Rhythm

• Notes and rests: whole note to 1/16 note (semibreve to semiquavers), dots and ties, tuplets
• Simple meter (e.g. 2/4, 3/4, 4/4, 3/8, 2/2, 3/2)
• Irregular meter (e.g. 5/4, 7/8) 
• Compound meter (e.g. 6/8, 9/8, 12/8, 6/4)
• Understanding of beat groupings for notes and rests
• Syncopation
• Tempo and pulse
• Rhythmic setting of text
• Rhythmic fragmentation and extension

Pitch

• Treble, alto and bass clefs; percussion clef
• Major and minor scales (harmonic, natural, melodic), blues scale, pentatonic scale and modes
• Diatonic and chromatic intervals and their inversions
• Melodic contour, climax points
• Melodic fragmentation and extension
• Balanced phrasing and irregular phrase lengths
• Countermelodies (similar, contrary, parallel and oblique motion)
• Counter lines and melodic fills
• Melodic setting of text
• Transposition
• Perfect, imperfect, plagal, and interrupted cadences
• Chord nomenclature (Roman numerals or chord symbols using slash notation)
• Writing and identifying triads in root position and inversions (e.g. C major, C minor, C diminished, C augmented)
• Writing and identifying the dominant 7th chord in root position and inversions
• Secondary dominant chords
• Chord extensions (e.g. to the 7th, 9th, 11th, 13th) 
• Altered dominant chords (e.g. b9, #5)
• Chord-voicing, voice-leading
• Chord and non-chord notes (e.g. Passing, Neighbour, Anticipation, Escape, Appoggiatura)
• Conventional chord progressions of either traditional or jazz‑related harmony
• Passing 6/4 and cadential 6/4 progressions
• Modulation to closely related keys
• Consonance and dissonance
• Ostinati, pedal notes, drones

Dynamics and expression

• Understanding of all terminology relating to chosen repertoire and works studied
• Dynamic shaping and associated markings (symbols)
• Expressive articulation and associated markings (symbols)
• Tempo indications (e.g. quarter note = 120 BPM and terms related to speed found in the chosen repertoire)

Form and structure

• Binary, ternary, ritornello, fugue, ground bass, strophic (song), sonata, rondo, through-composed, theme and variations, sectional
• Aleatoric/chance
• Dance forms
• Introductions, codas, musical shape
• Development of musical material
• Live loop recording

Timbre

• Pitched and unpitched instruments (instrument families)
• Traditional acoustic instruments, including vocal and instrumental ranges
• Tone colour of individual instruments and instrumental combinations (including voices and FX processing)
• Standard score order for instruments and voices in a range of ensembles (big band, choir, chamber ensembles, concert band, orchestra)
• Blend of instrumental groupings
• Non-conventional ensembles or instrumentations
• Capabilities, transpositions, and style of writing for voices and instruments

• Layering and blending of musical lines (melodic and rhythmic)
• Varied combinations of single lines and blocks of sound or between simple and complex layering (e.g. monophonic, homophonic, polyphonic, multi-layered and heterophonic textures)
• Balance between parts