Compose.
Produce.
Place.
Online courses, group coaching, and a membership community built on a published textbook — taught by a university educator with 30+ years in the music industry.
Compose and Produce Music Like a Pro
A comprehensive guide to songwriting, composing, arranging, and producing — used in university classrooms for over 10 years. The courses on this site are the live, updated extension of this book.
View on Amazon →Learn at your own pace.
Available year round.
All four courses are delivered via email — lessons land in your inbox on a weekly schedule so you can work through the material at a comfortable pace. Each course includes an online exam you take on the website, and a Certificate of Completion is provided upon passing. Certificates are suitable for teacher professional development documentation.
Trailer Music Writing 101
The 5-section blueprint, harmonic vocabulary, orchestration, and production choices behind licensable trailer music — from first motif to a submission-ready cue. 8 weekly lessons delivered to your inbox, followed by an online exam on the website.
Music Composition
The full composition process — from motif to finished arrangement. Built on the textbook framework and updated with modern approaches for today’s sync market. 11 weekly lessons delivered to your inbox, followed by an online exam on the website.
Popular Music History
Genre-by-genre deconstruction of popular music — how styles are built harmonically, rhythmically, and structurally. For composers, researchers, educators, and AI music creators. 6 weekly lessons delivered to your inbox, followed by an online exam on the website.
TV & Film Production Music
Writing production music for television and film — understanding briefs, delivering to picture, and building a catalog that supervisors return to. 6 weekly lessons delivered to your inbox, followed by an online exam on the website.
Stay close to the craft every month.
Start with a free account to access blog articles, lesson updates, and cohort announcements — no credit card required. A free registration is required before upgrading to any paid membership tier. When you’re ready to go deeper, paid tiers unlock monthly genre analysis, sync brief breakdowns, a workshop library, quarterly live sessions, and a private Discord community of serious composers.
- Access to all free blog articles
- Lesson & course update emails
- Cohort opening announcements
- Required to join any paid tier
- Everything in Free
- Community feed & Discord access
- Monthly “what I’m working on” update
- Early course and cohort announcements
- Everything in The Listener
- Monthly genre deconstruction post
- Recorded workshop library access
- Monthly sync brief breakdown
- $30 off any cohort enrollment
- Everything in The Composer
- Monthly personal async check-in with Dr. Smith
- Monthly YouTube Live session + recording
- Private Sync Pro Discord room
- First access to all new cohorts
Free registration required before upgrading · Courses and cohorts sold separately · Cancel paid membership anytime
Go deeper.
Live, scheduled, and hands-on.
Cohorts are structured 6-week live programs — four live Saturday Zoom sessions with Dr. Smith, peer critique, and a finished piece of work at the end. Each cohort is a deeper dive into the corresponding course. Enrollment opens on a set schedule with limited spots. All cohorts include a Certificate of Completion.
Trailer Music Writing
The live cohort version of Trailer Music Writing 101 — four live Saturday Zoom sessions, peer feedback, and a finished submission-ready cue by week 6. 25 spots maximum. Includes a Certificate of Completion.
Music Composition
Live cohort deep dive into composition craft — applying the process specifically to sync-ready music with direct feedback from Dr. Smith on your work. Includes a Certificate of Completion.
Popular Music History
Live cohort exploring genre construction in depth — harmonic analysis, style deconstruction, and applying historical context to your own compositions. Includes a Certificate of Completion.
TV & Film Production Music
Live cohort on writing for picture — brief analysis, composing to video, and building a licensable catalog with real supervisor feedback criteria. Includes a Certificate of Completion.
Choose your level of access.
Every cohort has two enrollment tiers. Both include the full 6-week curriculum and all 4 live Saturday Zoom sessions — the difference is the level of personal feedback from Dr. Smith.
- →All 6 weekly lesson modules
- →All 4 live Saturday Zoom sessions with Dr. Smith
- →All session recordings added to your library
- →Private cohort Discord community
- →Certificate of Completion
- →Everything in Core
- →All 4 live Saturday Zoom sessions with Dr. Smith
- →Personal written feedback on your submitted cue
- →Submit your cue by Aug 7 — receive critique before final session
- →Priority Discord access — Dr. Smith responds directly
- →Certificate of Completion
All cohorts · Core $197 · Coaching $297 · see individual cohort pages for full details
July 7 – August 14, 2026
25 spots. Two tiers: Core ($197 — all 6 modules + all 4 live Saturday Zoom sessions) or Coaching ($297 — everything in Core plus personal written feedback on your submitted cue). First-come, first-served.
The craft behind great music is teachable.
I’m Dr. William E. Smith (W.E.S.) — active musician, composer, producer, published author, and Associate Professor of Music Technology at Bowie State University. I’ve spent over 30 years working at the intersection of music composition, production, and education.
Before Bowie State, I taught at Howard University, served as Music Industry Coordinator and Online Ethnomusicology Program Coordinator at North Carolina Central University, and directed the Jazz Ensemble at American University in Washington, DC.
I’ve released six production albums, five albums with The W.E.S. Group, written music for TV and film, and composed for multimedia performances including theater productions and fashion shows. I’ve performed at jazz festivals across Anguilla, Bonaire, St. Lucia, California, New York, the United Kingdom, Morocco, India, and South Africa.
This site is the online home of everything I teach — built on the same textbook my university students have used for over 10 years, with updated approaches for today’s sync licensing market.
Music placed on major networks.
Dr. Smith’s compositions have been licensed and placed across major television networks, sports broadcasts, and nationally syndicated programs.
Books by Dr. William E. Smith
The courses and coaching programs on this site are the live, updated extension of a body of published work that spans music education, music business, and hip hop culture.
Compose and Produce Music Like a Pro
The anchor textbook — a comprehensive guide to songwriting, composing, arranging, and producing. Used in university classrooms since 2016.
View on Amazon →
Jazz as a Language
An exploration of jazz as a communicative and expressive language — its vocabulary, grammar, and cultural significance as a musical form.
View on Amazon →
Hip Hop as Performance and Ritual
An academic exploration of hip hop culture, performance, and its ritual dimensions — published through CLS Publications.
View on Amazon →
Making Money in the Music Business
A practical guide to music industry revenue streams, licensing, and building a sustainable career as a working musician.
View on Amazon →
How to Be an MC
A practical guide to the craft of MCing — from flow and delivery to performance and stage presence.
View on Amazon →25 spots.
First come, first served.
Enroll in the Trailer Music Writing Cohort now — 25 spots, two tiers. Both include all 6 modules and all 4 live Saturday Zoom sessions. Coaching adds personal written feedback on your submitted cue.
