This course explores and activates student’s prior knowledge of popular music and introduces the element of the lyric to musical language. Through a mix of guided exercises and projects students will apply a variety of skills (analytical, written, aural, performative) in a specialised manner to create popular songs. The course also offers students a chance to participate in collaborative learning activities introducing them to new perspectives and facilitating key network building opportunities. Weekly learning activities and work created as part of assessment in this course will contribute directly to the development of a professional portfolio of creative work. Fostering the creative and critical skills required for producing original musical works in turn supports students in their development of the creative enterprise and entrepreneurial skills that are essential to early career

This course introduces the practical and theoretical procedures employed by musicians when recording a new musical work. Students are introduced to recording techniques and technologies. Students are then mentored through an application of their learning in generating new recorded material. The course also offers students a chance to participate in collaborative learning activities introducing them to new perspectives and facilitating key network building opportunities.

Assessment outcomes in this course will contribute directly to the development of a professional portfolio of creative work.

This course seeks to explore at an advanced level the intersection between theory and practice in music and the student’s readiness for independent creative work just prior to entering the profession or for future more advanced tertiary study. The two music project courses build on the knowledge and skill base accumulated in the first two years of study.  This course forms an intermediate phase between acquiring proficiency in music performance, theory and context and being ready to launch oneself as an independent musician.

Each student determines a practical and creative project, plans its execution and delivers Individually and/or in collaboration with peers, and under the supervision of teaching staff, an artistic or research-based outcome.  The project will demonstrate their cumulative capability and musical expertise.  This project-based learning promotes the technical, analytical and critical skill development essential to a professional creative practice in music.   The assessment will focus on the student’s capacity to formulate a ‘doable’ creative project, the stages of development of the project which could be reproducible in future creative tasks and the quality of the completed outcome based on the notion of readiness for professional work as a musician.

This course explores the important role social connection and professional networks play in successful music careers. These networks run the gamut of in-person/local relationships with student peers, fellow musicians, other collaborators, industry and other professionals, through to virtual/global networks. The course begins by comparing and contrasting today’s music industry the industry pre-digital revolution. Critical attention will then be given to the role of social media and digitization in revolutionizing musicians’ careers. Within the context of education, the course considers the ways in which digital technologies have expanded opportunities for connection via online music learning and teaching. Authentic learning activities and assessments include analysis of real-world case studies of professional musicians (using the media of vlog or podcast episode) and mapping of students’ existing networks. The course culminates in students’ designing and presenting (via youtube video) a strategy for expanding their future professional networks.

This course seeks to explore at an advanced level the intersection between theory and practice in music and the student’s readiness for independent creative work just prior to entering the profession or for future more advanced tertiary study. The two music project courses build on the knowledge and skill base accumulated in the first two years of study.  This course forms a second intermediate phase between acquiring proficiency in music performance, theory and context and being ready to launch oneself as an independent musician.  Each student determines a practical and creative project, plans its execution and delivers Individually and/or in collaboration with peers, and under the supervision of teaching staff, an artistic or research-based outcome.  The project will demonstrate their cumulative capability and musical expertise.  This project-based learning promotes the technical, analytical and critical skill development essential to a professional creative practice in music.   The assessment will focus on the student’s capacity to formulate a ‘doable’ creative project, the stages of development of the project which could be reproducible in future creative tasks and the quality of the completed outcome based on the notion of readiness for professional work as a musician.

This second project course may develop or expand the previous project topic with more advanced outcomes.

In this course, students will develop traditional music theory skills, developing arranging and compositional skills, building on skills gained in previous courses undertaken.  Students will learn how to creatively tailor musical material for a variety of instrumental forces and studio situations, drawing on knowledge acquired in first and second year courses.  Assessment tasks utilising notation software and digital recording will guide students through the acquisition of commonly used arranging skills for various types of musical ensembles and studio situations such as may be encountered in the musical education and industry landscape.

This course considers the ways in which musicians lead, the skills required to do so, the contexts in which leadership is enacted and the ways in which leadership can be leveraged to support sustainable career development.

The course explores leadership within music-specific contexts to guide students to consider how they develop their own leadership skills consistent with their personal values and career aspirations. Challenges faced by musicians when leading will also be considered, including issues relating to equity, diversity and representation.

Students will draw on their previous experiences of leadership in music practice courses and their own practice more broadly to consider at an advanced level the role of leadership in their future careers. Students will be assessed via work-integrated learning tasks (personal inventory, case studies/self-experiment and video CV) to demonstrate their understanding of the leadership role of musicians, and to apply this knowledge to their own future career development.

This course is designed to introduce students to a range of critical perspectives through which to view music, and invites students to identify and critically examine and problematize the assumptions which underpin our knowledge of the role of music in culture and society. A range of perspectives will be explored, with an emphasis on those which provide alternative views to the dominant paradigm of Western art music. Students will research and formally articulate critical and evidenced knowledges of various aspects of music within culture and society.