Music ATAR Course Year 12 Syllabus (for teaching from 2025)
The Music ATAR course has a practical component (performance recital, composition portfolio, or both) and a written component, each worth 50% of the course. The written ATAR course examination has 10 minutes reading and two and a half hours working time, with a Question/Answer booklet, a Score booklet, a personal listening device and earbuds. Section One Music literacy (55%, suggested 80 minutes) has Part A Aural (35%; 8 questions, 57 marks on the 2026 cover) and Part B Theory (20%; 2 questions, 18 marks). Section Two Music analysis (45%, suggested 70 minutes) has Part A Unseen analysis (20%; 2 questions on works not on the designated list, 19 marks) and Part B Designated works (25%; one Identities and one Innovations question, 57 marks). All questions are compulsory; there is no choice of context. Raw marks change slightly each year (153 in 2024, 152 in 2025, 151 on the 2026 cover) while the percentages stay fixed. Standard items only; no special items.
Past papers on this subject span more than one syllabus. Papers written under an older one still work as practice, but the units and content areas they test have changed — the index labels every paper with the syllabus it was set under.
Year 12 syllabus for the current course (first examined 2024; v15 for teaching from 2025, minor practical changes only) · 2024–2026Previous Music ATAR course: separate written papers for Western Art Music, Jazz and Contemporary contexts · 2021–2023
The units and content areas, one by one
Each area below lists the concepts named in the syllabus, what the SCSA exam asks of them, and the mistake that most often costs marks.
- Aural (Section One Part A)
- Theory (Section One Part B)
- Unseen analysis (Section Two Part A)
- Identities designated works (Section Two Part B)
- Innovations designated works (Section Two Part B)
Area 1 of 5
Aural (Section One Part A)
Listening skills from the music literacy content: intervals within an octave, scales/modes and tonality, modulation to relative, dominant and subdominant keys, rhythmic and melodic dictation up to eight bars, discrepancies, root-position chord progressions in major keys, and aural analysis of instruments, techniques, texture, form, dynamics and articulation.
What the syllabus lists under this area · 6 points
- Interval recognition by ear: major, minor, perfect and tritone within an octave
- Hearing tonality, scales/modes and modulation to the relative, dominant or subdominant key
- Rhythmic dictation: simple, compound and irregular metre, grouping, rests and time signatures
- Melodic dictation up to eight bars in a major or minor key, including rubato and vibrato
- Chord progressions by ear (I, ii, iii, IV, V, V7, vi) and chord-quality recognition
- Discrepancies and aural analysis: instruments, techniques, texture, form, dynamics and articulation
What the exam asks
2024 and 2025 both used seven questions worth 61 marks in a fixed order: intervals (3), tonality and modulation (4), rhythmic dictation (11-12), discrepancies (7), chord chart (10), melodic dictation (15-16) and a 10-mark aural analysis set; the 2026 cover lists eight questions for 57 marks. Excerpts come in musical context from pop, jazz, theatre, film and classical recordings.
Where marks go missing
Messy or wrongly grouped notation loses marks even when the sound was heard correctly, and in-context melodies with rubato and vibrato throw candidates who have only practised with clean piano dictations.
14 real SCSA questions indexed on this area →
Area 2 of 5
Theory (Section One Part B)
Score-based literacy with no audio: clefs including alto and tenor, key signatures to seven sharps and flats, scales and modes, intervals to a ninth, chords to ninths and m7(b5) with symbols and inversions, Roman numerals, TAB and guitar chords, forms, signs and devices, and transposition for B flat, E flat, F and A instruments.
What the syllabus lists under this area · 5 points
- Clefs, key signatures to seven sharps and flats, and writing scales and modes
- Intervals up to a ninth: quality, size, enharmonic spelling and visual identification
- Chords and chord symbols: triads to ninth chords, m7(b5), inversions, Roman numerals, TAB and guitar chords
- Transposition between clefs and for B flat, E flat, F and A instruments
- Visual analysis: forms, signs and symbols, compositional devices and expressive markings
What the exam asks
Two questions of 18 marks in total on real score excerpts: sequences located by bar and part, Roman numerals with inversions, intervals, definitions, writing a minor ninth chord, naming instruments in score order, a TAB chord, and transposition (viola in alto clef in 2025; trombone to E flat alto saxophone in 2024).
Where marks go missing
Examiners report that chords beyond the triad and transposition are consistently weak: know the interval each transposing instrument sounds from written pitch, and spell extended chords from the root.
3 real SCSA questions indexed on this area →
Area 3 of 5
Unseen analysis (Section Two Part A)
Two works not on the designated list, analysed from a printed score excerpt and recording: instrumentation and entries, keys and key relationships, score terms, tempo and metre changes, form, devices and stylistic influence.
What the syllabus lists under this area · 3 points
- Reading unseen scores: orchestral, PVG, lead sheet, drum notation and instrumental techniques
- Sonata form, key relationships and structural analysis of an unseen work
- Identifying style across Contemporary, Jazz and Western Art Music, linking unseen excerpts to designated works
What the exam asks
2025 used a jazz-influenced orchestral work and a progressive-rock track (with a part asking which designated work it most resembles); 2024 used a choral theatre piece and a complete Classical piano sonata with a sonata-form key table.
Where marks go missing
Describing general features of a style instead of what is evident in the given extract; examiners want bar-referenced, specific observations and correct terminology.
5 real SCSA questions indexed on this area →
Area 4 of 5
Identities designated works (Section Two Part B)
Unit 3: how the elements of music express personal, sociopolitical and cultural identity, analysed through three designated works, one each from Contemporary, Jazz and Western Art Music. The 2024 and 2025 papers used Baker Boy's Marryuna, Nina Simone's Young, Gifted and Black and the first movement of Amy Beach's Gaelic Symphony.
What the syllabus lists under this area · 3 points
- Marryuna (Baker Boy): cultural identity, Yolngu language, yidaki and hip hop
- Young, Gifted and Black (Nina Simone): sociopolitical identity, gospel heritage and harmony
- Gaelic Symphony, first movement (Amy Beach): Irish-American identity within sonata form
What the exam asks
A compulsory 24-mark question in both years, in lettered parts: instrument and language facts, chord structures, form, contrast between sections, Irish folk sources, sonata-form keys, and 3- to 5-mark explain/discuss parts linking musical features to identity.
Where marks go missing
Skipping one of the three works. The 2024 report notes candidates who had not engaged with all six works misread questions or left parts blank.
2 real SCSA questions indexed on this area →
Area 5 of 5
Innovations designated works (Section Two Part B)
Unit 4: how composers achieved innovation through form, harmony, rhythm, timbre and technology, driven by personal, sociopolitical and cultural influences. The 2024 and 2025 papers used Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody, Lisa Young's Tha Thin Tha and John Adams' Short Ride in a Fast Machine.
What the syllabus lists under this area · 3 points
- Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen): through-composed form, harmony and studio technology
- Tha Thin Tha (Lisa Young): konnakol, tala and modern jazz innovation
- Short Ride in a Fast Machine (John Adams): minimalism, pulse, polyrhythm and quartal harmony
What the exam asks
A compulsory question of 28-29 marks covering all three works: studio technology and form in Bohemian Rhapsody, tala and konnakol in Tha Thin Tha, polyrhythm, quartal harmony and minimalism in Short Ride, each with a 5-mark discuss part.
Where marks go missing
Saying a work is 'innovative' without naming the tradition it changed and the specific musical means; a discuss answer needs the element, the evidence and why it was new.
2 real SCSA questions indexed on this area →
Common questions
Which syllabus applies to the 2026 exam?
The Music ATAR Year 12 syllabus for teaching from 2025 (2021/34141 v15). The current course was first examined in 2024; the 2025 changes only affected composition portfolio requirements in the practical examination, so the written paper is unchanged.
Do I choose a context such as Western Art Music, Jazz or Contemporary?
Not for the written paper. Until 2023 there were separate context papers. Since 2024 there is one paper for everyone, sampling all three styles, and both designated-works questions are compulsory, so you need all six works.
Does this hub cover the performance or composition portfolio?
No. The practical examination is separate and cannot be reproduced in text. This hub models only the written examination.
How can I practise aural questions without audio?
Every aural item here is an original excerpt written out in text (pitches with octave numbers, rhythms, chord symbols, described instrumentation). Use it to drill notation, theory and analysis, then sing or play the written excerpts yourself, and keep doing real listening practice with recordings, as the exam is played on a personal listening device.
How many marks is the paper out of?
151 raw marks on the 2026 cover (57 aural, 18 theory, 19 unseen, 57 designated works), reported as 35%, 20%, 20% and 25% of the written examination. The raw totals move a little each year.
Which designated works should I study?
The works set in the SCSA designated works document. The 2024 and 2025 papers used Marryuna, Young, Gifted and Black and the Gaelic Symphony (Identities) and Bohemian Rhapsody, Tha Thin Tha and Short Ride in a Fast Machine (Innovations). Check the current document with your teacher, as the list is reviewed on a three-year cycle.
What can I take into the exam?
Standard items only: pens, pencils (including coloured), sharpener, correction fluid or tape, eraser, ruler and highlighters. The supervisor provides the booklets, a personal listening device and earbuds.