If you're arranging a piece of music in which the copyright is held by someone other than yourself, it's important that you obtain proper permission to arrange it. This is a fairly straightforward process, but can be time consuming, so it's best to plan ahead and know what to expect.
Even though Virtual Drumline (VDL) has become a widely used by specialists who share a geeky fondness for all things percussion, I frequently get asked pretty basic questions about what it is, what it can do, and why it still seems so elusive and confusing to the average newcomer. While perfectly valid, these questions are often accompanied by mouth breathing and a furrowed brow. They’re mostly the result of the fairly recent popularity of software “virtual instruments” (commonly called VIs), and how to integrate them into a compositional workflow when not long ago, people just settled for cheaper/synthy sounds built into the computer. At the trade shows we do for Tapspace, I can often be found explaining things like audio versus MIDI to band directors who just want to hear a drumline coming out of their computer speakers.
To help answer some of these initial questions of what VDL does, I spent a pretty good chunk of time a couple years ago making this “intro” video for our distributor, Hal Leonard. I never posted it because my voiceover was so painfully cheesy and fake, I just couldn’t bear to put it out in the world. Nobody likes to hear recordings of their own voice, but you have to trust me on this one. It was robot car salesman bad. So I re-recorded it. The new version still lacks the sound of a real voiceover pro, but at least I sound a bit more like a human in this one. Anyway, if you haven’t seen it yet, here it is. I hope it sheds a tiny bit of light on some of the things that VDL does. Enjoy!
I’m excited to announce that “The Graves” will be opening in theaters starting this weekend, January 29th, 2010! This film marks my first official feature-length film score as composer, so the fact that it’s getting a nationwide theatrical release is a great extra bonus.
This is a limited, independent release and every attendee...
I’ve just completed work on a new composition for percussion ensemble called Compound Autonomy. This was written for the 2010 Foster High School percussion ensemble from Richmond, Texas. This group is very talented, and always up for an ambitious challenge, so I consider myself fortunate to be able to go outside the box a bit and delve into a piece like this.
This piece is published by Tapspace.
Distribution for The Graves was recently picked up by After Dark Films which will feature the film in their fourth annual Horrorfest - 8 Films to Die For festival nationwide. The new poster for the film has been unveiled. Get a first look at the new poster.
The Drum Corps International world championships took place in a very boomy (dare I say awful sounding?) Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis this past weekend where The Cavaliers earned a fourth place finish with their 2009 production "The Great Divide." Top honors were awarded to...
Commissioned by the Portland Bureau of Transportation and Animated Traffic Law Center, I recently finished work on the soundtrack to this cute, educational video called Every Corner is a Crosswalk. It puts action music behind a cute animation style and is intended to communicate its message without dialog.
Since working on this project, I now think about it every time I cross the street! Read more about this and my other commercial projects here.
Post-production work on Brian Pulido's The Graves (the feature film I recently scored the music for) has been a long process. Pulido and his co-producers Ronalds Brothers Productions are in the early stages of spreading the word about the film which was recently given a "sneek peek" screening at Fangoria Con LA. Speaking of Fangoria, I was recently featured in a short interview on …
Although the finishing touches are still being put on the film, the website recently launched for The Graves. This is an independent horror film which I composed the music for. At over 74 minutes of music (for an 87 minute film), it was an ambitious project that I'm proud of. More news on the film's release will be forthcoming, plus a trailer which I'm also working on the music for! Visit the site, and sign up for news here.
Tuning snare drums of a modern day drumline is a very subjective topic. In fact, the sound of the groups I've worked with over the years has evolved from year to year. Some of this has to do with the sound we're trying to achieve for a particular repertoire. Some of it is just personal preference.
