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Is Masterclass worth it for musicians and music artists?
In this post we’ll go over what the online learning platform’s music masterclasses are like, the cost and value, what you get (including all the different music classes available) and whether or not you should subscribe.
Let’s get right into it.
Table of Contents
Quick Review of Masterclass
Masterclass is an online learning platform that offers collections of video lessons on a whole bunch of different topics, not just music.
All of the classes are taught by some of the biggest (most successful/famous) names in each of the different subject areas.
And that’s the website’s BIGGEST selling point – the names behind the classes (and it’s a pretty good selling point, NGL…).
In short, I think Masterclass offers some REALLY interesting classes by people who’s brains you’d love the chance to pick.
However, while some of the classes are phenomenal and well worth-it, others are so basic/beginner-level they’re not very useful to most.
And in case you’re wondering, YES I have subscribed to the platform in the past and have gone through a bunch of the classes.
Our Rating:
6.9/10 Stars Overall
Key Decision Making Factors
- Pricing – 7/10 – yearly subscription for all-access, recently lowered basic price by 50% of original cost
- Amount of Content – 7/10 – lots of classes for both music topics and other very interesting non-music topics/subjects
- Class/Lesson/Instructor Quality – 7.5/10 – good content, world-class instructors, well shot classes, engaging video
- Platform Quality – 6.5/10 – includes basic productivity/learning tools – downloadable PDFs, note-taking section, easy navigation, easily start where you left off.
- Value – 7/10 – worth it for all the different content now that pricing isn’t as high as it once was
My Main Issues
One thing I noticed was that some of the classes were not exactly “masterclasses” but more like complete beginner tutorials. That was a bit disappointing. But most other classes were more of the high level stuff I expected to find.
It really depended on the class.
The one in particular I’m thinking of was the Sheila E. “Drumming and Percussion” class. I was hoping for something more intermediate or advanced – after all she is PRINCE’S FORMER DRUMMER – but it was VERY basic. I didn’t get anything from it.
My main problem, however, had always been how expensive it was – they don’t offer monthly memberships (only yearly) and it would cost you a couple hundred dollars.
I always wanted to keep my membership, but couldn’t justify the cost.
But that all changed this year…
My General Recommendation
Normally, my answer would be “No, it’s not really worth it,” given the cost.
But this year (2023) the company actually lowered their prices from $20/month to $10/month (still only billed yearly) – and that made me flip my opinion entirely.
So now, YES I now think music artists should try Masterclass, given their new pricing/cost.
BUT…
Don’t think you’re going to learn secret hacks to create the next great hit song. You’re not. And if that’s what you’re looking for, you’ll be disappointed.
If, on the other hand, you’re looking to get a peak inside the minds of some of the greatest music artists in the world you’ll be pretty happy.
Read on to find out why…
Masterclass Cost / Price:
- Individual (1 account/device) – $120 USD / year
- Duo (1 account, 2 devices) – $180 USD / year
- Family (1 account, 6 devices) – $240 USD / year
Service Overview
- Yearly subscription based video lesson platform
- 30 Day Money Back Guarantee (Try it Risk Free)
- 180+ classes across 11 different subjects
- Art & Entertainment
- Business
- Community/Government
- Design & Style
- Food
- Home & Lifestyle
- Music (23 different music-based classes)
- Science & Tech
- Sports & Gaming
- Wellness
- Writing
- Streaming based video lessons w/ downloadable supplemental material
- Mix of “high level” and total beginner style classes
- Each class is normally 3+ hours of video content
- All classes taught by some of the best in the world, in their respective fields
Pros
- New pricing structure makes it much more affordable to subscribe – value is much better
- Clean, easy-to-use website and video streaming platform
- HUGE names teaching all of the classes, often providing great insight you won’t get elsewhere
- Well shot, professional videos – really feels “high end” with good production value
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Cons
- Only offer a yearly subscription – no monthly option available
- A small number of the classes are so basic/beginner-level that they’re not very useful
Who Masterclass is Best For
- Independent music artists – singers, rappers, instrumentalists, composers/producers, etc.
- Music hobbyists and fans who would love to hear their favorite artists speak about music
- Beginner music makers who want to learn new things about making music
- Intermediate/advanced musicians who want to hear higher level creative insights
- Music makers who want insight into the workflow, processes and habits of famous professionals
Is it Worth it For YOU?
Should you use Masterclass as a Music Maker: YES, I think you should try it out.
I’ll put it this way, if you’d pay $25 to spend 3 hours hearing Nas or Timbaland or Christina Aguilera or Alicia Keys or Metallica talk about making music, then this is a MUST SUBSCRIBE type of service.
For $120 you get access to a LOT of music making content from some of the best to ever do it.
You get an insight into their workflow, practice habits, tools (and, sure, some “tricks”) which can be very valuable from a high level creativity point-of-view.
Plus, they’re always adding new content/classes and you get access to ALL the content, not just the music ones. So go learn how to cook and shit, too…
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How Does it Work, Exactly?
With Masterclass, you subscribe to the service overall – not individual classes. That means for the yearly subscription fee, you get access to ALL of the premium content the site offers.
Once you’ve created an account, you’ll be asked a short “survey” to help get recommendations on where to start. You can browse their entire class list or refine it by different topics/subjects.
You then choose what class (or classes) you want to take. You don’t have to choose them all at once, you’re free to go at your own pace. Do a class one at a time or take a bunch and bounce around from one to the other.
When you’re taking a class, the platform will remember where you leave off – it tracks your progress, making it easier to break up your learning sessions over time.
Some classes will have worksheets and other downloads and every class has a “note taking” tab where you write down any insights you have during the class.
What Are All the Music Classes Included With Masterclass?
There are currently (August 2023) a total of 23 different music-based classes.
They range across a lot of different areas of making music – from instrumentation to production and performance.
That’s why I believe it’s worth it for musicians.
—
Going back to my line above about being willing to spending $25 to listen to a famous artist talk about music for 3+ hours – I’m certain whatever you do musically, you’ll be able to find 5 different classes you’ll want to watch from the list below.
And then as a bonus, you still get access to ALL the rest of the content on the site.
And that makes it worth the price of a yearly subscription (5 talks with famous people x $25 each = $125, but Masterclass is only $120 per year.)
—
Here’s the full list of music-based classes:
- Learn Ukulele with Jake Shimabukuro
- Learn the Art of Performance with Usher
- Learn to Sing Better with Christina Aguilera
- Learn EDM Music Production with Deadmau5
- Learn Country Music with Reba McEntire
- Learn Jazz Music with Herbie Hancock
- Learn Dance Music Production with Armin Van Buuren
- Learn Electric Guitar with Tom Morello
- Learn Songwriting and Production with Alicia Keys
- Learn the Art and Soul of Guitar with Carlos Santana
- Learn Production and Beat Making with Timbaland
- Learn Violin with Itzhak Perlman
- Learn Drumming and Percussion with Sheila E.
- Learn Creativity and Songwriting with St. Vincent
- Learn Film Scoring with Hans Zimmer
- Learn Music for Film with Danny Elfman
- Learn Music Curation and DJing with Questlove
- Learn Rapping and Hip-Hop Storytelling with Nas
- Learn About Music and Connection with Yo-Yo Ma
- Learn About Being in a Band with Metallica
- Learn Drumming and Creative Collaboration with Ringo Starr
- Learn to Use the Voice as an Instrument with Mariah Carey
- Learn Songwriting with John Legend
Personally, I want to eventually watch all of them.
But even if you’re not into all the different classes, I’m sure there are a handful that you’d enjoy as a music maker of any type.
Compared to Competitors
There are a few similar platforms out there that offer various classes taught by different prominent instructors.
So let’s take a look at them and compare them to Masterclass.
Masterclass vs. BBC Maestro
BBC Maestro is a very similar platform – it’s the same basic idea, but with a British focus. That doesn’t mean it’s not meant for anyone outside of the U.K., it just means the instructors are all from across the ocean.
The main difference is the amount of content between the two platforms. BBC Maestro has some amazing classes (like the Mark Ronson music class), but Masterclass definitely has much more content… for now.
Maestro has 20 total classes with 9 more coming soon at the time of this writing (August 2023).
Currently BBC Maestro only has 3 music related classes:
- Music Production with Mark Ronson
- Songwriting with Gary Barlow
- Writing and Performing Musical Theatre with Sir Tim Rice
I haven’t taken any of the classes, but I definitely want to take the Mark Ronson one at the very least – he’s a legend.
Another difference is that BBC Maestro allows you to purchase individual classes (which you’d own access to for your lifetime), but also allows an “all-access” yearly subscription.
The subscription price is on level with Masterclass and each individual class costs around the same, so it just makes sense to go the subscription route and get access to the rest of the classes as well.
Masterclass vs. Studio.com
Studio.com is basically like Masterclass but started out exclusively for music makers. So there’s a LOT of music content.
Evenetually (once they rebranded to Studio.com) they started offering other subjects like visual arts, baking, etc.
It’s a great site with a TON of great courses – some taught by big named celebrities and others taught by not-so-big names. I’ve personally taken a few classes at Studio.com and loved them.
So far, I’ve taken:
- Music Production with Louis Bell
- Songwriting with Charlie Puth
- Songwriting with H.E.R
- Singing Better with Stevie Mackey
- The Art of Hit Making with Ryan Tedder
My favorite class was probably the Louis Bell, but the others were good as well. It was cool to see the workflow of all those artists.
But they have a lot more classes on a variety of music making topics. They’ve got classes from people like Andrew Huang, Alexander 23, Shane McAnally, Kygo and more.
The only problem is… you have to purchase each class individually. There’s no all-access subscription option. So it can get pretty expensive over time (trust me, I know…).
But the upside is you get access to the classes for life.
And during the class, there is a community of people also taking the class that you can interact with.
Class with Studio.com range in price from $100-$300 USD or you can get every music course for $5000 USD.
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Masterclass vs. Skillshare
Skillshare is a site similar to Studio.com, but it’s got a much wider range of topics/subjects and they do offer “all-access” subscriptions. It’s mostly focused on technical skills like marketing, social media, programming, etc. But it does have a few music classes as well.
There are no “big names” teaching their classes, but that doesn’t mean the instructors are not knowledgable. They still know their stuff.
Currently the music classes available on Skillshare are:
- Piano Basics
- Beginner Guitar
- Creative Songwriting for Beginners
- Singing Like a Star: Discovering Your Voice
- Toplining 101 – Melody and Lyrics in Songwriting
- Performing in Ableton Live with Backing Tracks
- Music Theory for Songwriters
Even though, those are the only music classes, they have over 25,000 classes to choose from across all of their topic areas.
From a couple of SkillShare courses I saw in the very early days, the content was VERY basic and beginner level.
They don’t offer any monthly subscription but you can get access for $168 per year.
Masterclass vs. Udemy
Finally, Udemy is a popular online learning platform that’s VERY similar to SkillShare.
First, they have a huge course library and cover a wide variety of topics. But again, their main focus does seem to be technical skills in online work and in business.
They do have some music classes, however.
At the time of this writing there are about 5770 results in the “music” category on Udemy. But you can be sure there’s a lot of overlap. The site will have several different courses on the same subject – learning piano, for example. And they’ll all have very similar content.
That’s not the case for EVERY course, but there will definitely be a lot of overlap, so don’t get hyped by the high number of courses, alone.
Udemy is different in a couple of ways – they don’t have huge names teaching the classes, and you have to buy each course individually, there’s no “all-access” option.
And from what I’ve seen from a couple of courses I’ve tried from Udemy – they’re pretty basic and beginner level.
They do offer some free courses that you can take, but the premium ones range in price from $50 – $250+. They often have sales, though where you can get the courses for much cheaper.
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Frequently Asked Questions
No, unfortunately Masterclass doesn’t have a monthly billing option for their all-access subscription. You have to pay for the full year of access in advance. The price for a year of access is $120 USD.
Yes, depending on the subscription package you choose, you can share your Masterclass account across different devices. They offer a “duo” option for access 2 devices and a “family” option for access on 6 devices. You only get one account login, but that login can be shared with others.
No, Masterclass can’t teach you everything. The courses come in two forms – complete beginner classes and high-level insights and education. Some courses are meant for people who know nothing, while others are for more intermediate students who want insights from famous/successful people in their fields. But none of the classes will teach you everything you need to know about the subject.
No, Masterclass lessons cannot be downloaded. They are only available to be streamed through the website or mobile app. Some classes, however, have additional learning materials – like PDFs – that can be downloaded.
No, Masterclass doesn’t offer the option to purchase a single class. They only offer a yearly subscription for an “all-access” pass to all of the courses and content.
Final Recommendation
Is Masterclass worth it? Yes, I think so.
Whether you’re a musician or just a curious person you should subscribe.
The names involved in the classes are HUGE – they’re some of the best to ever do it.
And even though a couple classes are not very useful (way too beginner level) some are really great.
Getting insights into the workflow, habits and processes of famous musicians would be helpful and inspiring to ANY music maker.
With their new, lower pricing and 30 day money back guarantee, I think you should absolutely give it a try today.
That’s that – thanks for reading this full Masterclass review! Hope it was helpful.
