← Music Technology syllabus

ScotlandMusic Technology

Area 2: Sound Recording and the Creative Industries

3 dot points across 3 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

What underpinning audio science do you need to record and produce well?

The science of sound and digital audio: waveforms, frequency and amplitude, signal flow and gain, analogue-to-digital conversion (sample rate and bit depth), monitoring, decibels and basic studio acoustics.
An SQA Advanced Higher Music Technology answer on the underpinning audio science, covering sound waves, frequency and amplitude, signal flow and gain, digital audio with sample rate and bit depth, the decibel, monitoring and basic studio acoustics that good recording and production depend on.
14 min answer →

How do you analyse a recording by ear to identify its production techniques?

Critical listening: analysing audio recordings and production techniques by ear, identifying instrumentation, balance, effects, space and processing, with relevant musical analysis, to inform research and your own work.
An SQA Advanced Higher Music Technology answer on critical listening, covering how to analyse a recording by ear, identifying instrumentation, balance, panning, effects and space, dynamics and processing, with relevant musical analysis, to inform the research project and your own productions.
14 min answer →

How is sound recording used across the creative industries, and what roles and workflows exist?

The sectors of the creative industries that use music technology, the key roles and the production workflow from pre-production to release, and how this context shapes a research or production project.
An SQA Advanced Higher Music Technology answer on sound recording in the creative industries, covering the sectors that use music technology, the key roles (producer, engineer, sound designer and more), the production workflow from pre-production to release, and how this context frames the research project.
14 min answer →