What is required for section A?

Section A of the listening exam focuses on music of the Classical period. 1750 - 1827. You have questions, ranging from multiple choice to bullet point answers, up to 6, 7 or 10 marks each. What you have to do is understand about music from the classical period. Listen to as many examples as possible and develop your understanding of how to recognise what you hear.

To work through much of what is on this blog, you will need to be able to access spotify. If you do not have an account, sign up here.

Start by reading through this document that gives an overview of music from the classical period. Where anything is highlighted in a different colour, that is something you should make note of, as it will most probably come up in the exam. At the same time, listen to this piece of music by Mozart.

Instruments of the Orchestra

Watch and hear instruments of the orchestra, to develop your understanding, on the BBC website.

Understanding the classical composition style through Mozart

Eine Kleine Nacht Music is a popular string quartet by Mozart. Watch this video (from 7mins in if you want) and it goes through how the pieces has been composed. The keywords mentioned are all applicable for Section A, and they are the same for most music composed in the Classical period.

Playing techniques, ornamentation and musical keywords

Here is the link to this reference page, with links to other sites to develop your understanding.

Getting used to listening

Here is something to read, based on a movement from a Haydn Symphony. Have a read and listen to the music, found here. The timings are fairly accurate. Look at the language used in the article, the keywords.

Keywords for G353 Section A (and sections B and C)

Here is a list of the main keywords that you will need to understand and use in the exam. There are musical examples as well to listen to to hear what they are and mean. The link is also at the top of this page.