Music Industry Internship Program
New York City becomes the classroom for interns. Jazz students who want a look at the inner workings of the music industry can work with our Internship
Director to identify their professional goals and develop strategies for
finding and securing valuable internships. Internships can provide students with job skills and networks that will help them to find employment on and off stage. In the past year, The New School has placed interns at Blue Note Records, Nonesuch Records, the Metropolitan Opera, the Jazz Gallery, Jazz @ Lincoln Center, Artistshare, and MTV, among many other organizations.
Curtis MacDonald, Jazz alumnus
“While taking courses in the Parsons Sound Design curriculum, I was recruited
by one of my instructors to intern as an in-house composer at his sound design
studio, AudioBrain. I have since been hired to work hands-on in developing
music and sound for interactive video games, cell phones, and sonic branding.
The skills learned in this environment crossed over into my own personal jazz
performance career, where I utilize my technological abilities to innovate new
languages of improvisation and composition. I now write my own electronic
pieces using self-made virtual instruments, ‘found sound’ field recordings, and
other custom-built patches on my computer.” (Less than a year later, Curtis was
invited to return to The New School to share his knowledge with other students—this time as an adjunct faculty member.)
Daniel Haedicke, Jazz alumnus
“In my junior year, I began interning at Koch Records in the publicity
department. At Koch, I met the head of A&R (Artists & Repertoire) who
deals with many of the creative aspects of music, and I began to work at his
studio. After a few months studying the fundamentals of recording, such as using
Protools, microphones, instruments, effects, etc., I was able to start
collaborating with professional producers who used the studio, often playing
guitar and bass on songs that would later be released by the label. Last year I
incorporated my own company, Kwality Records, LLC. Using contacts I made at my
internships, I was better able to record, mix, master, promote, and release my
own music. In addition to producing my own music and running my own label, I
also worked at Koch Records as a paid publicity consultant after graduation.”