While still in its infancy at the College, our Music Explorations course is already yielding exciting creative and academic results. This curriculum pathway is designed to provide opportunities for students who have elements of a musical background and experience, but who are not necessarily predisposed to performing as a soloist. Performance remains integral to the course, however, as does repertoire analysis, the application of music theory concepts, and composition skills.

The photos below illustrate all these disciplines in action; Year 10 students are composing pieces collaboratively using traditional musical and graphic notation methods and playing both acoustic and digital MIDI instruments. Their recorded instrument parts will be combined with solely digital instruments programmed in the software package Ableton using Launchpad controllers. In doing so, the students’ capacity for creative expression is augmented through the use of digital audio components, while a knowledge of Western music theory underpins the entire process.

These learning principles will serve students well in Year 11 and the Stage II Music Explorations subject, while more MYP information can be found in the Years 7–12 Curriculum Handbook. With a continuing Year 10 class from 2022 and a new Year 9 class this year, Music Explorations looks set to establish itself as a valuable component of the Arts curriculum at Concordia.

Barnabas Smith
Music Teacher and Worship Music Coordinator