BMus (Hons) Popular Music Performance & Songwriting

The first Creative Industries module will introduce you to the strategies and tools to set you on the right path toward pursuing a successful career. Whether focused on a particular career goal or considering several future possibilities, you will broaden your knowledge of the opportunities available to you as a future creative industry professional.

Good instrumental/vocal technique is reliant on efficiency – this module will enable you to develop the core techniques to be able to express yourself in the way you want to. Looking at various styles and theory, along with the physics and physiology of playing, you’ll be taken through the fundamentals in a step-by-step manner in a progressive way, leading you to develop your creative vocabulary, so you can say what you want to say, musically.

Summary

Creating music with a digital audio workstation (DAW) allows musicians to have complete control over the creation and production of their music. A DAW provides a powerful set of tools for recording, editing, and mixing audio, as well as a vast library of virtual instruments and sound effects. This allows musicians to experiment with different sounds and styles, combine different elements of music, and create unique and original compositions. Additionally, a DAW enables musicians to collaborate with other artists remotely, share their work with a broader audience, and access a range of professional-grade plugins and production tools. Understanding music theory’s key conventions is also essential for musicians to develop their craft and create meaningful and impactful music. Music theory provides a framework for understanding the structure and function of different musical elements, such as melody, harmony, rhythm, and form. By learning the conventions of music theory, musicians can develop a deeper understanding of how to create effective and engaging compositions, and how to communicate their musical ideas to others.

Module Aims

In this module, you will have the opportunity to explore and utilise production skills when arranging and creating sound and instrument parts using a DAW. You will learn how to use the various tools and features of a DAW to create a recording. Through a combination of practical exercises and theoretical study, you will explore the principles of music production and arranging. By the end of the module, you will have started to develop the skills and knowledge needed to create high-quality recordings and compositions.

The techniques module enables you to explore songwriting through a carefully constructed programme of practical creative tasks. The course is delivered by a teaching team of established, published contemporary songwriters. Career planning, research and freelance skills are embedded in the curriculum, and you will also benefit from opportunities to collaborate with production and performance students.

Further study will be the building blocks of songwriting: chord theory, melody, harmony, lyrics and rhythm. The module involves aural perception, giving you the opportunity to develop your musical ear and recognise intervals and chord sequences by listening.

The module will take a traditional view of songwriting as well as contemporary, by exploring how approaches have changed over time. There will be writing partnerships, giving you the ability to collaborate effectively. Chord theory, structure and writing intuitively will be the focus of the module, as well as an introduction to lyrical and poetic devices.

In this module, you will further develop your investigative skills, exploring relevant underlying concepts and principles and interpreting these within the context of your area of study. You will explore the nature of creativity, the wider context of the industry and practice reflective techniques.

You will also evaluate sources and consider issues such as potential biases and cultural diversity. This evaluation will contribute to developing an enhanced awareness of your creative identity and greater insight into the topics that inspire and motivate you. In addition, you will improve your understanding of how your area of interest intersects with the wider creative industry.

Using academic enquiry, you will develop a reflective journal to evaluate your strengths and areas for self-development in relation to your studies, careers and personal aspirations. This investigative work will help establish a connection between the skills you have identified concerning specific careers and areas of the industry, enhancing your understanding of what is required to be a successful professional practitioner.

Applying the core techniques to develop your own voice on the instrument is a fundamental step to becoming a unique musician – the more diverse the influences, the more unique the musician. You will focus on exploring and analysing methods to expand vocabulary and develop open-ended creative methods.

You will create a short video demonstrating the creative application of techniques and theoretical concepts to a musical style of your choice. This will allow you to select the best attempts of each exercise for the final video, allowing you to add your own creative touches to the presentation. Compositions and recording techniques developed in Creative Technology can be used to support your video creation.

Styles and Genres is concerned with the deconstruction of musical and non-musical elements that create successful popular songs. This module will analyse the historical, social and biographical contexts that may have had a bearing on specific musical genres and notable songwriters, as well as examining external influences on these styles.

The module will require you to employ critical listening and aural perception to analyse music and lyrics objectively in order to understand how songs may work on us subjectively. This module will also look to broaden your songwriting vocabulary via the creation of an original work/song, in addition to providing a platform for self-reflection on the skills and aptitudes necessary for lifelong learning in this field.

This module will provide you with the support required to continue your study of music theory, arrangement, aural perception skills and mixing techniques used in popular music.

Further to the concepts studied in Digital Music in semester one, theory concepts studied will include the melodic minor scale, the harmonic minor scale and modes. You will also study extended chords, and how to mix music using a DAW and its processing to a high standard. The module will also include a study of acoustic theories.

The creative arts have the power to bring people together, unite communities, support mental wellbeing, raise awareness of social issues and above all, bring joy to many people around the world. In Creative Industries & You 2, you will discover how you can turn your passion and talent into a collaborative project with a positive impact on society. Employing research and networking skills, you will develop a greater understanding of a charity, cause or campaign. In teams of students from all courses, you‘ll select a cause and identify a way to support its key objectives, either by raising awareness, raising funds or contributing as volunteers. You will be introduced to your college's partner charities but you are also able to find your own, or work independently of an existing organisation.

Through this collaborative project, you’ll develop essential interpersonal and communication skills, experimenting with various digital tools for enterprise. You’ll reflect on your own values, applying theories of human psychology to explore how to get the best out of yourself and each other. Building on your industry research skills, you will assess your target audience and define clear SMART targets for your project that will enable you to execute an element of the strategy and evaluate its success. In teams, you will spend time working on your project both in class and in your own time, developing effective collaborative working methods.

You’ll record your project activity in your Personal and Professional Development Plan, reflecting on how you have developed and changed over the course of your first year and a half at BIMM. Working with your Personal Adviser you will identify objectives, opportunities and actions that will help you stay on the path to success for the second half of your journey towards becoming a Creative Industries Professional.

In this module, you will focus on developing your unique voice on your instrument. You will study technical development in the context of creative applications – advancing your capabilities, and further refining your individual voice.

A broad range of stylistic contexts will be investigated with a focus on developing appropriate technique and vocabulary and how to apply it creatively.

You will be looking at technical studies that will increase the range, capacity and versatility of your instrument skills. Over the course of the module, you will select tasks and studies that work towards your personal and creative goals as a musician, pushing yourself to perform material that expands your musical capacity. You will also be autonomous in selecting the style and context for your performances, enabling you to further define and create your individual and unique sound.

This module will allow you to further develop the tools required to put creative energy into practice, inspiring you to engage in compositional techniques and technological processes to improve your skills as a songwriter and enhance your creative and professional practice.

You will utilise Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs) for writing purposes, including the recording, editing, mixing and production of new material using industry-standard software and equipment.

This module continues the exploratory work you began in Context & Culture of the Creative Industries. You will directly apply ideas to your own discipline and development, selecting an area of investigation relevant to your own practice, and communicating your argument via your medium of choice.

The concepts you encounter will actively critique claims to authenticity and originality; themes you will encounter frequently throughout your career as a Creative Professional. You will debate artistic production, the motivations for it, and the problems of creative autonomy.

You will investigate relevant contemporary cultural issues and theories relating to society, race, gender, technology, and the environment to develop your contextual understanding of how these relate to your own creative practice, professional values, and sense of personal agency.

You will be encouraged to meet with your Personal Adviser in a 1:1 tutorial to help you reflect on the strengths and areas for development identified in your PPDP in the first year, tracking your academic progress and setting new actions that will support you to achieve your best work. The research methods and study habits you develop throughout this module will prepare you for next year’s Final Project, in which you will self-direct a significant piece of academic, creative and/or professional practice.

Video platforms enable you to connect with a global audience of fans, employers, students and future collaborators and are steadily replacing the open mic night, audition room, in-person lesson or submission to A&R team.

The module aims to expand upon your existing technical abilities and stylistic awareness enabling you to further develop a fluent technical and creative foundation within your chosen genre. At the same time, you’ll learn to express and present these skills via video platforms that best suit your target audience that could include fixer, record label, fanbase, venue, performer, student or collaborator.

In Songwriting & Arrangement, you will study established musical arrangement aesthetics, approaches and techniques in order to inform and inspire your own artistic exploration in the creation of original musical arrangements. Classes will be a combination of the stylistic and technical analysis of existing artistic and aesthetic approaches, and a process of experimentation through creative arrangement workshopping.

You will reflect on your artistic exploration of arrangement approaches, culminating in an overarching reflection on your writing and composition throughout your BMus study at the college, as well as practical work undertaken during your Songwriting & Arrangement module learning journey.

In this module, you will undertake a significant project of your own choosing. It’s your chance to explore your passion within the industry and creative arts: experiment, take risks, strengthen your skills and create a product/cohesive portfolio of work that you are proud to showcase at the end of your degree.

This module will support you in consolidating the broad learning and development from the course so far, building a bridge into the industry, the workplace and future opportunities. You will be supported to self-direct your own learning through a series of lectures, seminars and 1:1 tutorials with expert supervisors.

This module will develop your ability to construct and implement a live ensemble performance to a professional standard, with consideration for your target audience. Additionally, you will critically evaluate the processes by which this is achieved.

By analysing high-level performances (e.g. Super Bowl shows/ festival headliners etc) as reference points, you will take into account all aspects of stagecraft and musicality to create your own showcase performance. The showcase will need to include; technical proficiency, creative musicianship and arrangement, and visual performance.

Throughout the course, you will also be required to engage in reflective practice by creating a digital portfolio (via Mahara). This will document your practice, progress, insights, strengths and challenges; both as an individual and as part of the ensemble. The portfolio may include written notes, images, audio examples, video recordings of the rehearsal process or vlog entries.

This module requires you to present a final body of practical work in an appropriate ‘industry ready’ format. You will provide elements appropriate to the needs of current and future industry expectations for up-and-coming songwriters, composers and artists. You will reflect on your current work rigorously measuring it against industry examples.

The work presented should evidence equal weight to aesthetics, original music and appropriate material for furtherment in your chosen career path.

Success on the module will enable you to tailor your branding to address the commercial songwriting career path to which you aspire.

In this module, you will undertake a significant project of your own choosing. It’s your chance to explore your passion within the industry and creative arts: experiment, take risks, strengthen your skills and create a product/cohesive portfolio of work that you are proud to showcase at the end of your degree.

This module will support you in consolidating the broad learning and development from the course so far, building a bridge into the industry, the workplace and future opportunities. You will be supported to self-direct your own learning through a series of lectures, seminars and 1:1 tutorials with expert supervisors.

This module is the final step in your journey and will support you as you look to enter your chosen field as a creative professional. Drawing on evidence from throughout your time here. you will critically self-evaluate your personal learning journey and industry engagements to date. You will explore concepts and theories of personal and professional development to support, challenge and test your assumptions, to determine your readiness for work in the creative industries. You will have the opportunity to discuss this with your peers and learn from your collective experiences in both small degree path groups and large mixed discipline sessions.

With this position in mind, you will then be challenged to create and consolidate creative assets to give you the edge over the competition in your chosen field. Specialist workshops will be offered throughout the module, informed and delivered by our wide-reaching connections and specialist lecturers in the creative industries. This culminates in the creation of a portfolio which tells the story of your personal and professional journey so far, communicating your unique professional identity and future career plans in the creative industries.