On Track

This summer, UYMP will take an historic step by launching On Track, its first volume of educational pieces. The book will feature 13 new pieces for ensembles of GCSE students, specially commissioned from English, Scottish, Welsh, Japanese, Australian and Portuguese composers who are represented by UYMP.

The pieces aim to breathe new life into a largely neglected component of the GCSE/Key Stage 4 Music syllabus, Ensemble Performance. GCSE Music Teachers up and down the country have long been aware of the dearth of ensemble music that is enjoyable to play, adaptable to all combinations of instruments, intellectually stimulating but unpretentious, and, most of all, not patronising. UYMP is plugging this gap. On Track covers a range of musical styles, from samba to classical to disco music, to cater for the whole gamut of pupils in a typical GCSE class (ABRSM Grade 3 to 6).

Each piece engages players and audiences with contrasting ideas about contemporary music, and allows students at every level to demonstrate their musicianship and rapport with the rest of the group. The editor of the compilation, Sadie Harrison, comments "Playing in an ensemble with one's peers is perhaps the most rewarding and satisfying thing to do as a young performer, and it is crucial to nurture this element of GCSE courses to reflect this. On Track is a fantastic collection of many different styles, approaches and sounds. There is something in here for everybody, at whatever level, and on whatever instrument. This is what GCSE Music teachers are crying out for, and finally here is something that really hits the mark." Harrison's comments are echoed by recent examiners' reports from EdExcel, one of the largest examiners of GCSE music. They describe how the music they heard in examinations demonstrated 'an extreme range of standards and revealed evidence of the very wide range of instruments in use'. The AQA (Assessment and Qualification Alliance) Examiners' report in 2004 warns schools against allowing their students to present solo music with a piano accompaniment played by a teacher or with a CD accompaniment for the ensemble performance component. It continues, saying that "it is of utmost importance that the chosen ensemble allows the candidate to show rapport with the other player(s). This is a significant requirement with which many [examination] centres did NOT comply."

On Track comes complete with a CD-Rom containing all the parts for all the pieces and transpositions for any instrument, and these parts come with a licence for printing as many copies as needed, directly from the CD-Rom. The CD also contains recordings of every piece. The book contains scores for each piece and extended notes by the composers to aid in the preparation of the music; there are 5 pieces for fixed ensembles and 8 pieces for flexible ensembles. Several of the composers will be available for workshops and masterclasses in schools. The volume will retail at £19.95 and will be available from UYMP from June 2006. To pre-order your copy or discuss workshops in your school, contact us on 01904 432434 or email info@uymp.co.uk.