Music production courses in Manchester
8 schools teach production, DJing or sound engineering in Manchester. Every listing is checked against the school's own pages, with the date shown.
School of Electronic Music
private schoolRunning since 1996 as Manchester MIDI School, rebranding in 2017 and switching its primary DAW from Logic to Ableton Live, when it also added a 20-iMac production lab and a 7-setup DJ lab. Music production, a complete DJ course, composition, artist development and 1-to-1 tuition at 220 Chapel Street, with in-person, online and weekend taster formats. A free intro taster course requires only a £59 fully-refundable deposit; the Complete DJ Course (12 weeks) is £1,095 paid upfront; Introduction to Music Production runs up to roughly £1,795 on a 12-week fast-track instalment plan. Companies House shows no currently active limited company clearly trading under this name at the listed address despite live 2026 course dates on the site: worth confirming directly before enrolling.
Manchester Electronic Sound School
private schoolBased in Studio 114 at Islington Mill, the Salford arts complex that's hosted Björk and Peaches and become one of the city's most-loved independent venues since 2000. Five electronic music production modules (Electronic & Dance Music Production, Sound Design & Creative Processing, Composition & Arrangement, Improvisation & Performance, Mix Down & Mastering Fundamentals), each 8 to 10 lessons over 2 to 3 months, priced individually at £720 to £950 or bundled with a multi-module discount up to 10%. All five together (44 lessons, 12 months) run £3,499 paid upfront or £3,649 on a payment plan. 1-on-1 sessions start at £110 for a single 3-hour session, up to £900 for a 10-session, 30-hour bespoke package. Worth flagging: the limited company behind the school, Manchester Electronic Sound School Limited, was dissolved at Companies House in December 2025, though the website remains live and actively trading: unclear whether it now operates as a sole trader or the entity structure has simply lapsed administratively.
Spirit Studios
private schoolSpirit Studios started in 1980 as a commercial recording studio on Tariff Street before adding courses in 1984 under the name School of Sound Recording, a school that bills itself as 'the UK's first,' a claim repeated in trade press but never independently verified. It relocated to Downing Street in 2004. Degrees are validated by the University of Lancashire and the institution is accredited by the British Accreditation Council. A short industry course (Mastering, or Music Business, 3 months) is £472.50; a Foundation Year is £7,250/yr; the BA/BSc (Hons) route £9,790/yr; a postgraduate MA Music Production £9,250/yr (all 2026/27 UK rates). Ten on-site studios and Northern Quarter music-scene pedigree (The Smiths, Stone Roses and 808 State's Graham Massey all passed through) are real draws.
dBs Institute Manchester
private schoolOccupies the basement of New Century, a 1,300-capacity NOMA venue, with fibre links up to the stage so students can record and broadcast live sets in real time. Originally founded in Plymouth, degrees are validated through Falmouth University. A 1-year Access to HE Diploma (Music Production, DJ & Electronic Music Production, or Music Performance & Production) is £4,835/yr for UK students; eleven separate BA (Hons) routes run £9,790/yr; a postgraduate MA is £10,500/yr full-time or £5,250/yr part-time. Unlike its Bristol and Plymouth sister campuses, Manchester isn't in Ableton's certified-training directory, and dBs holds no TEF rating from the Office for Students at all: it simply hasn't been assessed.
Futureworks
private schoolManchester school of media and creative technology teaching audio engineering and music production degrees, conceived in 2003 by sound engineer Chris Mayo and launched in 2007 with Ben Norris and Rob Magoolagan. Degrees are validated by the University of Lancashire (formerly UCLan), not the Open University, despite an OU logo appearing on the site. A 2017 QAA review commended the college in three of four assessed categories (academic standards merely 'met' UK expectations, the baseline pass, not a commendation), often marketed more sweepingly as commendations 'in every category': worth reading with a pinch of salt. TEF rated Silver in both 2019 and 2023. The BA (Hons) Music Production degree is £9,790/yr for UK students; no shorter or cheaper course is currently offered, only full undergraduate degrees. Its in-house label, 1043 Recordings, claims 47m+ combined sales, streams and syncs since 2011 across 100+ catalogue artists, and studios use Neve, Avid S6 and SSL consoles.
BIMM Manchester
private schoolOne of BIMM University's seven campuses, opened in Manchester in 2013 and now spread across three central buildings: Great Marlborough Street, Bank Chambers and Merchant Exchange. BIMM itself was founded in Brighton in 2001, co-founded by, among others, Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson, and sold twice since: to Sovereign Capital in 2010, then Intermediate Capital Group in 2020. Holds TEF Bronze from the Office for Students, independently confirmed via OfS's own TEF 2023 results tool. The BA/BMus (Hons) degree is £9,790/yr, the same fee charged at every BIMM UK campus; short courses had shifted to a 3-day summer-camp format (Songwriter Camp, Beat Making and Production, Touring and Live Performance) with pricing never published, and as of 28 August 2026 BIMM's short course page states the 2026 programme has finished with the next one still in development, so nothing below degree level is currently bookable here. Manchester students get access to Gorilla, Manchester Academy and Blueprint Studios locally, plus the wider network's Motor Museum Studio in Liverpool, where Arctic Monkeys, Oasis and The 1975 have recorded.
Make Me A DJ
private schoolHas run 1-to-1 DJ and music production tuition from Ancoats, Manchester since 2008, having started life above the city's former Sankeys nightclub. It's essentially a one-person teaching operation built around founder Mark Bradbury (aka techno producer Rudosa); he is the only named, credited tutor on the site, despite marketing copy referencing a wider 'team.' Alongside courses, the school runs Jersey Street Studios, an in-house mixdown/engineering and studio-hire service under the same roof and director. Online prices are considerably cheaper than in-person tuition (a Rekordbox software walkthrough is £25, online Beginner/Intermediate/Advanced DJ courses £40 each) versus £420 for 6 hours or £1,440 for a 3-day in-person crash course.
DJ Gym Manchester
private schoolBased at Salford's artist-run Islington Mill, DJ Gym Manchester offers 1-to-1 and group DJ tuition with gig pathways at partner venues. It markets itself as 'LSA-accredited,' but LSA (London Sound Academy) is a commercially affiliated sister company sharing DJ Gym's registered Companies House address, not an independent accrediting body, so that claim reads as in-house branding rather than external certification. Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced DJ or Music Production courses (4 lessons of 2 hours) are £329 each; an Elite DJ course (6 lessons plus 2 studio sessions) is £599; a 12-lesson Crash Course combining all three levels is £849. Its 'gig pathway' promises (Ministry of Sound, Egg LDN, XOYO) and Pioneer DJ education-partner status appear on the school's own materials and weren't independently corroborated. Studio hire without tuition is also available from £50 for 2 hours.
Subjects taught in Manchester: Music production, Ableton, DJ, Sound engineering, Logic. Know a school we've missed? See our methodology for how listings get added.