Commercial music is and has always been a collaborative business.
From its core of songwriting and production and out through every layer of marketing, promotion, design, manufacture, distribution, broadcast and live performance, our global industry employs millions of creative and entrepreneurial specialists who collaborate and work together on project after project.
In the heart of London, the world’s largest independent music community, Tileyard has been growing since 2010 and is now home to over 120 recording studios and 250 music businesses, including Apple Music 1, Soundcloud, Believe Digital, Platoon, Devialet, Spitfire Audio, Pioneer DJ, Focusrite, 8Bars, Good Soldier, A&G, Graduation Records, The Prodigy, Noel Gallagher, and many more.
These creatives and companies are the business engine of the industry, composing and writing new songs, recording new masters, devising new marketing strategies and releasing new music to the world that we might hear on Spotify, on radio, on the latest Netflix show or join as one in a field somewhere for an unforgettable live experience.
So in 2017 Tileyard Education decided to launch a series of postgraduate MA Programmes in Songwriting, Music Production and Music Business, validated by Nottingham Trent University and University of Wales Trinity Saint David, to give students aspiring to such careers the opportunity to connect with our professional community through a year of intensive study, networking, one to one industry mentoring and real world creative briefs.
When it came to delivering these MA Programmes as Online Blended we revisited every part of the content, teaching and delivery and built a virtual learning environment that fuses asynchronous filmed content with live interactive classes, live online songwriting and production camps and live industry mentoring and tutorials. We also invite all our Online Blended students to the Tileyard London campus to bring the online experience into the real world for social, creative and networking opportunities.
Our Online Blended MA Programmes are very popular with people not intending to move to an expensive city like London and with those looking to balance their work and study life. This is especially useful as most creatives work freelance on multiple projects in a given year. Being able to login after work to catch up on classes and book a live tutorial or mentoring session offers a flexibility to study that is unique to Online Blended tuition.
I asked two current students to give me their account of why they chose Online Blended study and how it’s going for them.
Vanja Pantelic
MA Commercial Music Producer (Online Blended)
After completing my undergraduate studies in Audio Production, it was a natural pathway for me to find a suitable masters programme for my needs. I was always searching for an industry connected institution that could help me gain connections and network with people I've always wanted to work with. In light of the pandemic and everything that has been going around for the past 2 years, I decided that it would be best to stay in my home country and study my masters online.
What I have experienced with Tileyard so far doubtlessly exceeded my expectations. I have come to realise that being an online student does not limit me in any way, and doesn't prevent me from learning and improving my skills in the field of Music Production, but also in the fields of Marketing and Image Branding.
I was fortunate enough to get a chance to visit the campus and be there for the Songwriting Camp, which was a great experience and I will definitely be back for the next one. I've had a chance to meet many great people both online and on-site, and I noticed a major improvement in my musical skills and professional ethic over the period of just a couple of months.
Another great feature that Tileyard offers is a mentorship programme that assigns students to their matching mentor. I've had a chance to work with Faithless's Sister Bliss, and many more established people that are associated with both Tileyard's education centre and record label / publishing company.
It is safe to say that Tileyard is an exquisite community run by professionals that made themselves available not only for mentoring and tutoring but for networking and connecting as well. I was able to get in touch with people from Spitfire Audio, and many other renowned businesses through them.
Chiu Winnie
MA Music Business (Online Blended)
Being located in Hong Kong together with working full-time, I found the format of Online Blended suited me the most since I can arrange the time and place for my study while taking care of my day time job as a marketing professional in a multinational company.
The Tileyard MA Music Business programme came to my attention when I searched similar programmes online last year. Their course structure is comprehensive and can provide a holistic view about how music business work in the real world.
During my study, although it was tough to have 6 hour live lectures every week especially as I am in different time zone, I enjoyed very much communicating with the lecturer and exchanging ideas with the students during the lectures while I can still review the recorded materials to refresh my mind afterwards.
Last but not least, the exposure to different masterclasses and the opportunity of working to a live commercial song brief each week, something offered to present students and alumni, always bring surprises to me even if I might not be appropriate to join in. To me, joining the Tileyard network as their alumni is also a long lasting relationship and there will be many opportunities ahead.
Find out more about our Online Blended MA Programmes here and join us for an Online Open day to find out more.
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