You should study descriptive music from the Romantic period to the present day. Music is a highly expressive medium and candidates should explore how composers have used music to convey stories, paint pictures and set scenes through:
Programme Music (Symphonic music from 1820 onwards).
You should know the names of composers and how they have organised sounds for descriptive purposes through the use of musical elements, devices, tonalities and structures. You should explore the use of resources, conventions, processes and music technology.
You need to consider the difference between composing descriptive music (where the music has to carry the meaning alone and the structure is in the hands of the composer) and composing music to a film (where the music has to complement the action and work within a framework already set by the film makers).
While you are listening, try to think about what the composer is trying to portray. Concentrate on the music, and try to identify what the composer was trying to make the audience think.
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These are just a few suggestions - you can study this section when you are watching any film - concentrate on the music, and how it fits with the action on screen.
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