VOLUME XXXI NUMBER THREE FALL 2016
M A R K E T I N G 1 0 1
Social Media For Songwriters And Composers By Lori Barth and Jonathan David Neal The Score is hoping to take a little bit of the mystery out of Social Media so we asked several people well-versed in the subject to explain to us their outlook and how they use social media to reach an audience. Since it appears to be the way of the world these days, we hope, if you are not using it, you might feel more comfortable jumping in to the game. The people we spoke with range from our composers: Bear McCreary, Chistopher Lennertz, Austin Wintory, Kubilay Uner, to PR Beth Krakower, an online journalist, Claris SayadianDodge, who is founder and president of studio expresso.com and monthly Ezines, songwriter/ actress, Jessica Lesaca, and Rachel Neal who has experience in internet marketing and has a degree in Journalism.
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ear McCreary starts off the conversation with understanding why a composer needs social media at all. “Social Media provide the means for composers to extend their brand, and to define themselves to potential clients and fans. It is a vital tool to reinforce the aspects of your biography you want the world to know about. “Brand” is a nuanced word for this context. For most composers, the brand is their own personality. We’re not Coca-Cola here. So, the best advice is a double-edged sword: be an honest and true representation of who you are, assuming you really are someone people want to associate with!” Bear continues, “Telling the truth is much easier than telling a lie. If the truth is that you are passionate about your work, friendly, supportive of others, talented and humble, then social media can be your friend. Use the platform to communicate that message to the world. Fans Bear McCreary
and potential clients can use social media to gain access to you, which makes them like you. If you possess the opposite of those qualities, social media can work against you. You will spend your time and energy trying to craft a “brand” for yourself and it will feel fake, because it is. “The internet is noisy and crowded and you can’t get attention just doing what everyone else is doing. Find your own personal voice in how you describe yourself online, and then just be honest about your passions and who you are.” Do’s And Don’ts
Composer Austin Wintory, when asked about the Do’s and Don’ts of Social Media responded with, “The only real Do I adhere to is to make my online presence a genuine reflection of who I am. I Austin Wintory think of my email address as a marketing tool. It’s just me in online form. As for Don’ts, one must remember that the posts live online forever. So off-thecuff remarks made, particularly in a heated discussion, are hard to live down later. An obvious point, but worth highlighting.” “Do: Share what you’re excited about. Share frequently, across a variety of platforms. Don’t: Criticize anyone’s post about politics without being prepared for the inevitable,” says Bear. Composer Christopher Lennertz says, “Do post relevant content often. Do also keep posts professional, but still personable. Let your own personality shine. Authenticity is the key. If it feels too manufactured or slick, I don’t think it has the same effect. “Do find ways to give back to the comContinued on Page 16
Find your own personal voice in how you describe yourself online, and then just be honest about your passions and who you are. — Bear McCreary
C O N T E N T S
The Bionic Music Business 5 Tech Talk: CineStrings SOLO 7 Meet The Millers 12 Musical Shares 23
F R O M T H E E D I T O R ' S D E S K
Taking Chances By Lori Barth
President ASHLEY IRWIN Vice Presidents ARTHUR HAMILTON CHARLES BERNSTEIN Recording Secretary JONATHAN DAVID NEAL Treasurer/CFO CHRISTOPHER FARRELL The SCORE LORI BARTH, Senior Editor Advisory Board ALAN BERGMAN MARILYN BERGMAN CHARLES BERNSTEIN BILL CONTI CHARLES FOX JAMES NEWTON HOWARD QUINCY JONES ALAN MENKEN THOMAS NEWMAN LALO SCHIFRIN MARC SHAIMAN HOWARD SHORE ALAN SILVESTRI DIANE WARREN PATRICK WILLIAMS CHRISTOPHER YOUNG HANS ZIMMER In Memoriam Advisory Board Members ELMER BERNSTEIN JOHN CACAVAS JERRY GOLDSMITH MAURICE JARRE PETER MATZ DAVID RAKSIN Directors RAMON BALCAZAR LORI BARTH FLETCHER BEASLEY MICHAEL LEHMANN BODDICKER RUSSELL BROWER DENNIS C. BROWN GEORGE S. CLINTON MIRIAM CUTLER RON GRANT BENOIT GREY IRA HEARSHEN LYNN F. KOWAL Hélène Muddiman GREG PLISKA ELIZABETH ROSE ADRYAN RUSS GARRY SCHYMAN ELIZABETH SELLERS AUSTIN WINTORY Past Presidents JOHN ADDISON RICHARD BELLIS BRUCE BROUGHTON JAY CHATTAWAY RAY COLCORD JAMES DI PASQUALE DAN FOLIART ARTHUR HAMILTON MARK WATTERS ISSN 1066-5447 Society of Composers & Lyricists 8447 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 401 Beverly Hills, CA 90211 Ph (310) 281-2812
Office@thescl.com
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hances don’t come to us, opportunities do. If you seize the opportunity—you take the chance. It may be semantics, but to take a chance from that moment on is a gigantic leap of faith, but one that requires courage. Believing you can do whatever comes across your path makes one jump through fire. The only thing worse, in my opinion, is looking back on a lost chance with the regrets that come when it is too late to change time. Not to sound like a sermon, but rather an optimistic outlook on chances, g don’t miss one the next time opportunity knocks. DIAMOND MEMBERS Kristen Anderson-Lopez Lori Barth Alan & Marilyn Bergman Dennis C. Brown Carter Burwell Ray Charles George Clinton
Bill Conti Clint Eastwood Dan Foliart Charles Fox Elliot Goldenthal Arthur Hamilton James Howard
Mark Isham Robert Lopez Johnny Mandel Peter Melnick Randy Newman Mike Post Mark Roos
Lalo Schifrin Richard Sherman David Shire Alan Silvestri Mark Snow Dennis Spiegel Mike Stoller
Patrick Williams John Williams Maury Yeston
DIAMOND SPONSOR / SPECIAL FRIENDS Jay Cooper
Chantal Burnison
PLATINUM MEMBERS Mark Adler Avni Altin John Beal Marco Beltrami Amin Bhatia
Steven Bramson Joseph Conlan Darren Criss Mychael Danna
Alexandre Desplat Steve Jablonsky Derek Machann Bear McCreary
Garth Neustadter Joey Newman Atli Orvarsson Gary Rottger
Howard Shore Carlo Siliotto Angela Rose White Austin Wintory
PLATINUM SPONSOR / SPECIAL FRIENDS Jeffrey L. Graubart
GOLD MEMBERS Cato Jack Allocco Elik Alvarez Sara Andon Neil Argo Alexander Arntzen Sebastian Arocha Morton Charles-Henri Avelange Ramon Balcazar Steve Barden Nathan Barr Joe Barrera Jr. Jeff Beal Joel Beckerman Brian BecVar Charles Bernstein Burak Besir Peter Boyer Bill Brendle Richard Bronskill Kevin Brough Russell Brower Dan Brown Jr Benedikt Brydern Kenneth Burgomaster Dennis Burke Patric Caird Christopher Cano Bill Cantos Kristopher Carter RC Cates Sacha Chaban Jay Chattaway Simone Cilio Shawn Clement Elia Cmiral Jerry Cohen Kaveh Cohen Jim Cox Leah Curtis Imre Czomba Chanda Dancy
Jana Davidoff Tim Davies John Debney Erick Del Aguila David Delhomme Arhynn Descy Massimiliano (Max) Di Carlo John Dickson James DiPasquale Kevin Dorsey Joel Douek Dennis Dreith Bruce Dukov Robert Duncan Laura Dunn JC Dwyer Erich Einfalt Stephen Endelman Isabel Epstein Joel Evans Sharon Farber Jack Faulkner Liz Finch Shelley Fisher Pablo Flores Attila Fodor Andy Forsberg Alexandre Fortuit Pam Gates Grant Geissman Alexander Geringas Jim Gilstrap Scott Glasgow William Goldstein Mark Graham Harry Gregson Williams Lorna Guess Eric Hachikian Christine Hals Crispin Hands Wayne Hankin
Todd Brabec William Brewster Les Brockmann Jonathan Broxton Jon Burlingame Andrew Cohen Ray Costa Marylata Elton
Laura Engel Arlene Fishbach Susan Friedman Jeffrey Graubart Ken Helmer Sabrina Hutchinson Lynda Jacobs Anne Juenger
Bruce Healey Reinhold Heil Linda Herman Shari Hoffman Lee Holdridge Scott Holtzman Trevor Howard Russ Howard III Asuka Ito Joel Iwataki Clydene Jackson Ken Jacobsen Garrett Johnson Quincy Jones Federico Jusid Dave Kinnoin Grant Kirkhope Christopher Klatman Kevin Kliesch Christopher Knight Lynn F. Kowal Didier Lean Rachou Edie Lehmann Boddicker Christopher Lennertz Mark LeVang Michael Levine Daniel Licht Katherine Liner Michael Lira Charley Londono David Majzlin William Malpede Tracey Marino Gerard Marino Vance Marino Shelly Markham Craig Marks Billy Martin Harvey Mason Michael McCuistion William McFadden
Joel McNeely Jeffrey Michael Bryan Miller Bruce Miller Tricia Minty Brian Moe Pru Montin Greg Moore Mitchel Moore Sandro Morales Jeff Morrow Helene Muddiman Jonathan Neal Eimear Noone Abby North Matt Novack Liam O’Brien Cindy O’Connor Greg O’Connor Bijan Olia Jose Luis Oliveira (aka Ze Luis) Anele Onyekwere Julia Pajot Hannah Parrott Greg Phillinganes Art Phillips Stu Phillips John Piscitello Kim Planert Chandler Poling Mikel Prather Damir Price Judi Pulver Mac Quayle J. Ralph Ron Ramin Anya Remizova Regan Remy Trent Reznor Michael (Chris) Ridenhour Lolita Ritmanis
Dan Romer Atticus Ross William Ross Enis Rotthoff Adryan Russ Steven Saltzman Paula Salvatore David Schwartz Garry Schyman Tony Scott-Green Roxanne Seeman Fletcher Sheridan Ryan Shore Michael Silversher Helen Simmins-McMillin Stanley Smith Gregory Smith Arturo Solar Sally Stevens Neil Stubenhaus Karen Tanaka Jeremy Tisser Charles (Ched) Tolliver Pinar Toprak John Torcello Tyler Traband Kubilay Uner Jake Versluis Jack Wall Diane Warren Mark Watters Beth Wernick Frederik Wiedmann David Williams Alan Williams Eyvonne Williams Jonathan Wolff Gernot Wolfgang Catharine Wood Doug Wood David Wood Maciej Zielinski
GOLD SPONSORS / SPECIAL FRIENDS Costa Kotselas Richard Kraft Beth Krakower Roxanne Lippel Patty Macmillan Kimberly McMichael Stacey Neisig Nick Redman
John Rodd Juan Rodriguez Michael Ryan Jeffrey Sanderson Henry Stanny John Tempereau Robert Townson John Traunwieser
Alexander Vangelos Vasi Vangelos Charley Walters Steven Winogradsky
P R E S I D E N T ’ S M E S S A G E
The Circle Of Life
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By Ashley Irwin
t’s fair to say that we have all encountered at least one person who has come into our life unexpectedly, yet ultimately influenced our careers in an impactful way. They might provide tuition, offer counsel, share their wealth of experience or even create opportunity. They’re called mentors and the funny thing is, we don’t necessarily recognize them as such when we first meet them. Often, it’s not until we look in the rear-view mirror that we fully appreciate just how they have affected us. I’ve been fortunate to have had three people I would consider musical mentors over the course of my life and they each appeared roughly a decade apart: the first when I was 14, the second when I was 26 and the third somewhere in my late 30s. As I reflect on it, they all brought some new and fresh musical perspective into my life at a time when I really needed it. Because their areas of expertise were different, the complement formed a kind of “advisory triumvirate.” During the ensuing years we’ve stayed in touch, discussing music and musicians, family and friends, sharing achievements and war-stories, even bantering about politics. We know each other very well. They are a big part of my life and, I think, I am of theirs. However, not so long ago one of them passed away and the feeling I experienced was quite unique to anything I’d felt before. We’ve all experienced the death of a loved one, family member or close friend and the pain that goes with it. But this feeling was different: something in-between.
As I came to terms with my mentor’s passing, I began to consider what made it so different. He was many years older than I, so there was a patriarchal element to our relationship, but that wasn’t it. The void was a musical one: I would no longer be able to turn to him when I was second-guessing my musical self. There’d be no more reassurance of my choices or suggestions how to improve upon them. The umbilical cord had been cut and my musical decisions, in the area which he excelled, were now solely up to me. Initially, the prospect of this was quite unnerving but I soon began to realize just how much I’d learned from him. In fact, if I was honest with myself, there were many times, in more recent years, where my reaching out to him was merely a pretext to “shoot the breeze.” I pretty much knew what his answer to my musical conundrum would be before I made the call. It wasn’t until I shed these last vestiges of insecurity that I was able to fully appreciate how important the mentor/mentee connection can be. The knowledge and experience that is not often taught in colleges or universities is easily imparted via this unique relationship. For almost thirty years, I have personally been a mentor to two people, both of whom are about ten years my junior. That age difference may not seem like a lot, but to an aspiring teenager, someone in their mid20s seems positively middle-aged. Over the years, I’ve watched them both develop into fine musical artisans. I’ve been proud of
Each of us, at one time or another, will be called upon to act as a mentor to someone younger or less experienced than ourself.
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Laura Karpman Elected To The Academy Board Of Directors
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By Elizabeth Rose
earty congratulations to SCL member Laura Karpman for her election to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Board of Directors, music branch. Her election comes with a well-publicized initiative by the Academy to bring more diversity to its ranks. “I am the first American woman composer in our branch,” Ms. Karpman said in an email to the NY Times before the final election. “My advancement to the final four is a true signal that the academy membership is inspired to change.” The four-time Emmy winner has composed music for film, TV, games and the concert hall. Fueled by a generous spirit, her musical legacy may be matched by her drive to give women composers an equal share of the market. “I am a founding member and president of the Alliance of Women Film Composers. I am passionate about nurturing new talent and widening the perspectives of our community.”
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N O T E S F R O M N E W Y O R K
SCL New York Diary: May-July 2016 SCL NY Spring 2016 Mentor Program
The Annual SCL NY Community Picnic
Our mentorship program continued this Spring, featuring guest speakers including John Kaefer (composer), Michael Patterson (composer), Missy Cohen (music editor), Tony Volante (score mixer), Tim Bohn (director), and David Wolfert (songwriter).
Central Park was the site of our picnic, accompanied by The New York Philharmonic’s Concert featuring music by Beethoven and Wagner. Conviviality and community were the watchwords of the day.
The Art and Craft of Putting Music to Film
On Thursday, June 2nd at the Frederick Loewe Theatre at NYU’s Steinhardt School, the SCL in NY, in conjuction with the NYU/ASCAP Film Scoring Workshop, presented a wide-ranging appreciation of the myriad creative ways composers have combined these media, featuring composers Wendy Blackstone, Chris Hajian and John Kaefer.
Seminar on Digital Asset Management and Monetization
The SCL presented a seminar with Mark Roos, Michael Whalen and Bill Wilson on Tuesday, June 28th at Ripley Grier Studios.
The Infiltrator Screening
L-R: Mark Roos, Bill Wilson, Michael Whalen, Elizabeth Rose, Chris Hajian, Greg Pliska, JoAnne Harris
In the “Can I Get a Witness” category, here are a few words from Tristan Clopet, a participant in NY’s SCL Mentorship Program—special thanks to the SCL NY’s mentors Chris Hajian, Eric Hajikian, Mark Roos and Elizabeth Rose:
“Joining the SCL and applying for the SCL Mentorship Program was one of the most important career decisions I’ve ever made. I was encouraged and advised by NYC’s top working composers and given a space to demonstrate my strengths, improve on my weaknesses and even work on films like Bryan Cranston’s new thriller, The Infiltrator. I’m eternally grateful to the SCL community.” — Tristan Clopet
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L-R: Greg Pliska, Tristan Clopet, Chris Hajian, JoAnne Harris, Joel Beckerman
SCL NY & MCNY Co-Sponsor Irving Berlin Event
The Museum of the City of New York Presents: ”Irving Berlin’s Brilliant New York Career” was co-sponsored by the SCL of NY on Wednesday, July 6th at the museum.
L-R: Members of the cast of Holiday Inn with Robert Kimball, Elizabeth Matsow and Ted Chapin L-R: Mark Roos, Beth Ertz, Tony Finno, Greg Pliska, and attendees
This current release, starring Bryan Cranston, was presented at the Park Avenue Screening Room on Tuesday, July 19th. Following the screening, Joel Beckerman moderated a Q&A in which composer Chris Hajian and his music crew discussed the aesthetics and the composing process. The presentation included fascinating detail from orchestrators JoAnne Harris and Greg Pliska, and composers assistant Tristan Clopet. Seminar: The ComposerOrchestrator Collaboration
The SCL presented a seminar featuring orchestrators Beth Ertz, Tony Finno and Greg Pliska on Wednesday, July 20th. Anecdotes from their work with Elmer Bernstein, David Byrne and Joel Douek provided an entertaining and informative view of the many ways the g creative process works.
V I S I O N A R I E S
The Bionic Music Business: We Have The Technology, We Can Rebuild It
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By Hélène Muddiman
mogen Heap is the only female artist to have ever won the Grammy for engineering. On July 21st this year, she also gained an honourary doctorate in technology for her work with the research team at the University of West England on the Mi.Mu Gloves. When Imogen Heap sees a problem—she sets about building the technology, so she can rebuild it! She is a pioneer and a visionary. In 2005 she self-released Speak For Yourself long before most of us woke up to the possibilities of going it alone. Her latest release, Tiny Human, is self-released. Ujo Music was one of many who uploaded the song, including Bittunes and Alexandria as part of the experiment. Most notably, Ujo was the first company in the world to distribute payments for a song via a smart contract. Her recent fascination with the problems faced by the music industry has
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led her to create an initiative called Mycelia. “Inspired by the largest living organisms on earth, ancient and unseen, core to life itself, Mycelium can stretch for miles, beneath the surface.” For more information see http:// myceliaformusic.org. Imogen Heap believes that, given the unethical foundation upon which the industry was built and its many infamous shortcomings, nothing short of a wholesale reinvention will ever lead to real change. There are many other initiatives researching similar ideas including the Berklee College/MIT Open Music Initiative, “web and the blockchain” at W3C, Hyperledger at the Linux Foundation, Akamai at MIT, EPSRC grant application in the UK involving Universities including Bath, Ulster, Oxford and The Kendra Initiative, ProTechU.org and Music Tech Fest Blockchain LAB which was in Berlin earlier this year, to g name but a few.
Imogen Heap believes that, given the unethical foundation upon which the industry was built and its many infamous shortcomings, nothing short of a wholesale reinvention will ever lead to real change.
John Debney In Concert At The VPAC
scar nominated and prolific film composer John Debney performed as a guest of the Media Composition Studio Ensemble at the VPAC on Thursday, May 12, 2016 at 7:30 pm. He conducted his music from recent films, Passion of the Christ, Iron Man 2 and Jungle Book, with choir and studio orchestra.
L-R: Elizabeth Sellars, John Debney and SCL President Ashley Irwin
John Debney and Elizabeth Sellars conducting onstage
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L-R: Composer Danny Lux and SESAC’s John Josephson and Dennis Lord
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SESAC Honors Film & TV Composers/Publishers
ESAC honored its remarkable roster of top film and television composers at the annual SESAC Film & Television Composers Awards Dinner. The invitation-only event, held June 1 at the beautiful Casa Del Mar Hotel in Santa Monica, CA, celebrated the composers of music featured in 2015’s biggest films, primetime television shows and cable programs. The SESAC event bestows awards to music composers in the categories of Network TV, Local TV, Cable TV, Film Composing and Jingles. SESAC also acknowledged and honored composers for excellence in Streaming Media. With more than 100 awards given during the evening, some of the industry’s most highly rated shows were honored. Composer Paul Buckley and SESAC’s Erin Collins
L-R: SESAC’s Erin Collins, Noa Ehrlich and composer Jon Ehrlich 6
L-R: SESAC’s John Josephson and Erin Collins and composer Bruce Miller
L-R: SESAC’s John Josephson, composer Rick Butler, SESAC’s Erin Collins and composer Fred Rapoport
L-R: SESAC’s Erin Collins with composer Christophe Beck
L-R: SESAC’s Erin Collins, composer Evan Frankfort, SESAC’s Dennis Lord
T E C H T A L K
CineStrings SOLO: Cinesamples’ New Solo String Sample Library
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By Fletcher Beasley
hen I am required to mockup solo string parts in MIDI a small part of me dies inside. I know that no matter how much time I spend programming and editing my MIDI parts, the result will be a pale approximation of the real thing, and as such, will make it that much more difficult to get my cue approved by the director or producer. As sampling technology has improved, sample libraries can be used to create fairly realistic renditions of orchestral sections, but solo instrument samples rarely get close to their acoustic counterparts due to the expressive nature and varied articulations of those instruments. For this reason, I approached Cinesamples’ new solo string library, Cinestrings SOLO, with a mixture of anticipation and wariness. Retailing at $399, SOLO provides the user with solo versions of Violin 1, Violin 2, Viola, Cello and Double Bass. The library is 50 gigabytes in size, but requires 100 gigabytes of free disk space for installation. It is a Kontakt library that works with the free Kontakt player, so you don’t need to own the full version of Kontakt to use the library. With Cinesamples’ Downloader software, installation is simple and straightforward. You just enter your email address and order ID number and the software downloads the files to your local drive where they can then be installed directly from Downloader. SOLO has three primary patches for each instrument—True Legato patches for expressive legato parts, Articulations patches that contain both legato and short articulation samples and a Pizzicato patch. An Extra Patches folder is included that contains tremolo, Bartok pizz, chamber ensemble and vibrato crossfade patches which allow you to add vibrato using MIDI continuous controller 2. Like most modern libraries, legato patches use the modulation wheel (CC1) to control dynamics. The Articulations patches switch between legato and short articulations by depressing the sustain pedal and short articulations of varied lengths (spiccato, staccato and marcato) are triggered with different MIDI velocity levels. What you notice immediately when auditioning patches are how good they sound and how much fun they are to play. I typically start with legato patches to get a sense of the
expressive capabilities of a sample library and SOLO does not disappoint. Recorded at the MGM Scoring Stage, the sound is rich and warm and it is easy to create realistic musical passages directly from the keyboard without a lot of additional editing. The legato transitions from one note to another (which can be a dead giveaway that the instrument is MIDI) are very natural and musical sounding. Cinesamples’ adaptive legato engine effectively detects whether you are playing fast or slow and adapts its attacks and transitions in real time. At first I found it odd that the notes don’t sustain very long before there is an audible rebowing of the note, but a quick perusal of the manual revealed the intelligence of this decision. A solo string doesn’t hold a note infinitely so Cinesamples decided to record the bow change. If you need a longer sustained note with no rebowing, a key switch below the range of the instrument will trigger an infinite sustain. The patches are all extremely well programmed and many composers will not feel the need to change any parameters. Nevertheless, Cinesamples offers quite a bit of customization via a well thought out and elegant interface, much of which will be familiar to users of other Cinesamples orchestral libraries. The mixer tab (visible when the patch is first loaded) displays mixer presets ranging from dry and close to quite ambient. The default Dennis Sands preset sounds very good and natural for many applications but there are six other presets that can be further tweaked by adjusting fader levels associated with different microphone positions. An EQ/Reverb channel strip is also included on the tab’s mixer interface to add additional reverb from a Bricasti M7 and make basic EQ adjustments to the sound. I found that adding a bit of “edge” to the cello provided a natural sounding bite to the sound that allowed it to cut nicely through the mix. Under the mapping tab, options are provided for setting the way that the patches respond to velocity, keyswitches or MIDI continuous controllers. For the True Legato patches, the default is for note velocities above 80 to trigger expressive samples that have more vibrato and include portamento transitions between some notes. Note velocities 80 and below trigger standard legato
SOLO raises the bar for solo string sample libraries. This library will be an indispensible tool for composers who need to mockup solo strings for their cues.
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CineStrings SOLO Continued from Page 7
samples. Thus you have a combination of velocity and modulation wheel that can give quite a bit of expressive control over the instruments. The Articulations patches, with both short and legato articulations, trigger legato samples with the sustain pedal down and short articulations with the pedal up, making it very easy to switch while playing. There are mapping presets if you prefer using keyswitches or MIDI CCs to change articulations with further customization available to make them exactly the way you want. The tab additionally features a button to overlay an accent of your choosing (spiccato, staccato or marcato) for accented legato. The settings tab is where you can tweak the way the patches respond in real time. SOLO’s new adaptive
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legato engine does a great job of making intelligent musical choices for attack and portamento transitions and seemed to respond expressively to my natural playing style on the keyboard. My only criticism of the portamento implementation is that not every interval has a portamento transition, so if there is a specific note you wish to slide to you may be out of luck depending on the patch. Though I found the defaults to be quite good in most situations, the legato adjustments section is useful if you need to alter the way the patch responds to the piece you are playing. For example, I found the Viola True Legato patch to lag a little for my taste. However, a simple adjustment of the legato speed knob fixed the lag issues I was experiencing. Once you get the hang of the way that the speed and intensity knobs work, it is easy to fine-tune the patches to your taste. You can also quantize
ASCAP Scoring Workshop 2016
he ASCAP Scoring Workshop, directed by Richard Bellis, culminated on August 1, when aspiring composers had the opportunity to record their original film scene scores using the same tools as a world-class composer: a 60-piece orchestra at Hollywood’s historic Newman Scoring Stage at FOX Studios. L-R: ASCAP’s Michael Todd, Grant Geissman and Richard Bellis
attack times, change sample starts, affect the way the patch cycles through samples, change the release response and add effects and filters. These are all accomplished through the Cinesamples interface without having to get under the hood of Kontakt. I never felt limited in my ability to customize the sounds nor did I feel overwhelmed with the choices. Cinesamples has struck a nice balance in this respect. SOLO raises the bar for solo string sample libraries. This library will be an indispensible tool for composers who need to mockup solo strings for their cues. It also can be effectively used to fill out MIDI string sections by adding focus to featured parts. SOLO sounds great and feels musical under your fingers. Once again, Cinesamples has created a library with the composer in mind that balances superb sound quality and playability with ease of use and g customization. Bravo! C D R E V I E W
Andrew Shapiro Piano 3 / Pink Jean Mint Green Andrew Shapiro is described as an American composer and songwriter. He has several CDs out and his music can be heard on television. Ambitiously releasing two albums simultaneously which are completely different in style, Shapiro has shown the two sides of his artistry. Piano 3 is modern, classical-influenced piano reminiscent of a George Winston record. It is a beautifully recorded solo piano project of all original compositions that are melodically minimalistic. All the selections are pleasing to the ear and easy to listen to. $15.00 www.andrewshapiro.com Pink Jean Mint Green can be described more as an electro indie pop album featuring a collaboration with author Neil Gaiman. If you are a fan of artists like Postal Service or Death Cab for Cutie, you are going to fall in love with Shapiro’s new project. His voice is clean and pure, the drum programming is fantastic and the synth m otifs are interesting. One of the songs, Lauren(s), is hysterically about five different girlfriends he had during his college years all named Lauren. $8.91 g iTunes
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N E W G E A R
FXpansion Geist2 & Project Sam Swing! Reviews By Jack D. Elliot FXpansion Geist2
Geist2 is a powerful beat creation and sound sculpting plugin. FXpansion really stepped up their game from the original version, which was a cool plugin, but with a non-user friendly interface. I find that Geist2 is similar to a mixture of Ableton Live and NI Machine. Geist2 is built with eight sound engines, each being able to hold full drum kits, or 64 multi-layered slots of sampled sounds with individual track lengths that you can then modify and add FX. You can then take all of that and sequence it into 24 different versions and arrange it into a full song. The plugin is both Retina and 4k compatible, and in this new Geist2 version, I love that you can pull the bottom of the plugin to enlarge it. I have a 40” monitor, and I wish that all plugins had this option. Listen up, tech creators…looking at old plugins with extremely small text on 4k monitors won’t work anymore! The Geist2 factory library comes with over 650MB from Splice Sounds, including sliceable Rex loops, hits, kits, and full presets. In addition to this, users purchasing Geist2 are eligible to claim two free packs from FXpansion’s existing Geist Expanders range of products (excluding Cinematic Drums, Cinematic Percussion, and City of Drums and Beats) and will also have access to the content library provided with the first generation Geist. Geist2 includes the following formats for plugins: • On Mac: VST (64-bit, 32-bit), AU (64- bit, 32-bit) and AAX (64-bit) • On Windows: VST (64-bit, 32-bit) and AAX (64-bit) The sampler functions on Geist2 provide the ability to record audio directly onto a pad, so that new samples are ready to play and sequence as quickly as possible. You can sample an external signal or ‘resample’ Geist2’s Master output. You also have the ability to load your own samples and loops. The formats that can be loaded are WAV, AIF, AIFF, Recycle and REX 2. Geist2 also has an integrated slicer which allows fast, nondestructive chopping of beats with automatic pattern extraction. Drag and drop MIDI and
audio export make it simple to create your own custom loops. Also included are event probability, micro-timing shifts for ”off-the-grid” organic grooves, and parameter step-automation for adding new dimensions to your beats. The drum pads remind me of Ableton’s drum rack, with all the flexibility it provides to mangle the sound or make basic tweaks if needed. In total, Geist2 features 47 built-in effects, all of which provide their own presets to get you started. Effect types are divided into the following sections: Distortion, Dynamics, EQ, Filters, FX and Reverbs. New effects include: • Bloom and Maul algorithms • Low-fidelity DAC modelling • High-quality reverb • Frequency shifting • Granular freezing • Classic DCAM compression • Filters and drive All in all, there are a lot of pros with this Geist2 upgrade. There aren’t too many cons, except that there are so many choices that it can make it a little cluttered and confusing to use at first. But once you get the hang of it, you will be addicted! Ableton and Maschine have some strong competition, while Geist is still different in its own special way. Excellent sounds, and massive flexibility in manipulating the heck out of your sounds. I am very impressed, and vote 10/10.
If you ask anyone who composes for film, television, or video games, you will probably find the Project Sam libraries being used. And for these composers, you can definitely now add Swing! to your Project Sam collection.
Project Sam Swing!
Project Sam has historically put out very strong libraries for NI Kontakt. If you ask anyone who composes for film, television, or video games, you will probably find the Project Sam libraries being used. And for these composers, you can definitely now add Swing! to your Project Sam collection. Swing! includes 35GB (18.5 GB compressed) of horns, percussion, rhythmic strumming instruments like guitars and ukuleles, and more. For compatibility, the supported formats include Standalone, AAX Native, VST, and AU. Native Kontrol Standard support provides easy integration into the rest of your NI rig. The average price for this library is $349. Continued on Page 21 9
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What’sHappening
he incomparable music of BMI composer John Williams was celebrated in a tribute concert by the highly esteemed NY Philharmonic on May 24, with BMI’s Vice President of Film/TV Relations, Doreen RingerRoss, proudly in attendance to support both Williams and the conductor of the event, BMI composer David Newman. Favorite moments from the box office hits were projected on a giant screen while Newman conducted the performance, receiving thunderous applause and a standing ovation at the conclusion of the historic evening.
By Lori Barth
BMI’s Vice President of Film/TV Relations Doreen Ringer-Ross poses for a photo with writer/journalist Ray Bennett (L) and BMI Composer Cliff Martinez (R) g g g
L-R: Composer Joel Douek, composer Joey Newman, attorney Brad Shenfeld; composer Didier Lean Rachou and composer Jeremy Borum onstage during the ‘Composer’s Ultimate Survival Kit’ panel, part of the 2016 ASCAP “I Create Music” EXPO
L-R: Krys Newman, BMI’s Doreen Ringer-Ross and BMI composer/conductor David Newman
James Levine, ASCAP staff and the USC SMPTV students, faculty and recording musicians thank The ASCAP Foundation and Bart Howard Fund for their support of the program Creature Features: Featuring Award Winning Composers, L-R: Christopher Young, Brian Tyler and John Ottman 10
L-R: Lori Barth, Scott Freiman and Jack D. Elliot at the Crest Theatre in Westwood, CA for the Deconstructing Magical Mystery Tour lecture
L-R: ASCAP Director, Film & TV Jennifer Harmon and Bear McCreary attend the 2016 ASCAP “I Create Music” EXPO
L-R: White Bear PR’s Chandler Poling, manager Michal Marks, BMI composer Kristopher Carter, BMI’s Doreen Ringer-Ross, BMI composers Lolita Ritmanis and Michael McCuistion pose for a photo after the Dynamic Music Partners youth concert
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What’sHappening
scar-winning composer Alexandre Desplat received yet another accolade at this year’s Krakow Film and Music Festival, where he was awarded the prestigious Kilar Prize for his significant contributions to film music. His brilliant scores for Roman Polanski’s most recent films, Venus In Fur, Carnage and The Ghost Writer, were all performed in a concert in honor of Polanski, who was recognized this year by the Polish Filmmakers Association for his contribution to Polish cinema.
By Lori Barth
The Hollywood Chamber Orchestra featured one of the world’s great violinists, Sarah Chang at the Montalbán Theater in Hollywood on Saturday, July 23. In addition to “The Four Seasons” violin concerti and pieces by Tchaikovsky, the music of BMI composer John Williams was also performed and conducted by BMI composer/conductor Lucas Richman.
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L-R: BMI’s Vice President of Film/ TV Relations Doreen Ringer-Ross with composer Alexandre Desplat L-R: Todd Brabec, Tim Cohan, Henry Root and Jeffery Brabec at the AIMP Luncheon Licensing In The Digital World on March 24, 2016
L-R: Hollywood Chamber Orchestra Music Director, co-founder and BMI composer Mark Robertson, BMI composer-conductor Lucas Richman and BMI’s Ray Yee
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Jay Wadley attends the premiere of Indignation at MoMa in New York
L-R: Daniel Pemberton, Jan A.P. Kaczmarek, Roque Banos, Ray Costa at Transatlantyk which was created by Jan six years ago
L-R: At the performance of the The Little Mermaid are BMI’s Doreen Ringer-Ross, BMI composer Alan Menken and the show’s co-producer, Laura Engel NYU/ASCAP Foundation Film Scoring Workshop in Memory of Buddy Baker, Composer Mark Snow, ASCAP Film & TV Music Department Staff at the scoring session on the NYU Campus 11
Meet The Millers INTERVIEWED BY LORI BARTH
Bruce and Jason Miller are a force to be reckoned with, singularly and together. Bruce started out as a musician/arranger back in Detroit and has worked on many commercials, arrangements for an array of artists, in addition to being a successful television composer with shows such as Dallas, Falcon Crest and Fraser to his credit. His son Jason started playing guitar and worked on Becker, playing weekly guitar parts as a neighbor of Kelsey Grammer, soon blossoming into a partnership with his father working on shows such as The Odd Couple. Both still work separately, Bruce on scoring, Jason on commercials and producing records and songwriting. Here is a unique look into their relationship and what they are doing these days. Score: Bruce, you started old school. Tell us a little please. Bruce: My background is as an arranger. I was a record guy before I ever got into composing; I was basically a string/horn arranger very early on. 12
Lately, it has just been the barrage of new technology that has forced us to do so much of our work on our computers and home studios, and so much less with the live orchestras. I’m also kind of a geek, so I do enjoy the computer part of it, but I could work much faster, and honestly the notes would be better if I were writing it out on score paper for live players. This is because I can shake off the restraints of the samplers. On a computer, you get into improvising a little differently. When I write it out, there are so many details that I would write…those little details, all for true expression. Score: Can’t you write it out and play it on the computer? Bruce: Yes, but it is just different. Only because it’s usually in the heat of battle where we have no time. Again, if I wrote it out, sent it to a copyist and showed up at the studio… I do that fast. I used to do charts for half an album overnight. But today, we just start… I do little sketches or I improvise the
thing right in. We are just forced to work that way. Score: Jason, you come from a nonarranging background and you came in the era when we already had computers. How do you feel about this approach or using real strings? Have you written for real strings? Jason: No, I haven’t had the chance to work with many live players the way my dad has, unfortunately. I know from his experience and his colleagues that you can’t compare working in that environment to doing everything on your own. To be in a room with a bunch of creative people, there’s a certain inspiration. I don’t think anyone would say it isn’t better than doing it alone on the computer—but the budgets simply don’t allow for it. If you can get a live player in to give a little life to blend into everything, that’s great. I always hear from him and his friends that I missed out on the really, really good years of scoring. You got together with 40 of your favorite players
and you had a little more time, music was prominently featured, while these days it is becoming more of a necessity as opposed to a truly desired aspect of production, especially in the TV world. Score: You started out as a guitarist and a saxophonist. Bruce: I was singing and playing Elvis Presley songs when I was twelve, and then played at bar mitzvahs and weddings. Being from Detroit, I met the local pro musicians and got interested in jazz and started playing bebop… spending hours playing jazz in the solitude of my parent’s bedroom. I locked myself up there, I was never a true practicer; I was never one of those woodshed guys—you know, scales and arpeggios and all that. It just wasn’t me. And it showed, but I was a quick study. I was always able to find a way to get it out. Eventually, I just started working with the real pros back there and playing and learning a lot. I used to love the Four Freshman back then, so I bought a trombone and I learned to play it and I played it on some commercials and such to pay back for what I spent on it. Never wanted to play trumpet however. In my use of samples these days, I use a breath controller for all the winds (including trumpet) when I have to. Score: How did you learn to write? Bruce: I looked over shoulders. A close friend of mine was a Motown arranger, Dave Van De Pitte, who passed many years ago. We had a jingle company together, worked club dates… we were very, very close friends, and so I would talk to him at length about writing. I also went to Wayne State University for four years as a music theory major, never got the degree because the Vietnam War started and I was going to get drafted, so I went into the NORAD band and played jazz for three years in Colorado Springs. Jason: Dad, weren’t you offered positions with two famous orchestras? Bruce: Yeah. My friend Bob Pierson called and said, “Do you want to come and play first tenor for Woody [Herman]? I’m leaving.” I had to pass on that one. Talk about being sick… I would have lasted a week and then the draft would have come and gotten me. And then the other one was playing guitar for Mancini. I think it was a
European trip. He was my hero and I couldn’t do it. It was horrible. But I did play guitar for Paul Anka for a year. He came to Detroit, heard me on the gig and the second night asked me to go on the road with him. Then, when I got out of the service I conducted the orchestras for him for three years, and he moved me to New York to work with him daily. With Anka, I was able to meet so many heroes of mine. Torrie Zito was always with us, Don Costa, Bill Potts. I used to hang out with all of them. Torrie lived around the corner from me in New York and I used to go over there and pick his brain. Bill Potts wanted a pint of vodka in exchange for a lesson because we were buddies. I’d just absorb what these guys were doing. I bought the Mancini book when it first came out, so that’s how I learned how to do it. I used to ghost write a lot for Gene Page. It was sensational, and I was privileged to have him call me. I studied his scores, too. Score: Now on the contrary, your dad got you a guitar when you were in the fourth grade. Did he teach you or did you just work it out yourself? Jason: I remember the day I brought it home, I wanted to learn a song that seemed easy to me, “Eighteen and Life” by Skid Row. I was just sort of strumming the open strings a little bit and I called him in and he figured it out quickly and showed me. I took lessons briefly for probably a year or six months. I’d have questions, mostly on how to play a song, and then my teacher would show me. But mostly I learned on my own once the ball was rolling. I was referred to Ted Green when I was around twelve or thirteen, but he yelled at my Dad over the phone about who knows what, so my dad was like, “I’m not sending my kid to that guy!” Years later, I was maybe 22 or 23, and I connected with Ted somehow and took some lessons with him. Those were interesting, as I learn best through structure, but with Ted it was more like you just absorb whatever he was giving off. If you didn’t interrupt with a question or comment, he would just keep playing. So it was quite an experience. While I was at UCLA I studied Communications and Political Science, and then a year or two after graduation I went to Musicians Institute in Hollywood for a stint and got some more of
a traditional music-school education. That was good. These days I’ll still set up lessons with guys who have a lot to offer just to keep my chops up. Score: Do you write like your father? Jason: The short answer is “not really.” But that’s part of why we work so well together. Just stylistically, we’ve got different strengths than one another, so there’s a workflow we’ve gotten accustomed to over the years, each holding our own role. Score: What is the difference between your two methods? Jason: If you want some heavy orchestral stuff, I’m really not your guy. If you want some deep jazz stuff, don’t call me. Here’s my dad’s number.” Anything else commercial—country, pop, rock, blues, rap, contemporary, whatever—that’s my wheelhouse. But had I known, I would have been doing this year’s back, I would have studied music in college without a doubt. I didn’t start working consistently writing music until I was around 24 when my father and I scored a show together; Before that, I was playing guitar on the CBS comedy Becker every week for fiveand-a-half seasons. It was a fun gig, and it gave me a glimpse into episodic scoring, but I wasn’t a full-time musician until shortly after Becker ended. Score: Let’s talk a little bit about producing and arranging. You each have your own thing going on. But I noticed Bruce, that you had some artist like Rev. James Cleveland whom you had done arrangements for. Bruce: I did a lot of arranging for a dear friend, Frank Wilson, and one of the projects he did was producing for Rev. James Cleveland. Frank was into the gospel thing and I was the R&B guy, so I got a call to do it. That stuff is amazing. You hear James Cleveland’s voice and those choirs! You’re hearing two and three chords happening all at the same time. It sounds terrific. But if we (non-gospel choir/player people) tried to do it, it would be the worst train wreck in the world. They do it and it is magnificent. But all of a sudden you’ve got 20 strings and six or seven horns, you have to make a decision. You have to write the note, what are they playing? Are they playing the chord you think it should be? That was always a Continued on Next Page 13
The Millers Interview Continued from Page 13
challenge. Then I got called from Andre Crouch (that stuff was funky hip, impeccable, a whole different deal), and The Mighty Clouds of Joy. I’d look around the studio and I was the only white atheist in the whole room…lol. Score: Of the other R&B and jazz singers, who did you enjoy arranging for? Bruce: I loved the Rod Stewart stuff because that was just rich and I did a couple of big ballads for him. I used to love arranging for so many Motown artists, especially when Russ Terrana was the engineer. We’d get in there and we’d just go nuts. We would have the best time, we had great players and Russ was the best engineer. He was kind of like Jason, he was not an extremely deep trained guy, but the taste and his ears… the records that would pop out of that room… they were amazing. Some Minnie Ripperton tracks have always been special to me, Gladys Knight, Joss Stone, Norman Whitfield projects, on and on. And then so much of the television I have done, scoring a lot of shows that also required my arranging chops. I would love it when I got big orchestras for special episodes. Score: You were doing TV when there were a lot of orchestras, when you didn’t have to be in-the-box. Bruce: That’s right. Score: You were very lucky to go through that time. Jason missed that boat. Jason: I’ve heard my dad say to people, “What I would’ve given for him to have had a little bit of time in the ‘heyday.’” Bruce: If he could have worked from say 1987 to 1995, when things were just cookin’, we had budgets, and also people liked what we did. Right now it is very, very non-inclusive. We’re a vendor. We’re the end of the food chain. They want what we do to be right, but we’re frequently given very little creative license. They don’t want that. It’s “here is what we want, not what you think.” Years ago when my friend, Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, was at a mix, she would pull up a chair next to me and ask me, “What do you
think, Bruce?” in her Missouri drawl. She really took part and used to say, “This music made the movie. Your music made the episode.” That’s her, you don’t get that much anymore. But for a lot of us, it is the gig that you’ve got and who you are working for. I’ve worked for some people that you walk in the room and just step up and sit in front. A lot of it now is, don’t even show, don’t even call, email us what we need. We don’t have time to talk. It’s just the way it is. We lament a little bit but we’re happy to be working on legit projects. Regarding my live dates, I might add that working alone is what is most comfortable to me. I do not use ghostwriters, orchestrators, assistants…nothing. I don’t really know how to do a proper sketch, so I always go right to the “big paper.” And when I say “big paper,” I mean eight-bar score pads. My copyist George Annis, may he R.I.P, used to call them bed sheets. The standard four-bar stuff others use makes me a bit stifled, plus conducting from it is awful for me. I need to see, at all times, where I’ve been, and where I’m going on the score! Score: Jason, tell me about what you do, you have the more modern thing? You’ve worked with Kanye, for example. Jason: I didn’t actually work with him, side-by-side. He took a track I had cowritten and produced with an up-andcoming rapper who called me one day and said, “Pick me up, and bring the session. We’re going to see Kanye in the studio.” I brought a CD with all the files and tried to hang out a little bit and see what was going on. He spent an hour working on a kick drum sound. I was there for around two hours but when I realized he wasn’t going to invite me to dinner or be his best friend, I decided not to overstay my welcome, so I told him “I’m going to take off. Here is my info if you need anything.” He said, “Here’s my manager’s info” and that was it. Later I found out the song was going to be on his album (but turned out to only be a bonus track on iTunes and released internationally on the physical CD). Basically he sampled what I did, I think he kept the piano and a few other things and totally tweaked them and manipulated them. It was almost like he sampled some of my material. Basically, the experience
Bruce Miller
wasn’t like, “Hey, let’s collaborate.” It’s like when somebody submits a beat, and the rapper uses the whole thing or part of it, but in that world that’s what happens. Score: It was a lucky thing. Jason: For my first record credit, it could not be much bigger. All my record work has been pretty much on my own where things find their way to an artist. But the way things go, I mean… you hear stories about artists like Sam Smith working repeatedly with his collaborator Jimmy Napes, for instance, but I’m typically with other writers and producers. We’ll write stuff and shop our tunes. I did a record for Keyshia Cole, where I went home one night from a session after thinking, “I could do by myself what I did with that guy (producer/writer),” so I did this track in a few hours and sent it to a writer I met through Myspace who put lyrics and a demo singer on it. A little while later I spotted Ron Fair at an Italian deli and approached him. Told him I loved his work and would like to send him some music. He gave me his email and I sent him that one track. Months later his label reached out and asked if I could send him the Protools session. Score: So the Ron Fair pitch was a cold pitch? Jason: Yeah, totally. He was putting groceries in his car. He happened to have been receptive. It was at least six months before I heard from Ron again that they’re using the song on Keyshia Cole so they need my lawyer’s info. They kept on the final record, I think, everything that I recorded in my little apartment at the time; guitars, synths, drum programming, etc. He added Continued on Next Page
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The Millers Interview Continued from Page 14
an orchestra and a live drummer. But again, it wasn’t a collaboration in the same room. It was more, “Thanks for all your tracks. I’ll take it from here.” Score: But don’t you think a lot of it is like that now? They take sessions and they take your beat. Jason: I do. It’s so different these days. Part of the reason I like collaborating is just to be around other people. When my dad was coming up you had sessions with groups of people all the time. Now it is like this and I’m fine with that. It might not be as much fun, but that’s the way it goes. All my record work has been where you come up with something you think is strong and then somehow get it to the right person. I don’t work with a publisher or song-plugger so it’s really on me and my collaborators to get my/our work out there. My latest cut was for Reba McEntire, where I was in a restaurant and overheard these two people talking. It sounded like music talk so I walked over and said, “I’m sorry to interrupt but I heard you guys talking. Are you songwriters or in the record business?” And the guy said, “She is. She’s a great songwriter.” Not long after that encounter, she came over with a friend of hers. I had a track, an instrumental I had started, and she and her friend wrote some lyrics. We made a pop record. Susan, the girl I’d met, decided to cover the song herself as a country tune. Her friend back in Nashville happens to be one of Reba’s guitar players. They took the new country version and
Jason Miller
gave it Reba, who used it on her album. That’s the way a lot of it goes: you sit and write and write and write—it’s like doing demos as a composer. You send them out to supervisors, or whoever might be in a good position to get songs to artists, and you hope something lands. That’s kind of the way the songwriting/producing thing is for me, personally. Bruce: My career was all being at the right place at the right time—luck. Everything I’ve done, a million other people could have done. I just happened to be there to get that gig. And then the next thing you know… that’s the way the business is. You’ve got to be out there. That’s the main thing. Jason: He used to say that to me and it would drive me nuts. Be out there, be where? And he’d say, “I don’t know but you’ve got to be out there.” And I would say, “Where do I go? I’m not in Detroit when you came up where there were jazz clubs on every block. It’s different now, people are into rock ‘n ’roll and rap, there’s a hip hop club 15 miles away, and there’s a blues bar over there. Live music isn’t what is was, so…” Bruce: I’m not talking about that. For example, the work I would get just for being on the Radford or Paramount lot just for having a meeting was considerable. You walk out of the meeting and who knows who you are going to see on the way to your car. Jason: Now it’s Facebook. It’s introducing yourself to people wherever you can, while trying to show some tact! Score: It’s so different, you can find people to write with on craigslist. Jason: Sure, you can find someone to marry on craigslist. The Keyshia record was because I emailed a writer. “I’m a friend of so and so and I’d love to send you some music.” He kind of blew me off a few times and then he finally said, “OK, send me something.” I’ve written TV producers on there; been able to send credits on there. LinkedIn I don’t use as much, but my wife is big on that (she’s a recruiter). But Facebook, when I am looking at shows during pilot season, that’s been somewhat helpful. People always ask me, “How do I start getting work,” and I say, “Do you have a website? Are you on Facebook? Are you visible at all?” That’s how it goes
now for a lot of composers and writers. Especially for up-and-comers, you’ve got to put yourself out there. When I was starting out and my dad and I would be working, he’d say, “You want to go to lunch? You want to go to Art’s? Yeah, it’s in Studio City, but you never know who we’ll run into.” I get that now. I remember his good friend and old music editor, Chips Swanson, who would say, “Send your demo to 30 people and if you get one or two bites, that’s fantastic.” That’s the way it goes. So you’d schlep to Studio City and maybe on your fifth visit you’d see someone you hadn’t seen in a while. “Oh, I’m working on such and such.” That could be all that happens, or it might lead to a gig. Bruce: It’s also very important to be part of the community, like The SCL. You want to be part of the people you work with, work for and compete against. You’ve got to be out there. Your name’s got to be tossed around. Score: We all stay in our rooms and we don’t go to enough things because there aren’t enough things. Or we want to stay in our rooms. Jason: I like to get out but it’s hard, especially with a young kid at home! Bruce: Listen, if your phone’s ringing off the hook you don’t have to think about it. You’ve got to be available. The biggest pet peeve of mine is if I try to reach someone and they either don’t return a call or an email. Then they are on my s__t list. Jason: How do you not return an email? It’s unreal to me. Don’t hire me, but please just show me some respect. Bruce: I’d rather have somebody say to me, “I’m going in another direction.” Or, “I hate you,” anything, just give me a clue. But at least acknowledge my existence. Everybody loses jobs. Composers have lost jobs to me and I’ve lost jobs to them. You have to be respectful and you want to be respected. You don’t want to be the guy who takes advantage of everyone. It’s a small town. I think that “politically correct” and “menchiness” are a good thing. Score: Is there anything you would like to add? Jason: I’ve always thought working together was an asset. It’s neat because Continued on Page 22
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Social Media Continued from Page 1
munity, whether it be by giving advice or sharing interesting articles. I try to use my media posts to support things like Education Through Music and Mr. Holland’s Opus as much as promote my own work. Don’t be negative, especially about colleagues, films, etc. Listen to your grandmother: If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all. I think that positivity is so needed in our world and our industry, that a kind word about a colleague’s music or film can go a long way towards creating a sense of family among our music community. When I hear or see something great, I try to say congratulations and let people know.” Composer Kubilay Uner says, “Do be generous sharing useful information (like good concerts, mixing tips, great articles, good gear, restaurants, contractors, Kubilay Uner you name it); praising accomplishments of others; when announcing one’s own accomplishments making sure to acknowledge collaborators and supporters; and in general being a nice person. And no politics, or negative posts. Live by Grandma’s rules. Reposting anything without verification: Just no.” Beth Krakower says, “Find the best platform that you are most comfortable with and be regular in posting. Think of it as creating the ‘avatar’ of yourself. I try to post things that show off my personality and to frequently comment on friends’ discussion threads. “What you say is (for the most part) permanent so keep the politics and vitriol to a minimum on the handles you use publicly. This year it is a particularly ugly election cycle and many folks in the entertainment industry are using that to air their personal beliefs. But when was the last time you sat and talked politics with a director/producer? You run the risk of alienating potential employers because of different parBeth Krakower 16
ty affiliations and it may never come into play with a particular project. “Remember that your online ‘friends’ aren’t necessarily your reallife friends… so be judicious about what you post about your family, where you live, and when you are out of town. And make sure to tag people, post photos/videos, and hashtag to help engage people and tie into trends.” Jessica Lesaca says, “My area of expertise is mostly Instagram, so my answers pertain mostly to that. Do post high-res photos/videos. Try not to post second-hand photos (i.e., via the repost app or a screenshot of a photo—try to get a hold of the original. It looks less professional when your content is pixelated) People follow you because they want to know more about you, so be consistent in your posting to keep their interest.“ Rachel Neal agrees about being consistent. “When it comes to social media marketing, your brand identity is intensely important. What you put out on social platforms becomes a representation of what you and your brand stand for. Establish a detailed vision of what you want your social media to portray and take the necessary time to be thorough as you set Rachel Neal
up accounts on various networks,” she says. “Do interact with your audience. When you post content, don’t leave it at that. Take the time to engage with your followers. If you see a question or comment you can answer, send back a friendly response! Let your audience know that you’re looking to build connections just as you would in person. “Don’t overdo It. Be wary when posting promotional messages. Posting it too many times or in a way that appears desperate will harm your brand and potentially cause you to lose audience support! Use common sense when sharing content—you want to make sure it’s relevant and valuable to your follower base! “Don’t spread yourself too thin. It can be tempting to try every new social media platform that appears, but unless you have a large social media team, you’ll get overwhelmed quickly. Instead, focus on two or three platforms that fit your specific needs. LinkedIn is great for business networking, highly visual brands benefit from Instagram, copy-heavy companies flourish on Twitter, and musicians tend to succeed on YouTube. You don’t need them all— you just need the ones that pertain to your industry,” says Jessica. Claris Sayadian-Dodge says: “a. Post artful photos. As an artist manager for http://brentfischer.com I Continued on Next Page
Hootsuite By Fletcher Beasley Managing social media platforms can be very time consuming. That’s where social media managing software like Hootsuite can really help to make this a manageable proposition. Hootsuite allows you to manage posting to virtually all the social media platforms through a browser-based dashboard where you can view all your accounts and schedule posting within a single interface. Rather than opening each platform separately and posting something every day, you can schedule your posts for the upcoming weeks directly through Hootsuite. That way you can dedicate some concentrated time each week to social media without getting sucked away on a daily basis. An issue many of us have is coming up with interesting content to post with regularity. With Hootsuite, you can aggregate articles based on key words. Say, for example, you want to post content about film music. If you go to the publisher section and plug “film music” into the suggestions, Hootsuite will return articles about film music which you can then schedule for posting. There is even a Hootsuite plugin for your browser that allows you to post or schedule any article you come across while perusing the net. It’s a great way to post interesting content to your social media sites that relate to your interests.
Social Media Continued from Page 16
always like to have current photos of my artists for social media. Some things have not changed. First impressions still count! b. Call to action. Every week I try to think of opportunities to share with fans about a new release, show dates, news… c. Grow your fan base. It’s a good opClaris portunity to show Sayadian-Dodge who an artist is via the causes they’re passionate about, what movies or books they recommend and what’s their favorite hang, quote or tip of the day is! Remember: a. Keep it short b. Keep it clean (professional) c. Keep it inspirational” What platforms serve you best and why?
Bear says, “Facebook and Twitter are the most important, because they have large audiences. I write a blog that has served me very well, perhaps better than anything else, because it has allowed me to write very detailed pieces about my process. So, I use other social media platforms to do quick updates, and use my blog for longer essays. I also use YouTube, which is a vital tool. If you have something to say that can be stated in an entertaining video, that is the ideal method of communicating online.” “I overwhelmingly prefer Twitter, and secondarily Facebook. I use both every day but Twitter is totally integrated into my lifestyle,” says Austin. Chris says, “I like to use Twitter and Instagram most often. Twitter is a fantastic exercise in keeping your thoughts succinct and to-the-point, while Instagram is a beautiful platform to tell a “a thousand words” in one picture. Facebook is great too for longer posts and to promote events and other opportunities like the Pete Carpenter Fellowship Sonic Fuel Studios is hosting with BMI this year. Also, in general I find that Twitter and
Instagram are great for connecting with fans, idols and other people you may not know well, while Facebook works well to keep connected with people already in your professional and personal circles.” Jessica says, “I like Instagram, You Tube and Snapchat best. Instagram is fun because you can give people a peek into your life and you can basically shape it and have people perceive you however you want. Snapchat is also great because people can pretty much follow you around in real time and see what a day in your life is like. And, as a singer, I love YouTube because I can post cover videos and share them with my subscribers.” “Instagram and Twitter, because they adhere to both the visual and verbal needs of social media,” says Rachel. “Instagram is wonderful for asserting the ‘feel’ of your brand personality with a consistent and curated feed of images. It also can be wonderful for networking and staying engaged with audiences through direct messages, likes and comments. Twitter, on the other hand, allows for people to experience your brand’s voice. It’s also wonderful for networking via likes and retweets. A more recent social media development for brands is the platform Snapchat, which allows brands to send out images and short videos—this can offer followers a ‘behind-the-scenes’ view and help them feel more involved in the brand.” “Facebook, for example, has more than one billion users, and it’s likely most of your friends already use it,” says Claris. “Does that make it the best platform for you? Maybe, but if you’re interested in news, Twitter might be a better choice. Equally, Linkedin is the professional’s network (and great for jobseekers), while Instagram and Pinterest are an excellent choice for photo/visual fans. Snapchat? Well, your mom isn’t going to be on there yet! Last week I used Periscope to broadcast portions of a live rehearsal from an artist I manage. We got instantaneous feedback from fans on the new material.” Beth says, “My company is on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and my recent summer intern even convinced me to explore Snapchat. Each platform appeals to a different demographic—
so do explore multiple platforms to find out what works best for you (and where your audience is). Each one has its own personality so make sure to adjust your posts to your audience— and read up on best practices for tagging.” What are the best times of day to post?
Chris says, “Around 10 am and 2 pm PST are usually good times because you’re able to hit both coasts while people are still at their most attentive.” Kubi says, “During mid-morning, midto-late afternoon, and after dinner.” Claris says she “stays away from after 5 pm on Fridays (most people are planning an early exit from work and planning their weekend) and Monday mornings (most are catching up from the weekend and focusing on work).” Beth says, “Generally you want to hit end of business day or weekends for social media. But that varies. When I post press releases, we try to do it around 8 am PT (11 am ET, 4 pm UK) to hit the news cycle.” Jessica adds, “For me, my highest engagement is at night. I have no idea why... I’m assuming a chunk of my following is located in a different time zone. Usually I tell people late afternoon/early evening is the best time to post.” Can you post too often? How often do you post?
“I don’t know if it’s possible to post too often. Maybe? I rarely post on FB more than once per day; sometimes only a couple times a week. Twitter is many times per day (not even including responding to people),” says Austin. Jessica says, “I usually post about three to four times a week. Also, try not to overshare and post too much. I’d say once a day is good—you can occasionally post two to three times in one day (but don’t do this too often—it can be overwhelming). Unless you are a meme account, don’t share too many memes (unless they are your originals). People want to see pictures of you or pictures taken by you, not reposts by someone else (of course, you can occasionally post memes that really speak to you). If you have a talent, showcase it. I love watching singing videos, videos
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Social Media
Are YouTube videos a good way to reach people?
Continued from Page 17
“YouTube’s influence over how people learn, laugh, and cry is undeniable,” says Chris. “That being said, there is a great deal of noise out there. So if the video is well produced and well marketed, it can be a great way to reach people.” Claris tells us that studioexpresso has a YouTube channel: https://www. youtube.com/user/TheStudioexpresso “YouTube is my favorite. Like m u-sic, timing is important! Last month one of my artists, Grammy-winning producer and composer Brent Fischer arranged and orchestrated the single “Girl Meets Boy,” for Sheila E, written as a tribute to Prince. Due to the timing of this YouTube post and the engaged viewers
of musicians playing their instruments, or comedians in skits. Social media is basically a way to advertise yourself, so you should broadcast your talent across all platforms!” Chris thinks, “You can [post too often]. But there are ways to combat that. Using tools like Hootsuite allow you to schedule a given amount of posts per day, spread across a longer period of time. This prevents you from having to spend too much time on social media, especially during crunch time. You also don’t want to oversaturate your audience, so these tools help in that regard as well.” “I try to post no more than once a day. If a post is in a specific group, I may post an additional post on my personal page. I don’t want to dilute the message, so one is enough,” says Kubi. Rachel thinks, “You can definitely post too often and it can aggravate your audience quickly! If I’m posting on personal accounts, I think the sweet spot is to post at most once a day and at least three times each week. For businesses and brands, I think you can get away with posting twice daily, but more than that can crowd someone’s feed and turn your online presence into an annoyance. On the other side, posting too little can quickly cause your brand to lose its place in people’s minds so even if you lack the time, invest in a scheduling tool and post at least a few times a week. It can also be specific to platform.” Beth says, “I try to post at least once a day on Twitter/Facebook, but not more than three to four times a day— unless I’m doing things very interesting and engaging (mostly when I travel to festivals or conventions). “But don’t let that scare you! Some of the platforms now have features where you can schedule what time things post, or you can use aggregators like Tweetdeck or Hootsuite so you can preschedule your posts.” Claris sends monthly eZines. “And when people ask me to broadcast their event, I’m very selective. It’s different for every community,” say Claris, ”but for our community of producers, composers and musicians, I find that less is more!” 18
(following the untimely death of Prince) it received over 15,000 views in just a few days. Additionally, when I want to look up an artist, I like to search them on YouTube first to see them perform, and for credits, I like AllMusic.” Beth says, “Yes—but just doing a video isn’t enough. You need to make sure to let people know that you’ve done it! Find a media partner to debut it exclusively before making it public. Plug it through social media. And create a channel where you host these videos and solicit subscribers/ followers.” Rachel thinks, “Not only is YouTube extremely accessible, it’s shareable across platforms and features many ‘social amenities’ such as a view counter, a comments section, and the ability Continued on Next Page
Twitter Tips
T
By Jonathan David Neal, Hanna Parrott, and Tristan Clopet
witter is a very important part of a social media strategy. You can let the world know of your work, your works in progress, events that are important to your career and work, etc. It is a way to broaden your exposure to the public. Since you are limited to 140 characters or less, if you have pictures or even video, it is important to be even more brief and to the point. Here are some tips: 1. Keep dates and info very short but concise. 2. Handles (@The_SCL) and hashtags (#SCLseminars) are really important. The handles will allow you to reach out to other people or “entities” and if you put a period (.) in front of their handle, you will reach their followers and will find some of their followers will follow you. Hashtags categorize the tweet and make it easier for a twitter search and trending topics. 3. Links to websites and pages: Very often you will want to include a link to an event or an article that is very long. You should use a URL shortener such as Bit.ly to shorten the URL, which allows space for more characters and info in the tweet. 4. Use tweets to not only make people aware of events, but to follow up tweets after the event, build goodwill with people and organizations by sending thanks, referring to a past event or a comment on how great it was, etc. 5. Since it is social media, make positive personal comments that will help connect with not only your followers, but the followers whose “handles” you have used. Also, use the hashtags as mentioned above, which will make it searchable. 6. You can get away with posting more often on Twitter than you can on other platforms and that, along with using the handle and hashtags, will help you grow your following. 7. When using pictures and videos, make sure they are properly compressed. Also with a picture you can put up to ten people’s handles linked with that picture so you don’t use up your 140 characters in the main message area.
Social Media Continued from Page 18
to share and embed videos with a few clicks. Many independent artists have built their careers solely through their YouTube channel, and music can even be monetized through it to generate artist revenue. It can be hard to get started, but consistency is your friend when it comes to YouTube.” Austin says, “I make lots of videos, though I’ve been a bit slower lately. I love hosting behind-the-scenes snippets, interviews, etc. One pretty popular video I did was to take the entire Journey soundtrack and stitch it together into a single hour-long YouTube video, and add text commentary over it explaining the various musical ideas, the inspiration from the game or behind the scenes on how certain moments happened and who the performers were of given solos, etc.” How do you expand your reach on Twitter?
Beth says, “First off, don’t make the mistake of following everyone right away—the Twitter overlords like it better when you have more people following you than you follow, so start small. There are some magic numbers —when you hit that many followers you get better functionality with your account.
“You should also check the ‘health’ of who you are following. Often people add you so you will add them back, then unfollow you. You should check to make sure that most folks you follow—follow you back. There are programs that you can use to do that,” Beth continues. “Learn about Hashtagging, and remember to tag people! If you tweet at people, they will very often favorite and/or retweet. Make sure you also RT and favorite when people tweet at you. Twitter is one of those platforms where you can post a bit more frequently— but tweets have a shorter shelf life.” Claris likes “to follow people I admire and grow that circle. It helps to always be in good company!” Rachel says, “Seek out similar profiles and follow those who relate to the areas you’re involved in, whether it’s art, music, business, sports, etc. You can find people who share content your followers will be interested in and you may receive more followers as well. Secondly, engage with those who follow you. Respond to messages, comment and like their tweets and grow familiar with hashtags that are popular to your brand community. The most obvious manner of expanding your reach is sharing content that your target audience is interested in and make sure media such as videos and images are present in your tweets a portion of
the time. Lastly, promote your Twitter account through channels you’re growing in more quickly. If you have a significant number of friends or likes on Facebook, encourage them to connect with you on Twitter. If you have a great number of connections on LinkedIn, make a link to your Twitter account easily accessible. And if your YouTube following is expanding quickly, make a quick note to subscribers that they should follow you on Twitter for more updates! Utilize the areas in which you’re successfully growing.” What are tricks and methods to reach more people on Twitter? (like use of period or amber stamp)
Jessica says, “If you put a period (.) in front of their handle —.@jessicalesaca —it allows all your followers to see it. If you don’t use the period and only the handle—@jessicalesaca—only your followers who also follow the person you’re trying to reach will see it.” Beth explains, “In general you want to include hashtags (#) for trends; (i.e., if you are at Comic Con use the official handle #SDCC so if someone searches for that hashtag your post shows up). You also want to make sure to tag key influencers. For example if you are talking about that #GREATMOVIE you just worked on, tag @DIRECTOR, @LEADACTORS, @STUDIONAME as they will often retweet, favorite, share, Continued on Page 21
ASCAP At Comic-Con
L-R: John Powell, Rachel Perkins, Tyler Bates, John Ottman, Blake Neely, Tom Holkenborg and moderator Ray Costa at Comic-Con’s “Fourth Annual Musical Anatomy of A Superhero,” produced by Costa Communications and sponsored by ASCAP
L-R: Film/TV rep Rachel Perkins with ASCAP composer Christopher Drake and Jana Davidoff after CW3PR’s “Crime, Death & Resurrection” panel at the 2016 San Diego ComicCon International
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SCL Events LA The Night Manager—May 17, 2016— Sunset Screening Room
An Evening with The Composers Of FX—June 8, 2016,
L-R: SCL President Ashley Irwin, Composer Victor Reyes, Agent John Tempereau
L-R: Lynn Kowal, Mac Quayle, Jeff Russo, Jana Davidoff, Jeff Danna and Mychael Danna g g g
Marvel’s Agent Carter Performance of the song “Whatcha Gonna Do”—Tuesday, June 14, 2016— Herb Alpert’s Vibrato Grill
g g g
SING OUT— May 22, 2016 L-R: SCL Board Member and SongArts Chair Adryan Russ, Music Supervisors Abby North and Amanda Krieg Thomas g g g
The Middle—June 3, 2016—Little Theater, Fox Studios Lot
The Hunting Ground — June 7, 2016 L-R: SCL President Ashley Irwin, Lyricist David Zippel, Composer Christopher Lennertz and SCL Board Member Lynn F. Kowal g g g
SCL Seminar: Vocalize Your Toolbox with SAG/AFTRA Singers— June 15, 2016
L-R: Moderator Tim Greiving, Composer Joey Newman, Co-Creator/Executive Producer Eileen Heisler, Editor Brain Barr g g g
American Crime Concert— June 6, 2016—Kirk Douglas Theater
L-R: SCL Board Member Lynn Kowal, SCL President Ashley Irwin, AwardWinning Songwriter Diane Warren, Music Supervisor Bonnie Greenberg, Composer and SCL Board Member Miriam Cutler
Scoring Today’s Popular Dramas— June 20, 2016
L-R: Creator/Director John Ridley, SCL Board Member Lynn F. Kowal, Composer Mark Isham, SCL President Ashley Irwin 20
L-R: Moderater Andrew Baker, Sean Callery, James Levine, Gabriel Mann and Dave Porter
Social Media Continued from Page 19
like your post. I’ve had posts retweeted by major actors/celebrities because they were associated with the project. Pro Twitter tip: when beginning a tweet with someone’s name, place a dot (.) before their twitter handle to reach their followers (as well as your own). Otherwise you will only reach the subset of your followers who also follow them.” Which are the best platforms to use to reach people?
Chris says, “At the end of the day, whichever platform you’re going to use
SCL Premier Partners SCL members can find out the member discount details and how to contact Partners on our website. ALFRED MUSIC AUDIO PERCEPTION BANDZOOGLE BIG FISH AUDIO BLACK LION AUDIO
the most effectively is the best platform to use. Again, the point behind social media is to be ‘social’ and engage with your followers and those you follow in hopes to: a) create a dialogue and b) expand your follower base. So I say, pick the platform that suites you and your communication style best, then look into tools that will feed posts from that account into your other social media accounts.” Claris says at studioexpresso “We have over 20,000 subscribers. We grow our mailing list organically. I don’t buy lists—we grow it one business card at a time! Call me old-fashioned, but I know everyone on our list and I’m very careful not to spam our readers.” “To figure out your ideal platform, you first need to research where your target audience is congregating and what content will communicate your brand the most effectively,” says Rachel. “For musicians, it seems the most helpful platforms by far are YouTube and Instagram, because one allows you to share recordings, live performances and general updates while the other allows you to share behind the scenes, tour and other brand-related images and short videos
to offer followers a sneak peak.” “For a personal reach, definitely Facebook,” says Kubi. “For a mass message probably Twitter, Instagram and the like, but that simply doesn’t apply much to me. That seems to be more applicable to people like bands, film stars, companies, etc. People and entities that by definition interact with thousands. I by definition interact with single-digit numbers of people at a time.” Beth concludes with, “The best platform is the one you can learn to understand and feel comfortable in using regularly!” How has social media changed the world?
Claris says, “You still need experts to write a good news item. However, it has made everyone a contributor with a fan base. So, your social world is defined by how far and wide your reach is and by the number of views, clicks and engagement. For some artists, it has become a good public relations tool. Depending on your reach, managing good content still requires a planned communication strategy and g support.”
CINEMATIC STRINGS CINESAMPLES COMMERCIAL SCORING WORKSHOP FOCAL PRESS AND ROUTLEDGE MUSIC GORILLA FILM SCORING GRAPHICALLY ENHANCED MANUALS MEGATRAX RECORDING STUDIOS MELROSE MAC MUSIC BUSINESS REGISTRY MY MUSIC MASTERCLASS NOTEFLIGHT PAGU BATONS PC AUDIO LABS PUREMIX THE RICHARD BELLIS MASTER SERIES SAMPLELOGIC SONIC FUEL STUDIOS SONOKINETIC SOUNDIRON SPITFIRE AUDIO TUNECORE UCLA EXTENSION
New Gear Continued from Page 9
Swing! comes with a collection of big band ensembles and lead instruments, as well as 17 multi’s in various styles ranging from light Hawaiian to Parisian music to heavier styles. Presets include feels like classic ragtime, slack-tuned island swing, and Latin jazz. I feel that the lead brass presets could be a little stronger, but brass is definitely a tricky one when dealing with samples. The ensembles, however, are outstanding. Articulations range from smooth legatos to velocity-triggered marcatos, falls, and many more. You can play the various articulations with velocities, and while there is a bit of a learning curve, the outcome is pretty cool. Those who want to play parts with a live feel will need to practice to get the feel of the velocity changes. The easier route would be to adjust the velocities in your DAW. Swing! includes a nice cross-fader,
tilting the levels between close mics and room mics. This would work nicely if you automated it as well. It comes with plenty of nice articulations and extras, like stops on accordions and slides on guitars, making the sound very realistic. A cool feature I really like is the use of the modwheel on the Lap Steel guitar, where you can add the bend of the guitar and a knob for the speed. The library also has excellent Reverb and Limiter. Don’t overlook the Swing! library if you are not specifically working on jazz or big band music. There are lots of cool sounds for any styles of music. A small con for me is that the staccato brass feels a bit lackluster, and not as authentic. The rest, though, is very well done. The huge pro is that Swing! is very simple to use. There are not an overwhelming number of choices creating confusion, and Swing! has friendly notes on the GUI as a guide, saving you from constantly reaching for the manual. g Great job, Project Sam! 21
The Millers Interview
Hillary Clinton movie you did called Shoulders?
Continued from Page 15
Jason: That was a real meaningful project. My dad’s done a lot of work with Harry and Linda BloodworthThomason. He scored Designing Women for them and also did the music for the political films they’d done for Bill Clinton’s presidential campaigns, as well as Hillary’s senate run. Talk about loyalty… when they do a project, my dad’s phone rings. And not only that, but they’re appreciative, and they allow us to create. They offer input, but make it clear that they’ve hired us because they trust us and our musical choices. It’s something special. For this project, it was an 11-minute documentary on Hillary’s mom Dorothy, who had an incredibly difficult upbringing and managed to raise a family of her own, with her daughter being the first female Presidential nominee of a major party in the history of the U.S. It was very moving, and Linda’s writing is as good as it gets. We provided the score, as well as an updated cover of the Josh Groban smash “You Raise Me Up” that closes out the end of the film. It was supposed to air during the DNC but was pulled for reasons that weren’t clear. Some of the press reported that her campaign felt there was “too much estrogen” for them to air a film like this. We may never know the exact truth. However, word got out, and it was released online; first on Vimeo. It was viewed around 60,000 times in the first day or so. Then it got to George Takai! He posted it on Facebook and it had over two million views in just over a day. It may have not shown at the Convention, but it got out, made an impact, and we were proud to have been a small part of the team behind it. And, to
we do come from two different places. Some people think, “Oh they’re a team.” No, we work individually a lot but a lot of the time there’s a benefit to having both of us, so stylistically we cover what needs to be covered, and you get it done quick. Bruce: There would be projects that I am really not for. He gets called for a lot of commercials; he’s got a couple of people that he’s done a lot of producing for, serious, really good contemporary stuff. That’s his career. But when I have to write a string or horn arrangement, there’s no need for him to even come over, except to give me s**t about it. Jason: On Odd Couple we have a nice little flow. I’ll do some drums, and then he’ll put horn parts down. I’ll be ready with my guitar, I’ll do the bass, he’ll do the keyboard, I’ll mix it, we move on. And there’s bickering and there’s jokes and all that but it’s really more and more unspoken how things work. He’ll say, “Oh I’ve got to run out, I’ve got a dentist appointment,” and I’ll go through the show and do everything I’ve got to do and he’ll come back and clean up his stuff. It’s neat and we have a good time. It’s fun doing the show together. Score: I take it your studios are compatible with each other? Both: Yeah. We’re both on Logic. Worse comes to worse, we’ll send an audio file. The way we work together is easy and he has some of the orchestral libraries that I don’t have. And I live eight minutes from here. Score: Before I go, tell me about the
be honest, it doesn’t hurt the ego when you’re walking out of the mix and the producer (Linda) comes up to you, hugs you, and says, “Your music made the film.” I mean, we know there was a lot more to it than music, but the sentiment is part of what makes working for someone like her so special. I was so glad to have been a part of it, and can now see how my dad felt for so many years working with the Thomasons. Score: Great talking to you both. g Thank you for your time.
President’s Message Continued from Page 3
achievements and have experienced the enjoyment of working with them on the occasional project, where I’ve even learned a thing or two from them. I consider the bond we have to be very special. Each of us, at one time or another, will be called upon to act as a mentor to someone younger or less experienced than ourself. When it happens, think of those who helped you hone your craft and grab the opportunity to give something back, with both hands. It will not only change someone else’s life, it will enrich your own musical soul in ways you could g never have imagined. SCL AMBASSADORS BURT BACHARACH
ALAN & MARILYN BERGMAN CARTER BURWELL
GEORGE S. CLINTON CHARLES FOX
ELLIOT GOLDENTHAL DAVE GRUSIN
ARTHUR HAMILTON
The BMI Foundation is pleased to announce the reinstatement of the annual Pete Carpenter Fellowship, a competitive residency for aspiring film, television, and video game composers. The newly enhanced program will award a $3,000 stipend for four to five weeks of intensive mentorship with award-winning BMI composers Christopher Lennertz and Timothy Wynn at their Sonic Fuel Studios in Los Angeles, CA. The 2016 fellowship begins in October and also includes opportunities to consult with other distinguished g composers and leaders in the entertainment industry.
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MARK SNOW
MIKE STOLLER
PATRICK WILLIAMS PAUL WILLIAMS
MAURY YESTON
JAMES NEWTON HOWARD
In Memoriam:
ROBERT LOPEZ &
RAY CHARLES
MARK ISHAM
KRISTEN ANDERSON-LOPEZ
BMI Reinstates Pete Carpenter Fellowship With Sonic Fuel Studios
ALAN SILVESTRI
JOHNNY MANDEL RANDY NEWMAN MIKE POST
LALO SCHIFRIN
RICHARD SHERMAN DAVID SHIRE
VAN ALEXANDER HAL DAVID
RAY EVANS
EARLE HAGEN JACK HAYES
JERRY LIEBER VIC MIZZY
ROBERT SHERMAN
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD BILL CONTI
GINNY MANCINI
QUINCY JONES
HONORARY LIFETIME MEMBERS JAY L. COOPER, ESQ. CLINT EASTWOOD
DENNIS SPIEGEL JOHN WILLIAMS
M U S I C A L S H A R E S
BY CHARLES BERNSTEIN
Improvisation And Film Music
I
mprovisation can be dazzling. It often looks easy, casual and effortless. But, as an audience we don’t see all the preparation, discipline and hard work that came before. Musicians and actors know this better than anyone. The spirit of improvisation is really all around us. Life itself is a sort of improv. We humans get up in the morning and bumble our way through each day. Nobody writes our dialogue. There is no script to follow. Life is basically an ongoing stream of Improvisational Theater of the Absurd, keeping us on our toes, surprising us from moment to moment. No one really knows how their story will unfold, or how it will all end. On the other hand, we have the traditional “stable” art forms of literature, music, theater and cinema offering a fixed, predictable world… a beginning, a middle, and an end. Things are planned out, plotted and written down. The arts can provide a blessed relief from the vagaries of our own daily guessing games. But works of art, literature and music don’t necessarily start out so neat, clean and perfectly crafted. Early in the creative process, before all gets finalized, there is a time when stories, pictures, songs and symphonies are still fluid and unpredictable. A pre-birth time. An amniotic phase before a finished product is formed and sent out into the world. This is where improvisation enters the picture. Whether we are aware of it or not, the act of creativity often starts with a process of improvisation, an impromptu, fluid world of possibilities. This can be a great place to start, especially when the creative juices don’t seem to be flowing. Many a masterpiece may have begun with a hodgepodge of free-association, ad-libs and blind faith. In music, improvisation holds a special place in our hearts. All forms of music have embraced improvisational invention; even the immortal composers of classical music were themselves great improvisers. Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, along with most of the musical legends of history were masters of the art. The cadenzas of concertos were frequently meant to be improvised or were the product of improvisation. Many Baroque works had free-style elements and figuredbass notations not unlike the lead sheets that musicians improvise from when playing a gig today. Our film composer colleagues
Bill Goldstein and Jim DiPasquale have often performed inventive improv projects together. And of course, when we think of musical improvisation, jazz stands out in a special way. It has emerged as the great American art form deeply rooted in the mysteries of instant invention. Film composers are no strangers to improvisation as the starting point for many a score. We know that media composers will often begin a project by noodling around or improvising to picture. At this early juncture there is no penalty for playing wrong notes or exploring blind alleys. One caution however, remember that the whole point of improvas-exploration would be to open unexpected creative doors and see what comes in. If a temp track is the first thing to come through those doors, that could easily preempt the exploration and prejudice the results. The idea of starting a project with improvisation is to free-associate, to build a kind of “bridge to the unconscious mind.” The less thought or intellectualizing, the better. I know that some composers record their improvs and comb through them later, looking for a phrase, a motif, a chord sequence, a nugget of gold to mine and develop later. So, if we approach the initial stages of film composition improvisationally, then there are certain underlying principles that become apparent. Here are a few... • Have an open mind • Trust • Listen • Keep moving • Seize opportunities • Turn mistakes to advantages • Don’t try for results • Risk everything • Be in the moment For a composer or songwriter working in film, this list could prove stimulating, even liberating—especially when staring at a blank page or computer screen. But, improvisation needn’t be just a kick-starter in the scoring process. Sometimes, improvisation can actually occur in the score itself. This is more likely to happen in certain types and styles of music, such as jazz, ethnic, regional, or folk scores. But, there are some remarkable and memorable score improvisations that show up in more mainstream films. One is Harvey Mason’s amazing drum solo for composer
Film composers are no strangers to improvisation as the starting point for many a score. We know that media composers will often begin a project by noodling around or improvising to picture.
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Thomas Newman accompanying an erotic scene in Robert Altman’s dark comedy, The Player (1992). There is also a stunningly effective series of improvised drum solos by Antonio Sánchez in a more recent dark comedy, Alejandro Iñárritu’s Birdman (2014). Hans Zimmer employed free-style gypsy music, including a driving solo violin, in the 2009 action film, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows. Improvisational bursts from folk instruments like the oud, bouzouki, santur, duduk, shakuhachi or sitar can be heard in scores by various South European, Middle Eastern, Asian and Indian composers. And of course there are many notable jazz scores that have employed improvisational sequences as well. The great Johnny Mandel used an improv sax solo to great effect played by jazz legend Jerry Mulligan in the opening scenes of the 1958 classic, I Want to Live. And just think of all of the great improvisational keyboard, guitar and other rhythm section players in recording studios across the globe that have created wonders from just a few chord symbols and rhythmic slashes. So, improvisation can be a great tool for film composers, both as a way of “warming up” to composing, and also as a way of utilizing the flash-skills of
individual players within the score. There may be a third way that improv can help out a composer. That is… consider entering into the wider world of improv, such as jazz, Indian ragas, bluegrass, or even rap/hip-hop, slam poetry, standup comedy or theater improv. Maybe even consider taking an improv class as an actor or a dancer. Of course, we sedentary composers may find this to be an odd suggestion. But, learning about spontaneous invention from actors, dancers or other performers may be a real boon for writers of music. And learning the skills of timing, spontaneity, trust, intuition and uninhibited invention could end up doing wonders for those of us who spend way too many hours hunched over an instrument or computer keyboard. There can certainly be something liberating and even inspiring about shaking off our traditional composer’s posture and “playing” freely with others in a way that has no particular rhyme, reason (or career consequences). However we may (or may not) choose to employ improvisation in our life and our work, there is no shortage of testimonials on the subject. Clint Eastwood (a man familiar with improvisation as an actor, director, jazz pianist and film composer) once remarked that his “whole life has been one big improvisation.” And the bril-
liantly prolific Paul McCartney also shared on the subject, “When I sit down to write a song, it’s a kind of improvisation, but I formalize it a bit to get it into the studio….” The great documentarian Ken Burns summed it up perfectly when he described improvisation as a sort of quintessential American asset, a national trait that found its highest expression in jazz. In his words, “The genius of our country is improvisation, and jazz reflects that. It’s our great contribution to the arts.” So, perhaps film composers may want to open more to improvisation in life and in work, because it can be helpful, facilitating, inspiring, and maybe g even… fun? © Charles Bernstein 2016 www.charlesbernstein.com
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