Overview
Through continuing your studies in music and production fundamentals, you will gain knowledge of how music is created, rehearsed, recorded and performed. You will specialise in genres such as jazz, rock, pop, rhythm and blues, funk and soul. Using industry recognised software, you will gain further experience with Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI), software synthesisers, sequencing, multi-track recordings, editing and audio mixing. The study of practical and theoretical principles gives you the opportunity to explore various performance, technical and creative skills.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
There are no requisites for this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2023
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Staff reflection
Collaborative practice
More opportunities will be created for online students to collaborate in the unit to create connections and build peer networks.
- Implement at a foundation level, a range of music and production techniques pertinent to your specialisation within various live or recorded music and production contexts
- Apply, at a foundation level, a range of technical and creative skills pertinent to your specialisation, specific to music and production within various live or recorded contexts
- Develop, to a foundation level, musical skills of stylistic authenticity pertinent to your specialisation within a range of live or recorded music and production contexts.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Practical Assessment - 35% | |||
| 2 - Practical Assessment - 35% | |||
| 3 - Practical Assessment - 30% | |||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||
| 5 - Team Work | |||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Ableton Live software
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 7th Edition (APA 7th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
p.preece@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Introduction to Unit
Introduction to MIDI and software instruments
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
MIDI sequencing 1 – drums and percussive patterns
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
MIDI sequencing 2 – creating chords
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
MIDI sequencing 3 – bass and lead lines
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Subtractive synthesis
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Sampling
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Instrument racks
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
MIDI effects
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
MIDI arrangement
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Project week
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Final mix, automation and media preparation
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Project week
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Production Fundamentals students require some very specific equipment to facilitate the production requirements of this unit. This unit provides training in performing, recording and mixing music. Because of this, you will need to have access to the following:
- Ableton Live software
- An audio interface
- A quick stable internet connection (preferable ethernet)
- Microphone or instrument lead
- Studio headphones and your computer / webcam
About Ableton Live
Ableton Live is an industry standard DAW (digital audio workstation) and learning how to use it is extremely beneficial. You will be required to submit Ableton Live sessions as part of your assessments and therefore need to have access to a copy of Ableton software. As the production classes are based on the Ableton software, no other DAWs are acceptable for this unit. A free 90 day full use trial version of the Ableton Live software is available for download from the Ableton Live website (https://www.ableton.com/en/trial/). If you have already used your free trial version, please a request for an extension code to Ableton - information in Moodle.
If you have any questions regarding these requirements, please contact the Unit Coordinator, Patty Preece (p.preece@cqu.edu.au).
1 Practical Assessment
In this assessment, you will be required to perform a series of MIDI sequencing tasks. To complete this assessment, download the 'project brief' document from Moodle as well as the Ableton Live set. You will be required to use the MIDI sequencing and edit functions of Ableton Live including but not limited to:
- Draw
- Note length
- Velocity
- Copy
- Paste
- Cut
- Duplicate
- Loop
Once you have completed all the steps outlined in the project brief, “collect all and save” your session. Navigate to the location on your computer where you saved your session. Right-click on the top level project folder to compress/zip the Ableton Live project.
Name the folder: Edit assessment_YourName. This will create a .zip file that you can upload to Moodle as your submission.
Week 5 Friday (11 Aug 2023) 11:59 pm AEST
Week 7 Friday (1 Sept 2023)
- MIDI sequencing meets the requirements of the brief - 50%
- Loop points are applied effectively to all clips - 30%
- Ableton Live session handling - 20%
- Implement at a foundation level, a range of music and production techniques pertinent to your specialisation within various live or recorded music and production contexts
2 Practical Assessment
In this assessment task, you will be required to create a series of sounds using the Ableton Live software instruments. To complete this assessment, download the 'project brief' document from Moodle as well as the Ableton Live set. You will be required to apply principles of synthesis as well as use the built-in sound design tools of Ableton Live including but not limited to:
- EQ
- Time based effects
- Arpeggiator
- Modulation
Week 9 Monday (11 Sept 2023) 11:59 pm AEST
Week 11 Monday (25 Sept 2023)
- Sound design meets the requirements of the brief - 40%
- Time based effects applied effectively to all instruments - 20%
- MIDI effects applied effectively – 20%
- Ableton Live session handling - 20%
- Apply, at a foundation level, a range of technical and creative skills pertinent to your specialisation, specific to music and production within various live or recorded contexts
3 Practical Assessment
In this assessment, you will expand upon the foundational skills learned in assessment tasks 1 and 2 to create a musical arrangement. You will be supplied an Ableton live set containing an 8 bar MIDI loop of drums, bass and chords.
You will be required to
1. Add a software instrument to each of the loops
2. Create an 8 bar loop for a lead part, using a lead sound of your choice
3. Create a 32 bar arrangement of the parts in the arrangement view
4. You will also perform a basic mix of the instruments that demonstrates genre specific production techniques.
Notes
You may add additional sounds as you see fit, including acoustic instruments and samples (eg vocals or guitar). The genre you are working in is Lo-fi trap.
Submission guidelines
- Your final bounce will be a stereo mix of your signals with a peak level of no more than -3 dBFS.
- You will be required to submit both a stereo bounce of your composition as well as your Ableton Live Project.
- Your project should not contain any missing media or unused tracks.
Review/Exam Week Friday (13 Oct 2023) 11:59 pm AEST
Exam Week Friday (20 Oct 2023)
- Composition demonstrates genre-specific production techniques - 20%
- Composition meets submission requirements - 20%
- Sound design is implemented effectively - 20%
- MIDI sequencing is implemented effectively - 20%
- Presentation and project handling - 20%
- Develop, to a foundation level, musical skills of stylistic authenticity pertinent to your specialisation within a range of live or recorded music and production contexts.
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
