Teacher's Guide Cambridge Pre-U MUSIC Available for teaching ...

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Cambridge Pre-U Teacher Guide
The arrangement of genres into groups has been devised with some care, to ensure (a) that all
candidates must demonstrate a familiarity with the harmonic procedures of the eighteenth century
and (b) that they must present work in genres from two different style periods. The two options
which have traditionally been the most common at this level are available to all (i.e. Bach Chorale
Harmonisations and Classical String Quartets), but it must not be assumed that this combination
should be seen as the norm. Careful thought needs to be given, in particular, to the question of
whether Bach Chorales are necessarily the most appropriate choice (though for some candidates they
might be), or whether the principles of traditional Western harmonic procedure might perhaps be
as effectively assimilated through other options. In this, as in so many aspects of the Syllabus, the
needs of individual students (and their chances of success) should always be the guiding principle
when the choice of options is made, rather than any preconceived idea of what the examiners might
or might not expect.
While the majority of work for this component should be based on extracts from the repertoire of the
named styles, many candidates will certainly need to start with some tuition in the basic techniques of
harmony, which need not be related to the specific styles. The linear structure of the Syllabus allows
enough teaching time for this preparation to be done, if appropriate, before moving on to exercises
which introduce the particular techniques of the styles. The first such exercises should be carefully
chosen to represent the styles at their simplest: there is nothing to be gained by expecting candidates
to begin with examples that are too complex or sophisticated for them to handle with confidence.
In all cases the extracts submitted as coursework should have a short incipit where the texture is
complete, to provide a model for the way the exercise should be completed. In most cases a given
part should be provided throughout: candidates are not expected to write a pastiche in which all parts
have to be supplied, the single exception being Music in Jazz, Popular and Show Styles (see below).
The Syllabus stipulates that the submitted exercises (five in each of the chosen styles, so ten exercises
in total) should require the completion of between sixteen and twenty-four bars. During the course,
however, candidates will need to have worked on more than just the ten exercises they eventually
submit, and these could well be shorter.
Chorale Harmonisations in the style of Bach
Many of Bach’s most famous chorale harmonisations (those found in the St Matthew Passion, for
example) make use of advanced chromatic harmony and elaborate decoration. The basis of his style
lies in far less complex harmony, however, and it is important to begin with more straightforward
examples. Suitable material may be found in chorales from works such as the Passions of Telemann
or the St Luke Passion, BWV 246 (once attributed to Bach). These chorales are generally more simply
harmonised, but use a similar fundamental approach, with a comparable texture. Copies of the works
mentioned are readily available from Bretkopf und Härtel and Bärenreiter, among others, and they
may make a less daunting starting point than Bach’s own chorales.
Before attempting complete harmonisations, candidates should become fully confident in handling
the cadential formulae that are such an important aspect of this style, and in constructing strong and
purposeful bass parts. Malcolm Boyd’s Harmonising Bach Chorales (Kahn & Averill) contains useful
information about cadence formation, together with good general guidance about Bach’s treatment of
various aspects of technique.
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