Music Management and Creative Enterprise
Full-time
Three year
September 2025
In a nutshell
Are you passionate about new music? Do you want to develop your skills in entrepreneurship? Would you like to help aspiring musicians achieve success? If so, our Music Management and Creative Enterprise degree will provide you with the tools and training you need to take the first step in your career.
This programme focuses on established industry practice, grass-roots development, artistic creativity and contemporary digital marketing and distribution techniques, giving you all the skills, you need to build your professional profile in music management.
You’ll study music management from a broad range of perspectives and interactions, from leading professionals, emerging trailblazers, influencers and of course the artists themselves. Studying at Salford means you’ll have access to Greater Manchester’s vibrant music scene, giving you further opportunities to lay the foundations of your career and make crucial industry contacts.
Want to learn more about what it’s like to study music management? You can sign up to an Open Day or attend a campus tour. You can also follow our Music at Salford Instagram account #MusicatSalford
You will:
- Take full advantage of the region’s world-renowned music scene and form important industry connections
- Collaborate with fellow students to study music management in the context of music, arts, fashion, media and multimedia
- Work with industry briefs and budgets to get a feel for working within music management
students accepted
This is for you if...
You want to learn from industry professionals about music management and wider cultural arts sectors.
You want to develop and hone skills in project management, digital marketing and distribution techniques.
You want to become an entrepreneurial self-starter and use creativity to promote artists and their work.
All about the course
On this course you will learn what it’s like to be a manager within the music sector, including artist management, music publishing, copyright legislation, distribution, and marketing. You’ll have the chance to manage your own public and industry-focused projects, from launching your own record label to organising events.
Combining creativity and business, this course will help you to develop skills in video production, photography, journalism and merchandising – all highly valued by employers and designed to help you stand out from the crowd.
Want to find out more? Read more about each module below.
Introduction to Music Management
This module provides an introduction and examination of the UK and global contemporary music industry. You will study established organisational and economic structures, their historical contexts and the subsequent digital disruption. You will be introduced to concepts of copyright, authorship and ownership as well as production, press, radio, marketing and distribution. You will chart the fundamental shift from analogue to digital culture, technology and the rise of streaming, social media, crowdsourcing and funding.
Content Production Skills
Creativity doesn't stop once the music has been written and recorded. Social media and other online platforms present infinite opportunities for you to support your campaigns with imaginative, collaborative or self-authored content. In this module you will be introduced to a variety of multimedia production techniques empowering you to commission or create your own content. These disciplines include graphic, photographic and video production.
You will learn from experts in each field including lecturers from the wider School of Arts & Media who will introduce you to creative processes, software and cutting edge equipment in a series of hands-on technical and creative workshops.
Music Rights Management, Publishing, Synchronisation and Sponsorship
How do composers, musicians and record labels collect revenue, what are the challenges of ownership and the new opportunities in this postmodern digital age? This module will take an in-depth look at intellectual and mechanical property rights, royalty collection societies, publishing and label deal structures, as well as how artists and music owners are generating revenue by exploiting secondary rights such as the likes of synchronisation and through brand association.
You will examine the fundamentals of the music industry, including how we actually define a song, copyright law and the historical challenges that led to the formation of the Performing Rights Society, Mechanical Copyright Protection Society and the Phonographic Performance Limited.
You will also study how the industry and music-economy responded to the challenges of sampling, the rise of piracy, digital downloading and most recently, streaming. A strong grasp of these core concepts are crucial for all those who wish to enter the music industry helping you to maximise and generate new income, manage rights and negotiate agreements.
Popular Music History and Culture
Those wishing to enter into the field of music management must not only possess a broad knowledge and skill-set surrounding the business aspect but also music itself, and as its cultural, historical and socio-economic contexts.
All contemporary musical forms are predicated on what came before, from compositional, recording trends and techniques, and movements in youth culture, though to advancements in technology, communication ;and modes of distribution. This module will expand your repertoire and frame of reference by developing your understanding of popular post-war, English-language musical forms.
Your lectures and seminars will chart the birth of rock n roll and the advent of the teenager, via prog and punk, through to dance and hip-hop, landing in the mid-to-late 1980s and the prevalence of mass postmodern forms. You will be taught academic skills in critical thinking and writing, giving you the tools to deconstruct and analyse pivotal artists, genres and associated movements, helping you understand and appreciate historical and contemporary popular music in context of a variety of interdisciplinary, artistic and socio-cultural spheres.
Popular Music and Postmodernity
Extending themes and continuing the timeline established in 'Popular Music History and Culture', this module examines key artists and movements from the end of twentieth century and into the twenty first. From grunge to grime, you will examine the disruptive factors that led to the erosion and micro-fragmentation of genre. You will learn academic research techniques and examine postmodernist theory, helping you to decode the ever increasingly complex, evolving and revolving, self-referential musical forms and movements produced today.
Social Media, Press and Creative Content
This module introduces you to techniques that are used to effectively launch and sustain an integrated social-media marketing and press campaign. You will research and study artist, brand and creative organisation case-studies as well as specialist and new music discovery websites, magazines and influencers. Learn how to write and distribute your own press release as well as all about the integral role of the publicist. Workshops will give you further opportunity for you to hone your skills in multimedia and content creation, with a particular focus video content production and platforms.
Video is a powerful storytelling medium, not only can it serve as a prime proving ground for a promotional campaign, it’s emotionally resonant combination of sound, motion, and visuals can also help you reach further and deeper; producing more satisfying relationships between artists and audiences.
Artist Development and Management
The relationship between artist and manager is an ever evolving partnership. In the beginning the manager is often responsible for fulfilling a plethora of roles in order to establish an artist with audiences and the industry alike. If successful, a manager could eventually see themselves overseeing a vast collaborative network with many moving parts. In lectures you will hear from managers from all level, and how they must combine a full 360-view of the industry with a real duty of care towards their artists.
Through the presentation of a variety of considered management styles, practices and protocols, you will learn how to not just effectively combine all the knowledge and skills you have learnt and developed up to now, but also the techniques required to balance and manage your artist's personal, interpersonal, creative and emotional development. This includes notions of how the manager is integral in helping to guide the development of an artist's repertoire and even production aesthetic.
You will learn about the crucial role of the producer along with gaining an insight into production processes, recording techniques and terminologies; whether they be demo recording at home, or working in a professional studio environment, from pre-production, through to mastering and delivery.
Arts Enterprise
This module will equip you with the knowledge and skills to work within and influence an ever-evolving music industry as well as the wider cultural and arts sectors. You will study business practices and aspects that will aid your own personal and professional development, equipping you with the tools to work self-employed, within established institutions or to launch your own enterprise.
From project management, leadership and team-working skills, to tax and accounting, pitching, fundraising, applying for grants, crowdsourcing and impact evaluation; you will seek out new markets, propose and demonstrate your own business plan. You will start to build your own professional network, study a variety of your own and university-partnered industry case studies and hear from a variety of influential creative entrepreneurs, arts professionals, business leaders and lecturers from the university's Business School.
Digital Marketing, Communication and Futures
This module aims to develop expertise in online marketing, distribution, social media and communication strategies. You will study how to implement and integrate a range of disciplines, tools and platforms, quantitative and qualitative analysis, content and search engine optimisation, and how to predict the very latest trends and innovations. You will study a variety of tools and techniques that will help your project reach further and wider by researching, building and presenting your own comprehensive strategy framework. Expertise and case-studies will come from a variety of perspectives, including the music and creative industries, wider marketing specialists and the University of Salford Business School.
Event Management, Promotion and Touring
The live sector is very much the lifeblood of the music industry, suppling opportunities for artists and audiences to truly connect through visceral and irreplaceable experiences. Grassroots live music events are often the proving ground for not just new artists but those looking to break into the music industry in general, whereas touring and festivals often provide the highest proportion of revenue for many when building a career.
This module combines the practices and protocols involved in the management, curation and promotion of a live music event. You will also learn how the touring industry is organised, hearing from and meeting booking agents, grassroots, national and festival promotors, event organisers, tour managers and engineers. In teams, you will project manage and stage your own real-word event in the heart of Manchester's vibrant music scene including: choosing a venue, programming, creative branding, ticketing, promoting, crewing, assessing and mitigating risk.
Music Journalism
This module provides an overview of journalistic methodologies as applied to the fields of music and the music industry. You will examine and construct a variety of forms of journalistic output as related to music as well as develop a critical understanding of the interrelationship between market, industry and culture.
Releasing Music and Label Management
Social media, digital downloads and streaming have irrevocably revolutionised not only how we consume music but also how and who can publish and distribute it. Whilst major labels are still an integral part of the industry, has the democratisation of the internet has gone a large way to levelling the previously uneven playing field. You will meet a range of people involved in releasing music at every level, from those running established labels to self-releasing DIY artists and managers.
You will then consolidate the knowledge and skills you have learnt in this and other modules to propose and make your own digital release. You will focus on recording agreements, accounting, royalty distribution, aggregation, promotion, marketing, social media, PR, radio and play-listing. In addition, whilst not as prevalent, releasing physical product is still important and integral to many markets. You will learn why certain artists continue to release CDs, and audiences alike fetishise vinyl. You will research the latest point-of-sale to data and trends, including how labels add value to their physical product as well as how, why and where fans buy what they do.
Professional and Creative Practice 1
Working in teams, this module is an opportunity for you to put into practice the culmination of your previous two years of study by planning an ambitious, real-world project. Likely you will help realise your passions by choosing to create and even combine: an artist release campaign or launch, an artist collaboration, an event, business or social enterprise. You will be required to engage a full 360-degree managerial view of a complex project, balancing your own objectives with those you are collaborating with.
Delivery will be through a combination of lectures and weekly team supervisions.
Professional and Creative Practice 2
In this module you will carry forward your own, peer and project supervisor feedback from Professional and Creative Practice 1; adjusting your plans accordingly and then subsequently executing your ambitious music integrated music project. You will be expected to manage your own learning and scheme of work, presenting weekly group progress reports to your project supervisor
Specialist Study 1 (Project Scope MM&CE)
This module enables you to undertake a comprehensive project encompassing two areas of specialist study. Choose from Dissertation, Collaborative Practice, Work Based Study, Collection of Writings, or Contemporary and Contextual Study. It assists in the realisation of creative work (practical and/or written) and hones your artistic and academic skills base.
Specialist Study 2 (Negotiated Major Project MM&CE)
This module is an opportunity to further develop one of your specialist areas of study you undertook in the previous semester. Choose from: Dissertation, Collaborative Practice, Work Based Study, Collection of Writings, or Contemporary and Contextual Study. It assists the realisation of creative work (practical and/or written), encourages the development of a personal style within the chosen field of study, and hones your creative, professional and academic skills base, preparing you for your career ahead.
Please note that it may not be possible to deliver the full list of options every year as this will depend on factors such as how many students choose a particular option. Exact modules may also vary in order to keep content current. When accepting your offer of a place to study on this programme, you should be aware that not all optional modules will be running each year. Your tutor will be able to advise you as to the available options on or before the start of the programme. Whilst the University tries to ensure that you are able to undertake your preferred options, it cannot guarantee this.
BE A PART OF A CREATIVE, SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY
All our Music courses are delivered by the Salford School of Arts, Media, and Creative Technology. Our focus is to ensure that you have the skills you need to pursue your dreams, and we encourage our students, past and present, to collaborate with each other and achieve great things.
Each year - through the Create Student Awards – our School rewards the incredible achievements and successes of our final year and postgraduate students.
Whatever you choose to study with us, you’ll be mentored and supported by experts. And once you graduate, it won’t end there. You’ll join a thriving alumni network across the UK and beyond, meaning you’ll be supported professionally and personally whenever you need it.
Music Facilities
Our full range of music facilities include:
Recording Studios - our six studios contain everything from analogue recording hardware and tape machines, extensive microphone collections, a large selection of drum machines and effect processing possibilities, and software platforms.
Voice Acting Studio – our recording environment for radio drama or video game production.
Computer Suite – Our twenty-six workstations are equipped with licenses for all of the software we teach.
7.1 Mix - a teaching space designed for mixing in 7.1 and 5.1 surround.
Studio 9 – Composition Lab - this studio facility is equipped with an impressive range of hardware including many synthesizers such as DSI OB6, Korg MS20, Roland Juno 106, Moog Sub Phatty, Korg Volca FM, Vermona DRM Mk3 accessed through a full MIDI interface / patchbay. The space is acoustically treated and equipped for 5.1 mixdown.
Rehearsal Facilities - our New Adelphi Building houses twenty-six rehearsal spaces designed to facilitate popular and classical ensemble rehearsals, individual practice, one-to-one instrumental tuition and ensemble teaching.
PERFORMANCE SPACES
Our performance assessments, public concerts and masterclasses take place across a number of spaces on and off campus. We operate a high-quality modular PA system which is employed across:
Peel Hall - a three-hundred seat concert hall with excellent acoustics. The hall is used extensively by our large ensembles.
New Adelphi Theatre - the 350-seat theatre features flexible seating configurations to suit a range of events and performances. It is equipped with a range of intelligent and generic lighting, a highly adaptable EM Acoustics PA system, and a high-powered Christie projector.
Atmosphere - our student union bar and venue host a number of staff and student led performances throughout the year.
What about after uni?
EMPLOYMENT
Throughout your degree you’ll build the foundations needed to pursue a variety of career options, including working within a record label, as an artist manager or as a festival director. But the possibilities don’t end there. With the business skills you’ll acquire throughout your studies, you can also consider starting your own enterprise, working as a self-employed practitioner or freelancer.
FURTHER STUDY
Graduates showing strong academic and research skills can pursue a further postgraduate path through postgraduate programmes on a full-time or part-time basis subject to a satisfactory proposal.
Career Links
Our music degree programmes enjoy an ever growing range of partnerships that will give you direct access to and experience working within the industry. These include:
- Sounds from the Other City Festival
- Manchester International Festival
- Low Four (lowfour.tv)
- Off The Record
- Manchester Collective
- 80 HERTZ Studios
- BBC Philharmonic
The degree also employs an extensive programme of guest lectures and masterclasses from industry speakers and artists.
What you need to know
APPLICANT PROFILE
You should be passionate about music as well as arts and culture in general. Perhaps you are looking to build upon existing experiences, or you have been active in your local music scene and ready to take that next step, or maybe you're simply a music fan looking to break into the industry.
To gain a place on this degree, you’ll have to submit a personal statement and meet our entry requirements when you apply.
Within your personal statement (up to 500 words), we’ll want to understand:
- what motivates you and what current experiences do you have in music?
- have you had active involvement in music management and what did you do?
- what musicians and organisations inspire you?
- why do you want to work in the music sector?
- and why the University of Salford and this degree is the right choice for your future goals.
You may be asked to attend an interview with the programme leader in order to discuss your application, appropriate experience, interests, passions and aspirations. We will let you know if that is the case once we have processed your application.
GCSE
English Language at grade C/level 4 or above (or equivalent) is required. Maths at grade C/level 4 or above (or equivalent) is preferred but not essential.
You must fulfil our GCSE entry requirements as well as one of the requirements listed below.
UCAS tariff points
96 points.
If applying to start from September 2024, you will need 104-112 points.
A level
96 points.
If applying to start from September 2024, you will need 104-112 points.
T level
Merit
BTEC
MMM
Access to HE
Pass Level 3 Access to HE Diploma with 104-120 points.
If applying to start from September 2024, you will need 104-112 points.
Scottish Highers
104-120 points.
If applying to start from September 2024, you will need 104-112 points.
Irish Leaving Certificate
104-120 points.
If applying to start from September 2024, you will need 104-112 points.
International Baccalaureate
31 points.
European Baccalaureate
Pass Diploma with 71-75% overall (in a relevant subject).
International students
We accept qualifications from all around the world. Find your country to see a full list of entry requirements.
If you are an international student and not from a majority English speaking country, you will need IELTS 6.0 with no element below 5.5.
We also accept a range of other English language qualifications. If you do not have the English language requirements, you could take the Pre-Sessional English course to gain entry onto this degree.
Salford Alternative Entry Scheme (SAES)
We positively welcome applications from students who may not meet the stated entry criteria but who can demonstrate their ability to successfully pursue a programme of study in higher education. Students who do not have the traditional entry requirements may be able to apply through the Salford Alternative Entry Scheme.
Support in preparing for the written assessment is available from the university.
How much?
Type of study | Year | Fees |
---|---|---|
Full-time home | 2025/26 | £9,250.00per year |
Full-time international | 2025/26 | £17,650.00per year |
Additional costs
You should also consider further costs which may include books, stationery, printing, binding and general subsistence on trips and visits.
Scholarships for International Students
If you are a high-achieving international student, you may be eligible for one of our scholarships. Explore our international scholarships.