Hi i am taking GCSE in music and i got a problem cause the AOS have changed to more pop music and im a violinist im not at all gd at composing and of course wit my violin teacher on maternity leave i cant get much help i really worried i wont pass

Don't worry, give it a bit more time and see how you feel. I know what it is like to be amongst all guitars and drums as do others.

Good Luck Ben

I'm the only violinist in my class too! its quite sad actually i'm the only violinist left inthe school!!

I know I will be the only violin- plyer in music GCSE class because my friend isn't doing music GSCE as her option.

For A2, my main focus is on pop/jazz and I'm a flautist, and don't really listen to that kind of stuff. It won't disadvantage you. Do you know which board you're on? If you do, then http://www.cgpbooks.co.uk and http://www.rhinegold.co.uk/ both do revision guides which can help you.

Can you ask your music teacher about composition?

Hi - don't worry is the 1st thing. I've taught GCSE music for over 10 years and have seen many classes where there are very few (sometimes one or two) "classical" musicians. If you do the OCR course the CGP books are good - helpful on composition as well. I find the Rheingold ones too wordy for most students.

Your performances should be no problem. I would make sure that the integrated coursework composition/ perormance (One of each has to relate to each other) is a solo (no accompaniment) composition. If you set out to compose a solo, you can't be marked down for not producing an accompaniment) For the other one I would choose a waltz. The chord progressions are easy. Find a piano waltz which looks really easy for a pianist. Try to work out the chords used. This sequence must be good if the music has been published. Change the key and try to write a tune that fits it in a similar rhythm to the original.

Remember you have the advantage of reading music - most of the others will read "tab" or not at all!

Hope that helps. Ask me again if you need other help.

Head of Music seems to have offered sound advice (though some people like me find the CGP books drive them insane!), so I'll just raise my hand as another person surrounded by guitarists! They only read TAB so my teacher's spending our single period theory/listening lessons teaching them to read music. The only problem is the most stupid questions about note values come from the trombonist who's been playing for 5 years

It's not as bad over here, though - between two classes we have three brass players (me, a trumpeter who's not half bad and said dodgy, irritating trombonist), three woodwind (two flautists, one of who also does guitar and a clarinettist), but the rest are drummers, guitarists and semi-non-reading keyboardists. I suspect that some of them will still come out being non-readers as well

Perhaps if people had to be able to read music to do a GCSE in it we would have less problems. My class were taught to read music once a year before we got to GCSE level, so it's not like they never had the chance.

Some people in my AS music class still can't read music

How exactly do they cope with class ensembles, compositions, etc.?

They are apparently going to get extra music reading lessons but the honest answer to your question is, 'I have no idea'. Personally, I think that they should have picked a different option, for their sakes and the rest of us.

Hmm. If you gave the non music reading people in my class extra lessons, they wouldn't turn up. Just like theory, they turned up once or twice, then it was just me, working towards G6!! They have no understanding of keys etc., so I don't know how they cope.

Yeah, that'd make more sense - but unfortunately, we do have some pretty good players who can't read music and I think if it was a pre-req, where would you draw the line? If someone plays trombone and only reads bass clef, or viola and only reads alto, how are they that different from someone who reads TAB? They're both forms of notation, but neither of them are treble clef, the one you mainly need for GCSE.

The real reason, I suspect, for schools letting non-readers do music is because the numbers would suffer so greatly if they didn't I just wish that once people were on board doing GCSE, they could be bothered to make the effort to learn

We had that when I was AS - but we now have people who don't know different clefs and things (e.g treble/bass)

I don't think which clef you have learnt for your instrument matters.
Once you understand how it works with one clef you can understand how it works for all.
The only difference is the pitch of the notes.

Yes- Making effort to learn anything at GCSE music would be good for some people. Or effort to produce a composition. Or a performance of any kind. Rather than ruining it for the rest of the class.

Faced with being the only one able to read Music in a GCSE class my daughter opted for Art. I think it was for the best after reading this thread the teacher would have spent all her time working through theory no doubt.

Well i really want to change from music cos my teacher is the worst and REALLY cant teach! I'm sure i could do a better job

I guess I'm lucky because I have had 2 very friendly teachers who can teach for GCSE so far. The class leaves a lot to be desired though.

All my teachers are great. I have had the best maths teacher for the last 5 years

Thats the kind of thing my college has done and i'm so annoyed
Instead of doing jazz,which i would have loved to do, we now have to do film music!!:(

It is really unfair. What you can do is continue with jazz in your own time, perhaps get a few friends together and make a jazz group. Is he making you play it for your performance?

Yes he is and he's saying that we have to do our composing based on it. I thought "whats the point when we havent done the "theory" of jazz?" I think i may have to buy a jazz theory book or something!
I'm already in a Big Band..so i suppose that helps.