Syllabus

INTRO TO MUSIC INDUSTRY STUDIES

MUGNM 110 001 Spring 2005 – CM 135

Instructors: John Snyder / Gregory Davis

Office Phone: 865-3984 (Snyder)

e-mail: Snyder: jsnyder@loyno.edu / Davis: gregory@nojazzfest.com
Office Hours: Snyder, 10AM - 6 PM daily

Catalog Description: This course provides students with an overview of the music
industry, including the many careers it offers. The following topics will be
addressed: the artist’s “team” (managers, lawyers, agents, PR, producers), legal
issues (recording contracts, songwriting contracts, licenses, etc.), touring,
merchandising, motion picture music, group issues, music on the Internet,
entrepreneurship, the future of the business, and ethics.

Expected Outcomes of the Class:

• Students will have a clear understanding of the history and current

economic, legal, and technological state of many facets of the music
business.

• Students will gain a general knowledge of the structure of music

companies and how their various departments work, including
recording companies, publishers, management and production
companies.

• Students will understand the context and details of many careers in

the music industry, including self-made careers.

• Students will gain improved writing and public speaking skills.

Text: All You Need To Know About The Music Business – by Donald S. Passman

Special or Unique Student Materials: Several pamphlets published by ASCAP

regarding performance rights issues and motion picture music will be provided to the
students at no cost.

Special or Unique University Facilities: a multi-media classroom with Internet

access and DVD player.

Instructional Methods: Lectures, student presentations, guest speakers, power

point outlines, use of DVDs and the Internet; student projects, complete student

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participation and group interaction. Student presentations will be critiqued by fellow
students. This class will be conducted in a highly interactive manner. Laptops are
encouraged but privileges will be forfeited if misused.

Structure of Class: There will be one test before the mid-term exam and one test
after the mid-term exam, before the Final exam. There may be several pop quizzes.
Each student will be responsible for leading a discussion of a current event. In
conjunction with this discussion, the student will present a 200 – 300 word summary
of the current event with a copy of the article itself. Both the oral and written
presentations will be graded.

Each student will also be required to produce a Semester Project from to the projects
list attached to this syllabus. This document should be carefully considered for it’s
multiple due dates.

Exams will be mostly essay. The essay questions will be based on the text, class
discussion, and the power point presentations presented in class. These presentations
will be posted on Blackboard, along with other materials of interest.

STUDENTS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR CHECKING BLACKBOARD

REGULARLY FOR UPDATES AND ASSIGNMENTS.

STUDENTS MUST BRING THE TEXTBOOK TO CLASS.

Attendance Policy: Students are required to come to class and on time. Students
arriving late won’t like it. Two unexcused absences will lower the final grade by one
letter. Three absences and we come looking for you and the University
administration will be notified.

Methods for Evaluating Outcomes:

1. Preparation, Participation……20%
2. Tests …………………………20%
3. Mid-term Exam………… …...20%
4. Final Exam …………………. 20%
5. Project..……...……………….20%

Assignments may be returned with a letter grade. Use the following scale to convert your
letter grade into a numeric score:

A = 95%
A- = 92%
B+ = 88%
B = 85%
B - = 82%
C+ = 78%

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C = 75%
C - = 72%
D+ = 68%
D = 65%
D- = 62%
F = 0%

Course grades will be assigned on the following scale:

A = 90% of above
B+ = 85% to 89%
B = 80% to 84%
C+ = 75% to 79%
C = 70% to 74%
D+ = 65% to 69%
D = 60% to 64%
F = less than 60%

Special Needs: Any student having special needs in terms of testing time allotment,
classroom seating, etc. should contact the instructor within the first week of class during
office hours. Do not wait to reveal that a disability of some sort is the reason for not
meeting the requirements of the course.

Participants For Whom English is not their First Language: A somewhat technical
vocabulary is used in this course. Understanding the specific meaning of words and
concepts is critical for success. Because of this necessity, individuals for whom English
is not his/her first language may need additional assistance. Many common dictionaries
are inadequate in describing the technical meaning of a word as used in the course. The
teaching assistants and the instructor will gladly define and explain the meaning of
concepts when asked. If words, terms or concepts are confusing, please seek assistance.
No electronic dictionaries or devices can be used during an examination.

Academic Dishonesty and Misconduct: Academic dishonesty and/or misconduct

constitute a major violation of professional ethics and will not be tolerated. These
violations include but are not limited to the use of illegally obtained notes or exams,
drawing of exam answers from another's exam, the sharing of exam answers with others,
and plagiarism of any submitted material. Informing fellow students of exam content is a
common violation of academic honesty. At minimum, violations for any misconduct
will result in a grade of "F" in the course and recommended expulsion from the
university.

The instructor in this course does not allow students to take copies of the examination
outside the classroom or the instructor's office for any reason. These issues are covered
under the topic of “Integrity of Scholarship and Grades” in the Undergraduate Bulletin.

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Limited Use of Instructional Materials: The lecture content and all instructional
materials used in this course are copyrighted material. As such, no individual may use
any lecture content or instructional materials for any purpose other than his/her
immediate education. Taking of notes for someone else or an organization, especially for
sale or profit, is strictly prohibited. Students violating this prohibition will be referred for
appropriate punishment.

Appeal of Grade: After grades have been posted, they may be appealed initially by
contacting the instructor and then pursuant to University policy as set forth in the
Undergraduate Bulletin.

Asking for a Grade of "Incomplete": The College of Business and Loyola University
allow a student to receive a grade of "Incomplete" in those extremely rare circumstances
in which a student, who is currently passing, cannot complete the course toward the end
of the class because of a documented excuse. Normally, a student should withdraw from
the university when a student cannot complete the course. A grade of "Incomplete"
cannot be given to avoid failing the course. Do not ask the instructor for an "Incomplete"
grade if (1) you are failing the course, (2) it is past mid-semester, and (3) you do not have
an extraordinary and compelling reason not to finish the class.

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 Topics Presented on a Weekly Basis:

Week 1 (1/10, 1/12, 1/14)

Week 2 (1/17 holiday, 1/19, 1/21) (pp 11-58)

Part 1 – Team of Advisors

2. How to Pick a Team

3. Personal Managers
4. Business Managers
6. Agents

The first class, January 10, will be orientation. All students must have the text book
by Wednesday, January 12. We may have a guest speaker during this period.

Additional Assignment for Week 2, 1/19 and 1/21: Since the reading assignment is
short, students should do research on managers, entertainment lawyers, or booking
agencies. Each student should investigate a half dozen or more websites during this
two week period and be prepared to talk about them in class, demonstrating the
websites to the class. Please be prepared to show your websites on Wednesday,
January 19. This follows a holiday and may be easy to forget. You WILL be called
on.

Week 3 (1/24,1/26, 1/28) (pp 61-127)

Part II – Record Deals

7. Broad-Strokes Overview of the Record Business

8. Advances and Recoupment
9. Real Life Numbers
10. Other Major Deal Points
11. Producer Deals

Week 4 (1/31, 2/2, 2/4) (pp 128-190)

12. Advanced Record Deal Points

13. Advanced Royalty Computations
14. Loan-out, Independent Production,
Label, Distribution Deals

There will be a test on February 2.

(holiday 2/7-12)

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Week 5 (2/14, 2/16, 2/18) (pp 193-238)

Part III – Songwriting and Music Publishing

15. Copyright Basics

16. Publishing Companies and Major Income Sources
17. Secondary Publishing Income

It is recommended that students begin the research for their Semester Project
by February 18 at the latest. The Description and Bibliography (D&B) is due
on March 4, without exception.

Week 6 (2/21, 2/23, 2/25) (pp 239-273)

18. Songwriter Deals

19. Co-publishing and Administration Deals

Week 7 (2/28, 3/2, 3/4) (pp 274-303)

20. Advanced Copyright Concepts

21. Even More Advanced Copyright Concepts

We will have a guest speaker on February 28.

Jim McCormick, songwriter.

The Description and Bibliography (D&B) for you Semester Project is due on
March 4. No extensions, please. This document is important and will count 5% of
you FINAL grade. You may choose one of the projects listed or you may, with prior
approval given BEFORE March 4, choose an alternative project. You must write a
brief description of the specifics of your project and you must investigate thoroughly
the books, articles, and websites that you will use in your research. That means you
must have DONE some research. Do not wait until the due date to begin your
research. Your bibliography will be important and should be complete, thorough,
and consistent with scholarly presentation.

Week 8 (3/7, 3/9, 3/11)

We will have a guest speaker on March 7.

Robbie Buchanan, producer, arranger, keyboardist
We will review for the mid-term on March 9.

The mid-term will be on March 11.

Week 9 (3/14, 3/16, 3/18) (pp 307-346)

Part IV – Group Issues (22)

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 Part V – Touring (23)
(holiday 3/21-28)

Week 10 (3/30, 4/1) (pp 350-362)

Part VI – Merchandising

24. Tour Merchandising

25. Retail Merchandising

Week 11 (4/4, 4/6, 4/8) (pp 365-379)

Part VII – Classical Music (26)

Part VIII - Adventures in Cyberspace (27)

There will be a test on April 8.

All Students must submit the first drafts of their term paper during the week to
“Writing Across the Curriculum” for editing. Do not delay and overwhelm
WAC, causing delays and problems for you. You should schedule your review
with WAC in advance. This draft, as edited by WAC must be included with
your final version. Students must show me the edited draft at the next class
following receipt of the corrected draft.

Week 12 (4/11, 4/13, 4/15)(pp 383-425 (Also see Brabec pamphlet, supplied)

Part IX – Motion Picture Music

28. Overview of Motion Picture Music

29. Performer Deals
30. Film Songwriter Deals
31.Composer Agreements
32.Licensing Existing Recordings and
Existing Songs for Motion Pictures
33.Music Supervisors
34. Soundtrack Album Deals

Week 13 (4/18, 4/20, 4/22)

Ethics and Entrepreneurship

Guest Speaker

Week 14 (4/25, 4/27, 4/29, 5/2)

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 Guest Speaker
Review of for Final Exam
Final Exam – date to be announced

Final Versions of Projects are due no later than April 29th. Please, no extensions.
This includes any supporting materials, like CDs, DVDs, tapes, etc. It also
includes your earlier draft that you submitted to “Writing Across The
Curriculum” that they edited. You may NOT email your final project.

The class will be asked to comment on the current event presented by the student.
The student presenter should take pains to be prepared, to give some attention to
manner of delivery and professionalism of presentation. This is not a high school
presentation. It is a college presentation and your ability to connect with the class
and present the information in a cogent, informed way will be important. Your
presentation should last no longer than 5 minutes. You may use the Internet. Your
presentation should be subsequently posted to Blackboard with the appropriate links.