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Music Extended Essay Guide
A guide to writing an analytical, musically rigorous IB Music Extended Essay.
What is a Music Extended Essay?
The Music Extended Essay (EE) is one of the most challenging and rewarding parts of the IB Diploma. Below you will find everything you need to choose a strong topic, design your methodology, and write a high-scoring EE in Music.
Word Count
3,500 – 4,000 words
Excluding bibliography, abstract, and appendices. Budget every section carefully before you start writing.
Assessment
Graded A–E
Combined with the TOK essay for up to 3 bonus IB Diploma points. A strong EE and TOK = maximum bonus.
Timeline
12–18 months
From initial topic to final submission. Most students underestimate this. Start early and plan backwards from your deadline.
Supervision
3 required meetings
Initial, interim, and final (viva voce). Each requires an RPPF reflection. Your supervisor approves your RQ.
Strong Music EE Topic Ideas
| Topic Idea | Why It Works | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|
| How does Beethoven’s use of harmonic tension and resolution in the first movement of Symphony No. 5 create a sense of dramatic inevitability? | Music theory, score analysis, tonal analysis | Medium |
| To what extent did the blues scale and call-and-response form originate in West African musical traditions? | Ethnomusicology, music history, cultural analysis | Medium |
| How does Arvo Pärt’s tintinnabuli technique in Spiegel im Spiegel create a sense of spiritual transcendence? | Music analysis, minimalism, contemporary music | Hard |
| To what extent did the Beatles’ experimental studio techniques on Revolver (1966) transform popular music production? | Pop music history, recording technology, specific album | Easy |
| How does the use of polyrhythm in West African drumming differ from rhythmic complexity in Western art music? | Ethnomusicology, rhythmic analysis, comparative | Hard |
| To what extent does John Williams’ leitmotif technique in the Star Wars films derive from Wagner’s use of leitmotif in the Ring Cycle? | Music history, leitmotif analysis, comparative | Medium |
Subject-Specific Advice
Musical Terminology
Use correct vocabulary
Use correct musical terms: tonic, subdominant, modulation, timbre, counterpoint, heterophony, syncopation. Vague language (“it sounds happy”) earns very few marks.
Score Analysis
Reference specific bars
For Western art music EEs, reference specific bar numbers and include score excerpts in your appendix. Examiners expect you to work with the score directly.
Recordings
Analyse specific performances
Reference the specific recording you are analysing (performer, conductor, year, label). Different performances of the same piece can produce significantly different musical results.
Cultural Context
Music in society
Discuss the cultural, historical, and social context in which the music was created and received. Music never exists in a vacuum.
Assessment & Common Mistakes
Assessed on: musical knowledge, analytical skill, use of musical vocabulary, and quality of argument. Music EEs without proper musical terminology and specific references to scores or recordings cannot achieve the higher mark bands.
⚠ Common Pitfall
Music EEs written without proper musical terminology score very low. “The music is fast and exciting” tells an examiner nothing. “The semiquaver ostinato in the lower strings combined with the syncopated brass entries creates rhythmic displacement that undermines the tonic pedal” shows real musical understanding. If you cannot write in musical language, choose a different subject for your EE.
Music EE Checklist
- ✓ My RQ focuses on a specific musical question — technique, style, cultural context, or influence
- ✓ I use correct musical terminology throughout (not vague descriptions)
- ✓ For score-based analysis: I reference specific bar numbers and include score excerpts
- ✓ I specify the recordings and performances I am analysing
- ✓ I discuss cultural, historical, and social context relevant to my musical question
- ✓ My conclusion makes a specific, supported musical argument
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