Digital Media Frequently Asked Questions

The first thing to do is review the dual credit info on the UCM website.

For the most part, you will not notice a difference as a DMT student if you’re taking dual credit or if you’re not taking dual credit. That means we’re doing most of the work to earn dual credit as part of our class.

Dual credit students will have a few extra assignments depending on the dual credit courses they sign up for.

In short, you’re getting affordable college credit, taught by Harrel as part of your experience in Digital Media Technology.

Music 1410 Fundamentals of Music Technology I: Hardware (.5 credit hour)

Course Description:

Overview of music technology and audio hardware, including basic operating principles, terminology, and real-world applications.

Purpose of this course:

Provide students with an introduction to and working knowledge of music technology and audio hardware, including microphones, mixing consoles, loudspeakers, amplifiers, cables, and more.

Course objectives:

After completing Fundamentals of Music Technology: Hardware, students will understand how basic hardware components of audio systems work, how to operate them, and how to interface them to accomplish common tasks in sound reinforcement, recording, and other audio production contexts.

Music 1420 Fundamentals of Music Technology I: Software (.5 credit hour)

Course description:

Overview of music technology and audio software, including basic operating principles, terminology, and real-world applications.

Purpose of this course:

Provide students with an introduction to and working knowledge of standard music technology and audio software, focusing on Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) applications and common audio processing plug-ins.

Course objectives:

After completing Fundamentals of Music Technology I: Software, students will understand what Digital Audio Workstation applications are intended to do, how to operate them, and how to expand their functionality with plug-ins to accomplish common audio production tasks.

Music 1470 Fundamentals of Music Technology II (1 credit hour)

Course objectives:

Fundamentals of music technology and audio production. Signal processing, system operation, and other core topics. Prerequisites: Mus 1410 and Mus 1420.

Purpose of this course:

Build upon Fundamentals of Music Technology I: Hardware and Fundamentals of Music Technology I: Software to complete the introduction of the core fundamentals of audio production, equipping students with the foundational knowledge required for success in more advanced courses.

Course objectives:

After completing Fundamentals of Music Technology II students will possess a working knowledge of common signal processing techniques, typical approaches to session setup and organization, industry-standard solutions for common production challenges, and other core knowledge relevant to most live sound and audio production environments.

COMM 1519 Media Aesthetics (3 credit hours)

Course Description:

This course focuses on the analysis and production of fundamental image and sound elements in visual and aural media. During this course, we will cover the following topics:

1. Media Literacy-critical consumption of media and critical thinking about mediated programs.
2. Media Convergence-technologies now allow messages to be produced and consumed through various media.
3. Critical Analysis of media aesthetics, including:
   •  Light
   • Color
   • Two-dimensional Space
   • Three-dimensional Space
   • Editing (Time and Motion)
   • Sound
4. Developing messages for mass media, including:
   • Semiotics
   • Media aesthetics
   • Screen grammar and conventions

Course Objectives (At the end of this class, each student will be able to):

1. Understand and provide examples of each aesthetic field.
2. Produce messages that incorporate and exemplify each aesthetic field.
3. Critically analyze the aesthetic fields in a film or video.