Take one part Hodgson School of Music, one part Terry College of Business, mix in some successful music managers and you have the University’s Music Business Program.

The Music Business Program is only one year old but already has a growing list of notable guest speakers including Troy Aubrey, manager of Modern Skirts.

Today’s speaker to Music Business 5100 is Bertis Downs, general counsel for Athens-based band R.E.M.

Downs attended law school at the University before meeting R.E.M. members Michael Stipe, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Bill Berry.

Still a new program, the Music Business Program wasn’t always around to provide these opportunities for students.

Steve Dancz came back to his hometown of Athens after living in Los Angeles and writing the musical scores for television shows and films. His father had been the director of the University’s Redcoat Band for 37 years, so Dancz had a connection to the University.

Dancz began teaching jazz studies in the Hodgson School of Music.

“After I joined the faculty, it was immediately clear that there were no offerings for students to make a career in the music industry,” Dancz said.

After meetings and proposals, Dancz teamed up with Bruce Burch, Nashville songwriter and administrative director of Terry College, who had the same idea of a program.

The program was launched in January 2006.

“Our approach is to combine standard academic study with real world experience,” Dancz said. “It is that experience that gets people jobs inside this very competitive industry.”

The Music Business Program is open to all majors and puts students right in the middle of the industry with externships.

Guest speakers are also a vital part of the program, because they give firsthand insight into the industry.

“The panels are a great way for both people who are in the program and those who aren’t to meet real industry professionals,” said Stephen Gladney, a senior from Warner Robbins.

“Guest speakers from all different fields of the industry answer the big questions on everyone’s mind, and they’re great opportunities to network,” he said.

Gladney said the Music Business Program is a necessity for anyone wanting to get into the industry, and he has learned about a variety of things like digital markets, concert promotion and indie labels.

Kelly Nettles, a senior from Suwanne, said the panels are informal and give viewers a chance to ask questions to the speakers.

“Being a part of the Music Business family here at UGA, I am encouraged to go into any field of the industry I want,” she said.

For today’s panel, students could learn a lot from Downs.

“Bertis has been a great supporter of this program since the beginning and has been happy to be a guest speaker for our classes,” Dancz said. “His history with R.E.M. puts him in a unique position to share information with the students on a wide range of topics.”

Guests are welcome to attend any lectures, as long as Burch knows in advanced.