Music Composition for Film and Media MSc

About the course

The MSc Music Composition for Film and Media degree covers a broad spectrum of collaborative possibilities between music and other media and art forms, thus responding to the current industry demand for a new breed of music professionals: creative individuals who are able to handle confidently and effectively a variety of media and musical contexts.

You will be engaging with composition for video art, narrative film, contemporary dance and theatre. The whole spectrum of acoustic and electroacoustic resources are explored, opening up new horizons of unlimited sonic potential and compositional possibilities.

Advanced compositional and studio techniques are explored under the guidance of dedicated and highly specialised tutors, all of whom are practicing artists and active researchers.

Professional instrumentalists, actors, choreographers and dancers are engaged to perform and record the students’ compositions; distinguished speakers are invited to lecture and advise on all aspects of the music industry.

We are one of the largest music department in the UK, offering a rich portfolio of forward-looking music programmes uniquely designed to develop the most relevant skills in the current industry. The environment is friendly and supportive, and students benefit from being part of a large community of creatives in all fields: from film, to new media, performance, and fine arts.

Our top-class facilities include:

• 2 labs, each with 36 workstations dual monitor Apple Intel
• A large recording studio with latest SSL AWS 900+ SE
• A medium-size studio with Yamaha 02R/96
• 3 monitoring spaces for surround sound
• A dubbing suite for audio-to-video work
• A foley studio for sound design work
• Sony Game studio
• Multimedia studios
• Anechoic chamber
• TV studio
• A 460-seats state-of-the-art performance venue with A/V recording facilities

Why choose this course?

• The postgraduate Music Composition for Film and Media degree unleashes your creative potential by applying composition to a range of media: from art video to narrative film, from music-theatre to contemporary dance.
• Work across the whole gamut of available musical resources – from acoustic instruments to electroacoustic techniques – utilising the latest studio and computer technology. 
• Explore advanced compositional and studio techniques, and discuss aesthetic trends.
• Have your compositions performed and recorded by professional instrumentalists, actors, and dancers.
• Join a large and vibrant community of professional musicians, composers, performers, sound artists, and technologists committed to excellence in learning and teaching.
• See our MSc Music Composition for Film and Media blog for recent news and student activity.

Study routes

• Part Time, 2 Years
• Full Time, 1 Years

Locations

• University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield

Careers

Graduates from this pathway will be ideally positioned to pursue a career in the thriving field of acoustic/electroacoustic composition for film, television, radio, new media, and performing arts. You may, in addition, consider positions in music publishing, music journalism and criticism, teaching or you may continue  your higher education at doctoral level.

Teaching methods

Lecture, seminars and tutorials are typically scheduled over two consecutive days a week, plus some extra sessions for particular workshops, performance, recording, etc., as necessary. 

In addition to scheduled sessions, students are expected to engage in continuous self-directed study and studio practice.

Professional Accreditations

Skillset Media Academy

Structure

Year 1

Core Modules

• Creative Enterprise and Context

  This module emphasises the professional contexts of the student's work both in terms of its content and in terms of the kind of outcomes used for assessment. A series of lectures present ideas about key issues in the Creative Industries and Health and Social sectors. The lectures provide a broad context for ideas about the emergence and future of the Creative Industries and Health and Social sectors about Intellectual Property Rights, about the social conditions of the workplace and about the planning and management of projects. 'Break out' seminars lead to the student producing a piece of work that explores topics relevant to their award of study. Alongside these is the development of professional 'presentation of self' skills appropriate for the student's aspirations. This includes the development of portfolios, showreels and other material and skills in preparing and delivering a pitch or bid for funding as if for a Creative Industries or in the Health and Social sectors.

• Discourse / Reflection: Music, Media and Production

  This module explores key techniques and technologies employed in current music production, placing them in direct relation to the aesthetic issues associated with such usage. Covering from electroacoustic music to a range of popular genres, this module enables students to utilise techniques and technologies in ways that are imaginative yet appropriate and coherent to the particular artistic context of their productions.

• Major Study: Music Project

  This module is designed to enable students to pursue their own particular interest on a particular focused area of their choice related to their course of studies (approved by tutor) and realise a piece of creative or technical work, substantial in size and advanced in level, that represents a synthesis of all the acquired knowledge and skills and that could be showcased / performed / presented to potential employers, commissioning bodies, audiences, etc.

• Practice 1: Composition for Film and Media 1

  This module will cover advanced compositional techniques and strategies (i.e. polytonality, serial techniques, Schillinger method, etc.) and orchestration techniques, including the conventions of score layout. In addition, the module will address the principles and techniques for achieving an effective integration of sound and image in film soundtrack, with an emphasis on narratological devices (themes, leitmotives, subjects and countersubjects), structural alignment and synchronisation strategies.

• Practice 2: Composition for Film and Media 2

  This module will cover aspects of composition in relation to live mediatised performance and to a range of performing arts, e.g. music-theatre, contemporary dance, multi-media performance.

• Research and Enquiry

  This module aims to provide students with a range of research skills suitable for postgraduate level study in art, art therapy, design, film, media and music. The module helps students locate their work within contemporary advance-level practice in their disciplines and to make a critical evaluation of the bodies of ideas that sustain them. Key skills addressed include those of data management, critical evaluation, communication skills, notions of creativity and a range of modes of contextual analysis. The skills gleaned on this module will provide students with a platform for research for the remainder of the programme and in their future careers.

Optional

Fees & funding

Fees 2013

UK/EU Students

Full time: £6,700 for the 2013 academic year

Part time: If you decide to study this course on a part time basis you will be charged on a modular basis. The cost is £560 for each 15-credit module

International Students

Full time: £11,000 for the 2013 academic year Full time: £11,000 for the 2013 academic year

Discounts are available for International students if payment is made in full at registration

View detailed information about tuition fees

Other financial support

Find out more about other financial support available to UK and EU students

Living costs / accommodation

The University of Hertfordshire offers a great choice of student accommodation, on campus or nearby in the local area, to suit every student budget.

View detailed information about our accommodation

How to apply