Examiner will be looking for you to:

Develop and explore a research question appropriate to the subject of music.

Arrive at a particular and preferably personal conclusion.

 

Focus of the Essay:

One or more particular pieces of music.  Argument section should present personal experience via recordings, live performances, or concerts.

 

You will be graded on your ability to show the following things:

Choice of music and method used to study the particular piece of music.

Use of primary and secondary sources.

Description and analysis of technical aspects of the music.  Ex: melody, harmony, rhythm, texture, tone color

Ability to explain the chosen music, in terms of historical, social, and cultural context.

 

Choosing the topic:

Could find topic choices in any place, from classroom to the computer to concerts, but the topics should be treated from both a musical and critical perspective.  The primary focus must be on the music itself rather than the instruments used, the lives of the performers, or the lyrics.

 

Things to avoid:

Topics that are too broad.

Topics that don’t refer to specific musical examples.

Analysis centering on lyrics from popular songs.

Essays based on interviews with a local composer (friend or acquaintance whose music may not be known to the general public).

Integrating more than one subject area into the music topic

General histories, such as “The History of Jazz”.

 

Sources:

Use a blend of primary and secondary sources that are closely related to a specific piece of music.

Primary Sources: Tapes, videos, live performances, sheet music and scores, interviews with musicians and composers directly involved in the performance of the music chosen.

Secondary Sources: Textbooks, musical journals and magazines, comments and reviews of performances by other musicians not directly involved with the music chosen for the essay.

Use online sources sparingly. Avoid piracy and respect copyrights or else your diploma may be put at risk.

 

Treatment of the topic:

Include as many appropriate references to musical materials as possible.

Use local and primary sources as often as possible.

This essay focuses on verbal response to a research question rather than composition and performance.

Document and acknowledge all recordings, scores, etc. in the essay as well as in the works cited.

Evaluate critically the sources.

Problems in the Past:
Music should involve direct contact with the musicians, or music that is not of the quality expected in the Extended Essay.  A balance of primary and secondary sources must be used, as well as a personal point of view that is backed up by these sources.  The technical analysis is also a problem of many essays.  Linking the music to its context is also important.