Music and Business Management

Music and business management is a degree that combines intellectual and aesthetic engagement with one of the oldest and most powerful of human art forms with the practical commercial knowledge needed to sustain and develop music as an industry and a profession. Music study at university level encompasses performance, composition, musicology, and the history and theory of music across many traditions, developing both the technical understanding of how music is structured and made and the critical engagement with what music means in different cultural and historical contexts. Business management provides the frameworks for understanding organisations, markets, finance, strategy, and leadership that are essential to anyone who wants to build a professional life within the music industry or to apply their musical knowledge in commercial settings.

At the University of Southampton, this three-year full-time BA develops a broad music curriculum, covering classical music, jazz, pop, and commercial styles alongside music history and theory, combined with business management content that gives you an understanding of the modern business world. You will develop musical knowledge and analytical skills alongside management expertise, preparing for a career in which musical understanding and commercial acumen reinforce one another. The range of musical styles covered reflects the breadth of contexts in which professional musicians and music industry professionals need to operate.

Graduates work across the music industry, music education, and the broader creative and cultural sectors. Roles include music teacher, music producer, artist manager, music journalist, music licensing executive, event promoter, and general manager in music organisations. The business management component opens pathways in entertainment management, cultural venue management, and arts administration more broadly.

Many graduates also enter careers outside the music industry directly, where the combination of analytical thinking, creative sensibility, and management knowledge is valued. Postgraduate study in music, music business, arts management, or business administration provides routes to specialist or senior roles.