Music technology

Why study Music Technology?

Studying the STEM subject of music technology at Woodhouse will provide you with a gateway into the fascinating and evolving world of music technology.

You will learn about recording, technology-based composition, listening, analysing and producing. You will be encouraged to engage with a wide range of music technology techniques and develop an understanding of the historical and cultural contexts of the use of music technology in the creation and production of music.

In recent years, many Woodhouse students have gone on to study music technology, sound production, sound engineering and other courses requiring a similar skill set at university level.

The department is proud of its state-of-the-art recording studio and Mac-based teaching space with relevant software including Logic Pro.

Course overview

You’ll explore techniques for capturing, editing and manipulating sound to help you understand the impact of music technology on creative processes in the studio. You will then produce a completed mix. You’ll develop ideas and turn them into completed technology-based compositions, develop in-depth knowledge and understanding of musical elements and musical language, and apply them.

You’ll identify, analyse and evaluate creative music production techniques, as applied to the unfamiliar commercial recordings supplied in the exam. As well as identifying effects and their associated parameter settings, you will explain the principles behind the choice of the effects heard on each recording, and their sonic character, in a series of written responses.

How is the course assessed?

Two Coursework Components (both are externally assessed) - 40% of the total A-Level 

1. Recording Coursework - externally assessed - 20% - 60 marks
   One recording chosen from a list of 10 songs. Total time 3–3½mins
2. Composition Coursework - Externally assessed - 20% - Technology-based Composition - 60 marks
   One composition to a brief. Total time 3mins

Two Written Exams - 60% of the total A-Level

1. Written Exam - 1 hour 30 mins – 25% 
   Listening and Analysing Paper - 75 marks
2. Written & Practical Exam - 2 hours 15 mins - 35%
   Producing and Analysing Paper - 105 marks

What will I do in lessons?

Four lessons each week provide five hours of tuition covering all four components of the two-year linear course. Some lessons will be practical, working either as a group or individually at computer workstations or in our recording studio. Other lessons will be focused on learning and understanding the technical aspects of sound capture, music production, synthesis and sampling. One lesson each week is devoted to listening to and analysing the use of music technology in recordings from the 1930’s to the present day.

What Independent study will be expected?

A minimum of 5 hours of independent study exclusively on music technology. Each week your teacher will set you some independent research tasks on top of your reading, listening and set homework.

Exam Board

Edexcel

Link to specification

GCSE entry requirements:

• 6 in Mathematics required
• 6 in English Language required
• 5 in Science required
• 6 in Music required

NB. Evidence of music created on a Digital Audio Workstation (e.g. GarageBand, LogicPro and Ableton Live) may be requested prior to an offer being made.

What A Levels go well with this one?

Any of the subjects offered at the college can be successfully combined with Music Technology.

What can I do beyond A Levels with this subject?

Several further education establishments offer Music Technology degrees and other courses. Some are more focused on the technical aspects of the subject, such as the highly-regarded Tonmeister Course at Surrey University. Others – in places such as Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Brighton, Huddersfield, Falmouth as well as London - offer greater opportunities for producers to develop their creativity and skills. In the world of work, in addition to jobs specifically in music production (e.g. recording engineer, mixing engineer producer, live sound engineer), there are so many employment possibilities within film and TV (e.g. sound designer, dubbing mixer, supervising sound editor, production sound mixer, score composer, score mixer). Many jobs in radio and online content creation also involve recording, sound editing and producing.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to be an advanced keyboard player to do music technology?

No. Better keyboard skills will allow you to work faster but if you can play basic melodies and chords then that will be fine.

Do I need to buy anything for the course?

No – most resources for the course are provided by college. You will need a USB drive to store your electronic work during the course. The software we use (Logic Pro) is installed on the computers at the college and the coursework is only carried out in college. Having your own copy of Logic Pro or a similarly-equipped DAW (digital audio workstation) at home is certainly useful, but not a requirement of the course.