At musicube academy, we continuously develop how teaching works and how studying can be made accessible. When video conferencing became technically reliable enough around 2016, we asked a practical question: can we offer online teaching without compromising teaching quality, interaction, or the student learning experience?

The starting point was straightforward. In our small groups, teaching had always been laptop-based. Six students and one lecturer work on their own computers, supported by a large screen used for shared analysis and discussion. Because composition and music production are DAW-based, this classroom situation could be transferred almost one-to-one into an online setting.

For many students, this was a major advantage. Before that, students often travelled long distances from across the German-speaking region, sometimes by train for many hours or even by plane, just for one teaching day per week. An online option removed much of that burden. With high-quality audio streaming, we were able to work not only with speech, but also with musical examples and homework material at a professional level. It proved robust and genuinely helpful for many students.

During the pandemic, online teaching became essential. Because we had already developed the foundations, we could move fully online without losing continuity. After the pandemic, a new question emerged: should we return to purely in-person classes, or create a model that meaningfully combines both worlds? This led to the hybrid format we use today.

In hybrid teaching, students can either join online or attend on site. Classes are effectively “broadcast” from the room so everyone can participate in a comparable way. For this, we equipped our rooms with microphones, large screens and speakers designed specifically for communication with online participants. Another key benefit is that sessions can be recorded. Videos and transcribed content are stored in our cloud, allowing students to revisit lessons, deepen their understanding, and catch details they may have missed.

At the same time, we take the social dimension of learning seriously. Fully online teaching can work very well academically, but social group dynamics often develop more slowly than in-person. That is why we added defined on-site phases, depending on the programme. In preparatory programmes, this includes selected project phases and events. Bachelor and Master programmes include more on-site time, as teaching and collaboration are often more intensive at that level.

The result is a model that combines flexibility with structure: high teaching quality, modern infrastructure, and clear in-person moments that strengthen the group as an important part of learning.