So I've been pretty quiet lately. Truth be told that's a good thing at the moment. The two movies that I scored were my first two movies ever, and there was a lot of learning to be done with them. That's a good thing, but what I didn't anticipate was that it would be two movies back to back. I wouldn't change a single day of the process, but by the end, I was tired. Luckily I don't have anything huge lined up until the summer, where I may be doing another film, but that's not official yet.
I'm currently working on a short western film called Dead Man's Hand. I'm doing it as a favor to someone who helped me out a lot a couple years ago. This film is the perfect test bed for my new software (and I'm learning a lot about it here) as well as a great way for me to test my chops at a new genre. So far, I'm really liking the way things are sounding. You can expect a sample in the next day or two.
After the short, I may be doing a web series that should be very interesting. Then it's the wait until summer. I'm moving (in more ways than one) in April. I'll be relocating closer to LA, as well as moving my digital life over to the new website. On that topic, I've been getting some samples of the new site from my web designer and I'm thrilled at how it's looking. It's simple, elegant and easy to use. It's all about getting to the music, and I don't want anything flashy to distract from that. I'll also be moving to my new rig once the computer I need becomes available. Lots of changes coming up!
So I find myself in a greatly appreciated slow period. But I don't want it to be slow for long. So I've started doing some research into music for video games. It's a great industry to be in, and the exposure is huge. I'm interested in trying my hand at some Indie Video Games. These are lower in budget, yet huge in creativity. At the moment, I'm reaching out to game developers to try to get involved with a few projects. This idea is in its infancy at the moment, but I'm excited to get started. I've already received a couple replies, so it will be a lot of fun to see where this goes. More updates to come!
Subscribe to my Blog
Posts
All Comments
Monday, January 28, 2013
Monday, January 7, 2013
School All Over Again
I've had a couple days with my new software, and it's been a blast learning everything. Omnisphere has this incredible depth to it. I don't think I'll ever reach the limit of what it can do, and I'm okay with that. It will always be there to do what I need it to do. I'll be working on a short film in the coming weeks, so it will give me the perfect chance to put Omnisphere through its paces, and I can't wait.
Vienna has been the learning challenge, as it is changing my whole workflow. As I mentioned in my last post, Vienna keeps all my sounds loaded and routes them to Logic so I don't have to reload instruments every time I switch projects, and I can easily spread my library on instruments over multiple computers with ease. The challenge has been learning how to do all this routing. Things are about to get very technical in here, so read with caution.
To explain why routing things with Vienna is a challenge, we first need a history lesson, and it all starts with MIDI. MIDI stands for Musical Instrument Digital Interface, and it is the programming language that we use to write music on a computer. The language also allows you to connect real hardware like piano keyboards, synthesizers and the like to a computer so that the computer can understand it. MIDI is a wonderful language because it is used universally by everyone, so it makes writing music with it very easy, but it has some limitations. MIDI was developed in 1983 when digital musical interfaces started to get more common. It was developed as a musical standard between all the competing audio companies so that they could all use the same language for all the devices and software they were developing to be used with a computer. MIDI has barely changed since its introduction, and because the language is a bit dated, software manufacturers need to come up with some clever workarounds to make it all still work. You might ask, why don't they just come up with a new MIDI language? To answer that, you don't need to look any further than the gas in your car. There are plenty of alternate fuel sources far superior to gas, like electric and hydrogen, but in order for them to become a global standard, you'd need to change every engine in every car and every fuel station in the world. No small feat. The same goes for MIDI. The digital music industry is built around MIDI, so everything would need to change if we adopted a new musical programming language. It may happen someday, but I don't think it will happen anytime soon. So why does that make Vienna hard?
MIDI allows you to send signals over 16 virtual channels to your composing software, like a television that only gets 16 stations (which at one point was true, imagine that!). That means that Vienna (because it uses MIDI to communicate with Logic) can only send 16 instruments to Logic. Not nearly enough. My film scores, which are by no means huge use an average of 30-50 instruments, so I need more than that, and I've seen some larger projects that use 100 or more instruments. Vienna uses a trick to increase the number of tracks you can load at once. When I say that MIDI has 16 channels, those are output channels, meaning signals that are going from Vienna to Logic. But, MIDI also has 8 input channels, meaning 8 unique devices could be sending signals through MIDI at the same time. Because of these inputs, once I need instrument '17' and so on, I can switch over to input 2, and then 3, up until 8, giving me a total of 128 instruments that Vienna can route to Logic. So what happens in the event that I need more than 128 instruments? Because Vienna is a server software, I can load another instance of Vienna, which gives me another 128 instruments.
Now that I've got my head around the idea of how Vienna works, I think with time, the whole setup process will become second nature to me. I'm also going to build templates of common instrument setups that I use all the time so I can get a baseline going, but all in all, I'm excited to have this new workflow up and running.
In other news, I got in touch with a very talented programmer I know, Ansel Santosa who is going to be constructing a website for my music. I want to have a one stop shop for all things music related with a nice portfolio of my past and current projects. So within the upcoming weeks and months you can expect to see a lot of changes. I do plan on keeping this blog going, but it may move to the website once it is completed, but I'll be sure to let you all know when that time comes.
Vienna has been the learning challenge, as it is changing my whole workflow. As I mentioned in my last post, Vienna keeps all my sounds loaded and routes them to Logic so I don't have to reload instruments every time I switch projects, and I can easily spread my library on instruments over multiple computers with ease. The challenge has been learning how to do all this routing. Things are about to get very technical in here, so read with caution.
To explain why routing things with Vienna is a challenge, we first need a history lesson, and it all starts with MIDI. MIDI stands for Musical Instrument Digital Interface, and it is the programming language that we use to write music on a computer. The language also allows you to connect real hardware like piano keyboards, synthesizers and the like to a computer so that the computer can understand it. MIDI is a wonderful language because it is used universally by everyone, so it makes writing music with it very easy, but it has some limitations. MIDI was developed in 1983 when digital musical interfaces started to get more common. It was developed as a musical standard between all the competing audio companies so that they could all use the same language for all the devices and software they were developing to be used with a computer. MIDI has barely changed since its introduction, and because the language is a bit dated, software manufacturers need to come up with some clever workarounds to make it all still work. You might ask, why don't they just come up with a new MIDI language? To answer that, you don't need to look any further than the gas in your car. There are plenty of alternate fuel sources far superior to gas, like electric and hydrogen, but in order for them to become a global standard, you'd need to change every engine in every car and every fuel station in the world. No small feat. The same goes for MIDI. The digital music industry is built around MIDI, so everything would need to change if we adopted a new musical programming language. It may happen someday, but I don't think it will happen anytime soon. So why does that make Vienna hard?
MIDI allows you to send signals over 16 virtual channels to your composing software, like a television that only gets 16 stations (which at one point was true, imagine that!). That means that Vienna (because it uses MIDI to communicate with Logic) can only send 16 instruments to Logic. Not nearly enough. My film scores, which are by no means huge use an average of 30-50 instruments, so I need more than that, and I've seen some larger projects that use 100 or more instruments. Vienna uses a trick to increase the number of tracks you can load at once. When I say that MIDI has 16 channels, those are output channels, meaning signals that are going from Vienna to Logic. But, MIDI also has 8 input channels, meaning 8 unique devices could be sending signals through MIDI at the same time. Because of these inputs, once I need instrument '17' and so on, I can switch over to input 2, and then 3, up until 8, giving me a total of 128 instruments that Vienna can route to Logic. So what happens in the event that I need more than 128 instruments? Because Vienna is a server software, I can load another instance of Vienna, which gives me another 128 instruments.
Now that I've got my head around the idea of how Vienna works, I think with time, the whole setup process will become second nature to me. I'm also going to build templates of common instrument setups that I use all the time so I can get a baseline going, but all in all, I'm excited to have this new workflow up and running.
In other news, I got in touch with a very talented programmer I know, Ansel Santosa who is going to be constructing a website for my music. I want to have a one stop shop for all things music related with a nice portfolio of my past and current projects. So within the upcoming weeks and months you can expect to see a lot of changes. I do plan on keeping this blog going, but it may move to the website once it is completed, but I'll be sure to let you all know when that time comes.
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
With Progress Comes Change
My workflow over the last few years hasn't changed much. I've always used Logic to compose my music and I've always used my EastWest sounds for my orchestra running off my laptop. But as my projects, vision and skill increase in size, I must adapt to those changes. After 3 day test, I wrote that I would slowly be upgrading my music rig over the coming months. It started with the simple addition of my little MOTU Microbook II. Apple has recently released their 27in iMac which will be replacing my current laptop when it becomes available, and I am eagerly awaiting that day. In the meantime, there was some software I wanted to purchase to increase the capabilities of my music. At first, I wanted to wait until I got my new computer, but now that I find myself in between projects, I figured this would be the perfect time to learn new software, as it will be changing the way I write music quite a bit.
First, it has become apparent that even though I primarily write for orchestra, other sounds are often needed to supplement the music. This was most evident in my most recent film, Barlowe Mann. In that score, I used a fair number of synthesized instruments, as well as real instruments that were heavily modified for the ethereal and often whimsical sound I was going for. I knew it was time to invest in some synths, and there's nothing better to start with than Omnisphere.
First, it has become apparent that even though I primarily write for orchestra, other sounds are often needed to supplement the music. This was most evident in my most recent film, Barlowe Mann. In that score, I used a fair number of synthesized instruments, as well as real instruments that were heavily modified for the ethereal and often whimsical sound I was going for. I knew it was time to invest in some synths, and there's nothing better to start with than Omnisphere.
Omnisphere is called a Power Synth. Not only does it come with over 8000 preset sounds, it allows for the creation of sounds, so it has nearly unlimited possibilities. This should allow me to create any atmosphere or non-orchestral sound I need for any project. I'm very excited to begin learning this new program.
During another blog post, I mentioned a piece of software called Vienna Ensemble.
I was first introduced to Vienna during my time with Mike Post, and its benefits were instantly visible to me. Here's the nutshell version. Any time you close a track you are working on and load another, your composition software needs to reload all the sounds for that project, even if the sounds are the same. This wastes a lot of time and puts extra strain on your equipment. Vienna (among many other features) loads all your sounds into itself, so you don't need to reload everything when you switch projects. It's really useful.
Both these programs arrived today, and I am installing them as I write. These programs, Vienna especially are going to drastically change how I go about making music, so there's a lot to learn. I will be using this downtime to get everything in order for the next big thing.
Speaking of the next big thing, I have received word that Corbin will be filming his next movie in April and it looks as of right now that I will be involved in the music for that one. Details are scarce right now, but I'll be sure to write in as soon as I know. Stay tuned for more updates as I tackle these new programs!
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
A Lot Can Happen in a Month
Hello everyone! I finally have time to come up for air and write a blog post. I've missed you all. There's a lot to talk about and show you and I hope I don't leave anything out.
The last month has been a crazy one. I have been mostly locked inside my apartment working on the score for Barlowe Mann. I'm happy to say, as of last week, the score is finished. This project has been a pleasant challenge and quite a lot of fun to work on. The music is very different from my usual variety and I love doing new things, so this score has been a blast. This was a very tight timeframe, so burning the midnight oil was a must. Thankfully the deadline was met and the sound department is now hard at work mixing my music in with the dialogue and sound effects for the film. I'd like to take this opportunity to give you a sampling of some of the music from the film. I hope you like it.
Barlowe Mann Sample 1:
Barlowe Mann Sample 2:
Barlowe Mann Sample 3:
During the final weeks of working on Barlowe Mann, an opportunity came up that I absolutely had to make time for. When you go to a movie theater, before the previews there is usually a short ad for the theater you are in. "Welcome to ______ Cinemas" and it involves something like a roller coaster showing where you can buy popcorn and whatnot. I was asked to do music for a theater chain in Philadelphia for one of those videos. The video is this amazing and quirky little animation of a moviegoer getting thrown through all the different genres of movies before landing in his seat. The music is supposed to parallel the type of movie he is moving through. That kind of exposure was too good to pass up so I pulled a few all nighters and made a sample to send off. Last week I was emailed by the guy who asked me to try out, and he let me know that my piece was chosen to accompany the video! So in a few months, if you find yourself at a Hollywood Cinema in Philly, you'll be hearing my music before the movie starts. I'll post the music for it here, and once the final animation is finished, I'll be sure to put that up here as well.
Hollywood Cinemas Music:
It has been such an amazing month and everything really seems to be coming together. The strange thing for me has been adapting to these new jobs mentally. What I mean is this: My process and the way I've been writing my music hasn't changed at all since I got my first computer for music. My rig is still in my bedroom, and most days I'll wake up and write in my PJs (comfort is important when you're at your keyboard for 10 or more hours a day). But then this music gets put into a feature film bound for television, or into a theater, and I need to put on a suit and go to production meetings. It's as if part of my music life hasn't changed at all, and at the same time it is completely different. This became very apparent last saturday. Saturday was the premiere for my first film I scored, 3 Day Test. A red carpet event was held in LA at the Downtown Independent Theater. Cast, crew and guests were invited to see the finished film on the Big Screen.
I arrived early to pick up my ticket. It felt like any other movie ticket, but this is for a film I know very well.
This was my first experience with press. Luckily, as this was my first film, nobody knew who I was, so I wasn't asked any questions . . . until the movie ended. We all make it into the theater, and before the film starts, the owner of our distributing company, Echolight Films makes a small speech about the film. Then Corbin took the stage to talk about what this film meant to him. During that time, he made sure to thank the cast and crew for their contribution to the film. But then he started talking about how he discovered this great, young composer who wrote a soundtrack that sounded like it costed a million dollars. He made me stand up in the audience, and it was totally overwhelming. The gratitude he showed over my work was one of the best feelings I've ever had. He mentioned that he'll be using me for all his future films. After that, there was no hiding. We watched the film, and it got such a great reaction. It was such a great day.
The last month has been a crazy one. I have been mostly locked inside my apartment working on the score for Barlowe Mann. I'm happy to say, as of last week, the score is finished. This project has been a pleasant challenge and quite a lot of fun to work on. The music is very different from my usual variety and I love doing new things, so this score has been a blast. This was a very tight timeframe, so burning the midnight oil was a must. Thankfully the deadline was met and the sound department is now hard at work mixing my music in with the dialogue and sound effects for the film. I'd like to take this opportunity to give you a sampling of some of the music from the film. I hope you like it.
Barlowe Mann Sample 1:
Barlowe Mann Sample 2:
Barlowe Mann Sample 3:
During the final weeks of working on Barlowe Mann, an opportunity came up that I absolutely had to make time for. When you go to a movie theater, before the previews there is usually a short ad for the theater you are in. "Welcome to ______ Cinemas" and it involves something like a roller coaster showing where you can buy popcorn and whatnot. I was asked to do music for a theater chain in Philadelphia for one of those videos. The video is this amazing and quirky little animation of a moviegoer getting thrown through all the different genres of movies before landing in his seat. The music is supposed to parallel the type of movie he is moving through. That kind of exposure was too good to pass up so I pulled a few all nighters and made a sample to send off. Last week I was emailed by the guy who asked me to try out, and he let me know that my piece was chosen to accompany the video! So in a few months, if you find yourself at a Hollywood Cinema in Philly, you'll be hearing my music before the movie starts. I'll post the music for it here, and once the final animation is finished, I'll be sure to put that up here as well.
Hollywood Cinemas Music:
It has been such an amazing month and everything really seems to be coming together. The strange thing for me has been adapting to these new jobs mentally. What I mean is this: My process and the way I've been writing my music hasn't changed at all since I got my first computer for music. My rig is still in my bedroom, and most days I'll wake up and write in my PJs (comfort is important when you're at your keyboard for 10 or more hours a day). But then this music gets put into a feature film bound for television, or into a theater, and I need to put on a suit and go to production meetings. It's as if part of my music life hasn't changed at all, and at the same time it is completely different. This became very apparent last saturday. Saturday was the premiere for my first film I scored, 3 Day Test. A red carpet event was held in LA at the Downtown Independent Theater. Cast, crew and guests were invited to see the finished film on the Big Screen.
I arrived early to pick up my ticket. It felt like any other movie ticket, but this is for a film I know very well.
Outside the theater was the red carpet, a ton of press and a photo wall for press shots.
 |
| Corbin giving an interview for a TV network |
 |
| Primary Cast taking photos in front of the press wall |
 |
| Lead actor George Newbern giving his interview |
This was my first experience with press. Luckily, as this was my first film, nobody knew who I was, so I wasn't asked any questions . . . until the movie ended. We all make it into the theater, and before the film starts, the owner of our distributing company, Echolight Films makes a small speech about the film. Then Corbin took the stage to talk about what this film meant to him. During that time, he made sure to thank the cast and crew for their contribution to the film. But then he started talking about how he discovered this great, young composer who wrote a soundtrack that sounded like it costed a million dollars. He made me stand up in the audience, and it was totally overwhelming. The gratitude he showed over my work was one of the best feelings I've ever had. He mentioned that he'll be using me for all his future films. After that, there was no hiding. We watched the film, and it got such a great reaction. It was such a great day.
Afterwards there was a short reception. I was able to talk with the cast again and congratulate them on a job well done. Because of the wonderful words Corbin said about me, I was suddenly asked to be in pictures and did an interview for some network about my music for the film.
The team behind the film told me that they will be filming their next movie in march and it's very likely I'll be asked to score that one as well. Things are really picking up. I also got to speak to the producer for Barlowe Mann who I had never met before. She told me that because Barlowe Mann tackles some very heavy topics, a lot of changes had to be made to the story of the film. She was worried the film would be hard to follow at that point, and she told me that after she had heard the music, it all came together. She went as far as to say my music saved the film. What a compliment! She's a screenwriter herself and said that if one of her films gets off the ground soon, she may contact me to score that one as well. It's amazing the kind of networking opportunities you get when you go to an event like this.
So after this crazy event, I'm back at home and have a little downtime until my next big project. I never would have thought that within such a short time, I'd have two movies back to back with more to expect in the future. I'm so grateful for everything that has happened this month, and I can't wait to see what happens next.
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
IMDB
This will be a quick little update. After the wonderful news of having my first film available for purchase, I got another little surprise today as well. I went on IMDB today to show someone the film I'm currently working on, and discovered that I now have my own little page regarding my composing, and my films are now listed on it! It came a such a shock to see my name on a site that I frequent, and it's quite an honor. I'm including a link to the page now, where you can also see more information on the films. Stay tuned for the promised music update. It's coming soon!
Monday, November 12, 2012
The 3 Day Test DVD is Out!
Hey everyone! An update is long overdue, and I promise that I will have a big music update soon. I am in the crunch period for the Barlowe Mann film, hence the long gap between posts. I'll be sure to make up for it in the upcoming days with some sneak peaks at the music for the movie. In the meantime, I was just given word that the DVDs for 3 Day Test have gone on sale and are available now! I'm so excited to celebrate the release of my first movie I've scored. Here's a link to the page on Amazon.
If you happen to find yourself with a copy of the film, I do hope you enjoy it, and I'll be sure to keep you all up to date with information on the TV release when I hear word.
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Meet Emma
A couple months ago I met a girl named Sarah Long. Sarah is a writer of the paranormal and science fiction and is exceptionally talented. She has embarked on a very similar adventure to mine. She is at the start of her journey to become a best-selling author, and from what I've seen so far, no one deserves it more than she.
I have the honor of being in the middle of reading an advance draft of her first novel, and within two days I find myself to be more than halfway through. Her characters leapt out at me and inspired me to realize them in music. Her lead character is a girl named Emma, growing up in Victorian England. Emma has a lot going on under the surface of her carefully controlled exterior so she makes for an excellent person to base music off of. First I created a piano draft of her theme to make sure I was on the right track with her sound.
Emma Piano
Sarah let me know that I really got her personality down in that piece, so I wanted to move forward. After a full day and sleepless night of writing, I had my final version of Emma's theme. Sarah's reaction to the music was one of the best I have ever had, so I hope you enjoy it as well.
Emma's Theme (Orchestral)
I have the honor of being in the middle of reading an advance draft of her first novel, and within two days I find myself to be more than halfway through. Her characters leapt out at me and inspired me to realize them in music. Her lead character is a girl named Emma, growing up in Victorian England. Emma has a lot going on under the surface of her carefully controlled exterior so she makes for an excellent person to base music off of. First I created a piano draft of her theme to make sure I was on the right track with her sound.
Emma Piano
Sarah let me know that I really got her personality down in that piece, so I wanted to move forward. After a full day and sleepless night of writing, I had my final version of Emma's theme. Sarah's reaction to the music was one of the best I have ever had, so I hope you enjoy it as well.
Emma's Theme (Orchestral)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)