Senior School Arts

Grade 9 Music

(MUS092) 1.0 credit

Students in Grade 9 select Music as an elective course. It is expected that students in this class already have the ability to play an instrument and to read music, although remedial help is provided for those students without that background who show a keen interest. Students also have the opportunity to learn another instrument and to play a keyboard instrument. They learn to play scales and chords and to understand how these act as musical building blocks. Students examine visually and aurally simple musical forms such as ground bass and canon, and practice composing their own versions of these musical structures. Emphasis is placed on improving instrumental technique and sight reading. In music history, students study the music of the Classical Period, focusing on Mozart and Haydn. Students are expected to practice their musical instruments outside the class, and are encouraged to participate in band, choir, and in the Musical.

Grade 9 Visual Arts

(ART092) 1.0 credit

This course gives students the opportunity to explore the basics of visual arts. Students examine and participate in a variety of art-making activities, including both two- and three-dimensional techniques. Students are also introduced to the vast history behind the visual arts. Students review the concepts of the elements of design. Students will complete studio work using art-making processes that expand upon the skills and techniques acquired in previous art lessons and written work examining various artists and both the elements and principles of design.

Grade 10 Music

(MUS102) 1.0 credit

This elective course is designed for those students who play a musical instrument and have a keen interest in music. The class functions as a musical ensemble, and as such, spends time working on individual and ensemble skills such as pitch and tuning, articulation, phrasing, and dynamics. Students practice major and minor scales and chords, and understand how these act as musical building blocks. Students examine visually and aurally musical forms from classical and popular music such as ground bass, ragtime, 12-bar blues and ballad, and they practice writing their own versions of these musical structures. There are units on sight-singing, dictation, aural analysis, and harmony. Students are expected to practice their musical instruments outside the class, and are encouraged to participate in band, choir, and in the Musical.

Grade 10 Visual Arts

(ART102) 1.0 credit

In this course, students continue to examine and participate in a range of art-making activities, including both two- and three-dimensional techniques. Students are also introduced to the vast history behind the visual arts, focusing, in this case, on the art movements from the 18th Century to today. Students will complete studio work using different art-making processes, some of which expand upon the skills and techniques acquired in previous art lessons and some of which illustrate new and more complex image making. The students will complete written work examining various artists and topics related to the 20th Century art movements and the history of photography. Students will focus on defining who they are as an artist throughout the year.

Grade 11 IB Music SL/HL

(MUS111) 1.0 credit

The Grade 11 Music class introduces students to the IB Music program. The objective of the course is to develop in students the ability to think musically, advancing their skills in performance, musical and critical analysis, composition, and musicianship. Class time will be divided evenly into units in the following areas: musicianship, performance, analysis, critical listening, and compositional techniques. Musicianship incorporates ear training and dictation, interval recognition, sight reading, keyboard skills, simple chord progressions, or score reading and transposition for more advanced keyboard players. Some of the musicianship skills are also covered in the students' development of a systematic instrumental practice and rehearsal regimen on their instruments. The study of musical scores and recordings of different genres facilitates the study of harmony and atonal systems. Writing music in several styles and genres, using various technologies, will encourage experimentation, and ultimately lead the student to discover his or her own compositional voice. Assessments are designed to build the skills required to accomplish the requirements of IB Music.

Grade 11 IB Visual Arts SL/HL

(ART111) 1.0 credit

This course exposes students to a wide variety of media used to create visual arts. Students examine and participate in a variety of art-making activities, including both two- and three-dimensional techniques. Students are also introduced to the vast history behind the visual arts, focusing, in this case, on the Renaissance, Baroque, Neoclassical, Romantic, and Social Realism periods. Students will complete studio work using different art-making processes, some of which expand upon the skills and techniques acquired in previous art lessons and some of which illustrate new and more complex image making. The students will complete written analysis of various artworks and movements. As a culminating project, students will curate the final exhibition of their work.

Grade 12 IB Music SL/HL

(MUS122) 1.0 credit

The objective of the Grade 12 Music course is to develop in students the ability to think musically, advancing their skills performance, musical and critical analysis, composition and musicianship. During the year, HL students will submit three original compositions for internal and external assessment and perform instrumental or vocal solos in two public concerts, in which their playing will be recorded for external assessment. In January, students will submit a musical investigation for external assessment, comprising a media script of a maximum of 2000 words comparing and contrasting musical aspects of pieces from two different cultures. Students will also study and analyse the year's prescribed works, Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 by J.S. Bach and Dances of Galánta by Zoltán Kodály, as well as other works in preparation for the IB Listening Paper in May. Rothesay Netherwood School offers IB Music at both Higher Level and Standard Level. The SL course gives students the option of concentrating on either composition (SLC) or solo performance (SLS), while in the HL course, they do both. The musical analysis component remains the same for both SL and HL. Students will require a credit in Grade 11 Music HL to register for this course.

Grade 12 IB Visual Arts SL/HL

(ART122/ART121) 1.0 credit

This course continues to expose students to a wide variety of media used to create visual arts. Students examine and participate in a number of art-making activities that include both two- and three-dimensional techniques. Students are introduced to the vast history behind the visual arts, focusing on the study of aesthetics. Students will complete three major components for this course. The first is a written comparative study of selected artwork. The second component is a Process Portfolio demonstrating their growth as an artist. The final component is an internally assessed exhibition of their work.

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