Tips for a novice composer
The article was originally published on DTF.RU, but over time it went into the archive and became inaccessible to most users. In the meantime, I received thank-you letters more than once asking you to send the material.
')
The article is in sonata form, so do not look for secret intent in the section titles. The idea to write an article was not accidental - recently beginner musicians often turn to me for advice. As a rule, the same questions are asked: how do you like my music, can I work as a composer in the gaming industry and what do I need for this?
In turn, I want to say that three years ago one person really helped me with good advice, and therefore now I feel some responsibility, and I want to share my thoughts with beginners. And in order not to respond to everyone individually, spending precious working time, I am writing this article. All my observations are based only on the basis of personal experience, so if something is wrong, and I am mistaken somewhere, do not hesitate - speak out and supplement.
First, I will tell you a little about myself and how I got into game dev. I am a professional musician. Since 2006 I have been working in the gaming industry as a composer. Ideological leader and performer (in one person) of the studio Martamusic .
After graduation, I worked as an accompanist at a music school. Then one day the Omsk team of developers (Studio DVA) turned to my programmer friend, who were looking for a person who was ready to write a soundtrack for their first game project, ChePay. A friend, accordingly, suggested trying it.
So it all started. I accepted the offer, because I always loved to improvise on the piano, and then my music will play in the game, and the developers promise glory! There was, however, one hitch: at that time I did not represent all the complexity of working with computer music programs necessary to create the final product. But I decided that with work as in a fight: the main thing is to get involved, and then we'll see. The project was long-term, and I began to slowly master this science. After some time, the music was written in the built-in sequencer of my synthesizer. The fame promised to me after the release of the project certainly did not happen, but the reviews about music in a number of specialized media outlets, such as Igromania, AG.ru, were positive, which spurred me on to further actions.
So, you are a novice composer (or consider yourself as such), you write music, you and your friends undoubtedly like it very much, and you decide that the world must hear it. And even better if it will sound in the game!
So you go looking for a project. From myself I want to note: you should not immediately threaten large projects, anyway getting an order for a large commercial product is almost impossible for a beginner. So try your luck with novice developers.
In the model business, there is such a thing as time for print, when beginner specialists unite and organize shooting, and instead of paying each participant receives a calculation with photos. This has its common sense. I myself worked with several young teams, the tracks for which were written for a symbolic amount or for free. I got experience, and the non-commercial project was “made happy” by my music. There were cases when after some time the same team approached me with a more profitable commercial offer.
If you are interested in ensuring that you have a good reputation, high-quality work, which then you will not be ashamed to show, then do not regret at this period neither the strength nor the time. However, in such a situation, I would not advise you to give up your old business that brings you income and plunge into the world of music. In my opinion, everything should happen gradually, and over time, more important things will force out the secondary ones, which hinder full commitment to the beloved work.
But back to the job search. Suppose you find an ad about finding a musician and decide to send your resume. A few tips on how to do this:
1. Do not send a universal letter to several companies at once when you send letters with a proposal for cooperation. Address each one specifically.
2. Write about yourself honestly. Trust is hard to win, but very easy to lose. It is not necessary, in my opinion, to make descriptions of all those programs whose names you have ever heard in your life. Limit yourself to the main thing that directly concerns your activity, that is, music.
3. If the game developer asks you to specify a specific subject letter, do not ignore his wish. It may happen that your recipient has a filter on incoming mail, which automatically deletes letters that do not meet the specified parameters.
4. Do not send letters to your attachments. It is better to leave links in the body of the letter, leading to examples of your work - if you are interested, you will definitely take a look. If you are unable to create your own web page, then you can use special resources - MySpace, RealMusic and the like.
5. Show your interest in the project.
6. Pick examples of your work deliberately. For example, you know that at the moment the company is working on a shooter, and no matter how great your slow lyric composition may be, in this case it may not be appreciated. If there is no suitable track in your arsenal yet, I would advise to alternate the works on your page by contrast. So that the customer, having listened to the first two or three songs of the same mood, with the same samples, did not make hasty conclusions that all your music is monotonous. Remember, your page should represent you in the most advantageous way.
If all your attempts to find a job are not crowned with success - do not worry, try to figure out what is wrong and what is wrong?
There can be several reasons:
1. Your music does not meet the needs of the industry.
You like to write, say, sensual pieces, songs for the soul or lively dance music. But, having studied the market, you will have to understand that the music here is more of an applied nature, that is, it is intended to reinforce the image, emphasize what is happening on the screen, evoke certain feelings in the player. Think and honestly answer yourself - can you create in this case?
2. Your music in comparison with the hits of game music sounds faded, unprofessional.
With the development of computer technology and the Internet to write tracks, it seems, everyone can - no need to know the notes, you can not be able to play, even the presence of hearing is not necessary. But what is the result?
Beginners prefer to see the root of their problems not so much in themselves, not in their musical ignorance, as in external factors - not the equipment, not the samples, not the sequencer, etc. So begins the endless pursuit of new technologies, for the "brand" sound, as a result, time is spent not on developing yourself as a musician, but on things that, in turn, are also very important, but not paramount. Try not to dwell on it.
What is necessary for self-development and achievement of the goal? I will cite a fragment of Tchaikovsky's letter to my sister:
“... I am afraid only for spinelessness, perhaps laziness will take its toll, and I can not stand it; if, on the contrary, I promise you to become something. You know that I have strengths and abilities, but I am sick of the disease called oblomovshchina, and if I do not triumph over it, then, of course, I can easily die. Fortunately, the time has not quite gone ... "
Fortunately, Tchaikovsky found the strength and entered the St. Petersburg Conservatory, and after several years of hard work, he became a well-educated musician, and later a great composer.
So, this is what you need.
1. A strong desire to learn.
2. Critical attitude to their creativity. As soon as you decide that you have everything "ok" - this is the end of your growth.
3. You need to listen, listen and once again listen to a lot of good and different music. Expand your musical horizons.
4. Learn harmony, orchestration, instrumentology. And it does not have to be reading thick textbooks. Approach the process creatively, find your way, so that you are interested.
For those who do not have the basic knowledge of harmony, I would recommend a good resource on the Internet - the music college "7 notes" . In the section of harmony, the material is presented by the author in a very accessible form, with humor and allegories, and, importantly, contains musical examples in MIDI.
If you are writing orchestral music, then read instrumental studies. It is impossible to decently write a part for violin or brass, without knowing the nature of the sound of these instruments, their strokes, timbral capabilities. Because of ignorance, such common mistakes occur as a breathless batch of wind instrument for 20 cycles, when a real performer would have long suffocated from lack of air in the lungs, or using symphony orchestra instruments not in his registers, and so on.
In my school this subject was conducted by a conductor of a musical theater. He could dryly present the material, but chose a more interesting and effective way, namely: he invited one of his orchestra students to a lecture every time. They talked about the technique of performance, demonstrated their play, and even gave to try to play anyone. By the way, then I understood why girls playing the double bass, French horn, trombone and tuba are rare.
Try to act in the same way, find friends, acquaintances who would not mind a master class, take a couple of lessons from them. Illustration of the textbook can serve as a selection of videos on YouTube.
5. Analyze the music.
I would like to mention another resource that I really like. This is the rmm forum, and in particular the “Orchestral Music” section. In this topic, the author provides a selection of classic works, which you should definitely get acquainted with (scores are arranged according to the principle “from simple to complex”). It also provides recommendations on how to study.
For those people who do not own musical notation, I would recommend downloading MIDI songs to the sequencer and, at the same time as audio recording, study them in a drunken roll. Here are some sites where you can download classic works (and not only): www.kunstderfuge.com , www.midi-karaoke.info , www.midi.ru.
Also for educational purposes, you can use the program Band-in-a-Box, which contains "building material" for different genres of music. It allows you to see from which building blocks the musical “fabric” is built in one way or another.
6. Do not be afraid to imitate.
Here I do not mean direct plagiarism, but only an indirect transfer of receptions. If we analyze the music of the classics, no matter how bright and original the talent of this or that genius seemed to us, they all copied their predecessors in the early period of their work. And only when a decent foundation was laid, did the formation of his vision, handwriting, and style occur.
I would like to dwell in greater detail on such a moment as the taking over of experience from successful gaming products, and also to note the importance of references.
When I start working with a customer, first of all I ask him to express his wishes regarding the style, to give examples of musical compositions that, in his opinion, would be a good fit for the project. Usually I get very vague answers or something like “we totally trust your taste.” Then I myself begin to ask leading questions, bring music from games, movies, classics, etc. During the discussion, as a rule, it turns out the direction in which to move. If you are offered only screenshots for inspiration, you can ask the developer about the prototypes of his product. If the future game does not differ in special originality, having played in prototypes, you, most likely, will know what is expected of you. It will only be necessary to introduce your “creative vision” so that the future game in terms of music is even better and more interesting.
If you do not do this, it may turn out that your further work will be like “wandering in the dark”. Your sketches will be "undeservedly" rejected, and you will not even be able to really explain why. And given that the time to create a soundtrack is very limited, then, ultimately, misunderstanding and tension can undesirably affect the music itself.
It happens and vice versa, when the developer himself gives a reference and asks to do the same. For example, one team asked me to write music similar to the theme from “Harry Potter”, but, of course, so that it was not plagiarism, but only created the right mood. After listening and analyzing the melody, I identified a number of distinctive features in harmony and instrumentation, and using the same techniques I composed my own .
As a result, the customer was satisfied. And it didn't take me a lot of time for creative searches. This approach greatly facilitates the task of the musician, since both parties know exactly what they want.
7. If you do not own any musical instrument - learn.
For some reason, many people think that mastering an instrument is possible only in early childhood. Of course, this is a true statement when it comes to the education of a professional performer. But in the history of the composition there are examples proving that it is never too late for the composer.
Read the biography of Aram Khachaturian. They said that at 19 years old, after moving to Moscow, he saw a cello standing in the corner and said that he wanted to study playing “this big violin”. Despite the lack of elementary training, but with good hearing and great desire, Khachaturian was accepted into the Gnesinka.
I often hear: “Why do I need this, I will draw a pencil perfectly or stick the part with one finger in the sequencer!”. Maybe it is, but knowing how to play, you write a musical phrase much faster, while it will be much more natural. I'm not talking about the art of improvisation. Bach, Mozart, Liszt, Chopin, Rachmaninoff and others - all of them were outstanding performers. I am afraid, if they do not own the game technique, their work would be much more poor.
8. Learn the basics of sound engineering.
There are more than enough educational materials, articles about mixing and mastering on the Internet. Communicate with people, "peep" their recipes, experiment with sound. After all, ultimately, the whole process of creating music falls on your shoulders. You have to combine the post of composer, performer, sound engineer. And sound engineering work will not occupy the last place.
Finally, remember: theory alone, unsupported by practice, will not give you any results.
So, since you are not limited by any time frames, try to make your demo tracks as close as possible to the ideal and aimed at your audience. First, if the tracks turn out to be interesting, it will attract the attention of the first clients to your creativity. Secondly, all the demos I have written ever sooner or later found their projects.
Try to replenish the page from time to time with new works, even if it seems to you that there are enough tracks on it, do not be afraid to increase their number. The customer is looking for something new every time. And going to your page again after some time and finding all the same a couple of releases, it will immediately close.
Of course, the framework of one article does not allow to reveal all the problems, but I think that everything written above will give you an impetus or at least make you think.
Those who have tried their hand at writing music know how difficult it is. Yes, sometimes the music itself comes to the composer, but then, as a rule, the idea is polished with hours of hard work. So the expression “genius is 99% of work and only 1% of talent” is very relevant in the music business.
Finally, the most important thing: you need to believe in yourself, and if you really love your job, then you will undoubtedly succeed!
PS
Studio Martamusic is open for cooperation!
If your project needs music or sound design, write to me at: martamuzic@googlemail.com
I. Exposure
')
The article is in sonata form, so do not look for secret intent in the section titles. The idea to write an article was not accidental - recently beginner musicians often turn to me for advice. As a rule, the same questions are asked: how do you like my music, can I work as a composer in the gaming industry and what do I need for this?
In turn, I want to say that three years ago one person really helped me with good advice, and therefore now I feel some responsibility, and I want to share my thoughts with beginners. And in order not to respond to everyone individually, spending precious working time, I am writing this article. All my observations are based only on the basis of personal experience, so if something is wrong, and I am mistaken somewhere, do not hesitate - speak out and supplement.
First, I will tell you a little about myself and how I got into game dev. I am a professional musician. Since 2006 I have been working in the gaming industry as a composer. Ideological leader and performer (in one person) of the studio Martamusic .
After graduation, I worked as an accompanist at a music school. Then one day the Omsk team of developers (Studio DVA) turned to my programmer friend, who were looking for a person who was ready to write a soundtrack for their first game project, ChePay. A friend, accordingly, suggested trying it.
So it all started. I accepted the offer, because I always loved to improvise on the piano, and then my music will play in the game, and the developers promise glory! There was, however, one hitch: at that time I did not represent all the complexity of working with computer music programs necessary to create the final product. But I decided that with work as in a fight: the main thing is to get involved, and then we'll see. The project was long-term, and I began to slowly master this science. After some time, the music was written in the built-in sequencer of my synthesizer. The fame promised to me after the release of the project certainly did not happen, but the reviews about music in a number of specialized media outlets, such as Igromania, AG.ru, were positive, which spurred me on to further actions.
So, you are a novice composer (or consider yourself as such), you write music, you and your friends undoubtedly like it very much, and you decide that the world must hear it. And even better if it will sound in the game!
So you go looking for a project. From myself I want to note: you should not immediately threaten large projects, anyway getting an order for a large commercial product is almost impossible for a beginner. So try your luck with novice developers.
In the model business, there is such a thing as time for print, when beginner specialists unite and organize shooting, and instead of paying each participant receives a calculation with photos. This has its common sense. I myself worked with several young teams, the tracks for which were written for a symbolic amount or for free. I got experience, and the non-commercial project was “made happy” by my music. There were cases when after some time the same team approached me with a more profitable commercial offer.
If you are interested in ensuring that you have a good reputation, high-quality work, which then you will not be ashamed to show, then do not regret at this period neither the strength nor the time. However, in such a situation, I would not advise you to give up your old business that brings you income and plunge into the world of music. In my opinion, everything should happen gradually, and over time, more important things will force out the secondary ones, which hinder full commitment to the beloved work.
But back to the job search. Suppose you find an ad about finding a musician and decide to send your resume. A few tips on how to do this:
1. Do not send a universal letter to several companies at once when you send letters with a proposal for cooperation. Address each one specifically.
2. Write about yourself honestly. Trust is hard to win, but very easy to lose. It is not necessary, in my opinion, to make descriptions of all those programs whose names you have ever heard in your life. Limit yourself to the main thing that directly concerns your activity, that is, music.
3. If the game developer asks you to specify a specific subject letter, do not ignore his wish. It may happen that your recipient has a filter on incoming mail, which automatically deletes letters that do not meet the specified parameters.
4. Do not send letters to your attachments. It is better to leave links in the body of the letter, leading to examples of your work - if you are interested, you will definitely take a look. If you are unable to create your own web page, then you can use special resources - MySpace, RealMusic and the like.
5. Show your interest in the project.
6. Pick examples of your work deliberately. For example, you know that at the moment the company is working on a shooter, and no matter how great your slow lyric composition may be, in this case it may not be appreciated. If there is no suitable track in your arsenal yet, I would advise to alternate the works on your page by contrast. So that the customer, having listened to the first two or three songs of the same mood, with the same samples, did not make hasty conclusions that all your music is monotonous. Remember, your page should represent you in the most advantageous way.
If all your attempts to find a job are not crowned with success - do not worry, try to figure out what is wrong and what is wrong?
Ii. Development
(or debriefing)There can be several reasons:
1. Your music does not meet the needs of the industry.
You like to write, say, sensual pieces, songs for the soul or lively dance music. But, having studied the market, you will have to understand that the music here is more of an applied nature, that is, it is intended to reinforce the image, emphasize what is happening on the screen, evoke certain feelings in the player. Think and honestly answer yourself - can you create in this case?
2. Your music in comparison with the hits of game music sounds faded, unprofessional.
With the development of computer technology and the Internet to write tracks, it seems, everyone can - no need to know the notes, you can not be able to play, even the presence of hearing is not necessary. But what is the result?
Beginners prefer to see the root of their problems not so much in themselves, not in their musical ignorance, as in external factors - not the equipment, not the samples, not the sequencer, etc. So begins the endless pursuit of new technologies, for the "brand" sound, as a result, time is spent not on developing yourself as a musician, but on things that, in turn, are also very important, but not paramount. Try not to dwell on it.
What is necessary for self-development and achievement of the goal? I will cite a fragment of Tchaikovsky's letter to my sister:
“... I am afraid only for spinelessness, perhaps laziness will take its toll, and I can not stand it; if, on the contrary, I promise you to become something. You know that I have strengths and abilities, but I am sick of the disease called oblomovshchina, and if I do not triumph over it, then, of course, I can easily die. Fortunately, the time has not quite gone ... "
Fortunately, Tchaikovsky found the strength and entered the St. Petersburg Conservatory, and after several years of hard work, he became a well-educated musician, and later a great composer.
So, this is what you need.
1. A strong desire to learn.
2. Critical attitude to their creativity. As soon as you decide that you have everything "ok" - this is the end of your growth.
3. You need to listen, listen and once again listen to a lot of good and different music. Expand your musical horizons.
4. Learn harmony, orchestration, instrumentology. And it does not have to be reading thick textbooks. Approach the process creatively, find your way, so that you are interested.
For those who do not have the basic knowledge of harmony, I would recommend a good resource on the Internet - the music college "7 notes" . In the section of harmony, the material is presented by the author in a very accessible form, with humor and allegories, and, importantly, contains musical examples in MIDI.
If you are writing orchestral music, then read instrumental studies. It is impossible to decently write a part for violin or brass, without knowing the nature of the sound of these instruments, their strokes, timbral capabilities. Because of ignorance, such common mistakes occur as a breathless batch of wind instrument for 20 cycles, when a real performer would have long suffocated from lack of air in the lungs, or using symphony orchestra instruments not in his registers, and so on.
In my school this subject was conducted by a conductor of a musical theater. He could dryly present the material, but chose a more interesting and effective way, namely: he invited one of his orchestra students to a lecture every time. They talked about the technique of performance, demonstrated their play, and even gave to try to play anyone. By the way, then I understood why girls playing the double bass, French horn, trombone and tuba are rare.
Try to act in the same way, find friends, acquaintances who would not mind a master class, take a couple of lessons from them. Illustration of the textbook can serve as a selection of videos on YouTube.
5. Analyze the music.
I would like to mention another resource that I really like. This is the rmm forum, and in particular the “Orchestral Music” section. In this topic, the author provides a selection of classic works, which you should definitely get acquainted with (scores are arranged according to the principle “from simple to complex”). It also provides recommendations on how to study.
For those people who do not own musical notation, I would recommend downloading MIDI songs to the sequencer and, at the same time as audio recording, study them in a drunken roll. Here are some sites where you can download classic works (and not only): www.kunstderfuge.com , www.midi-karaoke.info , www.midi.ru.
Also for educational purposes, you can use the program Band-in-a-Box, which contains "building material" for different genres of music. It allows you to see from which building blocks the musical “fabric” is built in one way or another.
6. Do not be afraid to imitate.
Here I do not mean direct plagiarism, but only an indirect transfer of receptions. If we analyze the music of the classics, no matter how bright and original the talent of this or that genius seemed to us, they all copied their predecessors in the early period of their work. And only when a decent foundation was laid, did the formation of his vision, handwriting, and style occur.
I would like to dwell in greater detail on such a moment as the taking over of experience from successful gaming products, and also to note the importance of references.
When I start working with a customer, first of all I ask him to express his wishes regarding the style, to give examples of musical compositions that, in his opinion, would be a good fit for the project. Usually I get very vague answers or something like “we totally trust your taste.” Then I myself begin to ask leading questions, bring music from games, movies, classics, etc. During the discussion, as a rule, it turns out the direction in which to move. If you are offered only screenshots for inspiration, you can ask the developer about the prototypes of his product. If the future game does not differ in special originality, having played in prototypes, you, most likely, will know what is expected of you. It will only be necessary to introduce your “creative vision” so that the future game in terms of music is even better and more interesting.
If you do not do this, it may turn out that your further work will be like “wandering in the dark”. Your sketches will be "undeservedly" rejected, and you will not even be able to really explain why. And given that the time to create a soundtrack is very limited, then, ultimately, misunderstanding and tension can undesirably affect the music itself.
It happens and vice versa, when the developer himself gives a reference and asks to do the same. For example, one team asked me to write music similar to the theme from “Harry Potter”, but, of course, so that it was not plagiarism, but only created the right mood. After listening and analyzing the melody, I identified a number of distinctive features in harmony and instrumentation, and using the same techniques I composed my own .
As a result, the customer was satisfied. And it didn't take me a lot of time for creative searches. This approach greatly facilitates the task of the musician, since both parties know exactly what they want.
7. If you do not own any musical instrument - learn.
For some reason, many people think that mastering an instrument is possible only in early childhood. Of course, this is a true statement when it comes to the education of a professional performer. But in the history of the composition there are examples proving that it is never too late for the composer.
Read the biography of Aram Khachaturian. They said that at 19 years old, after moving to Moscow, he saw a cello standing in the corner and said that he wanted to study playing “this big violin”. Despite the lack of elementary training, but with good hearing and great desire, Khachaturian was accepted into the Gnesinka.
I often hear: “Why do I need this, I will draw a pencil perfectly or stick the part with one finger in the sequencer!”. Maybe it is, but knowing how to play, you write a musical phrase much faster, while it will be much more natural. I'm not talking about the art of improvisation. Bach, Mozart, Liszt, Chopin, Rachmaninoff and others - all of them were outstanding performers. I am afraid, if they do not own the game technique, their work would be much more poor.
8. Learn the basics of sound engineering.
There are more than enough educational materials, articles about mixing and mastering on the Internet. Communicate with people, "peep" their recipes, experiment with sound. After all, ultimately, the whole process of creating music falls on your shoulders. You have to combine the post of composer, performer, sound engineer. And sound engineering work will not occupy the last place.
Finally, remember: theory alone, unsupported by practice, will not give you any results.
Iii. Reprise
(or go back to where we started)So, since you are not limited by any time frames, try to make your demo tracks as close as possible to the ideal and aimed at your audience. First, if the tracks turn out to be interesting, it will attract the attention of the first clients to your creativity. Secondly, all the demos I have written ever sooner or later found their projects.
Try to replenish the page from time to time with new works, even if it seems to you that there are enough tracks on it, do not be afraid to increase their number. The customer is looking for something new every time. And going to your page again after some time and finding all the same a couple of releases, it will immediately close.
Of course, the framework of one article does not allow to reveal all the problems, but I think that everything written above will give you an impetus or at least make you think.
Iv. Coda
Those who have tried their hand at writing music know how difficult it is. Yes, sometimes the music itself comes to the composer, but then, as a rule, the idea is polished with hours of hard work. So the expression “genius is 99% of work and only 1% of talent” is very relevant in the music business.
Finally, the most important thing: you need to believe in yourself, and if you really love your job, then you will undoubtedly succeed!
PS
Studio Martamusic is open for cooperation!
If your project needs music or sound design, write to me at: martamuzic@googlemail.com
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/72103/
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