As a contemporary writing and production major, you’ll learn how to create and produce professional music recordings, exploring your role as a writer, producer, and conductor. Over eight semesters, while completing the college’s core music curriculum, you’ll acquire the aesthetic and technical skills required for work in a studio environment. You will work with a diverse community of musicians, faculty, and industry professional on the college’s Boston campus, with access our state of the art technology and recording facilities, combining your bachelor’s degree studies with real-world experience.
The contemporary writing and production major enables students to become well-rounded musicians adept at turning concepts into music for any situation. An understanding of production technology and the mixing process becomes another part of the writer's toolkit, allowing a composer to better highlight each instrument's unique role in a composition. The dual focus of the major allows students to develop a flexible skill set that provides for limitless career possibilities in the changing music industry.
Study abroad at our Valencia, Spain, campus. It is recommended that CWP majors study in Valencia during their third semester. For specific program information, please see the chair of your major or contact the study abroad office.
While studying at Berklee, contemporary writing and production major Tony Ann started uploading his own arrangements of songs by the Chainsmokers to YouTube. The band saw the videos, and soon after, he was touring the world with the band.
A songwriter for television series, documentaries, and commercials, Alejandra Jimenez B.M. ’13 is a Colombian songwriter, composer, and producer who has established an impressive résumé for a young musician. Jimenez won her first award for songwriting at age 18 and eventually came to Berklee on a full scholarship from the Spanish Society of Authors and Publishers.
Meet Your Mentors
Learn from contemporary writing and production faculty such as Chrissy Tignor—a sought-after remix artist who has started programs like the Women, Technology, and Creativity series that seeks to further empower women in the studio as artists, producers, or both
Students majoring in contemporary writing and production study arranging, composition, scoring for media, orchestration, production techniques, and advanced notation practices, and learn to apply these skills and concepts by writing for and overseeing the production of a wide variety of instrumental, vocal, acoustic, and electronic combinations, ranging from small ensembles to orchestras in live performance situations and recording studio environments.
Students learn contemporary concepts and techniques of arranging and sound production using digital audio workstations (DAWs), digital production suites, and their own portable laptop-based studio. Interpersonal and other situational skills develop as students work with performers, clients (i.e., instructors and other students), and studio personnel in a variety of creative settings as a music writer, conductor, and/or producer.
Students in this major have many opportunities to recognize, analyze, and evaluate the musical concepts of a wide variety of contemporary styles including electronic, jazz, Latin, pop, rock, musical theater, global music, and many others through the study of compositions and arrangements. Interacting with faculty who are also professional writers, arrangers, and producers, students develop techniques and skills that enhance their creative projects. Applying the writing and production concepts and techniques learned through this major, students complete a graduation portfolio of five pieces to demonstrate understanding of traditional and contemporary writing and production styles.
The contemporary writing and production major develops the skills and knowledge to function as a professional writer, arranger, and producer for current and new media under a wide variety of conditions and music industry environments.
Upon completion of a major in contemporary writing and production, students will:
Students who have declared contemporary writing and production as their major and received a grade of B or better in each of the following classes may continue in the major:
Note: for the purposes of the contemporary writing and production major declaration, entering student placement into AR-112 Arranging 2 (or higher) or HR-211 Harmony 3 (or higher) is equivalent to receiving a grade of B or better in AR-111 or HR-112, respectively.
Students who receive a grade of less than B but more than D (e.g., B-, C+, C, or C-) in these classes will be removed from the major and deregistered from contemporary writing and production concentration-specific classes. They must then meet the following requirements to redeclare the major:
While these courses are not repeatable for credit, students who receive a D in any of these classes (MTEC-111, AR-111, and HR-112) must repeat that class and receive a B or better before redeclaring the major. The higher grade will count towards the student’s GPA.
There are 32 required credits specific to this major in addition to the B.M. required core music courses (41 credits), liberal arts and sciences courses (40 total credits), and general electives (7 credits) for a degree total of 120 credits. See the sample curriculum here.
In addition, the Contemporary Writing and Production major requires these specific liberal arts courses which count toward those total required credits:
Updated for catalogue year fall 2024
