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Partner Details

Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts

Awards

Target Award

Award Description:Master of Arts - MA

Alternative Exit

Alternative Exit

Programme Offerings

Full-Time

F2F-LPA-SEP

Educational Aims of the Course

The course has been designed to match the Universities' purpose, to provide exemplary and distinctive vocational creative and performing arts training and education. Preparing students for professional life and meet the University Learning Principles developing research and enterprise skills for employability.

Specifically, it will

  • Advance, renew and develop existing music industry focused skills and knowledge and critically evaluate its efficacy and future direction in the context of music industry conditions.
  • Develop a professional career and/or research plan and initiate opportunities informed by knowledge at the forefront of academic and professional discipline.
  • Develop strategies for investigation in the music industry and the wider creative arts economies through the drafting and refining of questions and premises, the analysis of applied professional work and the ability to reason based on evidence.
  • Provide an opportunity to study music industry and management at an advanced level, critically examining music industries and creative enterprise, identifying, and analysing professional opportunities including contemporary music industry practices, products, and technological advancements.

Learning Outcomes

1.
Critically evaluate complex perspectives around current critical debates and concepts regarding applied professional practices within a range of music industry environments and economies.
2.
Evaluate a wide range of advanced professional techniques and engage in sophisticated judgement regarding their use.
3.
Comprehensively debate the condition of the student’s chosen economic and creative sector within the Music Industry, its networks, platforms, and partnerships.
4.
Critically question applied work and professional skills as research.
5.
Critically compare and evaluate relevant theoretical knowledge and its impact upon work and creativity across the broad music industry.
6.
Critically evaluate and reflect upon their own and others’ relevant professional managerial practices and roles.
7.
Systematically gather evidence and evaluate its significance and propose conclusions.
8.
Analyse and evaluate a range of professional music industry roles and careers.
9.
Utilise and develop specialist skills and understanding in the field of the music industry.
10.
Develop and apply documentation to disseminate your work and professional practices.
11.
Design and conduct research and present findings.
12.
Explain and communicate sound financial objectives in a complex, professional and creative music business working/project environment.
13.
Demonstrate deep and systematic understanding of key concepts of sustainability as they apply to the music industries.
14.
Engage, using sophisticated strategies, in the creative and managerial processes of the contemporary music and creative industries economies recognizing a wide range of approaches.
15.
Negotiate the challenges of working in complex and unpredictable situations e.g., making decisions independently or in dialogue with peers and/or external bodies.
16.
Engage with relevant industries and develop as a collaborator, working skilfully and professionally with others and contributing to effective project management.
17.
Reflect upon personal development and engage in professional career planning.

Teaching, Learning and Assessment

Students are taught through a combination of lectures, seminars, and tutorials with additional workshops for the Music Management Project. The Dissertation modules will be self-directed with the support and mentoring via lectures, seminars, workshops and tutorials. A range of assessment methodologies are used across the programme from essay, presentation, portfolios, practice, presentation and reports.

Students are introduced to ideas, management theory, policy arguments and critical concepts in the music industry and performing arts and asked to reflect on the presence of these issues in their own work. Students are invited to self-reflect in a critically rigorous manner and apply the conclusions to career planning and development. Through lectures, seminars and group discussions, students develop essential learning, academic and writing skills whilst cultivating critical thinking skills. Students become familiar with appropriate research methodologies and understand the importance and procedures of ethical conduct of research projects in preparation for designing their own research. They are introduced to the principles of documentation and evidence recording in the performing arts so that any insights gained from the embodiment of ideas in practice can be supported or illustrated by data.

The Music Industry strand provides a wide-ranging critical overview of the music industry, studying music business organisation, industry infrastructure and how entrepreneurs grow contemporary music business models. Students learn about record labels, publishing, artist management companies, live music, and events companies. Examining the importance of intellectual property, copyright management, music agreements, income streams and music catalogue exploitation including the role played by new digital technologies. Combined with a deeper study of strategies for effective management, they evaluate the latest industry practices and ideas, while developing independent research into a chosen area of the music business. Through lectures, seminars, group discussions and tutorials students develop knowledge and explore potential areas of research that inform professional practice and career planning.

Practical project strand promotes real-world industry engagement and research through distinct practical project work that is career led. Contributing to student development and personal career planning. The work is informed by the findings a feasibility study conducted in term one, putting into practice the skills and knowledge learned throughout the course, demonstrating familiarity with music industry management practices.

The course culminates in student led research project options: Either a Dissertation involving a detailed investigation of a particular topic, based on the application of theoretical knowledge to relevant topics and data, or a practice-based research project, Practical Project Dissertation, which involves the asking of contemporary key questions, is career led and answered through project work that is evidenced through observation, project reports, records, and documentation.

Given the emphasis upon experiential evidence and its scrutiny, a key to the success of the learning is the way in which students share as they progress both their interests, practice, and their ideas.

Students work on individual projects but will also participate in group work where collaboration, shared interests and experience will be explicit, and teaching will include group evaluation and debate. Practical work is supported through experienced industry mentors and managers, relevant to students chosen career pathway and/or subject specific research topic. Our plans for digital approaches will maximise sharing and peer learning.

Opportunities for work related learning

The design and delivery of this programme is such that all students will be engaged in professional work through their project work and course industry contacts. Professional practice is an essential and distinctive element within the programme.

The course is designed to promote employability through:

  • Career development skills are embedded at a modular level.
  • Opportunities for business (SME) and personal career growth exist through work-related learning and project activities.
  • Staff maintain excellent links with employers in the music industry, in addition to involving industry in curriculum design and encouraging their participation through master classes and collaborative project opportunities.
  • Staff provide up-to-date data on employment, market trends and business development which informs student development.

Programme Structure

Programme Structure Description

There are 5 core taught modules with an option of either a 60-credit Dissertation or a 60-credit practical project dissertation. The Academic Skills and Research Project modules must be passed before either Dissertation module. As outlined below, there are three strands of study organised to cover three domains of learning: … For more content click the Read More button below. Students will consider a research theme at the start of their studies, evidenced through the subject and/or sector consistently considered in their 'Practical Project' and Research Project modules. 1. Academic Skills & Professional Practice Term 1, Academic Skills, and term 2, Research Project modules form the research skills, investigation, and professional development strand. Focussing on practice as research, critical and contextual theoretical approaches. The opportunity for these modules to be jointly taught with the other Masters provision opens new cross disciplinary insights. 2. Music Industry Term 1 The Music Industry and Term 2 Music Management modules represent strand two, developing a broad understanding of industry practice, music industry knowledge, management theory, technological innovations, and technique development. 3. Practical Project Music Management Project is taught across terms 1 and 2 and is a 30-credit module, focusing on professional development, test marketing and creative practice. Presenting students with the opportunity to research and develop career led industry-based projects, through a process of idea validation, developing relevant practical experience to inform practice. There are two elements, feasibility and planning term 1, process and execution term 2, promoting real world industry engagement. Dissertation (Options) The final dissertation-based modules option 1, Dissertation, option 2 Practical Project Dissertation allow the student to engage in developing a critical interrogation and research approach to their own sector of the Music Industry and, if desired, to do it as a continuation of their practical project work or build upon research insights developed through the course. This also complies with our desire to facilitate professional practice within the programme appropriate to the student’s specific research interest and/or career development.   A student must complete the following credits to achieve an exit award: Successful completion of 60 credits, which will include the designated 7601MIM Academic Skills module, will be required to gain a Post Graduate Certificate (PGC). Successful completion of 120 credits, which will include the designated 7601MIM Academic Skills and 7605MIM Music Management Project modules, will be required to gain a Post Graduate Diploma (PGDip) award. Master - 180 credits: all five core modules, plus one 60 credits optional module.

Structure

Level 7

Approved variance from Academic Framework Regulations

This programme has an approved Variance to PG A.4.2 which states: ‘In postgraduate taught programmes of more than 120 credits modules comprise 10, 20, or 30 credits except for the research project/dissertation module which must be 60 credits’. In this programme modules comprise of 15, 30, 45 and 60 credit … For more content click the Read More button below.

Entry Requirements

Alternative qualifications considered

HECoS Code(s)

(CAH25-02) performing arts