On this page, you can find the Culminating Experience (CE) Projects for all graduate students from the Berklee College of Music master’s program Music Production, Technology, and Innovation (MPTI) from 2015 – present. Click on any title for more information and access to the full paper and other deliverables (if available).
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Electroental
Jeries Babish
2025This project blended traditional Middle Eastern instruments and tuning systems with electronic music to create a cross-cultural sonic experience. Instruments such as the ney and the Armenian duduk were recorded live and integrated into electronic compositions using microtonal synthesis and contemporary production techniques. The project addressed the underrepresentation of modal and microtonal scales in electronic music, specifically Saba, Rast, and Bayati. Electronic elements were tailored to accommodate the expressive capacity of Middle Eastern melodic frameworks, particularly maqamat. Synthesizers were customized to replicate traditional scales, while acoustic recordings contributed timbral richness and authenticity. This project presented an alternative to Orientalist tropes by embedding traditional musical systems within modern electronic structures. It proposed a respectful and innovative reflection of Middle Eastern culture through a sound design approach.
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Apodemia
Valeria Bello
2025What does migration sound like? Is it possible to speak of a common sonic identity? This short documentary serves to explore these questions through interviews with various subjects of study who have undergone migratory processes in different contexts. The research focuses primarily on the interviewees’ sound perceptions, with the questions structured around four thematic axes proposed by the author: sadness, discomfort, nostalgia, and peace. These four concepts are a standardized guide for directing the analysis, not an absolute truth about the topic. Thus, the research and its findings are captured in an audiovisual format, seeking to compile the experiences of ten different individuals. The documentary also features the development of an acousmatic/electronic composition, and an original soundscape derived from these experiences, allowing the sound design of the documentary to be integrated in the narrative of this research.
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And You Shall Find() : Hip Hop EP using Underwater Recording Techniques
Anoh Biju
2025The author proposes an extended play in the hip-hop tradition combined with the electronic genre where the entire instrumentation is from underwater recordings of the author’s voice. This involves the usage of a hydrophone that can be used to record the vocals, processing them to create individual elements (like the kick, snare, bass etc). and layering them with rap vocals. The style of music is heavily industrial and gritty Hip Hop beats with melodic influences of electro pop and electronica and consisting of rap verses written in English and Malayalam. The project is an artistic representation of using the constraint of underwater vocal recordings to create unique melodic ideas that assist the genre thus partaking in the era of streaming music recorded over multiple mediums
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Blue Line Sessions
Marcos Cantu Medina
2025This project centers around creating a portfolio presented through live sessions, developed to highlight and demonstrate my capabilities as an engineer. Titled Blue Line Sessions, the concept is more than just a recording project, it’s a brand built around collaboration, creativity, and technical experience. The sessions aim to feature a diverse range of musicians, each bringing their unique style, allowing me to adapt and apply various recording and mixing techniques. This variety not only showcases my versatility but also reinforces my commitment to quality sound and authentic musical expression.The focus is on capturing the essence of live performance in its purest form. By recordingin live room settings, I aim to bring out the natural energy, emotion, and dynamics that cansometimes be lost in multi-tracked productions. The brand’s identity is rooted in delivering high-quality audio that feels real and engaging, supported by a visual aesthetic that matches the sonic experience. Blue Line Sessions serves both as a creative platform for artists and a professional showcase of my engineering skills, combining technical precision with artistic collaboration.
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NoteletMusic: A MIDI processing application for integrating common music writing practices into the Digital Orchestration workflow.
Esteban Carrasco
2025Digital Orchestration (DO) has become a common practice to create music for film and television. Thanks to technological advances, DO has provided composers with cost- efficient, accessible, and flexible tools, allowing them to create high-quality scores entirely from their computers. Despite the positive aspects, these kind of procedures in composition introduce new challenges in resources, workflow and digital tasks, one of which is specifically the MIDI sequencing process. Primarily computer-directed, this ‘inserting notes’ process is not well-aligned with composers’ workflow in sheet music writing: it does not take advantage of common music writing techniques for melodic, harmonic, or rhythmic material, making it a time-consuming task not related to the music creation process itself. This project aims to bridge the gap between MIDI sequencing process and composers’ approach to music writing by creating NoteletHarmony, a standalone application for MIDI processing that incorporates these common writing techniques, specifically harmonization techniques, directly into the DO workflow. The application works for any of the DAWs with MIDI routing capabilities used by professionals in film and television scoring, and has proven to be useful for MIDI mock- up processes by optimizing MIDI sequencing task times, and as a tool for computer-assisted composition by facilitating experimentation with music writing techniques.
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From classical musicians to audio engineer: A Mixing Engineer’s Portfolio
Tin Yan Chan
2025The widespread availability of high-speed internet has significantly transformed music consumption, enabling listeners to enjoy music anytime and anywhere through portable devices. Modern albums are primarily distributed digitally, which has increased the importance of recording, mixing, and mastering engineers. In response, the author is focusing on the recording and mixing aspects of music production, creating a mixing engineering portfolio that aims to refine mixing techniques and develop a distinctive style. This portfolio will feature ten songs across various genres, achieved through collaborations with different musicians at the Berklee Valencia campus. It will serve as a platform for the author to explore diverse musical styles and the corresponding mixing and recording techniques. As the author transitions from a classical musician to a well-rounded audio engineer, the primary objective is to deliver professional-level mixes through dedicated practice and learning at Berklee Valencia.
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DAWN-AFourSongsEPOnMentalHealth
Yi-Ting Chen
2025People nowadays started to pay more attention to mental health issues, yet how mental health is still not something that is commonly brought up in public vision. Even more, it is still a challenge for caregivers to understand how it feels when people with mental health struggle facing the issue. This EP is called DAWN and it is about mental health struggles. This Culminating Experience project aims to help caregivers and others build awareness about mental health issues so they can understand how their loved ones feel when walking through this tough journey with them. The EP contains four songs and one music video, so people can understand the scene not only through music but also video.
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Reflections EP - An Exploration of Ultra-Portable Recording Systems
Mitchell Decker
2025"Reflections” is a 5-track ambient tape composed, produced, and mixed using the Teenage Engineering Field Recording System; a collection of ultra-portable music devices designed to replicate traditional analog console and recording techniques in a package small enough to fit in your pocket. With this project, the author pays homage to the founders of Ambient, Hip-Hop, Turntablism, and Dub styles through a collection of instrumental soundscapes weaving synthesis, sound design, and eclectic sampling to forge a unique sonic vision. Building on experience with professional mixing and recording, the author attempts to break free from the confines and restrictions of the studio environment and demonstrate what can be achieved with minimalist hardware micro-setups. The author utilizes new and innovative recording equipment, wireless connectivity, digital turntables and tape machines to present his vision for the future of music.
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Breathe: An Energy Healing Soundscape Performance and EP Combining Electronic Dance Music with Healing Frequencies and Ambient Sound
Isabel Estes
2025This project explores the integration of sound healing practices with electronic dance music through the creation and performance of a seven-track EP, Breathe. Drawing from ancient Vedic and Tantric traditions, the EP is designed to sonically activate and support the body's chakra system using specific tuning systems, analog synthesis, and intentional sound design. The work combines historical research—such as the use of Tibetan singing bowls—with modern production tools, including binaural audio and modular synthesis, to create a hybrid listening experience that is both therapeutic and immersive. Through this process, the author examines the physical and emotional impact of sound frequencies, the evolution of meditation into movement-based healing, and the potential for live performance to serve as an accessible alternative to traditional sound healing sessions. The final deliverables include the mixed EP, live performance videos, and technical documentation. The project not only showcases creative and technical growth, but also reflects the artist’s personal healing journey.
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Vecindario: A Portfolio of Latin Music Collaborations
Gustavo Fuentes Amaya
2025This music production project aimed to explore, practice and solidify the Author’s ability to understand and support the creative vision of musical artists, culminating in the completion of five discographic productions that also form a curated portfolio aligned with the Author's professional aspirations. The project focused on three core areas of hands-on work: artist production, sound engineering, and musical exploration. Each of which was developed to varying degrees across the different tracks, depending on the artists’ individual abilities and experience. Through this process, the author gained deeper insight into the collaborative dynamics of music production, the flexibility required to adapt to each artist’s creative process, and the technical decision-making involved in shaping a cohesive final product. The resulting body of work not only reflects the diversity of the Latin music scene but also marks a foundational step in the author's path as a producer and engineer.
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PORTEÑO: A Sonic Experience of Modern Buenos Aires
Mateo Fuentes
2025PORTEÑO is a multidisciplinary artistic project that explores the contemporary identity of Buenos Aires through an original musical and visual narrative. Conceived as a creative response to the city’s cultural energy, the project culminates in two main deliverables: a seven-track concept album and a live performance that integrates music, scenography, and visuals. Blending pop, funk, and R&B with tango, folk, and other Latin American genres, the album captures both the emotional tone and the sonic landscape of Buenos Aires in the late 2010s. Developed between a home studio and Berklee Valencia’s professional facilities, the production merges DIY authenticity with high-level technical execution. The live show further expands the project’s scope, translating its themes into a dynamic, collaborative stage experience featuring original video art and an international band. The Culminating Experience focuses on the project’s artistic direction, songwriting, production, and conceptual development.
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Remnant Reflection
Mingze Geng
2025This project will explore the possibility of merging the electronic music genres of Dubstep and Future Bass by employing sound design techniques and genre integration. The main goal is to create an EP that innovates within the electronic music scene. Consisting of six original tracks that blend elements of Dubstep and Future Bass, and innovate within the electronic music scene. In the current electronic music market, works featuring a single genre are commonplace; however, the lack of innovative integration between genres can lead to listener fatigue. To address this issue, this project will thoroughly analyze the characteristics of these two genres and will attempt to innovate by blending elements such as melody, harmony, rhythm, and sound design. Through this project, the author will not only acquire valuable skills in music production, sound design, and genre integration but also evolve into a more eclectic electronic music producer, as well as establish new relationships in the industry by collaborating with producers, engineers, and artists.
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The Gen-Synth: A generative granular synthesizer.
Veronica Gesteira Souza
2025In recent years, the development of generative AI models that are able to generate high quality audio has opened a new world of opportunities in the field of sound synthesis for musical applications. The possibilities inaugurated by this emerging technology, however, are only beginning to be investigated. In this work, Gen-Synth, a synthesizer combining generative timbre transfer and granular synthesis is proposed in order to further explore the artistic implications of AI in sound design. The work was developed by training a popular neural synthesis model - RAVE (Realtime Audio Variational autoEncoder) - with a library composed of Brazilian percussion recordings. Later, the trained model was used to develop a Max for Live device that combined a timber transfer module with a granular synthesis module. Finally, some user testing was performed, and feedback was gathered for future improvement.
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That’s my first album
Karan Jain
2025“That’s My First Album” marks the debut musical project of the artist, showcasing a creative fusion of various electronic music genres across five original tracks. The album is a sonic exploration that blends elements of drum and bass, UK dubstep, and trap, resulting in a distinctive and immersive sound. Central to the project’s identity are the intricacies of sound design and mixing—sound design playing a vital role in shaping the unique textures and atmosphere, while precise mixing enhances the clarity and cohesiveness of each track. The technical depth of the album is elevated by key collaborations, most notably with Esteban and Anoh, who contributed as sound engineer and featured artist, respectively. Their involvement brought an additional layer of creativity and professionalism that enriched the overall production. The project not only reflects the artist’s evolving musical identity but also exemplifies the collaborative nature of modern electronic music production. Through detailed sound craftsmanship and genre-blending innovation, “That’s My First Album” stands as a compelling first entry into the electronic music scene. Many many thanks to Simone Tanda for his feedback on the authors songs that made the album much better and much easie r to produce
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Preach!: An R&B and Hip Hop Collective
Vedant Jhaveri
2025Preach! Is a four track EP that explores the emotional and rhythmic potential of contemporary R&B and Hip Hop which are two genres that have deep historic roots which are continuously developing with modern innovations in sound and technology. Rather than dividing the project into two distinct discs or sides, the project aims at providing the listeners with a cohesive experience that draws equally and simultaneously from the melodic and intimate aspects of R&B and the energetic and rhythmic boldness of Hip Hop. Preach! focuses on emotional storytelling, vocal vulnerability and innovative production techniques where each track contributes to a narrative that centers around themes of love, introspection, identity and flagrant habits. Drawing influence from artists like 6LACK, 50 Cent and Kanye, this project is genre blending and is forward thinking.
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Redemption: A Performance Journey
Paul LiBassi
2025After an injury severely limited the author’s ability to play guitar, he searched for a way to continue performing. In Redemption, the author explores different iterations of the artist’s relationship to technology through live performance. This will include both live instruments and electronics as sound sources, as well as a visual component. The author uses different configurations of live electronics, prerecorded loops, live instruments, and live recorded loops throughout the performance. Using Ableton Live, the author has found a new path to performing original music, bringing all of his skills together into one live performance.
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Takes Time to Heal
David Lindsay
2025“Takes Time to Heal” is an electronic music project in which the artist explored thethemes and journey of healing and recovery. This experience was structured as an immersive EP of four extended tracks and their accompanying visualizers. The project addresses self-reflection and emptiness to healing and rehabilitation through music. The EP follows a journey by taking listeners through musical environments of which reflect the healing process of oneself through time. Whilst consisting of a variety of sub-genres within House music, such as Afro and Tech, the project also incorporates elements of Dance and Ambient music. Although all the tracks feature lead vocal elements, letting instrumental sections breathe and evolve was a priority in the creative direction of the collective songs. This project aimed to address the current movement of electronic music’s shorter songs (heavily influenced by social media) by letting ideas, rhythms and grooves unfold to their fullest potential.
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Chinese Uncanny (A Plunderphonics Album as Cultural Reflection)
Yilin Liu
2025Chinese Uncanny is a plunderphonics-based full-length LP project that explores memory, estrangement, and urban identity through a purely sample-driven compositional approach. Drawing from over 170 audio fragments sourced from vinyl, internet archives, cassette tapes, and CDs, the album constructs a sonic collage rooted in the cultural ambiguity of contemporary life in Shenzhen, China. Inspired by artists such as DJ Shadow, The Avalanches, and Cornelius, the project avoids conventional vocal or instrumental recordings, instead relying entirely on sample manipulation using tools like Ableton Live, MPC, and SP404. The concept of the uncanny—drawn from both Freudian theory and lived experience—serves as a thematic backbone for the album’s sonic choices. Beyond technical execution, the work also reflects on the scarcity of sampling culture in Chinese music ecosystems, offering both aesthetic innovation and cultural commentary. The CE paper documents the creative process, challenges, and philosophical motivations behind this experimental album, positioning it as a unique contribution to the plunderphonics genre and an attempt to establish a more localized voice within it.
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Vedic Chants for Mindfulness
Suma Manikyam
2025Despite the multitude of meditation and mindfulness techniques available, Vedic chants adhere to the original intonation and melody rules outlined in the Vedic Scriptures, preserving the healing properties of the mantras. This rendition is particularly unique in its aim to resonate with a global audience. Combining ancient mantra chants with western musical styles enhances the appeal and accessibility of the chants. This fusion also paves the way for further exploration within the Vedic musical genre. This outcome would stem from thorough investigation into the principles of mantra chanting and the Sanskrit Language, alongside the endeavor to harmoniously integrate Western music with the Vedic music genre. Additionally, the music video presentation will assist those who wish to follow the lyrics by providing a visual accompaniment. This presents an alternative resolution to one of humanity’s most enduring challenges: the pursuit of mindfulness, which contributes to making the world a better place to live.
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The Music Vault
Joshua Mathews
2025This project, titled The Music Vault, explores the intersection of vocal production, cultural diversity, and collaborative creativity. Its core aim was to develop a professional-grade vocal production process that adapts to artists across linguistic and stylistic barriers. By working with artists who speak different languages and produce varied musical genres, the project tackled real-world challenges in communication, artistic direction, and technical delivery. Along the way, the project led to website creation, portfolio development, and new methods of translating creative ideas into concrete vocal work. The project contributes a fresh perspective to the field, emphasizing emotional intelligence and adaptability in vocal production. Future plans include refining the production workflow and building out The Music Vault into a full-fledged creative platform.
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SOUNDS OF THE KINGDOM EP
Terrence Moore
2025This Culminating Experience project is an EP titled, SOUNDS OF THE KINGDOM, which is produced and written by Terrence Moore Jr., who also goes by his stage name, PropheT. This EP is heavily influenced by cinematic orchestral music, Gospel music, Hip Hop music, Biblical references, and other genres and source material that help sonically create a triumphant, symphonic, and intensive sound. The importance of this music is to give the listeners the feeling of hearing what a “Kingdom Sound" based on the Bible would sound like. The way that this was accomplished was by utilizing string, choral and brass instruments that were layered multiple times to create different textures within the music. The use of sampling hip hop drums, vocal loops, and gospel inspired music was key to the creation of this EP. Terrence Moore’s goal with this project was to achieve a sound with the idea in mind of making “Freedom Music”, which is described as music that feels heavy and intense but allows the listener to have a positive listening experience.
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When I Can’t Sleep: A (Granular Infused) Singer-Songwriter EP
Sanford Max Nunes
2025The When I Can’t Sleep EP sought to bridge the gap between the traditional aspects of singer-songwriter genre style and the production techniques of the present. Through a collection of five songs – four originals and one cover – it was the authors intent to transmit the emotions of a personal journey honestly, transparently, and without ego. Several of the chosen pieces were a decade old and haled from the beginning of the author’s journey as a singer and songwriter. At the time they were written, he found it impossible to record them without giving in to a desire to drown out their vulnerability in loud drums and distortion. One main goal of the project was to revisit these tracks and produce them as they were always meant to be recorded. The challenge would be to balance their compositional traditionalism with just the right subtle touches of modern production, helping to give them context in the current musical moment. The strategy was to combine totally acoustic recordings with just the right infusion of granular scrapes and effects. The goal was an EP that sounded like the past and the future all at once.
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VISION: Songs for a Eurovision dream
Nathanaël Paulis
2025« Vision » is a multi-artistic project encompassing the production, studio recording, filming, and branding of a 5-song EP for the Belgian indie pop-rock band ShiroKuro. Born from the author's dream to represent Belgium at the Eurovision Song Contest as an independent artist, the EP is made to be sent to the Eurovision delegation in Belgium, under the management of the Belgian TV channel RTBF, for the band to apply to the 2026 edition of the contest.Throughout this paper, the author shows how to use diverse artistic content, such as professionally recorded songs and excerpts from TV shows, as well as innovative musical ideas and influences from all over Europe and beyond, to create the most Eurovision-friendly EP possible, while keeping the band’s main aesthetic. This paper also demonstrates the author’s ability to overcome the borders between multiple forms of art and culture, thanks notably to their propensity to highlight the common elements between artistic domains.
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Music Album Production Fusing Traditional Colombian Rhythms with Latin American Urban Genres
Juan Guillermo Ramirez Alvarez
2025In the last 30 years, the Reggaeton genre not only transformed the Latin popular music industry, but also established itself as a global genre, consistently occupying top positions on international charts and redefining mainstream sonic landscapes. Strangely, its sound, themes, and rhythmic structure remained quite static, evolving very little over time. It wasn't until shortly before 2020 that some artists within the genre, alongside others coming from genres such as pop, salsa, hip-hop and folk music from different countries began experimenting by fusing their own musical languages with the so-called dembow, reggaetón's characteristic rhythm, thereby initiating significant transformations of the original genre. The present culminating experience project propose to write, record, mix and finish a 6 songs album using the dembow rhythm as one of the main parameters, but exploring different Colombian sonorities and instrumentation from genres like cumbia, vallenato, rasqa, joropo and other popular folkloric genres looking forward for an original sound. Some of the influences include but not limited to artists like Bomba Estereo, Edson Velandia, Calle 13, Lizandro Meza, La Muchacha, Pernet, Frente Cumbiero and others. The production techniques involve real instruments recording, sampling and the use of some elements of electronic music arrangement with audio and MIDI processing in Pro Tools, Ableton Live and Logic Pro.
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CUANDO LAS SOMBRAS SE ALARGAN: a live performance of an LP
Xenia Rubio Jiménez
2025This work will feature songs from the album, as well as other previous ones that will have to be remade to fit the artist's new sound. The show is entirely in a digital format, since the artist has always worked in the analog domain in her shows. This show will last approximately 50 minutes and will be presented with introductions, interludes and outros that will take us through each mood of the album. Influenced by the work of Frank Ocean, Rosalia or FKA Twigs, this live performance aims to be an experimental and innovative approach to pop electronic live performances. In addition, it will be presented accompanied by visuals, lights and dance that will be synchronized with the musical session in order to provide the spectator an experience more of a show than a concert. It is predominantly a work of musical production, but other important aspects to take into account will be the staging and the overall aesthetics of the project.