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IB Music = Painful Death

Okay I'm going to tell you a little about my situation. Then perhaps you will understand why I am now sitting here hyperventilating and crying. Either that or you will think me completely ridiculous.

My school offers IB music. When i went to my head of music in the middle of year ten he told me I would fly through it, score highly, and that it was basically a kind little voyage of happiness with little work involved.

I went into a combined class: myself, and three year twelves. They were ahead of me, but I didnt have much trouble catching up to an okay standard.

Halfway through that year, said teacher (who was basically the mentor of all of us) decides to leave the school. His replacement teacher is only fairly good: she has never taught the class before, she has issues with the language barrier and she cant seem to inspire us the way he could. She also cannot assess properly what standard we're at. None of this is really her fault I suppose but ill admit she fairly often gets the brunt of my rage.

My year twelves just got their marks, and one of them got a 4. I was expecting him to get at least a 6 even though his exam probably wasn't that crash hot.

I need sixes and sevens at higher level to get into university-of-dreams and I'm panicked because now I dont think i have a shot of getting that.
So help! Everyone always goes on about how bloody easy IB music is and what I want to know is what the bloody hell is wrong with my school that they can have screwed us under the table so badly.

I need specific, helpful advice from anyone who did/does IB music. In particular need help with MI and Composition. What the hell can I do to get my six?

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Ok, I know absolutely nothing about IB music (or music in general) cause very few people took it at my school and I wasn't one of them
Anyway, reading your situation I think your best bet is to look up information that helps teachers so that you can do a teach-yourself kind of course:
http://amis-online.org.uk/profdev/ib_resources/ibresources_kuehn.htm
Study guide from wikibooks: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Wikibooks:s-smilie:tudy_guide_bookshelf
Book: http://store.ibo.org/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=IB+music+guide+english
http://phs.provo.edu/~lorir/IB/Courses/Music.htm

And, is there anyway you can contact your ex teacher?
Lots of people in my English class had constant contact through emails with our teacher during holidays in order to get things done. I know it's harder with music because he won't be there but it might help a little.
Reply 2
IBblonde
Okay I'm going to tell you a little about my situation. Then perhaps you will understand why I am now sitting here hyperventilating and crying. Either that or you will think me completely ridiculous.

My school offers IB music. When i went to my head of music in the middle of year ten he told me I would fly through it, score highly, and that it was basically a kind little voyage of happiness with little work involved.

I went into a combined class: myself, and three year twelves. They were ahead of me, but I didnt have much trouble catching up to an okay standard.

Halfway through that year, said teacher (who was basically the mentor of all of us) decides to leave the school. His replacement teacher is only fairly good: she has never taught the class before, she has issues with the language barrier and she cant seem to inspire us the way he could. She also cannot assess properly what standard we're at. None of this is really her fault I suppose but ill admit she fairly often gets the brunt of my rage.

My year twelves just got their marks, and one of them got a 4. I was expecting him to get at least a 6 even though his exam probably wasn't that crash hot.

I need sixes and sevens at higher level to get into university-of-dreams and I'm panicked because now I dont think i have a shot of getting that.
So help! Everyone always goes on about how bloody easy IB music is and what I want to know is what the bloody hell is wrong with my school that they can have screwed us under the table so badly.

I need specific, helpful advice from anyone who did/does IB music. In particular need help with MI and Composition. What the hell can I do to get my six?



Oh my god!! I found someone who's in the same painful situation as me!!! i NEED to get a 6 as well except that my teacher is sucha *****and never teaches. a few students failed IB music last year...when i first enrolled in this course i thought i could get a 7 rather easily but now...hell no. so have you found any help from anyone?? I seriously need help too......please let me know
Reply 3
I am Music HL student in IB2 and I'm worrying about my MI and Compo as well!

We haven't started our MI's yet and I'm worrying - Music is the only subject where I'm not done with coursework! :-\

But DON'T PANIC! if you already play an instrument up to a reasonable standard and are familiar with music theory, I don't see how you could fail. Remember that almost all of the course is under your control - your MI, compositions, recordings and making sure you familiarize yourself with Dido and Aeneas. I think the best thing to do for your MI/compo/recordings is look at the syllabus and check the criterion, since music can be so subjective. Make sure it satisfies the nitty gritty technical details such as length, styles, formats etc.

Since I haven't done my MI or completed my compositions yet, I dont think I'm very qualified to give you my advice! :P But if you have any questions, I will try my best!

Strangely enough though, I find the unprepared listening paper the most manageable component of the course! Try and listen to classical music as much as you can, go to concerts, listen to the classical station, invest in some CD's etc... and try and remember the names of a few examples so you can refer to them in the Context section of your analysis. Familiarize yourself with the typical features of each musical period, and remember the famous composers of those eras. Memorizing technical terms and performance directions won't hurt either!
Reply 4
sulphuric
But DON'T PANIC! if you already play an instrument up to a reasonable standard and are familiar with music theory, I don't see how you could fail. Remember that almost all of the course is under your control - your MI, compositions, recordings and making sure you familiarize yourself with Dido and Aeneas. I think the best thing to do for your MI/compo/recordings is look at the syllabus and check the criterion, since music can be so subjective. Make sure it satisfies the nitty gritty technical details such as length, styles, formats etc.


AHH DIDO and AENEAS!! i really don't know what to do with it.....do you have any idea how the questions are going to be like? what kind of answers are they looking for??
IM SO SCREWED! MI not done, compo not done, recordings not done..........
and btw, how do they assess compositions??
Reply 5
In our IB Music Paper, there are two sections. Section A is on Dido and Aeneas, and Section B is on Unprepared listening.

There are two parts in Section A. One part asks about a specific extract in Dido and Aeneas. You will get that extract in your CD, and have the score with you, so you'll be pretty well equipped. I think usually you just have to analyze that extract and discuss Purcell's compositional techniques. The second part of the question is a general question on the whole work itself. It could be about ground bass for example. My teacher said one of the best ways to get marks is to accurately locate examples to support your facts. So include specific bar numbers when you want to give an example of something.

Don't worry I'm in a similar position. My MI I haven't started. Compo, mid-way through only. Recordings, haven't done them. But all the IAs in my other subjects are completed, so I just have to focus on this! Ah I should really finish my compos.

The syllabus has criteria on which the compositions are marked. I've pasted them for you here.

A: Overall Impression
This criterion concerns a holistic assessment of the candidate’s work, taking into
account a varied, imaginative and comprehensive use of the compositional elements.
It also concerns the communication of a coherent intent in each piece.

B: Structural and Stylistic Integrity
This criterion concerns the coherent organization of materials, where certain
identifiable strands or patterns of sound (musical ideas) recur in some form
throughout, thus giving a sense of integrity to a piece.
It is appropriate if a musical idea is presented at the beginning of a piece, and is
subsequently heard in some form throughout. It is inappropriate if a musical idea is
presented at the beginning of a piece, and is subsequently abandoned.

C: Technical Knowledge of the Medium
This criterion concerns the appropriateness of the chosen medium/media and the
candidate’s knowledge of the technical capabilities and limitations of such.
An appropriate example would be a vocal quartet written for soprano, alto, tenor,
bass (SATB) voices which uses the correct ranges and registers, and which is
sensitive to balance and blend between sections. An inappropriate example would
be an endless series of arpeggios for trumpet at a fast tempo, accompanied by the
harp.

D: Control and Development of Musical Elements
This criterion concerns the exploration, control and development of chosen musical
elements, such as melody, harmony, rhythm, timbre and texture.
An appropriate example would be a piece written for non-pitched percussion, which
exploits the rhythmic element as much as possible, with the potential use of a wide
range of durations, syncopations, polyrhythmic techniques, etc. An inappropriate
example would be a piece which reflects an attempt to use too many musical
elements without effectively controlling and developing them.

E: Notation
This criterion concerns the candidate’s understanding of the relationship between
notation and the process of composing and performing.
Appropriate examples would be: a traditional full score notation including dynamics,
articulations, and other essential features; graphic scores for digitally generated or
aleatoric composition. An inappropriate example would be a tape recording of a
popular song, or an improvised jazz piece, without any written notation which
effectively conveys the nature of the composition.
Reply 6
thanks for the information....it's really helpful, especially my teacher always grades our compositions too generously....so I don't really know where exactly I'm standing

is the length limited to 5-15 minutes for all 3 compositions? and also, do we need to find people to play and record our compositions?
Reply 7
Yes, it has to be 5-15 minutes in total. So don't worry, your compositions don't have to be very long!

I don't think so, I know my school just records them using Sibelius and sends them off.
Reply 8
Hey... I havent started my MI as well...
we are having mock exam next week
last year I tried to do the exam in my school, and I got a 5. I am pretty satisfied coz I didnt really do anything of it. I think you just need to remember the techniques, and able to hear it out from the CD. My teacher said its always better to give specific time with description, such as at 00:25, there was a use of fugue where the harpsichord leading the melody blah blah blah etc.
For the set work... Dido and Aeneas... we just start it, I dont really get it since I almost fall asleep during my class...
Last year I think we had couple students get 7 and 6. My teacher said it is very hard to get a 7 on composition and performance. Therefore I think if the MI is in a good shape, and with 5/6 of composition and performance, you are likely to get a 6.
Reply 9
i'm glad that there are some IB music people around that I can get help from! Chiwei, do u live in Beijing? which school do u go to?
Reply 10
I go to Western Academy of Beijing, do u know it? how about you?

I just had music class today. We were talking about some techniques during the exam. I m gna type it out in here. Hope it would help you guys.

The listening and Analysis Paper is 2 hours 30 minutes long. It contains a question (normally split into 2 parts on your prescribed work, 40 marks) and 4 question on unprepared listening.

You will have the score for your prescribed work. All questions will include an audio recording. You may or may not given the score, title, composer etc of the unprepared listening examples.

If you are given the score you must refer accurately to it by bar number and beat, when writing your answers. If no score identify figures, or sections or elements by time on the recording. Remember to attempt musical notation relating to your answers in these cases.

Unidentified pieces:
Analyze (describe) what you hear in this extract in terms of relevant:
*musical features: such as (but not limited to) harmony, melody, rhythm and instrumentation
*structural features: such as (but not limited to) form, phrases, motifs, texture
*contextual features: such as (but not limited to) style, time, culture, geography, and history
for high marks all three of the above features must be addressed in detail using accurate musical terminology


basically, write an analysis.
work in rough first, bullet point

*melody: contour, range, register, phrases
*harmony: tonality, cadence points, dissonances, unusual chords
*rhythm: meter/time signature, accents, duple/triple, tempo
*texture: monophonic, homophonic, polyphonic, density, combinations of above
*tone color: instruments, vocal, mixed, language, solo or group/ensemble
*form: sonata, binary, ternary, them and variations, rondo, minuet and trio, concerto, fugue, other
*purpose: celebration, festival, religious, non religious etc
*context: possible period, time frame, genre etc

Hope it'll help...
Reply 11
ohhh how nice is that! i go to ISB. im in a pretty bad situation cause apparently 2 students failed last year....we can help each other out here!!!
Reply 12
wow!!! ISB!! where r u from?
apparently WAB and ISB r sort of opposite to each other XD
we had a very small class
my teacher was surprised that there are more than 10 ppl taking IB music = =
wt other subjects did u take?
Reply 13
(even though WAB and ISB are sort of rivals, when it comes to IB exams, we are all screwed!)
it seems that your teacher is much better than mine...we have a pretty small class too, about 8 of us, but we still cant get things done..sigh

i really need help on the MI, is it 100% externally assessed? i really hope it is...hahaha
i think the only part im confident about is the listening...besides that, composition+performance+MI+dido=death
all i want is a secure 5, and most preferrably a 6 (cuz my teacher really **** me off for saying that i dont deserve a 6)
Reply 14
lol, yea cooperate make us success!! XD
my teacher.. he's really 'nice'
i m also really confused as well, sometimes. we could work it together, kk

listening part? why... listening + dido = death for me
i dont wanna think about my composition ever and ever again, since it's sort of done
but i couldnt find the score for the first one i did last year... T^T
performance... i m working on it, and i dont think i would get a 6 coz piano is such a high qualified instrument to play. millions ppl play better than me, so...

i m worried about my MI as well, but we dont have time to do it now. I suggest u could brainstorm now, find sth u r interested in. and it has to have score, so think about it as well. coz its very hard to do analysis without score. if u cant find the score but has the music... u probably have to listen to it and write it down

music is a really hard to 'study'... i think it is more like to be an ability...
chiwei

but i couldnt find the score for the first one i did last year... T^T
performance... i m working on it, and i dont think i would get a 6 coz piano is such a high qualified instrument to play. millions ppl play better than me, so...

music is a really hard to 'study'... i think it is more like to be an ability...


With piano, it's not all about high grades, remember you get marked on things like 'overall impression' and 'syllabus'. What grade are you doing? We have a boy doing 4th grade piano in our class and he is doing ok.

It's difficult to study for music, unless you're referring to the Dido and Aenaes section. The rest sort of is an innate thing from experience. Emerge yourself in a wide variety of music, and know your musical eras and stylistic features back to front. This is important.

I'm starting my pieces for our next performance *sigh*
Reply 16
dido and aeneas....im really confused about some of its features. can anyone explain to me how to distinguish between arias and recitatives, and between secco recitatives and accompanied recitatives?
Reply 17
Which standard are you referring to? the 4th grade. Is it ABRSM? the UK music school thing or other? I didnt take any practical exam.. so i really dont know..

Ayla Phoenix
With piano, it's not all about high grades, remember you get marked on things like 'overall impression' and 'syllabus'. What grade are you doing? We have a boy doing 4th grade piano in our class and he is doing ok.
Sorry, I mean AMUS, Australian standards.
It's roughly the equivalent of ABRSM 3 or 4.
Reply 19
I took the mock exam for music today
it was OK..
just i dont have enough time to write everything up
and i think i spend too much time on first two questions
the set work is just... write down what you know about the piece...
I didnt review it yesterday
so i think everyone will do a good job if they study on the Dido and Aeneas

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