A Level
A Level Music Tutoring
One-to-one A Level Music tutoring for AQA, Pearson Edexcel, OCR and WJEC Eduqas: appraising exam technique, set works, harmony and composition, matched to your board.
A Level Music is offered in England by AQA (7272), Pearson Edexcel (9MU0), OCR (H543) and WJEC Eduqas (A660QS), and by WJEC in Wales. Every board combines performing, composing and an appraising exam worth 40%, but the set works, minimum recital and composition lengths and the weightings differ. Your tutor works from your board's specification: analysing your set works, building the vocabulary the listening paper rewards and teaching the composing techniques the brief calls for.
Matched in 24h
A & A* grade tutors
First session guarantee
4.8/5 Trustpilot
What You Get with A Level Music Tutoring
Comprehensive support designed to help you achieve your target grade
Appraising Exam
- Set work analysis for your board, such as AQA's Baroque solo concerto strand or Edexcel's six areas of study
- Describing harmony, tonality, texture and structure in unfamiliar extracts with precise vocabulary
- Dictation and melody completion practice (AQA aural dictation, Edexcel melody and rhythm completion)
- Essay plans for comparison and context questions, tested on past papers
Composing
- Composing technique for a board brief and a free composition, and your board's minimum lengths
- Technique options such as Edexcel's Bach chorale and two-part counterpoint briefs or OCR's short technical exercises
- Harmony, voice leading, structure and idiomatic writing for your chosen instruments
- Scores, lead sheets or written descriptions that meet your board's submission rules
Performing and Musicianship
- Programme planning to meet the minimum time for your board and option
- Choosing pieces at the right difficulty: Edexcel treats level 7 pieces as standard difficulty
- Aural skills: intervals, chords, cadences and rhythm
- A revision plan for set works and wider listening
Real student results
Students Improving Their Music Grades
B → A*
"Written analysis was the part holding my grade down - I could hear everything but couldn't describe it precisely. My tutor built my musical vocabulary and my appraising marks went from B to A*."
E
Elise P.
A Level Music, AQA, Summer 2024
C → A
"My compositions were unstructured - good ideas but no shape. My tutor taught me how to plan harmony and form before writing and my portfolio marks jumped dramatically."
J
Josh W.
A Level Music, Edexcel, Summer 2024
D → B
"Set work analysis questions were where I kept losing marks. My tutor did systematic work through every set work with me and I stopped leaving points on the table."
C
Caitlin B.
A Level Music, OCR, Summer 2023
How It Works
Simple steps to get started with A Level Music tutoring
1
Buy a Bundle
Choose 3 to 100 hours based on your needs. Split across subjects if needed.
2
Complete Onboarding
Tell us your exam board, year group, weak areas, goals, and scheduling preferences.
3
Get Matched & Start
Matched within 24 hours. Schedule your first session immediately.
AS Level vs Full A Level: What's the Difference?
We support students at both stages - here's how they compare
Area
AS Level (Year 12)
A Level (Year 12–13)
Qualification
A standalone AS: the result does not count towards the A Level
A linear A Level: performing, composing and the appraising exam are all completed by the end of the course
Availability
AQA no longer offers AS Music; Eduqas offers AS (B660QS); OCR's AS (H143) ends after June 2027
AQA, Edexcel and Eduqas, plus OCR until its final exams in June 2028
A Level Music Syllabus Coverage
We support all four A Level Music specifications in England: AQA 7272, Pearson Edexcel 9MU0, OCR H543 and WJEC Eduqas A660QS, plus WJEC A Level Music in Wales. OCR is withdrawing its A Level Music: September 2026 is the last start date and June 2028 the final exam. Tell us your board, areas of study and instrument during onboarding and we match you with a tutor who knows them.
1AQA 7272: Areas of Study
- Area of study 1 (compulsory): Western classical tradition 1650-1910, with three strands: Baroque solo concerto, the operas of Mozart, and the piano music of Chopin, Brahms and Grieg
- Set works such as Purcell's Sonata for trumpet and strings, Bach's Violin concerto in A minor and Act 1 of Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro
- Two optional areas from pop music, music for media, music for theatre, jazz, contemporary traditional music and art music since 1910
- Named artists for each optional area, for example Stevie Wonder, Joni Mitchell and Beyoncé for pop music
- +1 more
2Pearson Edexcel 9MU0: Set Works
- Vocal music: Bach, Ein feste Burg; Vaughan Williams, On Wenlock Edge
- Instrumental music: Clara Wieck-Schumann, Piano Trio in G minor (movement 1); Berlioz, Symphonie Fantastique
- Music for film: Danny Elfman, Batman Returns; Bernard Herrmann, Psycho
- Popular music and jazz: Kate Bush, Hounds of Love; The Beatles, Revolver; Courtney Pine, Back in the Day
- +1 more
3OCR H543: Areas of Study
- Area of Study 1 (compulsory): instrumental music of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven
- Area of Study 2 (compulsory): popular song: blues, jazz, swing and big band
- Prescribed works change each year: for 2027, Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111 and Ian Shaw's The Theory of Joy; for 2028, the final series, Haydn's Symphony No. 39 in G minor and Billy Eckstine's Basie/Eckstine Incorporated
- Two more from: instrumental jazz 1910 to the present day, religious music of the Baroque period, programme music 1820-1910, innovations in music 1900 to the present day
- +1 more
4WJEC Eduqas A660QS: Areas of Study
- Area of study A (compulsory): the Western Classical Tradition, the development of the symphony 1750-1900
- Set works for exams until summer 2027: Haydn's Symphony No. 104 'London' and Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 4 'Italian'
- From summer 2028: Haydn's Symphony No. 100 'Military' and Schubert's Symphony No. 5
- One of rock and pop, musical theatre or jazz
- +1 more
5Composition Technique
- Developing motifs: sequence, inversion, augmentation, diminution
- Harmonic planning: cadences, modulation, chromatic and extended chords
- Writing idiomatically for instruments and voices
- Structure: contrast, development and a convincing ending
- +1 more
6Listening and Analysis
- Identifying period, genre and style in unfamiliar music
- Describing texture, tonality and harmony in your board's vocabulary
- Following a skeleton score or full score while listening
- Melodic and rhythmic dictation
- +1 more
Assessment breakdown
A Level Music Assessment Structure
Understand exactly how you'll be assessed and prepare strategically for each component
Exam boards covered:AQAPearson EdexcelOCRWJEC Eduqas
AQA Component 1: Appraising music
Written ExamWeighting
40%
Listening, analysis of set works and an essay
2 hours 30 minutes
Section A: Listening (56 marks) | Section B: Analysis of set work extracts with scores (34 marks) | Section C: Essay (30 marks)
Area of study 1 plus your two optional areas; you control playback of the excerpts yourself
AQA Component 2: Performance
Coursework / NEAWeighting
35%
Solo and/or ensemble performance as an instrumentalist or vocalist, and/or music production via technology
At least 10 minutes of performance in total, recorded and externally marked by AQA
Completed between 1 March and AQA's deadline; one final recording, submitted without post-performance editing
AQA Component 3: Composition
Coursework / NEAWeighting
25%
Two compositions, externally marked by AQA
Composition 1: to a brief chosen from seven set by AQA (25 marks) | Composition 2: free composition (25 marks)
At least four and a half minutes of music in total
Grade Boundaries (AQA 7272, June 2026)
Grade
Min. %
A*
82.4%+
A
74.4%+
B
65.4%+
C
56.4%+
D
47.4%+
E
38.7%+
Grade boundaries shift each session. These are indicative based on recent exam-board data.
Key Assessment Notes
- Pearson Edexcel 9MU0: Performing 30% (recital of at least 8 minutes), Composing 30% (two compositions totalling at least 6 minutes, one assessing technique), Appraising 40% (2 hours 10 minutes, 100 marks)
- OCR H543: Listening and appraising 40% (2 hours 30 minutes, 120 marks) plus either Performing A 25% (at least 6 minutes) with Composing A 35% (at least 8 minutes), or Performing B 35% (at least 10 minutes) with Composing B 25% (at least 4 minutes)
- WJEC Eduqas A660QS: Appraising 40% (about 2 hours 15 minutes, 100 marks) plus Option A (performing 10-12 minutes, 35%; composing 4-6 minutes, 25%) or Option B (performing 6-8 minutes, 25%; composing 8-10 minutes, 35%)
- OCR is withdrawing A Level Music: students who started in September 2026 are the last intake, with final exams in June 2028
- Grade boundaries shown are AQA 7272's overall boundaries for June 2026 as a percentage of the maximum scaled mark; other boards publish their own
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about A Level Music tutoring
Yes. We support AQA 7272, Pearson Edexcel 9MU0, OCR H543 and WJEC Eduqas A660QS, plus WJEC A Level Music in Wales. The boards share the same three parts (performing, composing, appraising) but differ in set works, minimum lengths and weightings. Tell us your board, areas of study and instrument during onboarding and we match you with a tutor who knows your specification.
It depends on what is costing you marks. A typical session might analyse a set work extract with the score, practise describing an unfamiliar excerpt, then practise a composing technique on a short exercise, such as a convincing modulation or an ending that lands. Your tutor sets short tasks between sessions and checks answers against your board's mark scheme, so progress is measurable rather than vague.
We work in three layers. First, secure knowledge of every set work or prescribed work on your board's list. Second, precise vocabulary for harmony, texture, tonality and structure, practised on unfamiliar extracts. Third, timed exam practice, including dictation or melody completion where your board sets it and essay plans for the comparison and context questions. Your tutor marks answers against the mark scheme and tracks which question types still lose marks.
Yes, within the rules. Your tutor can teach the techniques you need (harmonic planning, voice leading, development of ideas, writing for your instruments), explain what the brief and the marking criteria reward, and discuss whether an idea is workable. The tutor cannot compose, edit, correct or give feedback on the piece you submit. Under JCQ rules the work must be your own, feedback on it comes from your teacher, and you sign a declaration to confirm it.
Each board sets a minimum length rather than a grade: at least 10 minutes for AQA, 8 minutes for Edexcel, 6 or 10 minutes for OCR and 6-8 or 10-12 minutes for Eduqas, depending on your option. Difficulty affects the marks available. Edexcel, for example, treats level 7 pieces as standard and warns that easier pieces can limit your marks. Your tutor can help you choose a programme that shows your strengths.
It depends on your board. Eduqas's current set works, including Haydn's 'London' Symphony and Mendelssohn's 'Italian' Symphony, apply until summer 2027 and change from 2028. Eduqas's Area of Study E works also change: Poulenc's Trio movement II and Debussy's 'Nuages' until 2027, then movement I and 'Fêtes' from 2028. OCR rotates its prescribed works every year: for 2027 they are Beethoven's Piano Sonata Op. 111 and Ian Shaw's album The Theory of Joy, and for 2028, OCR's final series, Haydn's Symphony No. 39 in G minor and Billy Eckstine's Basie/Eckstine Incorporated. AQA and Edexcel list their set works in their specifications. Your tutor confirms your list in the first session.
Yes. OCR has announced it will stop offering AS and A Level Music. September 2026 is the final first teaching date and June 2028 is the final A Level exam, with no resit opportunity afterwards. If you started the OCR course in September 2026, you complete it as normal, and your tutor works to the OCR specification throughout.
Yes. WJEC runs its own A Level Music in Wales, separate from the Eduqas specification used in England. IB Music is a different course with its own assessment, and as an IB tutoring company we match IB Music students too. Tell us your exact course and board during onboarding so your tutor prepares for the right papers and tasks.
Matching usually happens within 24 hours and all sessions are online, using shared scores, audio files and notation software files. If your recording deadline or exam is close, your tutor prioritises the component where you can gain the most marks soonest, such as set work revision or composing technique.
Recommended Guides
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A phased plan for timed practice and mark scheme review before the appraising exam.
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How to structure comparison answers around shared features and differences.
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How to pitch short answers precisely, useful for listening questions.
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