Berklee Launches New Online Songwriting Master's Program Taught by Industry Veterans
Bonnie Hayes, chair of Berklee's Songwriting Department
Image by Kelly Davidson
Berklee Online is now accepting fall semester applications for its new Master of Arts in Songwriting program, beginning on September 27, 2021.
The project-focused master’s degree program will teach lyrical and musical techniques, song forms, arrangement, and production for use in today’s music marketplace. Taught entirely by Berklee’s world-renowned faculty, the program curriculum will help students write and create marketable songs in a short turnaround time, meeting the needs of the current music industry. Students will create a portfolio of original music and connect it to their writing, producing a body of work that prepares them for a sustainable career. Students in the program have the option to choose their career focus as a performer, topline collaborator, producer, vocal arranger, sync and licensing expert, or songwriter for musical theater or various niche markets.
The program is led by director Bonnie Hayes, chair of the Songwriting Department at Berklee College of Music. She has more than 35 years experience as a songwriter, writing hit songs for Bonnie Raitt, Cher, Bette Midler, David Crosby, and many more. “The Master of Arts in Songwriting program is unique in that it’s not limited to its regional network,” says Hayes. “Students gain instant access online to Berklee’s global community of writers and producers, no matter their location, and can go at the pace that both aspiring and working songwriters can manage, whether it’s savoring every course or achieving the degree in one year. It's a fantastic opportunity to level up their skills and game without committing themselves to more than they can handle.”
Founded in 2002, Berklee Online is the premier innovator and largest provider of worldwide music education, offering Berklee's renowned curriculum to 75,000 students from 144 countries. Through Berklee Online’s award-winning online courses, certificates, and bachelor’s and master’s degree programs, students receive expert music instruction and emerge with the skills to exceed the demands of the current music industry.
“Berklee Online has a 20-year track record of delivering award-winning, state-of-the-art online education,” says Carin Nuernberg, vice president of academic strategy. “The Master of Arts in Songwriting program builds on the success of the undergraduate program, and brings together an enormously talented faculty who bridge the realms of songwriting, technology, and business to give students around the world deep insight and know-how in order to advance their songwriting careers and thrive in today's music industry.”
In addition to Hayes’s leadership and instruction, the program will include renowned Berklee songwriting faculty, such as Bleu McAuley B.M. ’96 (Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato); Rodney Alejandro (Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Sting, Destiny’s Child, Diana Ross), Prince Charles Alexander (Mary J. Blige, Destiny’s Child, P. Diddy, Alicia Keys, the Notorious B.I.G.), and Pat Pattison (Gillian Welch, John Mayer, Tom Hambridge, Karmin).
The application deadline for the inaugural fall semester is August 16, 2021. To learn more about Berklee Online’s Master of Arts in Songwriting program, visit the program's website.
Watch a video of Rodney Alejandro detailing the program’s features and curriculum: