0410_s26_gt — 2026 May-June Music 0410 Grade Threshold · Cambridge CAIE IGCSE

Vague answers that do not refer to what was actually heard in the extract

“Answers are sometimes too vague to be awarded credit; specific examples are given below. This is particularly the case in questions on the set works, where candidates are expected to know the music in detail.”— 0410 Paper 1, May/June 2025

How to fix: Anchor every answer to a specific audible event: name the instrument, the bar/section, the dynamic, the articulation. Replace 'the key changes' with 'modulates to the dominant in bar X'. Replace 'African music has call and response' with 'a solo singer is answered by the chorus'. If you cannot point to a moment in the extract that proves your point, do not write it.

Answering with the wrong category — giving a time signature when asked for a tempo marking, or naming a movement when asked for a section of the exposition

“Answers are sometimes not appropriate to the question being asked, e.g. a question asking for a tempo marking might result in a candidate giving a time signature and a question asking for the name for the part of the exposition might have candidates giving answers such as development or recapitulation, or even a movement of the work.”— 0410 Paper 1, May/June 2025

How to fix: Underline the noun in the question (tempo marking? time signature? key? section?) before writing. Tempo markings are Italian words like adagio, lento, largo, grave, andante, allegro. Time signatures are numbers like 3/4 or 4/4. Exposition sections are 1st subject, transition, 2nd subject, codetta — never development or recapitulation, which belong to the rest of sonata form.

Set-work questions answered very poorly — Beethoven and Haydn details are not learned in enough depth

“As in previous years, questions about the set work were answered poorly in general, with many candidates gaining very low marks in this section.”— 0410 Paper 1, May/June 2025

How to fix: Build a one-page memory map of your set work: list every section (exposition 1st subject / transition / 2nd subject / codetta / development / recapitulation / scherzo / trio), the key of each, the key relationship to the tonic (dominant, relative minor, tonic major), the instruments that announce each theme, and any technical details (stretto, hemiola, dominant pedal, tonic pedal). Test yourself on bar numbers and key signatures, not just general impressions.