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MUSI3024 Composing for the Commercial World
Course Type: disciplinary elective for music majors/minors, free elective for others
Prerequisite: MUSI1023, MUSI2026 or instructor’s consent
Instructor: Mr. Teriver CHEUNG
Semester: Second Semester 2023/24
Time: 2:30am-4:20pm, Wednesday
Venue: CRT-11.01 Seminar Room
This course cultivates the basic literacy skills needed for commercial music composition. Topics will include pop-song writing, beat making, film scoring, and jingle production. Students will be introduced to contemporary practices in music industry by way of music demos, instrumental tracking, music arrangement, and music production techniques.
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Course Learning Outcomes
Assessment Methods
Topics
Text & Resource Materials
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
  • demonstrate a diverse knowledge in composition methods and a competence in critical listening, thereby combining them to analyze selected genres for a comprehensive understanding of commercial music structure, style, and distinctive elements.
  • demonstrate the ability to use DigitalAudio Workstations (DAW) like Garage Band, Logic Pro, and Pro Tools for music writing and beat-making, as well as to implement Artificial Intelligence in music creation.
  • conduct in-depth analysis of mainstream songs by studying their original song files within DAWs, gaining valuable insights into the details of music production.
  • apply knowledge acquired through live interactions with industry professionals and effectively collaborate with peers on assignments that mirror real-world music production scenarios.
Attendance and Participation 10%
6 Composition Assignments 30%
Journal of song analysis 10% (in point form, summarising the techniques learnt in the course)
A 4-min Song 25% (with full arrangement, score, and audio playback)
A 4-min Audio-visual Work 25%
  • Introduction to song form
  • Harmony and accompaniment
  • Introduction to Digital Audio Workstations
  • Home studio instrumental tracking
  • Simple beat making, use of loops and virtual instruments
  • Popular song production
  • Introduction to film music
  • Use of Artificial Intelligence tools