Online Songwriting Courses

Our 12-week online songwriting courses are authored and taught by industry experts and the same renowned instructors that teach at Berklee College of Music's Boston campus.


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    OSONG-250
    Arranging for Songwriters: Instrumentation and Production in Songwriting
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Create a unique sound and explore tools and techniques that will help you craft songs with the instrumentation and production to support your intended emotional meaning.
    OSONG-676
    Artistry, Innovation, and a Sustainable Career in the Music Industry
    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    This course highlights the many paths and combinations by which artists, performers, songwriters, producers, composers, and creators pursue their goals in music to get paid and build a sustainable career. Learn how to monetize essential income streams from publishing and licensing, to streaming, touring, social media, fan funding, sound design, production, and more.
    Proof of a bachelor's degree is required to enroll in non-degree, graduate-level courses.
    OSONG-240
    Commercial Songwriting Techniques
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn to write for commercial success by reproducing the time-tested characteristics of hit songs while maintaining your own unique voice.
    OCOMP-285
    Contemporary Techniques in Music Composition 1
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Develop a unique compositional voice to write music through the study of modern twentieth century compositional techniques.
    OCOMP-385
    Contemporary Techniques in Music Composition 2
    Level 3

    Level 3

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Gain a solid knowledge of modern instrumental writing and competence using twentieth century techniques in composition. In addition, you will gain enhanced listening skills to identify and appreciate new musical styles, and be capable of implementing these skills in your writing, enriching your capacity to express yourself in this intellectually stimulating musical idiom.
    OLART-216
    Creative Writing: Finding Your Voice
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn to write clearly and strongly in your own unique voice, bringing your full self to your writing process every time you write.
    OLART-201
    Creative Writing: Literature Studies for Musicians
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Strengthen your writing skills and creative expression by exploring works of fiction, personal narrative, poetry, playwriting, and even music journalism.
    OLART-215
    Creative Writing: Poetry
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn to craft and control your writing, enhance your ideas, and write better lyrics through the study of poetry.
    OIDMS-693
    Culminating Experience in IDMS 1
    Level 6 - Degree Only

    Level 6

    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    The culminating experience course requires students to complete a significant culminating project based on the designated areas of concentration in the interdisciplinary music studies master’s degree and represents the highest expression of their learning at the graduate level.
    OIDMS-695
    Culminating Experience in IDMS 2
    Level 6 - Degree Only

    Level 6

    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    The culminating experience course requires students to complete a significant culminating project based on the designated areas of concentration in the interdisciplinary music studies master’s degree and represents the highest expression of their learning at the graduate level.
    OSONG-693
    Culminating Experience in Songwriting 1
    Level 6 - Degree Only

    Level 6

    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    Culminating Experience in Songwriting 1 is the first of two intensive directed study classes focused on proposing and executing a portfolio of original material recorded at a professional level as well as a business and career plan.
    OSONG-695
    Culminating Experience in Songwriting 2
    Level 6 - Degree Only

    Level 6

    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    Culminating Experience in Songwriting 2 is the second of two intensive directed study courses focused on proposing and executing a portfolio of original material recorded at a professional level as well as a business and career plan. In this second phase, you will focus on creating market-ready final recordings and designing next steps in bringing your product to market.
    OSONG-640
    Genre Survey for Songwriters: Analysis and Application
    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    This course explores top examples of representative songs from different popular music genres, as defined by Billboard.com, with the goal of analyzing and understanding the musical components that determine the nature of these genres, resulting in a successful songwriting process, according to music industry standards.
    Proof of a bachelor's degree is required to enroll in non-degree, graduate-level courses.
    OCOMP-492
    Interactive Scoring for Games
    Level 4

    Level 4

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn the fundamental music approaches and skills that professional composers use to create interactive scores for games.
    OCOMP-395
    Jazz Composition
    Level 3

    Level 3

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn effective techniques that will help you compose jazz tunes that have a balance of melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic appeal.
    OSONG-220
    Lyric Writing: Tools and Strategies
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Generate more and better lyric ideas. Express them in compelling and original ways with your songs.
    OSONG-221
    Lyric Writing: Writing From the Title
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn to write effective song titles and discover how to build lyrics, develop the rhythms of your song sections, and create contrasting sections and ideas.
    OSONG-222
    Lyric Writing: Writing Lyrics to Music
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Get the most out of your song lyrics by learning how to combine them accurately and effectively with melody.
    OSONG-505
    Music Career Strategies: Brand Identity Development for Artists, Songwriters, and Producers
    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    This course explores the intersection of branding and personal and creative identity, giving artists, songwriters, and producers useful career strategies to use when navigating their journey in the music business.
    Proof of a bachelor's degree is required to enroll in non-degree, graduate-level courses.
    OCOMP-490
    Music Composition for Film and TV 1
    Level 4

    Level 4

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn to write music in the style of big budget Hollywood productions and gain a recipe book for writing for film and TV.
    OCOMP-491
    Music Composition for Film and TV 2
    Level 4

    Level 4

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Analyze specific genres of film and TV music in terms of melody, harmony, and orchestration, and form a template that you can apply to your own writing.
    OSONG-570
    Music Demo Production for Songwriters
    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    Develop your sound through song arranging techniques and by producing, recording, and mixing songs at a professional level. You will focus on creating unique instrumentation and overall sound for your original songs, harnessing the power of a Digital Audio Workstation and using professional production techniques.
    Proof of a bachelor's degree is required to enroll in non-degree, graduate-level courses.
    OSONG-150
    Music Production Fundamentals for Songwriters
    Level 1

    Level 1

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn how to use a Digital Audio Workspace as a compositional tool, how to arrange with MIDI, and how to engineer and produce your own recordings.
    OSONG-231
    Producing Songwriting Demos with Logic
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn how to produce demos and recordings that capture your songwriting abilities and show off the potential of your compositions.
    OSONG-230
    Producing Songwriting Demos with Pro Tools
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Jump into the world of producing, recording, and mixing songs to a professional level using Pro Tools.
    OSONG-597
    Songs Unmasked: Techniques and Tips for Songwriting Success
    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    This course will teach you to write better songs, and refine your tastes by studying your influences. You will become a trained detective, examining and exploring the traits and techniques of successful songs, and applying them to your own writing.
    Proof of a bachelor's degree is required to enroll in non-degree, graduate-level courses.
    OSONG-664
    Songwriting Sync Success: The Art and Craft of Licensing, Film/TV, Advertising, and Production Music
    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    Songwriting Sync Success is a comprehensive look at the many enigmatic ways in which a professional songwriter can make a living beyond just “writing hits.” It draws directly from the author’s personal real-world experience to demystify these intriguing (and often lucrative) arenas of the industry.
    Proof of a bachelor's degree is required to enroll in non-degree, graduate-level courses.
    OSONG-525
    Songwriting Tools and Techniques
    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    This course requires you to become intentional in every aspect of your writing: melodic composition, harmonic considerations, and lyric composition, all focused through the lens of prosody. You will learn to align each compositional element in relationship to your song’s central intent and emotion.
    Proof of a bachelor's degree is required to enroll in non-degree, graduate-level courses.
    OSONG-430
    Songwriting for Film and TV
    Level 3

    Level 3

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn how to write music that will appeal specifically to music supervisors, editors, directors, and producers across a number of genres.
    OSONG-316
    Songwriting: Harmony
    Level 3

    Level 3

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn how harmony can help convey the essential emotion in your songwriting and the best ways to adapt chords and progressions to suit your songwriting style and ideas.
    OSONG-315
    Songwriting: Melody
    Level 3

    Level 3

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Create the melodic ideas that convey the emotion of your lyrics, then learn how to develop these melodic ideas into complete sections and songs to suit your songwriting style.
    OSONG-310
    Songwriting: Writing Hit Songs
    Level 3

    Level 3

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Learn to make the most effective settings for your melodic, harmonic, and lyrical ideas by crafting songs the way hit songwriters do.
    OSONG-014
    The Songwriting Secrets of Taylor Swift
    Level 1

    Level 1

    Credit: $0
    Non-credit: $99
    OSONG-639
    Topline and Vocal Production
    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    This course is devoted to the exploration of the topline—a melody with lyrics conceived to go along with an existing track. To complement the development of the topline, we will also do a deep dive into vocal production techniques, offering you a set of tools to achieve successful songwriting results.
    Proof of a bachelor's degree is required to enroll in non-degree, graduate-level courses.
    OCOMP-493
    World Music Composition Styles
    Level 4

    Level 4

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Add depth and flavor to compositions in any genre by studying the characteristics of a wide array of world music compositional techniques.
    OMPRD-228
    Writer, Engineer, Producer in the Home Studio
    Level 2

    Level 2

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    This course emphasizes the different roles we take on when creating and producing music. Focusing on new technology and new approaches to music production, engineering, and writing, you will transform a song from an idea to something you can be proud to have as part of your portfolio, from a songwriting standpoint as well as a music production standpoint. At the start of the course you will generate the kernel of a new song, which you will develop and produce throughout the course to achieve a final sound recording that is a commercially viable piece of music.
    OSONG-555
    Writing and Analyzing Hit Songs
    Credit: $2,817
    Non-credit: $2,615
    All creative works contain structure that make the success of the project more likely. In this course, you will learn to analyze specified current and recent hit songs to determine that structural basis, and apply what you’ve discovered in individual songwriting assignments.
    Proof of a bachelor's degree is required to enroll in non-degree, graduate-level courses.
    OCWPR-385
    Writing and Producing Advertising Music
    Level 3

    Level 3

    Credit: $1,545
    Non-credit: $1,290
    Gain a practical working knowledge of composing, producing, marketing, and monetizing commercial music, from jingles to television theme music and scoring.