Music Production in Context (870P4)

30 credits, Level 7 (Masters)

Spring teaching

This module will introduce you to a broad set of skills in modern music production including issues such as pre-production, studio production, mix and final mastered product. These issues will be discussed in the context of analysis of current and historical practices in music production referring to writer/practitioners such as Mick Brown, John Borwick and Bruce Bartlet. The importance of planning will be stressed but technical aspects such as microphone placement, drum recording and vocal recording will also be considered.

The module will critically examine the balance between interpretation and constraints placed on production and creativity by industry. You will produce a musical work in recorded form that gives evidence of knowledge of production methods as well as embodying a creative and critical response to the particular constraints of a music production brief. You are required to write a 1,500-word commentary as part of your portfolio demonstrating advanced understanding of theories and practices of music production.

Teaching

100%: Seminar

Assessment

100%: Coursework (Project)

Contact hours and workload

This module is approximately 300 hours of work. This breaks down into about 22 hours of contact time and about 278 hours of independent study. The University may make minor variations to the contact hours for operational reasons, including timetabling requirements.

We regularly review our modules to incorporate student feedback, staff expertise, as well as the latest research and teaching methodology. We’re planning to run these modules in the academic year 2022/23. However, there may be changes to these modules in response to feedback, staff availability, student demand or updates to our curriculum. We’ll make sure to let you know of any material changes to modules at the earliest opportunity.