Popular Music Practice MMus

Start date

22 September 2025

Duration

1 year full-time
2 years part-time

About the course

Reasons to study

You will benefit from our regular research seminars and workshops and will be a member of the Centre for Music.
Music staff are active across diverse professional contexts, including as composers, conductors, producers, sound recordists, performers, and publishers of scholarly articles and books.
The department is the home of the HISS (Huddersfield Immersive Sound System).

This Masters level course is designed for both music and music technology graduates, but also for learners from alternative industry or practitioner backgrounds who are looking to develop their popular music practical skills and knowledge, allowing everyone to explore new ways of creating and performing popular music.

Our aim is to combine the essential qualities of what it means to be a successful pop musician; adaptable, creative and not afraid to push the boundaries of current practice in the pursuit of innovative artistic goals.

Music and Music Technology at the University of Huddersfield has an international reputation, hosting one of the largest postgraduate music communities in the UK. You will benefit from our regular research seminars and workshops and will be a member of the Centre for Music, Culture and Identity which provides a focus for popular music research in the department. CMCI maintains strong connections with other research centres, including CeReNeMand ReCePP, whose members include performers, composers and technology researchers across wide stylistic contexts.

Course detail

Modules

Creative Production Project

On this module, you undertake a substantial independent creative production project. You can undertake work in any area of creative music production that interests you and guidance will be available through staff supervision. Examples of the kinds of projects that would be relevant are an EP/album length production of one or more artists, a collection of your own songwriting or compositional work, a substantial live production (or portfolio of live work) from either mixing or performance perspectives, or a set of music videos (of your own creative work or that of others).

Performance 1

This module is worth 60 credits in total (therefore comprising one-third of your degree) and along with Performance 2, it is the primary context within which you will develop your performance skills, focusing upon repertoire appropriate to your specialism. You will give three recitals in total, the final one of which will represent the culmination of your research and development as a performer.

Advanced Desktop Music Production

On this module you will professionalise your DAW techniques. Focusing on modern approaches to music production, the module will deepen your skills in sound design using original synthesis and sampling as well as recording in a digital environment. The module involves multi-software workflows, the expressive use of hardware controllers and hybrid techniques combining digital and analogue processing.

Advanced Song Writing

On this module you will develop your knowledge and voice as a songwriter and create fully realised arrangements of new songs. We will explore advanced approaches to songwriting via in-depth case studies, as well as through practical work supported by lectures and seminars. Over the course of the module, you will not only develop your technical skills in handling the elements of lyrics, musical materials, arrangements and song structure, helping you to develop your personal artistic voice.

Researching Music

On this module you will be introduced to a range of significant and contemporary scholarship relating to the study of music. You will learn about diverse approaches to music research, and receive training in managing research professionally and ethically. Central to the module is the development of research skills appropriate to postgraduate level work and to your own research interests.

Teaching excellence

Triple proof of teaching excellence: our staff rank in the top three in England for the proportion who hold doctorates, who have higher degrees, and hold teaching qualifications (HESA 2024). So, you’ll learn from some of the best, helping you to be the best.
We are joint first in the country for National Teaching Fellowships, which mark the UK’s best lecturers in Higher Education, winning a total of 23 since 2008 (2024 data).
We won the first Global Teaching Excellence Award, recognising the University’s commitment to world-class teaching and its success in developing students as independent learners and critical thinkers (Higher Education Academy, 2017).

You will take 180 credits at Master’s level, made up of four modules, including a 60 credit creative project and 60 credit performance module. Two optional modules allow for an advanced focus on Desktop Music Production or Song writing.

Entry requirements

You are required to have a minimum of a 2:2 honours degree from a recognised University or equivalent institution. Your application materials (or previous qualifications) and live audition (or documentation of your performance) should be able to demonstrate a strong understanding of performance and instrumental/vocal/other technique. Auditions should comprise of two contrasting pieces, one of which should relate to the your proposed specialism in performance.

If your first language is not English, you will need to meet the minimum requirements of an English Language qualification. The minimum of IELTS 6.5 overall with no element lower than 6.0, or equivalent. Read more about the University’s entry requirements for students outside of the UK on our International Entry Requirements page.

Student Work

At the University of Huddersfield we have a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate students studying songwriting, music production, music performance, recording, classical music, composing, film music, sound design for image and much more, all showcased on our Youtube Channel

Professional links and accreditations

Music staff are active across diverse professional contexts, including as performers, editors, and in publication. The department is actively involved with a number of ensembles such as Academy of Ancient Music, Apartment House, Boxwood and Brass, Gabrieli Consort and Players, Meiningen Ensemble and the Rose Consort of Viols, and numerous other ensembles and performers are invited regularly through each year for performances and workshops. Record labels with whom members of staff have recorded include Another Timbre, HatHut, Resonus Classics, Sub Rosa. The department also publishes on its own labels Huddersfield Contemporary Records and Pennine Records. Members of staff perform regularly at festivals and concert halls, including all the major London venues, and often feature on BBC Radio 3 as performers and guest speakers. We regularly host conferences and events in partnership with scholarly societies, such as the Performance Studies Network, and the Royal Musical Association.

Career support

On graduating from this course you will have developed advanced skills required in a range of careers in professional music making. The course will prepare you for a career in which performance might play a part, such as portfolio careers that might include performing, teaching and other pedagogical contexts, public engagement events, arts administration, music promotion, and further scholarly work.

Professional links and accreditations
Career support

Career support

Student support

The school has dedicated Academic Skills Tutors (AST) who deliver a range of generic skills. The AST offers help and advice with general study skills, IT, literacy and numeracy as well as research skills. The AST may also refer students for specialist support and assessment e.g. for Dyslexia.

In line with the Equality Act 2010, the School will make reasonable adjustments in order that disabled students can fully access their course. The University's Disability Services provide information and advice to disabled students about the support available and liaises with members of staff on disability related issues.

Fees and Finance

Tuition Fees - full-time

In 2025/26 the full-time tuition fee for UK postgraduate students on this course will be £8,900 (Band 2).

Tuition fees for UK students will cover the cost of your study at the University. For more information about funding, fees and finance for UK students, including what your tuition fee covers, please see our Fees and Finance. Please note that tuition fees for subsequent years of study may rise in line with inflation (RPI-X).

If you are an EU or international student coming to study at the University of Huddersfield, please visit the International Fees and Finance pages for full details of tuition fees and support available.

Please email the Student Finance Office or call 01484 472210 for more information about fees and finance.

Fees and Finance

Tuition Fees - full-time

In 2025/26 the full-time tuition fee for UK postgraduate students on this course will be £8,900 (Band 2).

Please email the Student Finance Office or call 01484 472210 for more information about fees and finance.

Important information

Although we always try and ensure we deliver our courses as described, sometimes we may have to make changes for the following reasons

When you enrol as a student of the University, your study and time with us will be governed by our terms and conditions, Handbook of Regulations and associated policies. It is important that you familiarise yourself with these as you will be asked to agree to them when you join us as a student. You will find a guide to the key terms here, along with the Student Protection Plan.

Although we always try and ensure we deliver our courses as described, sometimes we may have to make changes for the following reasons

Changes to a course you have applied for but are not yet enrolled on

If we propose to make a major change to a course that you are holding an offer for, then we will tell you as soon as possible so that you can decide whether to withdraw your application prior to enrolment. We may occasionally have to withdraw a course you have applied for or combine your programme with another programme if we consider this reasonably necessary to ensure a good student experience, for example if there are not enough applicants. Where this is the case we will notify you as soon as reasonably possible and we will discuss with you other suitable courses we can transfer your application to. If you do not wish to transfer to another course with us, you may cancel your application and we will refund you any deposits or fees you have paid to us.

Changes to your course after you enrol as a student

Changes to option modules:

Where your course allows you to choose modules from a range of options, we will review these each year and change them to reflect the expertise of our staff, current trends in research and as a result of student feedback or demand for certain modules. We will always ensure that you have an equivalent range of options to that advertised for the course. We will let you know in good time the options available for you to choose for the following year.

Major changes:

We will only make major changes to non-optional modules on a course if it is necessary for us to do so and provided such changes are reasonable. A major change is a change that substantially changes the outcomes, or a significant part of your course, such as the nature of the award or a substantial change to module content, teaching days (part time provision), type of delivery or assessment of the core curriculum. For example, it may be necessary to make a major change to reflect changes in the law or the requirements of the University’s regulators or a commissioning or accrediting body. We may also make changes to improve the course in response to student, examiners’ or other course evaluators’ feedback or to ensure you are being taught current best practice. Major changes may also be necessary because of circumstances outside our reasonable control, such as a key member of staff leaving the University or being unable to teach, where they have a particular specialism that can’t be adequately covered by other members of staff; or due to damage or interruption to buildings, facilities or equipment, or pandemics.

Major changes would usually be made with effect from the next academic year, but may happen sooner in an emergency. We will notify you as soon as possible should we need to make a major change and will carry out suitable consultation. If you reasonably believe that the proposed change will cause you detriment or hardship we will, if appropriate, work with you to try to reduce the adverse effect on you or find an appropriate solution. Where an appropriate solution cannot be found and you contact us in writing before the change takes effect you can cancel your registration and withdraw from the University without liability to the University for future tuition fees. We will provide reasonable support to assist you with transferring to another university if you wish to do so.

In exceptional circumstances, we may, for reasons outside of our control, be forced to discontinue or suspend your course. Where this is the case, a formal exit strategy will be followed in accordance with the student protection plan.

The Office for Students (OfS) is the principal regulator for the University.