Abstract

The ways music is learned, created, disseminated and accessed are changing rapidly, partly as a consequence of technological advancements. Accessible recording and information technologies now enable the autonomous creation and marketing of music, independent of major record companies. Literature on current music industry trends notes the shift of control from corporations to musicians (Burrell, 2013), with an increased incidence of do-it-yourself (DIY) musicians, and the higher music education literature describes new pedagogical structures that prepare students for diverse outcomes. One of these structures can be found in the Bachelor of Popular Music (BPM) programme at the Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University, Australia, which commenced in 1999 and was one of the first university degree programmes in Australia to focus exclusively on popular music. It remains one of very few programmes to declare its focus through being named a Bachelor of Popular Music, rather than the much more common bachelor of music or arts with a major in popular music.