MO4D02 - Songwriting 2: Creative Co-writing 16 Mar 2016 - 31 Aug 2027 | Version 1

Associated Module Information

Module Code: MO4D02
Module Title: Songwriting 2: Creative Co-writing
Faculty: Faculty of Business and Creative Industries
Faculty Group: Music and Drama
Faculty Sub Group: Music
Module Leader: Matthew Evans
Module Team: Skip Curtis, Lucy Squire, Yasmine Davies
First Intended Intake: SEP 2015 Final Year of Intake:
Date Closed:
Credit Value: 40 Credit Level: 7
Language: English
Percentage of Module Taught in Welsh: 0
Equivalent Module:
HECOS codes: 100695 - music composition
HECOS Code Weighting: 100

Document Version Information

Version 1
Valid From 16 Mar 2016
Valid To 31 Aug 2027

Module Aims

This module aims:

1. To enable students to acquire a sophisticated comprehension of appropriate co-songwriting techniques and strategies, applicable to their own and to others’ professional practice.

2. To cultivate a higher-level ability to appraise and interpret core and advanced co-songwriting skills, such as arranging, exploiting dynamics, working with creative constraints, and working to a brief.

3. To support students to evaluate and apply complex problem-solving strategies in relation to co-composition, co-arrangement, collective-evaluation, co-editing and collaborative re-drafting processes.

Content Summary

Songwriting workshops provide weekly formative assessment and an opportunity for peer-critique linked to the collaborative re-drafting processes.

Learning activities will include responding to prescriptive collaborative tasks that facilitate the exploration of exemplary methods and techniques.

Students will investigate collaborative songs in their cultural and economic contexts, including royalty splits, publishing implications, and issues of shared Intellectual Property between joint creators.

Students will be expected to expand their work in a collaborative environment, by incorporating elements such as arranging and re-working through live and/or recorded formats.

Students will be supported to learn how to work effectively and appropriately within a collaborative creative context.

Typically, students will work in teams of two or more, up to a usual maximum of six.

Learning and Teaching Methods

Activity Type Hours
Lecture 8
Seminar 12
Tutorial 8
Practical classes and workshops 48
Supervised time in studio/workshop 24
Directed Study 300
Total Hours Selected 400

Learning Outcomes

# Learning Outcome
LO1 Analyse the relationship between commercial co-writing processes and their outcomes, making use of current research and scholarship in the discipline of songwriting (critical and contextual awareness).
LO2 Appraise contradictory areas of knowledge within the discipline of collaborative songwriting, and evaluate differing approaches to co-writing (analysis and synthesis).
LO3 Demonstrate the ability to write effective songs under complex, collaborative conditions, making sound judgments and defending decisions (application of skills).
LO4 Show the capacity to co-compose and co-construct songs in audio form, solving emergent problems related to co-writing, and co-manage the planning and implementation of tasks to a professional standard (skill use).

Module Requisites

N/A

Assessment Criteria

Assessment Category Assessment Type Description Duration Word Count Weight (%) Best of? Pass Mark
Asynchronous Assessment Self Reflective Assessment 1 Written ‘Field’ Journal - a personal record of the student's learning experiences and observations during the development of the finished practical work. 0 4000 30 No 40
Asynchronous Assessment Practical Coursework 1 (Asynch) Practical assessment - presentation of 20 minutes (max) of original, collaboratively produced music. 20 N/A 70 No 40

Assessment Matrix

Assessment Type Learning Outcomes
LO1 LO2 LO3 LO4
Self Reflective Assessment 1
Practical Coursework 1 (Asynch)

Reading List

Blume, J. (2003) Inside Songwriting: Getting to the Heart of Creativity. New York: Billboard Books.

Bradford, C. (2005) Heart and Soul: Revealing the Craft of Songwriting. London: Sanctuary Publishing.

DeMain, B. (2004) In Their Own Words – Songwriters Talk About The Creative Process. Westport: Praeger Publishers.

Miell, D (2004) Collaborative Creativity: Contemporary Perspectives. USA: Free Association Books.

Leikin, M. (2008) How To Write A Hit Song. Milwaukee: Hal Leonard Books.

MacKay, J. (2014) The Art of Songwriting. Detroit: Gale Cengage Learning.

Rooksby, R (2006). Lyrics – Writing Better Words For Your Songs. San Fransisco: Backbeat Books.

Moore, A.F. (2001) Rock: The Primary Text, Developing a Musicology of Rock. Second Edition, Hants: Ashgate Publishing Limited.

Maisel, E. (1995) Fearless Creating. USA: Penguin Group.

Pattison, Pat (2009) Writing Better Lyrics (Second edition). Cincinnati USA: Writer’s Digest Books.

Zollo, P. (2003) Song Writers on Song Writing. USA: Da Capo Press.