Music Production & Engineering Core Curriculum

Music Production and Engineering students explore current practices and innovations in music technology, electronic musicianship, and music production, learning key aspects of recording and production. Students examine everything from recording session set-up and microphone placement to signal flow, mix-down, mastering, and professional studio protocol.

Required Courses: Music Production & Engineering

In this course, students learn ensemble audio recording. They learn to work with multiple microphones and headphone mixes, as well as the process of setups and teardowns. Through hands-on assignments, they master working with smaller and larger ensembles, in a variety of music genres.

In this class, students learn about the relationship between creativity and recording tools. They gain knowledge of microphone characteristics and learn to make informed decisions on microphone choice, usage and placement. They learn about signal flow through a recording console, characteristics of various microphone preamplifiers, the use of compressors, limiters, EQ and other processors. Students gain the knowledge they need to create tracks that fit their creative aesthetic, and to make recordings that enable them to communicate their musical ideas.

Academy Choir is a requirement for all Voice majors and is open to all students. The choir participates in numerous concerts during the year, performing works from a diverse range of styles, time periods and composers.

In this course, students explore the business of contemporary music. Topics discussed include copyright, music supervision, how to build a team, crowdfunding, publicity (bios, branding, cyber PR and printed), touring, PRO's, publishing, establishing yourself as an artist with the IRS, good book keeping, write-offs, entertainment law, and more.

This course explores use of the piano and keyboard in contemporary styles. Students will learn fundamental technique (scales, keys, triads & seventh chords, etc.) and basic chord theory. We will apply this knowledge to a variety of styles with an emphasis on rhythmic comping patterns and harmonic ear training.

When mixing a song, mix engineers must take a lot of different elements into consideration. They must think of the entire process in terms of balance, organization, creativity and excitement. In this class, students learn different steps of the mixing process, including mix preparation and editing, setting levels, panning, adding effects such as reverb, delay, eq, compression, using automation, and master fader processing. Students also learn the basics of mastering.

In this course, students explore the skills and concepts fundamental to live sound reinforcement, audio recording, and audio editing. This is a hands-on course. Theory and application are introduced simultaneously, and projects reflect the interests and disciplines unique to each participant. This is a cross-curricular course available to all students.

In this course and critical listening lab, students explore various concepts and technical skills central to the field of Music Production and Engineering. Students learn how the field of Music Production & Engineering has changed over time, share projects, and receive and give feedback, with a focus on growth and improvement.

What is MIDI? Who developed it, and why? How is it useful to production? Music Programming and Track Creation gives the student an historical as well as a functional background in MIDI protocol. In this course, students learn how to program and record MIDI information into their DAWs to create arrangements with synthesizers and virtual instruments. They also learn loop-based production as well as sample choice and placement. In addition, students learn the rudiments of subtractive, wavetable and FM synthesis.

This class is a comprehensive look at the basics of using a Pro Tools system for audio production. Students will learn to build sessions that include multitrack recordings of live instruments, MIDI sequences, and virtual instruments. Through hands-on exercises and projects, students will develop essential techniques for recording, editing, and mixing in Pro Tools, the industry-standard Digital Audio Workstation.

Interlochen is an official Avid Learning Partner, and at the end of the course, students are encouraged to take the Pro Tools ALA certification, an online test that is intended to stand in for the Pro Tools 101 course. Completion of the certification allows students to skip that class and enroll directly into the second level of Pro Tools instruction (known to Avid Learning Partners as the Pro Tools 110 course).

In Production Lab, each Music Production & Engineering student receives small-group specialized production and audio engineering instruction related to their key projects.

Theory I focuses on the fundamentals of music. During the fall semester we will study reading in all clefs, intervals, scales, key signatures, and triads. We will learn about rhythm notation and meter. In addition, students will work on projects creating their own musical material and participate regularly in Musicianship Skills (singing, rhythm work, ear training, etc.). The class will meet four days a week. This course continues through the spring semester.

At the center of most contemporary commercial recorded music is a vocal performance. In this course, students explore the ways that a producer helps an artist achieve a compelling and believable vocal performance. They also learn about the production tools a producer or engineer uses to amplify the emotional impact of a vocal performance.

Sample Music Production & Engineering Curriculum for a 4-Year Student

Semester I

Required Courses
Intro to Audio Technology and Production / MPE091-092
Fundamentals of Mixing / MPE110
Music Theory / Musicianship / MUS101-502
Music Production & Engineering Seminar / MPE99-100

Sample Academic Courses
Algebra I; Biology; English I; French I

Semester II

Required Courses
Class Piano / MUS203
Music Archaeology / MUS107
Music Production & Engineering Seminar / MPE99-100

Sample Academic Courses
Algebra I; Biology; English I; French I

Semester III

Required Courses
Recording Techniques / MPE112
Fundamentals of Music Programming and Synthesis / MPEXX
Music Production and Engineering Seminar / MPE99-100

Sample Academic Courses
Geometry; World History; English II; French II

Semester IV

Required Courses
Fundamentals of Mixing / MPE110
Ensemble Recording / MPE204
Music Production and Engineering Seminar / MPE99-100

Sample Academic Courses
Geometry; World History; English II; French II

Semester V

Required Courses
Private Lesson/Studio / MUS0XX / MUS099
Music Production and Engineering Seminar / MPE99-100

Sample Academic Courses
Algebra II; U.S. History; English III; Chemistry

Semester VI

Required Courses
Advanced Mix Techniques / MPEXX
Vocal Production (Project) / MPE203
Music Production and Engineering Seminar / MPE99-100