Music Education in School

In every state, music is a compulsory subject in grades 1 to 10. Only in the upper school (secondary level II) pupils can choose between music and arts (and sometimes drama and literature as well).

The number of hours of music taught per week differs from one academic school to another. At primary schools between four and approx. six hours are taught overall each week (approx. 1 hour per week per grade) and between approx. eight and ten hours per week at secondary level I (one to two hours per week per grade). In the first year of secondary level II pupils can choose to take two to three hours of arts or music per week. In the last two years of the upper school music can be chosen as an examination subject (with a total of three hours per week in each grade) or as a special subject (with a total of five to six hours per week in each grade). In the final grades the minimum number of hours of music per week is two hours (as an alternative to art).

Since 2007 Abitur exams in 14 of the 16 states have included tasks set by the state governments for all schools. This means there is a compulsory core curriculum for the upper school almost everywhere. For music as a school subject this means that a canon of musical works to be studied is usually stipulated, although the way they are studied varies greatly from state to state. Abitur tasks usually focus on analysis and interpretation but may also include creative musical activities such as composition and arranging.

Besides the compulsory tasks there is a wide range of optional topics and tasks within the subject of music, and individual schools, i.e. individual music teachers, decide how much of each activity is taught. In Bavaria the school type “Musisches Gymnasium” (secondary school with a special focus on arts subjects) with its wider range of compulsory activities and learning of musical instruments as an integrated part of the curriculum should be mentioned here. But secondary schools with a focus on music have established themselves in other states, too. The option of more in-depth music education in grades 5 to 6 or from 5 to 10 (music classes that generally have one additional hour of music) have become very common. This greater concentration on music frequently involves concepts of music-making as a class (brass, strings or choral classes).

Besides these specific activities, optional compulsory subjects relating to music are also offered at secondary level I. These generally focus on playing instruments or vocal performance and often take place in conjunction with other school projects in the arts field such as theatre, film and computers.

Up to now most of the schools have been half-day schools, the musical projects taking place in the afternoons after the compulsory “general” music lesson as an extra “after-school” activity. With the increasing trend towards all-day schools in Germany a greater level of cooperation with music schools and private music teachers has become evident.

Although there are enormous local and regional differences, the wide variety of school choirs, orchestras and bands is very important for musical activity at school. As with the widespread brass instrument class models there is often close cooperation with municipal and/or private music schools, or, in rural areas, with music societies and ensembles in this area.