2-Year Online Evening Program
Fall 2024 registration is now closed, but Fall 2025 is just around the corner!
We are returning to our roots and bringing back our original evening program in an online format. This program offers 2 hour classes once or twice a week over the course of two years covering film scoring basics, music theory, orchestration, and will culminate with students writing a film cue with one-on-one mentorship and recording it with professional musicians.
This program is open to all education and skill levels, and ages 16 and up!
2-year Core Curriculum
All students on the 2-year evening program track must take courses Film Scoring 1-5. Additional classes are optional (optional classes listed in next section).
Year 1, Quarter 1, Fall
FS1: Tenets of Professional Film Composing
Prerequisites: None
Class Length: 2 hour class per week over 10 weeks
Time: Mondays from 5:15pm - 7:15pm (PST)
Cost: $900
Tenets of Professional Film Composing is a fundamental overview of key logistical concepts and practices of which any professional film composer should know. Over a 10 week span this course will explore the utility of artistic concepts such as a film score policy, vocabulary, spotting notes & timing notes, as well as business practices such as writing contracts, cue sheets, and establishing a PRO affiliation. Additionally it will cover the basic roles of a film team and discuss how to avoid contention in the vital relationship between composer and director. The purpose of this course is to provide budding composers with often easily overlooked yet practical and actionable insight which lies beyond the realm of their manuscript paper, notation softwares, and digital audio workstations. One might be a proficient composer, but this does not guarantee one’s success as a proficient film composer... this course will serve as an introductory instruction as to how to achieve the latter outcome.
PLEASE NOTE: Students must pass a music theory exam to be admitted into FS2. For students who may not have strong theory skills we recommend taking the optional class Foundational Music Theory (scroll down to the optional classes for more info).
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Year 1, Quarter 2, Winter
FS2: Music Theory for the Modern Composer 1
Prerequisites: Successful completion of FS1
Class Length: 2 hour class per week over 10 weeks
Time: Mondays from 5:15pm - 7:15pm (PST)
Cost: $900
A deeper dive into specific, advanced music theory concepts tailored for use in composing modern tonal music. Learn how to broaden your toolkit of compositional techniques, understand effective melodic writing, and get a glimpse into high level Film Composition Theory.
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Year 1, Quarter 3, Spring
FS3: Music Theory for the Modern Composer 2
Prerequisites: Successful completion of FS2
Class Length: 2 hour class per week over 10 weeks
Time: Mondays from 5:15pm - 7:15pm (PST)
Cost: $900
This course is designed to complete an essential understanding of music theory and build directly off the concepts covered in Music Theory for the Modern Composer 1. In this course, we will cover chord voicings and how to create them, constructing textures and melodies, and some new harmonic approaches to specific dramatic situations. In combination with Theory 1, this course will give students the music theory background and tools to compose music for a wide range of projects and media.
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Year 1, Summer: Off
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Year 2, Quarter 1, Fall
FS4: Intro to Practical Orchestration
Prerequisites: Successful completion of FS3
Class Length: 2 hour class per week over 10 weeks
Time: Mondays from 5:15pm - 7:15pm (PST)
Cost: $900
This course covers orchestration specifically focusing on works to be recorded in a professional studio environment, with an emphasis on practical considerations for orchestrating music in an highly idiomatic way. There are a variety of techniques that work only in the studio and not in a concert hall, and vice versa. An understanding of these differences, as well as the details of scoring for various instrument families, will help increase the playability and effectiveness of your music.
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Year 2, Quarters 2-3, Winter-Spring
FS5: Practical Application of Film Scoring
Prerequisites: Successful completion of FS4
Class Length: 1-2 weekly meetings over 20 weeks
Time: Individual meeting times scheduled with advisor
Cost: $2,400
Over the course of 20 weeks students will work on a film cue with one-on-one weekly mentorship meetings. Students will go through the full process of spotting a scene, creating thematic material, writing and orchestrating the cue, creating tempo maps/click tracks, scores and parts, and recording the piece with an ensemble of professional musicians.
Students who may not be well versed in notation software or DAWs may want to consider taking the additional classes covering each listed in the optional classes below.
Students who successfully complete this course can retake it as many times as they like to work on other cues and build their skill sets and demo reels.
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Year 2, Summer: Final recording session for FS5. Students can attend in person or remotely.
Optional Classes
These classes are not required but are recommended for students who are not as well versed in music theory, software notation, or DAWs.
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Optional classes are open to anyone 16 and up, students do not need to be enrolled in the 2-year evening program to take these classes.
Year 1, Quarter 1, Fall
Foundational Music Theory
Prerequisites: None
Class Length: 2 hour class per week over 10 weeks
Time: Thursdays from 5:15pm - 7:15pm (PST)
Cost: $900
A review or introduction into the world of Music Theory. Gain understanding into the Musical Elements, Music Terminology, Key Identification, Compositional Tools, and much more. The perfect class for musicians who are transitioning into Composers or anyone interested in forming a deeper appreciation into how music is structured and how it functions.
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Year 1, Quarter 2, Winter
Music Notation Standards: Best Practices for Score and Part Preparation
Prerequisites: None
Class Length: 2 hour class per week over 10 weeks
Time: Thursdays from 5:15pm - 7:15pm (PST)
Cost: $900
This course will educate students on the professional sheet music standards that modern film scoring sessions adhere to. It will focus on how to use sheet music to communicate the intent of the composer clearly to the musicians and conductor. In this course how to make scores and parts look clean, clear, and professional. Sheet music is how musicians interact with and perform your music, and this course seeks to give you the tools to communicate your intent as effectively as possible.
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Year 1, Quarter 3, Spring
Introduction to Digital Audio Workstations
Prerequisites: None
Class Length: 2 hour class per week over 10 weeks
Time: Thursdays from 5:15pm - 7:15pm (PST)
Cost: $900
All recorded music, whether acoustic, electronic, or something in-between, is produced through a Digital Audio Workstation, or DAW, making these a necessary tool for any aspiring composer. While there are many options out there for which DAW to use, the fundamentals behind how they function and how to mix music remain the same regardless of which one you choose to work in. This course will introduce you to the basics of how to work within a DAW and some of the fundamentals to mixing, including the use of different plug-ins and typical industry practices. A brief overview of some of the most common DAWs will also be provided to showcase some of the differences and similarities between these pieces of software.
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Additional optional classes are being planned including software specific courses for Finale, Sibelius, Dorico, Digital Performer, Logic, Cubase, and Protools, as well as classes on ear training, mixing, songwriting, and more! Stay tuned for more information and updates.
Student Equipment Requirements
Students in the 2-year Evening Program will need to own the following equipment:
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Computer
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Printer and scanner (can be separate or an all-in-one unit)
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Webcam and microphone (if the webcam has a mic or your computer has a built in one you do not need a separate mic)
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Some kind of Digital Audio Workstation (Logic, Digital Performer, Cubase, Ableton, etc.)
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Some kind of notation software (Finale, Sibelius, Dorico, MuseScore, etc.)
Cost of the Evening Program
The total cost of the evening program if taking just the core curriculum (FS1-5) is $6000. Payment is made per class (so not $6000 all at once) when you register before each quarter.
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The optional classes are $900 each and are not required to complete the program.
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FS5 may be retaken as many times as you like after first completing it if you want to work on additional film cues and obtain more recordings for your reel. The cost of that class will remain the same each time, there is no discount for retaking it (we have to pay the musicians, after all).
Refund Policy
All course cancellations are subject to a non-refundable cancellation fee of $50.00 and a refund schedule. Refund requests must be made by email to sammy@pnwfilmmusic.com.
After deducting a $50.00 cancellation fee, refunds are available on the following schedule:
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Requests received 30 days before class start, 100%.
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Requests received less than 30 days before class start, 70%..
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Requests received before 3rd class meeting, 50%.
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Thereafter, no refund can be issued.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are classes prerecorded and I can view them whenever I want?
No, all classes happen live over Zoom and students must attend them when they happen.
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Can the classes I take be transferred to other schools?
No, all classes are non-credit classes and cannot be transferred to other schools.
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Do I need specific software for the evening program?
Students in the evening program will need some kind of DAW for creating tempo maps and click tracks and some kind of notation software to create scores and parts. We do not require any specific programs or any specific versions. If you are not already familiar with a particular notation software or DAW we recommend taking the optional classes that cover them.
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Why aren't you using a remote orchestra in Europe? Wouldn't that be cheaper?
While we feel that the remote scoring orchestras in Europe are a great resource for budget conscious composers, we also firmly believe in supporting our local musicians, engineers, and studios here in Seattle. We also want to be able to give our students the chance to actually attend the session in person if they like.