Program Overview

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Music Production & Recording Technology

Our Bachelor of Music in Music Production & Recording Technology combines

the discipline of private study and the aural acuity learned in ensemble participation with hands-on experience in recording, electronics, MIDI systems, Digital Audio Workstations (DAW), composition and live sound reinforcement

Upon completion of Shenandoah’s music production & recording technology program, you’ll have a versatile skill set that will enable you to work professionally with musicians and artists as a producer, coach and leader in the recording studio, helping to guide, capture and develop creative work. Also, you will develop a skill set to work with audio on a film shoot, operate a digital audio workstation (DAW), produce a surround sound mix, troubleshoot sound systems and complete minor repairs.

Our program focuses on the art of music production and recording technology. You’ll gain a deep understanding of music, music theory, arranging, history, performance, the audio recording process, live sound reinforcement, MIDI, DAWs (digital audio workstations), analog and digital recording technology, popular songwriting, and music production. Our state-of-the-art facility features integrated Apple mobile technology in the classroom, and we’ve received the Apple Distinguished Program Award three times from 2012 through 2018!

Minor in Music, Theatre, Dance or Music Composition

Shenandoah Conservatory offers minors in Music, Theatre or Dance for all Shenandoah University students.

Shenandoah also offers a new minor in Music Composition for conservatory students who wish to build composition skills and enhance their creative music-making experience while pursuing other degree programs in the conservatory.

Acceptance into conservatory minors must be approved by the Division/Department Chair, and some minors require an audition.

Declaring a Minor

Shenandoah students work with their Academic Advisor to declare a minor. Academic Advisors will continue to work with students to ensure that they fulfill all of the requirements to complete the minor.

Incoming students should not indicate their intended minor on their Shenandoah application; applications are for intended majors only.

Internship Possibilities

Your practical, real-world experience will continue through internships and work in the community. Design your own internship at a place of your choice including music hubs like New York City, Los Angeles, and Nashville.

Career & Professional Development

The Career & Professional Development staff helps Shenandoah students search and apply for internships related to their major and career goals. Internships differentiate you as an applicant in your future job searches, provide hands on experience in your field, allow you to sample different career paths for your major, and help you find a specific position that fits your passion before graduation.

Career Possibilities

Our graduates typically find employment at recording studios as engineers, producers, musicians, live sound reinforcement engineers, or as composers or performers.

Join our distinguished ranks of alumni who are working or have worked with Cirque du Soleil, Blue Man Group, the U.S. Army Band, Marriott Corporation, Rascal Flatts, Janis Ian, LeAnn Rimes, Kenny Chesney, George Strait, Emerson Drive, Björk, Gordon Mote, Gaither Vocal Band, Philip Glass, Gil Scott Heron and more!

Our graduates include:

• Tom Graham – Scotty McCreery, Greta Van Fleet (Nashville, Tennessee)
• David Angel – U.S. Navy Commodores (Washington, D.C.)
• Brian “Smitty” Smith – Apple (Cupertino, California)
• Michael Brown – Meyer Sound (East Coast)
• Alex Slohm – The Magic Shop (New York City)
• Scott Kidd – Nashville engineer, producer, Rascal Flatts, George Strait, Wooten Brothers
• Justin Derrico – Guitarist for Pink
• Nate Zwald – Nashville engineer, producer, Gordon Mote, CCM artists
• Zach Fisher – Nashville session drummer
• Iciho Nishiki – Phillip Glass and Björk
• Dave Dell – ESPN & U.S. Air Force Band
• Lou Kohley – U.S. Air Force Band of the Golden West Concert Band
• Andrew Keen– Blue Man Group, sound engineer
• Beth Trez – Trez Music Education Center (Mechanicsville, Pennsylvania)
• John Terrell – Virginia Beach-area engineer, producer
• Dan Shores – Grammy Award winner and managing director, Sono Luminus Studio, Dorian Records
• Dan Mercurio– Grammy Award winner and in-house producer, Sono Luminus (Boyce, Virginia)

Classes

You’ll learn in small, focused classes, participate in performance ensembles, record groups and performances, and compose and produce projects. This program offers more than great facilities. You’ll spend time in the studio; take private voice/instrument lessons; perform in ensembles; learn from distinguished faculty as well as world-class guest artists and lecturers; record at more than 100 recitals and concerts on- and off-campus, across disciplines and in a host of venues; and design your own internship at a place of your choice (including music hubs like New York City, Los Angeles, and Nashville). Beginning in your freshman year, you’ll gain hands-on experience in the recording studio, working with state of the art equipment and technology.

Classical & Jazz Emphasis

Depending on your instrument you will either complete the Jazz or Classical Applied Emphasis in Music Production & Recording Technology.

View Full MPRT Classical Emphasis Curriculum

View Full MPRT Jazz Emphasis Curriculum

Shenandoah Conservatory’s digital and analog recording studio includes all the tools needed by today’s sound pros:

• Solid State Logic (SSL) Duality console
• DIGICO SD9 digital console in the Ohrstrom-Bryant Theatre
• Avid S6 M40 work surface
• Dolby Atmos RMU
• A full array of outboard signal processing equipment
• State-of-the-art microphones
• Pro Tools Ultimate
• Sibelius
• Digital Performer
• Ableton Live
• Nuendo
• Logic Pro Studio
• MIDI and analog synthesizer equipment

Other program facilities include a 9.1.4 immersive mixing suite with an Avid S6-M40 worksurface for surround sound (music and picture), “The Blue Room” mixing and composition studio, a computer lab with audio stations and the “Studio X” experimental lab for beginners.

Performance Opportunities & Ensembles

Music Production & Recording Technology students with great interest in performance are encouraged to audition for the Shenandoah Conservatory Performance Certificate program. The program allows students to study additional repertoire in the applied lessons, perform recitals and receive documentation of advanced performance abilities (without pursuing dual degrees). Moreover, the completion of a performance certificate informs graduate schools and future employers of the student’s advanced performance education and experience. We encourage all students to pursue a Performance Certificate. The Performance Certificate allows you to take lessons during your seventh semester and present a Senior Recital.

Auditions for music theatre and opera productions are open to all students.

Shenandoah Conservatory produces more than 300 performances each year. Enroll in a dynamic curriculum and start preparing for a meaningful career in the arts. You will practice your craft in front of audiences and develop a plan for your professional launch into the industry that focuses on your personal desires and aspirations.

Embrace extensive performance opportunities with top-tier facilities from theatres, concert halls and dance studios. Unite with fellow artists and join an alumni family that takes center stage from Broadway to the concert halls of Europe.

Meet the Faculty

Our small, focused program and low faculty-student ratio mean you’ll receive attention from caring faculty who themselves work professionally in the field.

Experience the world-renowned Shenandoah Conservatory. Study with master teachers – more than 100 professionals in music, theatre, dance and arts management.

Shenandoah Conservatory’s prestigious faculty is dynamic, creative, and passionately committed to the highest levels of artistic excellence. A deeply caring community, they mentor students with a wealth of professional expertise, balancing rigorous expectations with compassion and wisdom. At Shenandoah, you will study with, and perform for, award-winning composers, Metropolitan Opera singers, Grammy Award winning conductors and international competition winners. You will learn from leading scholars in music and premiere works created by accomplished dance artists and cutting-edge directors. Shenandoah Conservatory’s faculty embodies the highest levels of professional accomplishment and the deepest commitment to furthering the artistic growth and creative aspirations of students in every discipline.

Related Programs

Students interested in this program should also look into these other majors, graduate degrees, minors, and certificates.

These minors complement this program well:

• Business Administration
• Entrepreneurship
• Music

You may want to think about enhancing your degree with these certificates that pair well with this program:

• Church Music

Most students in this program choose to continue their education by earning a graduate degree:

• Performing Arts Leadership & Management

Application & Audition Information

Shenandoah University works on rolling admissions. Applications are reviewed individually and holistically.

Submit your application, review required admissions materials, and find our admissions standards.

Admission to Shenandoah Conservatory is highly competitive. Not only must students be academically admissible, they must also complete and pass the mandatory audition/portfolio review and interview process. Audition dates are limited and may fill and close well in advance of the audition date.

Acceptable Instruments for This Program

Not all instruments are suitable to fit every major. Below are the acceptable instruments for this program.

Depending on your instrument you will either complete the Jazz or Classical Applied Emphasis in Music Production & Recording Technology.

Classical Emphasis

• Bassoon
• Cello
• Clarinet
• Double Bass (classical)
• Euphonium/ Baritone
• Flute
• French Horn
• Guitar (classical)
• Harp
• Oboe
• Organ
• Percussion (classical)
• Piano(classical)
• Saxophone(classical)
• Trombone(classical)
• Trumpet(classical)
• Tuba
• Viola
• Violin
• Voice

Jazz Emphasis

• Double Bass ( jazz)
• Electric Bass (jazz)
• Electric Guitar (jazz)
• Percussion ( jazz)
• Piano (jazz)
• Saxophone ( jazz)
• Trombone (jazz)
• Trumpet ( jazz)

Study Abroad

Make studying abroad the highlight of your college experience! Whether you go for a year, a semester, or just a few weeks, you will never forget learning in another culture! The Center for International Programs is here to help you plan your study abroad experience. Start your planning early to ensure the courses you complete abroad count toward your degree and you graduate on time.

Global Experiential Learning (GEL) Program

The Global Experiential Learning (GEL) Program offers Shenandoah students a short-term, faculty-led, study-abroad experience for academic credit. These short-term, credit-bearing, faculty-led programs are offered winter break, spring break, and during the summer. If a course is not within your major, it might be used as an elective.

Fast-Track to Arts Management

Accelerated PALM Program

The Master of Science in Performing Arts Leadership and Management is designed to provide future performing arts executives and artistic leaders with the industry skills required in the 21st century. The accelerated program in Performing Arts Leadership and Management is available for current Shenandoah Conservatory undergraduates who, upon completion of their undergraduate degree, wish to obtain a Master of Science in Performing Arts Leadership and Management in just one year. Students who are accepted into the accelerated program will begin to take arts leadership and management courses during their undergraduate studies and register for internship during the summer between senior year and their final year of graduate study.

Industry Equipment & Spaces

Blue Room

The Blue Room is a cozy workplace for students to learn and practice their craft of editing and mixing. Equipped with an array of software, the room is designed to promote collaborative learning by having students observing each other’s work. The space resembles a home/professional studio that is very common in the industry today. Students are able to use this space anytime during the week in increments of two-hour blocks after passing a hands-on proficiency exam.

Immersive Audio Dolby Atmos Suite

Our Immersive Audio Dolby Atmos Suite is equipped with an Avid S6 control surface. Software applications include the Dolby Atmos Mastering suite, Pro Tools Ultimate and an Avid HDX system featuring the Avid MTRX along with DADman software to control the 9.2.4 monitoring system powered by PMC speakers. Students learn how to create immersive mixes with the full capability of rendering DTS and Dolby Atmos mix files.

Ruebush Control Room

Our main studio features an SSL (Solid State Logic) Duality 48 channel analog console/worksurface. As the heartbeat of the recording studio, the SSL Duality is a control surface for software and also an analog console. The space is equipped with a Pro Tools HDX system, Dante enabled Focusrite RedNet system and various software packages, including Apple Logic, Cubase and Nuendo, along with a state-of-the-art microphone collection.

Alumni Successes

Shores ’99 and Jónsdóttir Win Icelandic Music Award for Producer of the

Year

Neal ’24 Serves as Monitor Engineer for Kim Walker-Smith’s Tour

Shaw ’11 and Telegraph Quartet Begin Three-Year Residency at SMTD

Alumni Highlights

Michael Valentini ’18

B.M. in Music Production & Recording Technology

Michael Valentini was recently honored with a Virginia Association of Broadcasters (VAB) Award for Best Radio Commercial in a Large Market in 2024. He received the award for his production of the 30-second commercial “Terror Woods.” Valentini is currently based in the Virginia Beach area, where he works in audio production and provides voice talent for the morning show at FM99 WNOR.

Shenandoah’s MPRT program gave me an incredibly strong foundation of skills both in the studio and in attention to detail, both of which I bring to every project I work on. Even though radio is a somewhat ‘outside-the-norm’ career path, what I learned at SU helps me go above and beyond the standard of audio production in local radio.”

Amry Truitt ’23

B.M. in Music Production & Recording Technology

Upon graduating Shenandoah Conservatory, I had the opportunity to intern at Blackbird Studios in Nashville, where I acquired extensive knowledge of various audio setups and the essential skills required to excel as an audio engineer. During this internship, I was privileged to serve as an assistant engineer on a project for Tokyo Disney’s new venture, Tokyo DisneySea. Witnessing the music for their park come to life through the performances of studio musicians was an exhilarating experience. Currently, I am undertaking an apprenticeship at Sound Emporium Studios in Nashville. This position allows me to learn from distinguished professionals which are enhancing my expertise as an audio engineer.

Shenandoah University is not only a beautiful campus to be at but I believe that the faculty in the MPRT program prepared me to excel in my career. I am very appreciative of this program as I have seen and learned that it surpasses a lot of instructions that are provided by many other institutions.”