The musicube academy is an institute that specializes in and focuses on film music. Everyone involved in the musicube academy takes part ambitiously and passionately. We believe music is a basic human need, meaning musical composition and production is important and necessary for society. We welcome anyone who shares this passion with us. Our goal is to enable our students to pursue a career as a film music composer or in a related field.
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In addition to artistic and musical talent, it is also necessary for composers to understand and master the technical and creative processes involved in production.
At the musicube academy, we give composition, music production, and audio engineering equal weight in order to strike this essential balance for the modern film composer.
In other words:
The composer’s sheet music and pencil have evolved into the Digital Audio Workstation, which is not only used in developing musical and compositional ideas, but to create the finished musical piece as well.
We want to elevate the creative potential of our students. Beyond the craftsmanship and technical abilities that will form the basis of a career in the industry, we know that finding unique, creative concepts is important as well. We see creativity as the distinguishing feature of each composer.
Our students are individuals who learn from each other. Small groups (a maximum of six participants per group) mean there is always room to ask questions and make mistakes. Everyone can learn from the questions and mistakes of their fellow students, and can benefit together from the answers and lessons that result.
We encourage our students to apply what they have learned in practice. Starting in the very first year at the musicube academy, film music students work side-by-side with film students from other universities, giving everyone involved unique practical experience. At the end of each academic year, students present examples of their own work. This occurs for participants of all musicube academy programs.
After completing a bachelor or master program, our students are highly-qualified and in-demand on the job market. A broad and top-notch education, practical experience in various fields, and early networking with directors and other potential customers provides our graduates with a promising outlook when it comes to finding employment.
To provide broad exposure to the field of music production, each student needs a DAW configured with a sampler, sounds, and a sequencer to work on a series of concrete and practical assignments based on subjects addressed in the lessons.
In the classroom, this might mean analyzing a portion of a film and the accompanying audio to break down and understand the compositional and production principles used.
The next step could be taking a similar portion of a film without any audio and using the previously addressed principles and a studentís own ideas to create original accompanying music. This method gives students practical experience with the DAW while putting the compositional principles into real use in a film.
The learning process consists of three steps:
- Analysis (theoretical level)
- Comprehension (cognitive level)
- Implementation (practical level)
These steps are a key educational element of all the courses of study offered at the musicube academy. A studentís motivation, creativity, style, and technical abilities are developed and encouraged.
Work on actual film productions takes the learning process for musicube academy to the next level: in all courses of study, there are possibilities to work with filmmakers on collaborative projects.
Through a partnership with the Academy for International Education (Akademie for Internationale Bildung, AIB) in Bonn, musicube academy students can partner with visiting students from the Film and Television School of Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. The collaboration between musicube academy students and the aspiring film directors from Los Angeles provides a networking opportunity that can extend well beyond the end of studies. Establishing long-lasting transatlantic connections is a fundamental goal of the musicube academy and the AIB. To provide opportunities for students with varying levels of prior qualification, the musicube academy offers one of the broadest ranges of educational options for interested students of film composition.
Other successful partnerships have been established, and more are on the way:
See also: Partner
See also: Media Music Producer
See also: Film Scoring and Production
See also: Advanced Film Scoring and Production
The instructors at the musicube academy draw upon many years of industry and teaching experience. All instructors are active in their respective fields, giving students insights into the latest market developments.
1-3 dozenten
Pablo Jókay
- Compositional theory
- Composing
- Music theory
Jakob Schneider
- Audio engineering
- Music production
Patrick Schmitz
- Compositional theory
- Composing
- Music theory
- Audio + Motion
- Orchestra production
Alexander Gromeier
- Audio + Motion
- Music Theory
- Audio engineering
- Midi Programming / Scripting
Josef Piras
- Compositional theory
- Composing
- Music theory
Olaf Krause
- Audio engineering
- Music production
Lars Hempel
- Audio engineering
- Music production
Michael Firmont
- Music production
- Audio and Motion
Justus Berger
- Music production
- Audio and Motion
Patrick Schmitz
- Main subject
- Composing
- Music theory
- Audio and motion
- Orchestra production
Gregor Kreyenburg
- Main subject
- Arrangement
- Orchestra production
- Orchestration
- Recording
Michael Firmont
- Main subject
- Games Music
- Production
- Communication
Olaf Krause
- Coach Thesis
- Music production
Josef Piras
- Coach Thesis
- Music theory
- Harmonie at the piano
- Arrangement
Alexander Gromeier
- Rhythm Lab
- Music theory
Matthias Wittwer
- Style studies
- Production Jazz / Pop
Guest lecturers
- Anne Dern, Los Angeles, USA
- Matthias Weber, Los Angeles, USA
- Andreas Weidinger, München, GER
- Yati Durant, Edinburgh, UK
- Vasco Hexel, London, UK
- Peter Fuchs, München, GER
- Stephan Benn, Köln, GER
- Hans Jörg Kohli, Mainz, GER
- Matthias Kneszy Bohm, Aachen, GER
- Andreas Lautner, Berlin, GER
- Andreas Grimm, Düsseldorf, GER
- Jumpel Dürbeck, Köln, GER
- René Dohmen, Köln, GER
- Matthias Hornschuh, Köln, GER
- Stefan Döhring, Köln, GER
The musicube academy has formed a special partnership with the Academy for International Education (Akademie für Internationale Bildung, AIB) in Bonn. Visiting students from Loyola Marymount University (LMU) in Los Angeles come to Bonn to take part in the Film and Television School (FITS Europe) the AIB offers.
During their semester abroad in Germany, the young filmmakers from LMU work with students of the musicube academy on two collaborative projects. Music for over 300 films has been composed and produced since the partnership between the two schools started back in 2004. By maintaining contact with their American counterparts, many former students from the musicube academy are now involved in professional transatlantic projects.
Starting from the winter semester of 2024, a long-term collaboration with the IFS Film School is planned. In these projects, students will present their work to each other, independently decide with whom they want to collaborate and when, and will then receive coaching during the project phase.
The bachelor’s and master’s programs are accredited by Alanus University. The programs are designed and developed by the musicube academy. The preparatory courses and the university programs are optimally coordinated with each other.
The best of both worlds
Our programs are cost-effective, performance-oriented, interconnected, and geared to the practical artistic and scientific / academic needs of the industry. Our student’s proficiency is exceptionally high, providing a foundation for a successful career after graduation. Most of our students find work in the industry after completing their studies.
This high rate of success can be traced back to the musicube academy’s sophisticated educational concept. We work with our students to develop their artistic and technical abilities. A maximum of six participants take part in each of our seminars, meaning there are no overcrowded lecture halls. Instead, our students methodically learn the material in small groups with other students with similar knowledge and experience.
Part of the musicube academy’s success and the talent of our students stems from the ability to extend the time frame of the program. While other bachelor programs in this field are limited to four years, the musicube academy offers up to five years study thanks to the preparatory course. The extra time only strengthens our student’s skills by the time they graduate.