Upper School Curriculum Guide
Note: This year, students will be registering for courses with their Advisor. We encourage students and families to make use of the Curriculum Guide to investigate their choices, check prerequisites, and confirm entry requirements. Current teachers, Department Chairs, and Grade Deans should also be consulted as resources. As we are distance teaching and learning through RCDS@home, when you read the below policies, please disregard references to signatures, sign-ups, conversations, and approvals. Once course selections are made, each Department will review them in order to approve or recommend another approach.
Overview
Overview
The RCDS Music Department is committed to nurturing creativity and confidence at all levels of learning. We honor music as a living art with inherent value. In addition, we are committed to helping students make connections between music classes, other disciplines, and the wider world. Through the teaching and modeling of empathy and collaboration, we seek to have our classes and ensembles embody a unified spirit.
Music is a language that all can appreciate and most can learn to "speak" with precision and beauty. Many students in the Upper School participate actively in one or more of the many performing groups such as Concert Choir, Honors Choirs, Wind Ensemble, and Jazz Band, -- each of which is scheduled within the school day. Both the Concert Choir and Wind Ensemble receive full academic credit as a sign of the School's commitment to the art and discipline of music.
RCDS offers both performance and non-performance based music electives. Students often participate in the New York All-State and Area-All State music festivals, and the choir joins forces with adult singers from the RCDS community to sing a major work each year with a professional orchestra at the Festival Chorus Concert. Over the years, the Concert Choir has toured internationally in Europe, Asia and most recently, Ireland. The Wind Ensemble has traveled throughout the East Coast and to Canada. The Concert Choir, Wind Ensemble, and Jazz Band are all award winning groups at regional competitions and festivals. Part-time instrumental and voice teachers give private lessons and coach Chamber Music ensembles in our teaching studios during the week to approximately 120 students.
Policies
Policies
COURSE SELECTION GUIDELINES
All Music classes are considered electives and are eligible to receive arts credit towards graduation.
The following courses have no prerequisites:
- Concert Choir
- Wind Ensemble (While there is no prerequisite, prior experience on a band instrument is required.)
- Explorations in World Music
- Music of the Moment
- AP Music Theory
- Music Theory Intensive
- Basic Musicianship
- Studio Composing and Arranging
- Beginning Band
- Musicianship for Performers
The following courses require approval:
If you are interested in auditioning for any of the Honors Choirs or Honors Jazz Band, auditions happen in the fall, but you will need approval from Ms. Marcell. If you are hoping to participate you should inquire in the spring.
To take AP Music Theory, approval is required from Ms. Marcell. While there is no course prerequisite for AP Theory, a conversation to discuss your musical background is required.
If you are interested in taking Songwriting, you need to have taken Basic Musicianship, one of the Music Theory courses, or have departmental approval.
If you are interested in private lessons or participating in the Chamber Music Program, be in contact with the Private Lesson Coordinator at the beginning of September and be on the lookout for information on e-communications from the school. Please know that private lessons and the Chamber Music Program are extra-curricular and do not receive academic credit or count toward the arts credit.
AP HOMEWORK GUIDELINES
AP Music Theory: Students should expect to spend 30 minutes a day on written homework and/ or ear training. They should be willing to spend up to 45 minutes, but after that marker, they needn't do more.
DEPARTMENTAL POLICIES REGARDING ENTRY INTO HONORS/AP COURSES
Admission into any of the Honors Ensembles is determined by audition in the fall. A student already in one of the Honors Choirs is guaranteed a spot for the next year in an honors group providing they have maintained an A- or better in the previous year. The teacher reserves the right to re-audition and reconsider the admission of students with a lower grade. Admission to Honors Jazz Band is determined by audition at the beginning of the year and requires participation in another major music ensemble of the school (Wind Ensemble or Concert Choir). Admission to AP Music Theory is determined by a student’s previous work in the department or by interview to ascertain the student’s musical experience. The student’s math grades may also be considered.
Curricular Sequence
Curricular Sequence
Many students commonly take Concert Choir or Wind Ensemble for all four years. Although a student may join in any year, most find the 4-year cumulative nature of the experience to be most rewarding.
Honors Choirs and Honors Jazz Band are open to 9th-12th graders and are auditioned from the larger groups. While they cannot stand alone in a student's program, they comfortably fit into the student's larger schedule.
Both Wind Ensemble and Concert Choir can fit concurrently into a student's program. While doing so creates a fuller daytime schedule, there is little evening commitment to these courses. In addition, additional electives in music or other departments can sometimes dovetail with the music ensembles, allowing students to take more than one elective in a single block.
For students who are particularly interested in musical theater, many students take Choir along with a Drama class.
Music Theory Intensive and AP Music Theory is mostly commonly taken in the 10th or 12th grade year, though it is open to 10-12th graders. Note that these courses are homework bearing. Musicianship for Performers is most commonly taken concurrently with one or more of the performing ensembles.
There are also several non-performance based classes offered without prerequisites including listening and hands-on courses.
Courses
Music Courses
Year-Long Courses
AP MUSIC THEORY
The course fosters an understanding of music by developing a fluency in music notation and ear training skills. Students will study tonal harmony though melodic and harmonic analysis, part writing, dictation and sight singing (emphasis on ear training not vocal beauty.) Students will take the Advanced Placement exam in Music Theory in May. Preference will be given to students who are members of Concert Choir or Wind Ensemble. (1 unit; Grades 10-12; permission of the department chair required, grants 1 Arts credit)
CONCERT CHOIR
The Concert Choir creates a community of singers by preparing and performing several varied choral programs throughout the year including at least one major work such as Mozart's Requiem or Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms. The choir gives approximately ten concerts annually both in school and throughout the community. Because of the challenging repertoire studied, it is essential that each member of the choir develop musical literacy. (1 unit, 3 periods per cycle; Grades 9-12, no prerequisite or audition required, grants 1 Arts credit)
HONORS CONCERT CHOIR
A mixed chamber choir, a treble choir, and tenor/ bass choir are open by audition to students enrolled in the Concert Choir. Singers working at the honors level rehearse and perform additional repertoire appropriate to each group’s small size and advanced level. Participation in Concert Choir is part of the curriculum. (1 unit, two additional meetings per cycle; Grades 9-12, placed by audition in the fall, grants 1 Arts credit)
WIND ENSEMBLE
The Wind Ensemble repertoire is chosen primarily from classic band literature encompassing a variety of music styles. The group performs throughout the year at school events, festivals, and in the larger community. Ensemble rehearsals are devoted to developing a strong sense of pitch, dynamics, phrasing and blend. Membership requires a commitment to personal musical growth through daily practice. In addition to four rehearsals per cycle, assessments are assigned through the SmartMusic program allowing for further individual feedback from the instructor. Each student is strongly urged to take private lessons. (1 unit, 4 periods per cycle; Grades 9–12; previous instrumental experience or permission of the instructor is required, grants 1 Arts credit)
HONORS JAZZ BAND
The Jazz Band is open to qualified instrumentalists by audition. Emphasis is placed on a variety of jazz and rock styles as well as improvisational skills. Additional participation in either Wind Ensemble or Concert Choir is required. (1 unit, 1 period per cycle; Grades 9-12 placed by audition in the fall, grants 1 Arts credit)
Full Credit Semester Electives
- BASIC MUSICIANSHIP: WHAT DO THE LITTLE BLACK DOTS MEAN?
- STUDIO COMPOSING AND ARRANGING
- EXPLORATIONS IN WORLD MUSIC
- MUSIC OF THE MOMENT
- MUSIC THEORY INTENSIVE
BASIC MUSICIANSHIP: WHAT DO THE LITTLE BLACK DOTS MEAN?
Have you always wanted to learn to read music? Do you want to be able to understand what the dots and squiggles on the lines and spaces of a musical staff mean? Do you want to learn how to read notes so you can learn to play piano or guitar, or other instrument? This is your perfect introduction to the language of music. Through this course you will learn to identify notes on the staff in treble and bass clefs, learn to read and write basic rhythms and note values, learn about sharps and flats, identify major and minor scales, and learn how to put together basic chord patterns. (1/2 unit, Grades 9-12, no prerequisite, fall and spring, grants 1/2 Arts credit)
STUDIO COMPOSING AND ARRANGING
Studio composing and arranging is a one semester hands-on course that is a wonderful way to unleash your musical creativity regardless of prior musical training. Compose musical tracks to underscore a speech or presentation or develop a radio spot jingle to support a “product”. Create, perform, and record original compositions utilizing a combination of prepared loops in combination with live recording. Utilizing the program's instrument sound library along with external microphones to record voice and live instruments, students will also learn to create and mix multi-track projects. This course meets twice per cycle. (1/2 unit, fall and spring, Grades 9-12, no prerequisite, grants 1/2 Arts credit)
EXPLORATIONS IN WORLD MUSIC
Experience and understand the exciting and diverse world of music as a reflection of various cultures, traditions, and national identities. Explore popular, folk, and art music as soundscapes from Africa, India, Asia, the Middle East and North America. Through live and recorded performances, discussions, and projects, students will gain an appreciation of how each culture organizes and uses music to make sense of the world and their unique place in it. This course meets 4 times per cycle. (1/2 unit, fall and spring, Grades 9-12, no prerequisite, grants 1/2 Arts credit)
MUSIC OF THE MOMENT
This course will study music that tops the charts. Though analytical listening along with a study of current events, students will consider how music “speaks” to its desired audience. In turn, students will seek to discover what makes music popular and relevant to a given culture. This course meets 4 times per cycle. (1/2 unit, fall and spring, Grades 9-12, no prerequisite, grants 1/2 Arts credit)
MUSIC THEORY INTENSIVE
This course is for students who would like to study the fundamentals of music theory but do not want to pursue it at the AP level. This fall semester course covers the language of tonal music including reading, analyzing, listening, composing, and sight singing. (1/2 unit, fall and spring, Grades 10-12, no prerequisite, grants 1/2 Arts credit)
Half Credit Semester Electives
MUSICIANSHIP FOR PERFORMERS
For students enrolled in one of the performing ensembles, this ¼ credit class supplements skills covered in the performing ensembles. Focusing on sight reading and ear training, students further their facility with music literacy. (1/4 unit, 2 meetings per cycle, fall and spring, Grades 9-12, grants 1/4 Arts credit)
SONGWRITING: GETTING TO THE HEART OF THE MATTER
Students will develop skills to compose their own songs and lyrics. Through individual and collaborative writing projects, each student will work to create pieces that develop their own compositional voice and get to the essence of their desired musical expression. (1/4 unit, 2 meetings per cycle, spring semester, Grades 9-12, grants 1/4 Arts credit) Prerequisite: Prior course work in Musicianship or Music Theory, or permission of the instructor.
Extra-Curricular Opportunities
PRIVATE LESSONS IN MUSIC
A unique aspect of Rye Country Day School's music program is the opportunity provided for students to study privately with one of the many professional instrumental and voice teachers in our program. One lesson per cycle is scheduled into a student’s free period or after school time. Students who study privately have the opportunity to perform in recitals, school ensembles, as well as to audition for All-County and All-State festivals. Private lessons do not carry any academic credit or fulfill an Arts requirement. Lessons also carry an additional fee billed by the school.
Arrangements may be made for private lessons by calling the Music Department Office at 925-4580 or on the family portal.
CHAMBER MUSIC
Rye Country Day School offers an extra-curricular Chamber Music program for instrumentalists interested in playing in small chamber ensembles. String players and pianists audition to be placed in groups with other musicians appropriately matched to their level. They work with a musical coach on repertoire specifically chosen for their ensemble and meet on a weekly or cyclical basis. The Chamber Music program does not carry any academic credit or fulfill an Arts requirement.
To join the Chamber Music program please call the Music Department Office at 925-4580.