New course gives music industry a shot in the arm

Emerging South African music entrepreneurs have received a welcome boost with the introduction of a targeted music publishing course at the University of the Witwatersrand.

Developed in partnership with the Southern African Music Rights Organisation (SAMRO), the part-time course – titled “Business Principles of Songwriting and Music Publishing” – will be launched in February 2010.
The evening classes will run for 14 consecutive weeks, with one two- to three-hour lecture per week, and students will receive a certificate from Wits upon their successful competition of the course and the final exam. It is a single-semester course, and prospective students who miss out on the first intake can enrol for the July 2010 semester.

The NQF Level 5 course is targeting anyone working in – or wishing to pursue a career in – music publishing, administration and marketing, who is looking to broaden his or her knowledge of creating, selling and promoting songs in a commercial environment.

It will benefit songwriters, aspirant independent music publishers and others seeking to enhance their understanding of some of the industry’s complexities and technicalities, such as music copyright laws, music publishing contracts, the financial and administrative aspects of the business, the promotion of musical works, the role of collective management organisations, and essential life skills for those involved in the music industry.

According to course facilitator Jonathan Shaw, who has been successfully running a related short course on music management and marketing through Wits Plus for the past five years, he and SAMRO identified a need to further develop intellectual capital on the business side of the South African music industry – a specialised area that is neglected by most academic business qualifications.
“The aim of the course is to educate and empower young entrepreneurs who are already in the industry or who want to get into it. We hope to provide encouragement to independent publishers and enable more local musicians to prosper,” explains Shaw.   “The South African music industry is still informal, to a degree. Many people don’t understand the industry, its workings or its terms to the extent that they are comfortable enough to work in it. And many creators still tend to ignore the business side of their work.

“These courses will go a long way toward the formalisation of the industry, giving participants the tools to be able to network and be competitive.”
A total of 25 applicants can be accommodated per semester, and SAMRO is sponsoring five bursaries for SAMRO members or for people employed by SAMRO publisher members. These seats will be awarded at the discretion of Wits. With Shaw as facilitator, top industry professionals will be brought in to conduct individual lectures in their respective areas of expertise.

“We are really excited about this course for aspirant music publishers,” says Leon van Wyk, SAMRO’s Executive General Manager: Rights Holder Services. “The partnership between SAMRO and an academic institution of the calibre of Wits University is great for the music business and we encourage anyone who wants to make money from their songs to attend. “We believe that this project adds value to the music industry and to our business, and will equip aspirant music publishers with valuable knowledge and skills.” Adds Shaw: “The new music publishing course will help fill in the gaps, analyse the jargon and enable students to get to grips with how the music industry is run. It’s about blowing myths out of the water, and approaching the industry from an academic perspective.”

• The “Business Principles of Songwriting and Music Publishing” evening classes, accredited and moderated by SAMRO, will be held at the Wits West Campus in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, starting on 17 February 2010 at 6pm. Registration for the first semester closes on 15 January 2010. The cost of the course is R5 120.00. For more information and to obtain an application form, visit
  

  www.witsplus.wits.ac.za. Alternatively, e-mail .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) , phone (011) 717-9500/3 or visit the Wits Plus office.

Issued by Jt Communications Solutions
Vanessa Perumal Managing Director
Tel: +27 (0) 11 788 7631/2, email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)