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Course Outline

MUS103 Production 1

Course Coordinator:Lachlan Goold (lgoold@usc.edu.au) School:School of Business and Creative Industries

2025Semester 2

UniSC Sunshine Coast

 Blended learning Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online.

Please go to unisc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.

What is this course about?

Description

In this course, you will study the foundations of Digital Audio Workstations and sound recording in an industry reflective studio environment. Lecturers and industry practitioners will guide you as you engage in the basic theories and skills of sound, audio engineering, and music production. You will apply that knowledge in a number of music production tasks, including recording, overdubbing, audio processing, editing, and mixing. These tasks will culminate in a mixed and produced original sound recording of a musical work as part of your creative portfolio.

How will this course be delivered?

Activity Hours Beginning Week Frequency
Blended learning
Learning materials – Asynchronous online delivery of learning material. 1hr Week 1 12 times
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Synchronous and scheduled face to face workshops. 2hrs Week 1 6 times
Tutorial/Workshop 2 – Synchronous and scheduled face to face workshops. 4hrs Week 8 3 times

Course Topics

  • Sound theory
  • Shared musical vocabulary
  • Signal flow in the studio
  • Analogue and digital recording techniques
  • Recording drums
  • Recording harmonic and melodic instruments
  • Recording vocals
  • DAW editing
  • Mixing audio.

What level is this course?

100 Level (Introductory)

Engaging with discipline knowledge and skills at foundational level, broad application of knowledge and skills in familiar contexts and with support. Limited or no prerequisites. Normally, associated with the first full-time study year of an undergraduate program.

What is the unit value of this course?

12 units

How does this course contribute to my learning?

Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming...
1 Develop and implement modern concepts of music theory in a music and sound production environment. Knowledgeable
2 Demonstrate knowledge of a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) to apply critical and creative approaches to music creation and sound recording. Empowered
3 Apply a diverse range of sound theory and audio engineering principles based on industry concepts and instructional literature. Knowledgeable
4 Analyse and evaluate the recording process including knowledge of microphones, and other digital and analogue technologies. Empowered
5 Develop and implement a demonstration recording for communicating musical concepts and ideas. Engaged

Am I eligible to enrol in this course?

Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.

Pre-requisites

Not applicable

Co-requisites

Not applicable

Anti-requisites

Not applicable

Specific assumed prior knowledge and skills (where applicable)

Not applicable

Microcredential Information

Not applicable

How am I going to be assessed?

Grading Scale

Standard Grading (GRD)

High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL).

Details of early feedback on progress

An opportunity exists in every workshop to produce and perform creative pieces individually and/or in small peer groups and in Week 4 students will receive individual feedback from tutors.

Assessment tasks

Delivery mode Task No. Assessment Product Individual or Group Weighting % What is the duration / length? When should I submit? Where should I submit it?
All 1 Artefact - Technical and Scientific Individual 30% 
approx 10 min
 Week 5 Online Submission
All 2 Artefact - Creative Individual 30% 
DAW session with 2-5 min of music.
 Week 11 Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All 3 Artefact - Creative, and Written Piece Individual 40% 
2-5 min plus 500 words.
 Exam Period Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All - Assessment Task 1:Studio Signal Flow
Goal: 
This assessment aims to demonstrate your understanding of the basic elements of signal flow in a recording studio environment.
Product: Artefact - Technical and Scientific
Authorship Statement:
Format: 
Using an industry-reflective studio environment, you will perform a number of technical tasks as set out in the assessment guide provided to you in the semester. You will be given 10 minutes to complete a series of tasks to reflect your foundational knowledge of analogue & digital signal flow, DAWs, and their associated workflow.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1 
Developing and implementing an analogue recording environment and associated DAW session.
 1
2 
Analysing and evaluating signal flow and other technologies according to best studio practice.
 4
3 
Demonstrating knowledge of the DAW and associated plugin and signal flow tasks.
 2
4 
Applying a diverse range of sound theory and audio engineering principles in a time-sensitive environment.
 3
Generic Skills: 
Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies
All - Assessment Task 2:DAW Demo Session
Goal: 
This assessment aims to demonstrate your ability to use analogue and digital recording technology to produce sound recordings that communicate musical ideas.
Product: Artefact - Creative
Authorship Statement:
Format: 
In this task, you will use the facilities to produce a demonstration recording. Using your knowledge of analogue and digital recording and music production, you will provide a DAW session demonstrating production ideas before mixdown. This DAW session will present several foundation audio engineering principles as outlined in the assessment guide provided in the learning materials.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1 
Developing and implementing foundational audio engineering concepts.
 1
2 
Demonstrating knowledge of the DAW with appropriate gain staging practices.
 2
3 
Applying a diverse range of sound theory displaying both digital and analogue audio processing techniques.
 3
4 
Analysing and evaluating recording processes to create an intended outcome.
 4
Generic Skills: 
Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies
All - Assessment Task 3:Final Report and Mixdown
Goal: 
This assessment aims to demonstrate your ability to work in the technical frameworks provided to achieve an informed and aesthetically appropriate demonstration mixdown of a musical work.
Product: Artefact - Creative, and Written Piece
Authorship Statement:
Format: 
In this task, you will deliver a final mixdown of the musical work from assessment 2. This final mixdown will demonstrate your technical and creative work in displaying several recording and music production techniques. In addition, you will deliver a written report of the approaches you used in this process and critically reflect on how you might improve upon your process and recorded outcome.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1 
Developing and implementing an iteration of the recording process.
 1
2 
Demonstrating application of technical processes for creative outcomes.
 2
3 
Applying a diverse range of audio engineering principles appropriately to create an intended outcome.
 3
4 
Developing and implementing a demonstration recording that communicates musical concepts and enhances meaning making.
 5
5 
Analysing and evaluating the recording and mixing process.
 4
Generic Skills: 
Communication, Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies

Directed study hours

A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.

Schedule

Period and Topic Activities 
Tutorial/Workshop 2: weeks 8 to 12
 
4 hour workshops will take place in week 8, 10 & 12

What resources do I need to undertake this course?

Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.

Prescribed text(s) or course reader

There are no required/recommended resources for this course.

Specific requirements

In this class, you will require the foundation tools of the music producer. These are:
•	a Hard Drive with 100Gb of free memory 
•	a set of stereo headphones for music production

Students are expected to make themselves available for autonomous recording sessions. Students must therefore consider their availability on evenings and weekends as well as normal working hours.

How are risks managed in this course?

Risk assessments have been performed for all studio and laboratory classes and a low level of health and safety risk exists. Some risk concerns may include equipment, instruments, and tools; as well as manual handling items within the laboratory. It is your responsibility to review course material, search online, discuss with lecturers and peers and understand the risks associated with your specific course of study and to familiarise yourself with the University’s general health and safety principles by reviewing the online induction training for students, and following the instructions of the University staff.

What administrative information is relevant to this course?

Assessment: Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation. It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline. This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.

Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person. You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.

In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.

Assessment: Additional Requirements

Eligibility for Supplementary Assessment

Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying:
(a) The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4%; and
(b) The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale

Assessment: Submission penalties

Late submissions may be penalised up to and including the following maximum percentage of the assessment task’s identified value, with weekdays and weekends included in the calculation of days late:
(a) One day: deduct 5%;
(b) Two days: deduct 10%;
(c) Three days: deduct 20%;
(d) Four days: deduct 40%;
(e) Five days: deduct 60%;
(f) Six days: deduct 80%;
(g) Seven days: A result of zero is awarded for the assessment task.

The following penalties will apply for a late submission for an online examination:
Less than 15 minutes: No penalty
From 15 minutes to 30 minutes: 20% penalty
More than 30 minutes: 100% penalty

Links to relevant University policy and procedures

For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:

  • Assessment: Courses and Coursework Programs
  • Review of Assessment and Final Grades
  • Supplementary Assessment
  • Central Examinations
  • Deferred Examinations
  • Student Conduct
  • Students with a Disability

For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching

Student Charter

UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful. The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.

General Enquiries

  • In person:
    • UniSC Sunshine Coast - Student Central, Ground Floor, Building C, 90 Sippy Downs Drive, Sippy Downs
    • UniSC Moreton Bay - Service Centre, Ground Floor, Foundation Building, Gympie Road, Petrie
    • UniSC SouthBank - Student Central, Building A4 (SW1), 52 Merivale Street, South Brisbane
    • UniSC Gympie - Student Central, 71 Cartwright Road, Gympie
    • UniSC Fraser Coast - Student Central, Student Central, Building A, 161 Old Maryborough Rd, Hervey Bay
    • UniSC Caboolture - Student Central, Level 1 Building J, Cnr Manley and Tallon Street, Caboolture
  • Tel:+61 7 5430 2890
  • Email:studentcentral@usc.edu.au
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