Media Scoring

M.F.A. in Media Scoring

This program offers students advanced knowledge and practical experience in the composition and production music scores for media, including cinema, television, video games, animation, and other commercial applications. The intended audience includes composers possessing a bachelor's degree in music (or demonstrated equivalency) who wish to pursue a career in scoring or related positions.

This program places a premium on teaching the techniques of media scoring to students with demonstrated success as composers. The program assumes compositional proficiency, and thus the majority of courses focus on developing knowledge and skills directly related to the process of scoring as it exists today. Students learn skills traditionally associated with film scoring such as orchestration, conducting, and composition. However, this program moves beyond these to instruct them in techniques that have become crucial for scoring composers in the past two decades, including sequencing, recording, and music business.

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Note that all media scoring and sonic arts courses entail payment of Academic Excellence fees that help fund the programs. Details on the costs of courses are explained on the Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema's Admissions page.

For more information, read this article about the M.F.A.s in music and this article about the Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema.

Curriculum/Areas of Study and Credits Required

1. Composition (16 credits)

Scoring Composition Seminar (taken 4 semesters = 4 credits total)
Private Media Scoring Lessons I (3 credits)
Private Media Scoring Lessons II (3 credits)
Media Scoring Capstone I (3 credits)
Media Scoring Capstone II (3 credits)

2. Aesthetic and Historical Perspectives (12 credits)

Cinema Aesthetics (3 credits) *
World Cinema to 1960 (3 credits) *
World Cinema 1960 to Present (3 credits) *
History and Analysis of Cinema Scores (3 credits)
Other cinema courses as approved by the director

3. Technical Skills (20 credits)

Sequencing and Sampling (3 credits)
Sound Design I (3 credits)
Conducting for Recording Sessions (2 credits)
Orchestration for Cinema I (3 credits)
Orchestration for Cinema II (3 credits)
Scoring for Motion Pictures and New Media (3 credits)
Cinema Production Workshop II: Post-Production (3 credits) *

4. Entertainment Business/Film Production (3 credits)

Music Business for Media (3 credits)

5. Electives (9 credits)

Students are recommended to take courses in music. Electives must be approved by the media scoring program director. Suggested courses include Introduction to Media for Music, Private Scoring Lessons II and III, Sound Design II, Computer Music I, Computer Music II, and other advanced graduate seminars in music.

TOTAL of 60 credits

* Course that all film M.F.A. students will complete.

Possible Career Paths

Students who complete the master of fine arts in media scoring can expect opportunities in a number of job titles in the commercial media industry, such as: