimes personal way. The songs on the syllabus are all there for valid musical and educational reasons, but it’s possible that the lyrics or subject matter could trigger an adverse emotional reaction if the content connects with the singer’s personal experience.
Our advice to teachers would always be to think carefully about the material in the song and whether it’s suitable for the learner’s age and experience, and compatible with the family’s background and values.
We hope this insight into our recent review of the Singing syllabuses is useful and helps to explain why we’ve made these important updates. Despite the changes, there is an abundance of excellent music in the repertoire lists with something for all teachers and learners to enjoy exploring and singing.
Find out more
You can find a list of affected songs on our Syllabus page under ‘corrections and clarifications’ and updated syllabuses are available on our Singing page.
