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Master of Music
Music Theory and Composition: Screen Scoring

Prepare for a career in composing for the screen while developing your skills in music production, music editing, orchestrating, mixing, and engineering. You’ll receive intensive professional training that combines practice, theory, and industry immersion with opportunities to work closely with renowned professionals. You’ll collaborate in multiple scoring projects, create a portfolio from multiple recordings, and receive masterclasses from a wide variety of professionals.

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Degree Details

Official Degree Title

Master of Music in Music Theory and Composition: Screen Scoring

Format
Full-time or Part-time
Credits
39
Start Date
Spring
Application Deadline
Start Date
Fall
Application Deadline

During your studies, you will:

  • Develop your technical skills to master technology: including the DAW, Sample Libraries, Synthesizers, Sound Processors, or Middleware. You will also learn how to create your own Sample Libraries
  • Learn how to be efficient and compose, mix, and produce high-quality music with your computer
  • Evolve your orchestration skills and learn the specific demands of orchestrating for screen music
  • Learn everything involved in a recording session: from composing and part preparation to music editing, producing, and communicating with your team
  • Learn how to analyze music for the screen
  • Work on your collaboration and networking skills and learn how to plan and prepare for demanding projects

In our program, we believe in mentorship as one of the most efficient ways to help you develop your creative voice, your skills, and to help you become a solid professional. We believe in individual attention to help you develop your unique academic path and creative voice. This is why you will:

  • Have an advisor to help you in your academic decisions, and guide you through your studies and professional decisions
  • Have a very dedicated faculty and staff ready to assist you whenever needed. You will be mentored in the recording studio, when preparing portfolios, or when learning how to network and collaborate.
  • You will have an hour-long private lesson every week for your first three semesters

In addition to your classes, our program will provide you with a wide range of opportunities aimed to help you develop and to connect with the professional world:

  • We do more than 12 recording sessions every semester. You will record with soloists up to orchestral ensembles in our program recording sessions, our advanced orchestration readings, and in our sampling sessions to create sample libraries.
  • Every year, we offer multiple readings with the NYU Symphony, residencies, and a film scoring competition with animations.
  • We connect you with the top film, and media schools in the city. Our students write music from more than 150 films, games, and documentaries every year.
  • We bring professionals almost every week to discuss their process and critique your work.

Questions 

If you have any additional questions about our degree, please feel free to contact Mark Suozzo at mark.suozzo@nyu.edu or Dr. Ron Sadoff at ron.sadoff@nyu.edu

Networking

Our students work with filmmakers in a variety of different contexts forging many successful and long-lasting relationships.

Recording and Performance

Students participate in recording sessions that serve as our laboratory for current scoring practices.

Masterclasses

Our Friday@1 series presents conversations with some of the most renowned composers, songwriters, publishers, and industry executives in New York City and beyond.

Screen Scoring Summer Workshops

Hone your skills in scoring for TV, film, advertising, or videogames at one of our summer workshops.

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Advance your personal and professional journey – apply to join our community of students.

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