MP 1400 - How Digital Audio Works

Credits: 3
Course Type: Studio

In this freshman-level foundations course, students will be introduced to key concepts regarding the theory and applied practice of recording and manipulating digital audio signals. Students will learn basic concepts in acoustics, psychoacoustics, and the mechanical capture, representation, and reproduction of digital audio. Students will also acquire applied skills, including how to edit and export sound files of various formats, create sound sample libraries, synthesize sound using software instruments, sequence MIDI notes, produce and arrange sound using multiple Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs), route digital audio signals and track signal-flow, and apply effects processing plugins.

Prerequisites: None

Notes: Exemption available through diagnostic exam.

Course Learning Outcomes:

Record, edit, process, and export audio in alignment with digital audio theory.
Produce libraries of recorded and synthesized sounds.
Demonstrate basic Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) operations.
Produce music by sequencing MIDI information and using software instruments.
Apply foundational concepts in acoustics and psychoacoustics in the recording and production of music.
Apply appropriate audio effects using plugins.

MP1400 Course Learning Outcomes Rubric