Enrol now for ‘one-of-a-kind’ music business course

Time is running out to sign up for the second semester of the SAMRO and Wits Plus 14-week short course titled “Business Principles of Songwriting and Music Publishing”, which starts on 28 July 2010.

Registration for these evening classes closes on 19 July 2010. Launched at the beginning of 2010, this groundbreaking new course is aimed at independent music publishers, either emerging or established, to encourage entrepreneurship in this sector.

The purpose of the course is to equip those who are already involved in music publishing with skills that will make them competitive and help them excel in this field. It is also ideal for songwriters who wish to publish their works themselves in future, independent from large, established music publishers.

Students who completed the inaugural single-semester certificate course, which has NQF Level 5 status, are full of praise for what they have learned.

Gareth Lee, a student in the pilot programme, said: “I believe that this course is one of a kind in South Africa. I’ve been in the music industry for 10 years as a band member, songwriter, artist manager, promoter and an events coordinator and I received detailed knowledge that relates to each of these fields on this course.

“This course will clear up all the grey areas about music publishing, collective management, how to benefit from royalties and so much more. In my opinion, it’s an absolute must for anyone involved in any aspect of the music industry!” said Lee.

The Southern African Music Rights Organisation and the University of the Witwatersrand developed the course to cater for this very gap in the market: the need for information on the business side of the South African music industry, an area that is neglected by most academic business qualifications.

The course aims to give participants a technical understanding of the music publishing business, as well as knowledge of copyright law and contracts as they relate to music. Students also learn about marketing, how to promote music works, rights administration and collective management as carried out by organisations such as SAMRO.

The evening classes run for 14 consecutive weeks, with a single two- to three-hour lecture per week. Students will receive a certificate from Wits if they successfully complete the course and the final exam. The course facilitator is Jonathan Shaw, who has been running a related short course on music management and marketing through Wits Plus for the past five years.

A total of 25 applicants can be accommodated per semester, and SAMRO is sponsoring up to five bursaries for SAMRO members or for people employed by SAMRO publisher members. These seats will be awarded based on evaluation and approval by Wits.

The “Business Principles of Songwriting and Music Publishing” evening classes will be held at the Wits West Campus in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, starting on 28 July 2010 at 6pm The cost of the course is R5 120.00, which includes tuition fees and course material.

For more information and to obtain an application form, visit www.witsplus.wits.ac.za or visit www.wits.ac.za and click on “Evening classes”.
Alternatively, e-mail .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), phone (011) 717-9500/3 or visit the Wits Plus office. 

For media related queries interviews, etc. Please call Rami on 011 788-7632/1 or email: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

Issued by JT Communication Solutions

www.jtcomms.co.za

On behalf of the Southern African Music Rights Organisation (SAMRO)

www.samro.org.za