About Music Production and Engineering

Faculty John Escobar and class

As a student majoring in music production and engineering (MP&E), you will be working directly and collaboratively with artists, writers, musicians, and fellow engineers and producers to complete high-quality recordings in modern professional production environments. From a technical perspective, you will be learning the finer points of the craft, from recording session set up and microphone placement, to large-format console signal flow, mix-down, mastering, and professional studio protocol. In addition to developing advanced technical knowledge and critical listening skills, you will also sharpen the necessary aesthetic, communication, and organizational skills that are vital to today's successful producers and engineers.

Faculty: Learn from Music Industry Leaders

MP&E faculty draw on a vast wealth of personal experience in the field in order to teach the next generation of music production professionals. We invite you to explore the MP&E faculty page. Members of the faculty have worked professionally with a multitude of diverse artists including:

  • The Afro-Cuban All Stars
  • The Boston Symphony Orchestra
  • Mary J. Blige
  • David Bowie
  • David Byrne
  • Cab Calloway
  • Sheryl Crow
  • Alicia Keys
  • The London Symphony Orchestra
  • The Notorious B.I.G.
  • Pink Floyd
  • P. Diddy
  • Prince
  • Radiohead
  • Lou Reed
  • Busta Rhymes
  • Rocket from the Crypt
  • Bruce Springsteen
  • James Taylor
  • The Temptations
  • Tina Turner
  • Too $hort
  • Toots and the Maytals
  • and many more

MP&E faculty have also worked on countless film, television, and video game projects, won Grammy, Latin Grammy, and Emmy awards, and published books and articles in leading publications in the field.

Facilities: Definitive Professional Tools

Hands-on experience is critical to success in the highly competitive field of music production. Our facilities include 16 recording studios that operate 21 hours a day, seven days a week. These studios feature industry-standard audio equipment from leading manufacturers such as API, ATC, Avid, Chandler, Euphonix, GML, Neumann, Neve, Schoeps, SSL, Studer, and Universal Audio among others. Explore our studio pages to view our facilities in greater detail.

MP&E Application

To ensure the required amount of hands-on experience necessary for the music production and engineering major’s curriculum, enrollment is limited. Consequently, please note that accepted and enrolled Berklee students must apply to be accepted into the MP&E major, which requires an additional application process that takes place each fall and spring semester.

Students are typically eligible to apply for the MP&E major in their second semester. A student must have a minimum of 12 credits of Berklee-issued grades in order to apply, and the current rate of acceptance into MP&E is approximately 50 percent. If a student is not initially accepted, he or she is welcome to reapply in the next application period. For complete details about the MP&E application process, see our frequently asked questions.

More Information

The first step to learning more about Berklee is to contact the Admissions Office at 617 747-2222. A representative will assist you in scheduling a visit to the campus and can inform you about the Berklee application process, general information about housing, financial aid, transfer credits, and so on. In addition, you may contact the MP&E Department at 617 747-2400 to schedule a meeting with the chair or assistant chair.