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First Steps Toward A Career In Production Music – Week One

One week into my five year plan, and I’ve learned so much… not all of it good. First, there’s nothing like a major head cold to kill momentum. Second, deciding to be more serious about pursuing a career in production music does not mean that suddenly everything will change and you’ll have all the tools and knowledge you need at your disposal. It doesn’t mean that there will be more time every evening to work on things. In fact, the only thing that has changed has been an increased awareness of how little time there is for this new goal. I’ve essentially appointed myself a second job (albeit one that revolves around something I love) with no pay, no upper management, and no discernable roadmap for how to navigate the coming months.

There is a certain psychology behind what I’m experiencing right now. I’ve been playing music for years. This path is not truly a new one for me. The only thing is new is that I have declared my intention to find discipline and direction. That, in itself, is an inspiring thing to do. What follows is the realization that those are things I have been lacking, and that they won’t find themselves. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single footstep, but the first mile that follows may not be all that inspiring.

Ok. With that out of the way, on to some of the things I’ve learned this week, in no particular order.

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I am capable of writing, recording, and finishing a piece. Over the course of three nights, I wrote a piece titled ‘Cruise the City Lights’.
Hear it at SoundCloud.

For me, it’s been a model of everything I need to keep in mind moving forward. First, it’s easy to get a general idea about something and lay down a few tracks to express that idea. Second, the initial excitement that comes with that fades as you get lost in the details of cleaning up the parts, mixing them down, editing, embellishing, etc. Third, the details may be hard work and a bit tedious, but you need to plow through them before immersing yourself in new ideas and new songs, or all you’ll have is a pile of half finished tunes. Part of the discipline must be that you commit to sitting down to work, to meet the goals you set, before setting new ones.

In my mind, no song is ever done, because I’ll always hear something that needs fixing. At some point, you just have to say “I’ll keep that in mind for the next one.” When it was all said and done, though, I mixed it down, listened to it three or four times, and felt good. It has a beginning, a middle, an end, and I’m one tune into my thirty tune goal for year one.

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There are major differences between singer/songwriter tunes and production music. Songs you hear on the radio can have a lot of changes in tone and mood. They follow a predictable structure (ie verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus) and can encompass a lot of different sounds in a small space. Music for film/television has a more focused goal of presenting a single tone, setting a mood, and then trying to keep things interesting with slight variations. A lot of what you hear in the background in TV shows is simple, consistent, and focused. There also tends to be a lot more space, because the music serves as a backdrop for what is happening in the show. Tunes with a single instrument or just a few sounds may not be as interesting to someone by themselves, but can do a lot for setting a mood. I heard a lot of floaty piano tunes and simple, spacious guitar licks as I listened this week. I heard a lot of ads with arpegiatted synth sounds and simple pads.

On a side note, I keep seeing references to Robin Frederick’s book “Shortcuts to Songwriting for Film & TV: 114 Tips for Writing, Recording, & Pitching in Today’s Hottest Market.” It has been recommended as something that would be beneficial for instrumental composers, like myself, as well. I picked up a copy on Amazon yesterday and am eagerly awaiting it.

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I have to work with what I have and not what I want. I love acoustic guitar, I love singing, I love natural sounds. I record in an untreated basement with noisey air vents, humming computers, one of those electronic rodent repellers that puts out high frequencies that we supposedly can’t hear (I hear them). My setup is anything but conducive to recording live sounds. It’s a goal of mine to figure out how to make the best of that, but for now I need to take the room out of the equation. This means electric guitar, midi keyboard, sound libraries, synths. I think a big part of starting out is looking at the tools you have at your disposal, and finding projects that take advantage of them. It’s easy to get lost in the list of things you’d like or have, and to say “I need to get this first.”

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There is no magic ticket to creating a good mix… but there is a wealth of information out there for anyone who does some looking. I bought myself a one month membership to AudioTuts+ ($9 well spent) and have been browsing through some of the premium articles there. There’s a lot of information to go through, but I’ve already picked up a few great pointers. There are also some great articles and posts at:

Home Studio Corner.com Mixing Resources
Audio-Issues.com

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There is a lot to learn about the business end of music. Stating the obvious, I’m sure. There’s too much to write about today, but I started to immerse myself in the mysteries of copyright, exclusive vs non-exclusive libraries, different PRO organizations (ASCAP, BMI, SESAC). I did find a few good sites for my first steps into this world.

A few articles talking about exclusive vs nonexclusive libraries, retitling, etc:

An article at Film Music Magazine in favor of non-exclusive
‘A Voice From the “Dark Side”: Confessions of a Retitler’

One at Production Music Association that talks about the dangers and disadvantages
‘Should You Sign With A Non-Exclusive Retitled Library?’

And here’s an all-around good site with lots of business related articles – MusicBizAcademy.com

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I can’t do this alone. Networking is not just about making business connections. It’s about finding others who have similar shared experiences, who know your struggles and can truly appreciate your successes. I’ve met some great people online this week, and am also realizing that I need to find some collaborators here in Kansas City who can keep me motivated. I know a lot of good musicians, and need to be reaching out to them as I move forward. For me, a huge part of why music is enjoyable is that it’s an interaction, either because you are sharing it with an audience, or because you are communicating through music.

A lot of music has a call and answer type of theme to it, where melodies are repeated by different instruments, or conversations are had between different sections. It’s a good thing to involve other musicians so that you are not always ‘talking to yourself.’

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There are productive ways to use Social Networking. I’ve been a Facebooker for a while now, but never really understood the value of Twitter. On a whim, I started playing around with it this week. Low and behold, a lot of the taxi folks and music folks I have been interested in knowing more about are on there! And they’re posting helpful links, nice little tidbits of information about their process, and inspiring bits of news. Who knew… it’s not just about someone you don’t know posting that they are standing in line at Starbucks.

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Anyways, that’s my week one roundup. Here’s hoping that week two will see an end to my head cold, another tune under my belt, a few good realizations, a few contacts.

Photo: nuttakit / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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Posted by TimBehrens | 2 Comments

First Draft of My Five Year Plan

In my last post, ‘What is a Five Year Plan?‘, I talked about some of the things that led me to want to find more structure with my musical pursuits, and define for myself what a Five Year Plan is.

So here, presented in it’s rough form, is my first draft of my Five Year Plan. Being that today is officially day one, I am already starting to implement it. As I get farther along, I will post any revisions and things that I’ve learned or needed to add. If you are reading this and have any advice to share, or questions, please do share in the comments below, or by contacting me directly.

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Primary Goal and Mission Statement

At the end of five years, I intend to:

• be making a secondary income from music
• have developed a clear plan on how to eventually quit my day job, and transition into making a living by writing production music for film and television.
• have all the tools I need to record, produce, and master my own music. That’s not to say I’ll be able to record a full band, but that I can produce the music that I am setting out to create, with samples and limited miking
  

Secondary Goals

At the end of five years, I should:

• have 150 quality recordings in my library, with some of those having been signed.
• have attended the Taxi Road Rally at least once.
• have gotten some local airplay with a few of my singer/songwriter tunes and collaborations

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With the overall mission statement out of the way, I want to spend the rest of my time focusing on goals and tasks for year one. I think as I immerse myself in this, it will help clarify what is realistic and not realistic for the four years that follow.

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Primary Goals for Year One

At the end of year one, I plan to:

• have 30 finished quality recordings under my
  belt.
• have rejoined Taxi when I hit the 20 song mark, and been actively submitting them.
• have a better understanding of how to create final, polished, recordings. (recording, mixing, mastering, etc.)
• have a better understanding of the business aspects and what it truly means to be a music production artist (learn about copyright, professional organizations, distribution, self-promotion, marketing, etc)
• be an active member in the online music community, and help contribute to the growth of others through my experiences, both on the forums and through this web blog.

Here’s my rationale for 30 works in the first year. I figure there are 52 weeks in a year. I’d like to start out by shooting for one song a week, but the learning process up front is going to be slow, as well as the recording. I want to give myself plenty of head room so that I do not set myself up for disappointment from the start. I also need time to learn about, and perfect, the art of finishing things. I have a growing pile of half-finished attempts that my inner critic has ripped into bits. My goal for my first new attempts in year one is to keep things simple, clean, and brief. If I can get some finished pieces, maybe I can build enough confidence to tackle more complex and longer pieces.

My goal for each piece is going to be that it is at least 90 seconds in length, unless the specific task calls for something shorter (ie I have seen listings for 60 second cues with button endings). I will also try to not fixate too much on diversifying every piece. It seems that the goal of production music is to set a tone and stick to it. Too many changes in mood and tone can make it unusable from an editor’s standpoint.

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A List of Tasks for Year One:

• Keep a worklog of my music-related activity so I can see where I’m spending my time, and whether or not I need to re-adjust my priorities.
• Start a spreadsheet to track my recordings, and use descriptive titles, as well as keywords or tags, so that I can see where I need to diversify
• Keep a notebook for jotting down ideas, things to try, websites with useful information, observations, etc
• At least once a month, take part in some kind of professional development activity. A few examples might be watching Taxi’s uStream live, reading through a Premium tutorial at AudioTuts+, or watching recording tutorials at Lynda.com. Ideally, it might also mean getting out into the world and attending songwriting workshops, or visiting my friends at NSAI.
• Spend at least an hour a week reading, researching, and learning about recording techniques
• Spend at least an hour a week listening to music in the styles I am trying to compose. Keep notes on anything I hear or learn.
• Spend at least an hour a week truly practicing and working on my musical technique for both guitar and piano. (not just playing, but running scales, exercises, etc).
• Spend at least 30 minutes each week reading and researching business-related issues (ie some questions on my mind right now are copyright, ASCAP vs BMI, how to distribute music, where to learn more about libraries and how they work.)
• Spend at least 30 minutes each week reading and commenting on music forums. See what others are working on, listen to what peers are sharing at Taxi, try to contribute when I can.
• Make a pointed effort to listen to the background music as I watch movies and TV, and make notes on what I hear. Try to find out about artist’s and publishers for the songs that really grab my attention.
• Don’t watch so much TV.

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My Golden Rule: Be Kind to Thyself

I may not meet all my goals. There may be weeks when life gets in the way. I have a son and wife at home. It’s not so much a goal as a necessity that I find a way to balance my musical journey with my time being a father and a husband. So I need to learn to forgive myself when things don’t go as planned. The key is just to re-commit constantly, be dedicated to the long haul, forgive of my failures, and be aware of the successes. Discipline does not have to mean self-judgement or ridicule, only the daily renewed intention to improve and produce.

So, there it is, in it’s rough form.  What do you think?  Any suggestions, advice, experiences?  Please share them.

Photo: renjith krishnan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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What Is a Five Year Plan?

I have recently returned to the online world in hopes of networking and finding some direction with my music. My son turned fourteen months old last week. His arrival has been the most incredible experience and has given me a new lease on life. While I wouldn’t trade that for the world, it has put in perspective how lacking other aspects of my life have been, primarily my day job as an IT Contractor.

We all have some innate sense, no matter how deeply buried, of what it is that brings us joy, what ‘fate’ had truly intended for us. Though life situations may lead us astray, and obligations may take precedence over desire, the universe has a way of continually nudging us in the direction of pursuing a ‘true calling’. For me, there is no doubt that it is, and always has been, music. In all things, it has been my comfort, my great joy, and the one creative well that never runs dry. Whether I have the talent to make a career of it remains to be seen, but there is no harm in trying. I have been playing and singing in some capacity for the last seventeen years. Why not make a more directed effort at developing what I already pursue and enjoy as a hobbyist?

My problem, like many others, is that I have never truly sat down to define what a career in music would look like. While surfing the forums at Taxi.com and JPFolks.com, I came across several mentions of the Five Year Plan. The general idea is, that, anyone who has a serious intention of making any real income from music needs to commit themselves to the long haul. They need to set both long and short term goals, and have benchmarks for judging their own progress. They need to look at not just the creative side, but the business of making music, and allocate some of their time to it’s study. They need to network, promote, affiliate, and get themselves involved in the industry they are trying to break into. So my primary question now, here on day one, is “What Does a Five Year Plan look like?”

I’ve found a few references while searching ‘five year plan’ online, but have yet to stumble across a detailed explanation of what is involved in developing one.

There are a couple of really great threads at the Taxi Forum where this is discussed:

Making Significant $ with Film/TV Music
What exactly is a five year plan?

So here is my working definition of a Five Year Plan:

A Five Year Plan, simply, is a mission statement of what you would like to have achieved at the end of five years. It is also a list of specific goals, and tasks, that will act as mile markers for you to judge your progress in achieving that goal.

And why I believe it is important, especially when the goal involves achieving success in the music industry:

• For those seeking placement in music libraries or deals through organizations like Taxi, the process can be a long one. Even with a successful forward or license, it can be years before you see a cent in return. Without a long-term plan, it would be very easy to lose sight of this and give up in the first year.
• It is easy to get lost in music creation, working and re-working pieces over and over in an attempt to satisfy that internal voice /critic we all have… the one that tells you it’s not good enough to share yet. With short term goals and deadlines (even the ones you set yourself), there is more of a drive to complete projects and move on to the next.
• Creating music is only one aspect of having a career in music. There are a lot of things to know, and setting a schedule for learning them is crucial. Without defining what those things are for yourself, the tendency will be to focus only on what you know, or only on the aspects that you enjoy. This isn’t to say that the journey needs to be all work, but that there needs to be a discipline to it.
• Lastly, it is good to have set goals, so that you can recognize them when they are achieved. It is easy to lose sight of how far you’ve come if you never stop to reflect on your accomplishments. Being able to see things being checked off the list can give you the motivation and confidence to keep moving forward.

In my next post, I will try to define what my five year plan is and give some of the specifics for what the first year might look like.

If you chance to stumble across this, please feel free to contribute below. What does your five year plan look like? Have you found any good road maps for success, or resources that talk about setting goals?

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ArtLifeMind Photoshop Tutorial

I just posted a beginner’s Photoshop tutorial at ArtLifeMind, detailing how to turn a color photo into a pencil sketch. Hopefully, this will be the first of many. The tutorial also includes a YouTube walkthrough, which you can view above, or in HD on the ArtLifeMind Youtube page.

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Midi Orchestration

I have just finished adding a page dedicated to midi orchestration, and my ongoing pursuits to write for film and television.  You can listen to excerpts from various projects, learn more about my musical setup, and some of the thought processes that went into composing a few of my more recent pieces.  Most of the music is composed with Cubase 4, various synthesizers, and sound libraries.  Most notably, I use virtual instruments and libraries by EastWest/Quantum Leap (link to Soundsonline.com).

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