music production

The search for new, original solutions. That is perhaps the simplest definition of creativity. The music programme at KASK & Conservatorium puts this competence at the heart of the training of students to become performing musicians, composers, producers, builders, artists. Because we are training you to be the music makers of the future. With certainty, we can say about the future: it will be different from today.

Creativity is everywhere: in interpreting an existing piece of music, writing a composition, song or arrangement, dealing with your audience, communicating with fellow musicians and organisers, building a portfolio, developing a stimulating study method, searching for the right sound, honing a narrative,... In short: in forming your own unique and authentic artistic profile.

To achieve this, the curriculum of the music programme offers a broad and solid musical and theoretical basis, with plenty of room for self-chosen specialisation. You can specialise in a certain style (jazz, pop, classical, experimental, etc.) in a certain field (production, songwriting, film composition, contemporary performance, etc.) or choose to broaden your horizons by combining expertise, genres and disciplines. Moreover, thanks to collaborations with the other art programmes within KASK & Conservatorium, this can be done across different art forms.

In our educational organisation, we also provide the necessary time and room to develop creative skills. Four times per academic year, the teaching weeks give way to project weeks, where guest speakers are invited and masterclasses are organised, where we focus on interdisciplinary cooperation and co-creation, on internal or external project collaboration, or on deepening certain facets of musical practice.

Your artistic practice as a performing or creative musician, on your instrument or in the studio, in a group or individually, is always accompanied by critical reflection. Besides the necessary technical skills, you focus on your own artistic development. How does your work relate to that of others? Where do your strengths lie and how do you best develop them? In applied theoretical subjects such as ear training, rhythm, music analysis and harmony, you will learn the necessary basic competences. General education like philosophy, for instance, creates a broader frame of reference. In your artistic practice, everything eventually comes together and you learn to place yourself within that broader context.

The music programme strives for broad employability in the professional field. During your studies, you will have personal contact with many people in the broad sector: first and foremost, your fellow students and teachers from all the programmes at our school, but also renowned guest speakers, programmers, visiting ensembles and bands in our MIRY Concert Hall and Club Telex, and contacts you get to know during internships or international exchanges. This is how we help you build your network, with Ghent, the UNESCO Creative City of Music, as your springboard.

For three Bachelor years, you will learn everything about recording, mixing and songwriting in your main practice through creative assignments. You work in class, but also individually and in groups, making full use of the school's infrastructure: two professionally equipped studios with an extensive collection of peripherals and microphones. In supporting subjects (where you can make your own targeted choices based on your own interests) you will learn to work with software, synths, drum computers, etc.

Furthermore, a lot of attention is paid to live music-making. In subjects such as arrangement, ear training, pop and jazz history, you will acquire a solid theoretical basis. Theoretical course units such as philosophy provide a broader frame of reference, while attention is also paid to practical professional skills, entrepreneurship, mental well-being and building a network.

In the two master's years, the link to the professional field becomes more concrete through external mentors and subjects such as arts in practice and internships. The grand finale is your master project which may include productions of your own work, productions for external artists and live performance.  

KASK & Conservatorium is a unique environment where students and teachers from different arts disciplines inspire each other and where, in an exceptional setting, you can work your way up to a creative master's degree in music.