About the course

This is a vocational course designed to run alongside your other A-Level courses, and aims to develop your understanding, skills, and professional application of digital music production skills. While this course will be primarily focused on developing DAW based skills, you will develop a wider experience and understanding of their use in composition, media, recording and mixing.

You will develop core DAW production skills throughout the course, with a specific focus on developing these skills during your first year. You will also study sound and music for media, where you will explore the requirements of enhancing media with sound and music while working on industry-focused projects to give you an insight into how the sector operates.
In your second year you will explore different professional applications of these skills. You will learn how to mix and master your material, exploring some previous concepts in more depth and nuance, but also applying new methods and techniques to enhance your production process. You will also learn how to use DAW production skills in a creative manner by remixing and reworking music, giving you a chance to develop your creative identity and production style. You will also gain a deeper understanding of the software and equipment that you use by exploring synthesis and sampling techniques, and producing a range of sounds for use by other producers, composers, and creative professionals.

Start Date/s

02/09/2024, 02/09/2024

Entry Requirements

A minimum of five GCSEs at grade 5 or above. GCSEs (or equivalent) in Music and IT are desirable but not essential. Given the practical and technical demands of this course your entry will be subject to an interview.

Modules

DAW Production, Sound and Music for Media, Creative Synthesis and Sampling, Remixing & Reworking, MIxing & Mastering Techniques

Assessment

The music production course is primarily assessed through internally-set coursework projects, in which the tutors will decide and set the scenario based on current industry trends. You will have a chance to develop your skills before undertaking these projects, and will receive feedback and development targets to ensure you are prepared for the projects. There is also one externally-set task that must be completed over a period of 15 hours. You will need to complete it under exam conditions as it will be marked by an external assessor, but this will not be in an ‘exam hall’ or anything like that, it will just be in your regular classroom.

Careers & Progression

This two year qualification supports access to a range of higher education courses in music production and the wider music industry when taken alongside further Level 3 qualifications. As well as direct entry to employment, this qualification will prepare students for higher study of a specialist degree or BTEC Higher National Diploma. This route gives learners the opportunity to enter the sector at a higher level, or in a more specialist role. Typically the majority of students progress to university level courses from this qualification. The most frequently applied for universities are Salford, BIMM and University College Burnley. The most common courses are ‘Pop Music and Recording’, ‘Music Production and Performance’, ‘Music Production’, ‘Event Management’, BA (Hons) Music, BMus (Hons) Music, BA (Hons) Music Promotion, BSc (Hons) Sound Engineering, BA (Hons) Music Journalism and BSc (Hons) Music for Film Television and Games in addition to a whole host more. Careers could include - music producer, sound designer, composition for media, sound engineer.

Additional Details