Courses

Experiences through which students can apply their academic knowledge in work settings are a vital component of a college education. An internship is a form of experiential learning that integrates knowledge and theory learned in the classroom with practical application and transferable skills development in a professional setting. Internships give students the opportunity to gain valuable applied experience and make connections in professional fields they are considering for career paths; and give employers the opportunity to guide and evaluate talent. In the internship course, students will draw on their innate abilities as improvisers, collaborators, creators, and listeners in order to better determine how they can use these skills to build a successful career in the arts and entertainment industry and beyond.

Under the direct supervision of a professional with expertise and educational and/or professional background in the field of the experience at the internship site, students will intern for a minimum of 140 hours over the course of the semester, with a minimum of 10 weeks at the internship site. Students will have clearly defined learning objectives/goals related to the professional goals of the student’s academic coursework with routine assessment and feedback by the supervisor and internship course instructor.

Internships may take place on site in the geographic location of a student’s choice or can occur in a remote / hybrid modality. All internship sites must be vetted and approved by the Career Center to ensure there are resources, equipment, and facilities provided by the host employer that support learning objectives/goals. Courses will be managed by Career Center staff in consultation with department chairs. Work authorization for F-1 students will be facilitated by the Career Center in conjunction with International Student Services.

This course offers a deep dive into the evolving field of music supervision, focusing on strategic practices and the latest trends in synchronization licensing across traditional and new media platforms. Students will gain in-depth knowledge and practical skills related to the selection, negotiation, and administrative processes involved in using music for film, television, advertising, video games, and other media. Through case studies, guest lectures, and hands-on projects, participants will learn how to effectively manage music assets, secure rights, and navigate the legal and business aspects of music supervision.

In this course, students from MIT, Berklee College of Music, and Harvard University work together on group projects developing virtual reality and new media experiences. The course examines spatial audio and visual experiences, human perception and the senses, haptics, and embodiment: the ways in which we come to experience ourselves and others through many forms of media. The class develops hands-on projects in lab settings and students learn how to tell stories interactively using 360-degree video and computer-generated environments. Students have access to state-of-the-art equipment at Berklee, MIT, and Harvard, and interact with visiting expert mentors.

In order to enroll in this class, students must first fill out this form. 

This course is an introduction to the various disciplines and skills that make up audio post-production for visual media. Topics include: the history of motion picture audio; modern methods of synchronizing sound; the language of film and film production; on-location sound recording and mix treatments; basic dialog recording, editing, and mix; backgrounds, Foley, and sound effects; adding music to film. Students will work on short projects including an “industrial” film, a short dramatic clip, and a 60-second advertisement, bringing each to a professional level of completion.

This course explores techniques used for recording and reinforcing music on location. Topics include commonly encountered acoustical problems and an investigation of equipment and techniques used to overcome them.  The class will include visits to Berklee venues with live sound reinforcement. This class is a prerequisite for the hands-on Sound Reinforcement Lab (MP-325).

This is a hands-on course for students interested in learning how to operate live sound reinforcement systems in small venues. This will include basic operation of digital live sound consoles, both as FOH (front of house) as well as monitors mixers. It will also include training in recording multitrack from a live show using the sound reinforcement digital console.

In this hands-on follow-up to MP-322, students practice setup and mixing of live ensembles and assist the audio staff at Berklee concerts and rehearsals in the Berklee Performance Center.

This course addresses recorded vocal performances and the technologies used to highlight and support them in modern record production and mixes. The course explores the sonic evolution of vocals as the focal point of modern recordings with a signature that has moved from simple mix placement, dynamics processing, and time based effects to advanced concepts in audio editing, synthetic processing, automatic and graphic pitch correction, time compression, time expansion, flex, and elastic audio. Through analysis and hands-on processing of selected projects, the student will gain an understanding of the many choices available to modern record producers as they record and mix with a modern tool set that includes the vintage Talk Box, the Vocoder, Auto Tune, Melodyne, Elastic Audio, Flex Time, Vocalign, tempo based editing, and a host of other file modification protocols that are readily available on most digital audio workstations.

This course provides a survey of immersive audio and related technologies, as well as hands-on techniques to developing and integrating audio assets for immersive environments such as virtual reality experiences, games, and 360 videos. Students gain a fundamental understanding of capturing and designing sound environments using Ambisonic recording techniques, and sound design techniques for 360 sound localization of traditional audio assets. Projects are designed around the use of Ambisonic microphones, VR headsets, and a Dolby Atmos speaker system.

Immersive Music Production and Mixing Techniques will prepare students to produce, mix, and deliver immersive music specifically using the Dolby Atmos workflow. Topics include technical configuration for a Dolby Atmos in-the-box setup with Pro Tools and Dolby Renderer on the same laptop, Atmos within Logic X, binaural monitoring via custom HRTF with headphones, Apple Spatial Audio delivery, and techniques of immersive mixing to enhance music production. Students will learn to mix and deliver Dolby Atmos music master files based on industry specifications. Although the course is centered on Dolby Atmos as the current industry leader in immersive audio distribution, this course will also provide a broader understanding of object-based mixing that is manufacturer-agnostic. 

This course provides a comprehensive exploration of the music release process, empowering students with the knowledge and tools necessary for successful self-publishing endeavors. The course delves into every aspect of the self-release journey, from selecting the right distribution platform to executing effective marketing strategies and maximizing revenue streams. Designed for aspiring artists, producers, music executives, and entrepreneurs, this course equips students with practical skills and insights to navigate the evolving landscape of the music industry confidently. 

This course is a hands-on study of the production of sampled/digital drums in modern commercial music. The emphasis is on techniques and strategies for programming the most effective drums in terms of feel and impact across a variety of genres. Topics include: the history of drum machines and drum samples in popular music, analysis of modern drum patterns and grooves across a variety of genres, comparison of popular sequencers and DAWs, sourcing and selecting sounds, basic beat-making and sequencing, and how to effectively process drum sounds. Particular focus will be paid to producers and artists whose songs have had an extreme impact on their particular genre specifically because of their drums.