Recent History: Students will start with a review of recent developments in the music and related creative industries following the introduction of streaming technology. There will be video contributions from experts in the field and key practitioners from both the USA and the UK. They will explore the new structure of the industry.

Research Skills: Students will be introduced to the subject specific research techniques and skills required for this area of study.



Business Analysis: Students will learn key approaches and tools in business analysis. They will discover how appropriate use of analytical tools can reveal valuable insights. These insights can form the foundations of a business strategy.



Strategic Theory: They will then learn the theoretical basis of business strategy, the key concepts and models. They will evaluate the strategic approach of organisations, their management and the external context through business case studies.

The fundamental currency of the entertainment industry is copyright, intellectual property and the contracts that assign them. To build any music business or play a part in its management, you need a detailed grasp of how the laws, regulations and business practice.

This module looks at copyright and contract law in the USA, UK and EU. At the heart of the module, students will learn how to apply theoretical knowledge to complex business situations.

Students will be introduced to practical negotiating skills through live workshops and projects. They will build both a solid theoretical framework and essential soft skills including strong communication, team working, negotiating and collaboration.

Where is there money to be made in the music industry in 2021? That’s what we’ll explore in this module looking at everything from streaming royalties to merchandise, session fees to licensing. Leading practitioners will tell you what’s working right now.

You’ll go onto learn how to find and evaluate a business proposition using advanced analytical tools to give crucial insights. You’ll learn to put together a business plan and finally you’ll pitch your idea in a real-world, real-time project.

A module looking at one of the most active and profitable areas of the music industry. Students will look at the business from both the sales side of a rights owner promoting their works, and the buying side as a music supervisor looking for and clearing music. From the theory of the specific rights to be licensed, the standard business practices surrounding synch licensing, they will research the market in specific genres and examine real-world scenarios and take part in business simulations.

Just as the music industry has changed rapidly in recent years, so has the role of the music manager. This module brings together a range of complementary skills that any new music manager will require to operate effectively. Many of the topics, like copyright and contracts, have been covered in detail elsewhere in this course. This module adds the specific professional, commercial and ethical knowledge and skills, students will need either to embark on a career managing artists or writers.

Royalties are a major income stream for most music companies, artists, writers and composers. Understanding how the system works and how to get your money is both complicated and constantly evolving. How much are streaming royalties worth and how do you collect your money? This module gives you the tools and insights to understand the process, dealing with PRO’s, tracking your copyrights and maximising income. You will build on the theoretical knowledge of copyright and contracts from Module 3, and put it to work.

This module combines a theoretical overview of marketing theory with hands-on practical skills including building facebook and instagram paid advertising, and growing a youtube channel. Students will critically reflect on the impact of social media and digital marketing on the development of new artists in the music industry.

Topics covered will include:

• Marketing Theory in the Music Industry.
• Developing a digital marketing and social media strategies.
• Creating facebook or instagram paid advertising campaigns.
• Using social media, Youtube and Spotify playlists to promote new music.
• PR and promotion.

This module builds on the previous marketing module. Explore state of the art strategies for promoting music in 2021. Navigating the DSPs like Spotify, Apple Music and Deezer, how to use the Tik Tok algorithm to your advantage, building a narrative that appeals to radio.

Your project will take you through every step of the process of planning and launching a new release.

This elective is specifically for creative professionals whose business is their own creative output. Whether you are an artist, producer, writer or composer you are creative business entrepreneurs operating in challenging yet expanding area of the industry. This module focusses on the entrepreneurship required to grow your business. You will have the opportunity to dramatically improve your creative output with mentorship from working creative professionals. You will learn how to tailor your output to the market so that people want to buy what you have to offer. This is about creative development and looking at yourself and your work as a business.

MA students will conclude their course with a 3 month project, supported and mentored by both industry specific and academic staff. They can choose either the Final Major Project which plans, researches and prepares an industry-ready project, ready to be rolled out or a dissertation. The dissertation is a good choice for those preparing to go onto further doctoral studies.

The final major project is a major piece of work that will take 12 weeks to complete. It is a proposal for a new business, a new initiative or project within an existing business or career development project. The choice of topic is left to the student but the subject for the final major project is subject to approval by the course manager. The project will be fully researched, planned and presented to stakeholders. It will be accompanied by supporting evidence including relevant creative assets and promotional material. Students will deliver a business plan with supporting evidence, a 15 minute presentation followed by question and answer session and a reflective report, evaluating the project development process and setting the project in the context of current research practice in the music industries.

The dissertation will represent your research into an area of the music industry. The dissertation is an extended piece of scholarly written work. It will take 12 weeks to complete (full time), and represents the culmination of your academic, analytical and research skills, as well as taking advantage of your practical experience.



You will be asked to write a long essay of 12,000 words (+/- 10%), including footnotes, but excluding bibliography. This is a substantially longer than any of your other work so far. This module will cultivate your intellectual and scholarly independence as a specialist in this area. You will undertake the work as an individual, under the guidance of a supervisor, with whom you will meet regularly in one-to-one sessions.

Ideally, applicants will have an undergraduate degree, preferably in music or audio production. However, there is an option for those who do not have a degree, taking into account real-world work experience of making music, and non-degree professional development courses. This Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL), as it is known, is always assessed on a case-by-case basis. It also depends on how many other students are using this route during this stage of applications, as there is a maximum percentage of students we can take through this process.

Whilst you will primarily be graded on your music and sound design, will be expected to provide commentaries alongside your practical assignments. Your ‘Research and Critical Reflection’ module will include a 5000-word report, and your Final Major Project will include a 2000-word report. You will be marked on these reports.

Throughout the course, you will be required to read books and listen to recordings. These are not included in the course price. You should expect to have to source and purchase, rent or borrow a fair amount of recordings and printed material, a full list of which will be available in the course handbooks.

We expect you to have a competent knowledge of one Digital Audio Workstation (DAW). You need to write music fluently and productively. You should be able to produce roughly two minutes of music in a day. Your demos should be of good quality and we are happy to listen to your music and give you an opinion on this before you apply.

A high level of music theory is a big advantage but we appreciate there are many different ways to create a great score and you will be judged principally on the potential shown in your portfolio.

The latest Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) capable of importing video files. We are able to provide extensive support for:

Cubase 8 (or newer)
Logic Pro X
Pro Tools 11

Sample libraries are a must-have for the course. There are literally thousands of libraries, many of them capable of creating outstanding quality demos and we could have chosen any number. Most of the libraries listed below are available at a significant educational discount.

Here are some sample library suppliers that we recommend:

East West
Vienna
Spitfire Audio
8Dio
Heavyocity
Native Instruments

For our base orchestral libraries, we suggest:

East West Quantum Leap – Symphonic Orchestra Gold
VSL Special Edition – Woodwinds
8Dio – Adagietto
Heavyocity – Damage
Soundiron – Emotional Piano

You must also have a reasonable to top performance computer (Mac or PC) as well as at least a basic orchestral virtual instrument library (we can advise you if you’re not sure about your setup).

PC:
Minimum Spec:
Intel/AMD Quad Core Processor 2.6GHz
8/16GB RAM

However we would recommend:
Intel i7 Quad Core 3.2GHz (equivalent or higher)
32GB RAM

Mac:
Minimum Spec:
Intel Processor Quad Core 2.6GHz
8/16GB RAM

However we would recommend:
Intel i7 Quad Core 3.2GHz (equivalent or higher)
32GB RAM

You will also need:
Monitoring headphones and/or speakers

We also recommend:
External audio interface
MIDI Keyboard

On successful completion of your course, you will be awarded a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Chichester. All UK degrees, including those gained through ThinkSpace Education, are recognised worldwide. The qualification is fully accredited in the UK and subject to regular quality control, review, and external invigilation to ensure the highest academic standards are maintained.

The graduation ceremony takes place in Chichester each year where you will receive your degree alongside your fellow students and the rest of the university’s graduates. If you cannot attend the ceremony in the UK, we can send your certification to you through the post.

Yes. If your internet connection is not particularly stable, you do have the option of downloading the course materials for offline viewing. We are unable to send out physical copies of our course text and videos. To take part in webinars a stable internet connection of 3Mbps download and 1.5Mbps upload is recommended.