# From A to Z - Help me step into the world of composing for libraries!



## SimonCharlesHanna (Sep 15, 2013)

Hey,
I have been avoiding this like the plague but I think it's now time.

How do I start? 
Should I simply write what I want or should I focus more on categories?
Are there any companies I should be aiming for? Or avoiding? 


Thank you for all the help!


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## wst3 (Sep 15, 2013)

SimonCharlesHanna @ Sun Sep 15 said:


> How do I start?
> Should I simply write what I want or should I focus more on categories?
> Are there any companies I should be aiming for? Or avoiding?



Nothing like an open ended question to start a thread<G>... I think you'll get some really interesting feedback, some of it might even be helpful!

So without an understanding of exactly what it is you hope to accomplish - and maybe you don't even know that yet - here's my take on it:

First and foremost, do something, anything, just get started! I don't think that it matters if you are writing something you hear in your head or trying to emulate something to fit in a category. I think it matters that you write.

Second, if this is your first attempt at working with sample libraries then I'm not sure it really matters which ones you use. Each library out there (and I'd love to own them all) has strengths and weaknesses, and most cater to one or two specific areas.

If you do not already own a sample player (e.g. Kontakt, Halion, Mach5, etc) I'd suggest getting one and starting with the included content. It'll give you a starting point... see point #1 above<G>!

I started with Garritan Personal Orchestra - and you'll probably hear it maligned by some. It is not the best library in the world, in spite of the marketing hype. But it was perfect as a starter for me because (a) it was cheap, and (b) it was limited and (c) it forced me to think in terms of an orchestrator. Being limited meant I didn't spend hours agonizing over which articulation to use... that was helpful.

My big 'upgrade' was Kirk Hunter Diamond - another library that doesn't get a lot of love here - and it too worked for me. All of the sudden I had choices, and it set the stage for me to experiment with different production techniques (do I use key switches, or one track per articulation, etc). I also happen to like the sound of it, and I still use it.

At some point you'll want to experiment with the "baked in" approach - I picked up Orchestral Essentials, based on a previous purchase of CineOrch. I love them both, and find that I use both as part of almost every project as a kind of glue to hold things together.

So many choices!!!!!

Then there are the big gun libraries... LASS, Chris Hein, CineSamples, VSL, East-West, Orange Tree Samples, Bela D Media, SoundIron, 8Dio, Project Sam, Spitfire Audio, and so on and so forth - too many to list (apologies to anyone I skipped!)

And don't pay too much attention to nay-sayers for any specific library. There will always be folks that can't live without library X, and folks who believe that criminal charges ought to be considered for foisting such a library on the public. The truth almost always falls somewhere in between - and I've ranted before about how difficult it can be to make larger investments without access to the tools first... but I am a curmudgeon that misses his local music store<G>!

Right now, based on what I already own, and the stuff I am doing, and if I had the budget, I'd go with all the Cinesamples libraries, supplemented with Chris Hein Horns for more pop stuff, and LASS because I think I can get that to sound like TSOP<G>! I would later supplement them with Albion from Spitfire.

But you know, by the time I have the budget I might reverse that and start with Albion - so much of this has to do with the overall sound and the approach and the usability and the...

So don't feel bad if you struggle a bit with library choices. AND AGAIN, at the risk of being repetitive, write something every day, arrange something every day, produce something every day!!!!

Lofty? Yes! Doable? I've not yet succeeded, but I do try. I do not let not owning the latest and greatest library stop me from working with the tools that I have.

Third, and this is tricky for many, figure out how you are going to manage composing, arranging, orchestrating, recording, and producing. For some it is one or more distinct tasks. For others it is one process. You will need to figure this out sooner or later, and I recommend sooner<G>!

But be prepared to be flexible. Your work flow will change as you add tools. To me that might be the biggest shortcoming of the current state of affairs, but I may look back one day and be grateful I went down so many paths... who knows?

Well, that turned out to be a bit more than I expected<G>... Sunday morning coffee philosophy?


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## SimonCharlesHanna (Sep 15, 2013)

Oh gosh! What a reply!

I must apologise for not making myself clear - I was speaking about selling music on those "library" sites.


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## rgames (Sep 15, 2013)

My take on the question is different than Bills's - I assumed you were asking about composing for music libraries, i.e. writing music that is to be marketed and distributed through one of the (almost innumerable) music libraries.

If so, there are lots of guys on this forum with a lot more experience than I have, but in my estimation there are three main factors:

1. Networking
2. Quantity
3. Luck

You can overcome deficits in any one category with greater focus in another. Quality is important but, in my experience, anyone who seriously wants to get into the library music business can produce music that is "good enough" from a PQ standpoint. Certainly the top-tier libraries that regularly snag high-dollar placements have a higher threshold, but you don't have to watch much TV to realize there's a pretty broad spectrum of quality out there. Before anyone gets offended, I'm not saying library music is bad - I've heard lots of very good library music - I'm simply saying that the quality is not a major factor (assuming it's beyond some threshold).

Also, you don't say what your background is, but folks who come from a pop music background seem to do much better than folks who come from a classical music (or even film music) background. John Williams probably wouldn't be a top-tier library music composer. Writing for the concert hall or for film is a very different skill set than writing library music.

Keep in mind that there are basically two types of libraries: royalty-free and royalty-driven. They're different markets with different aims so which you write for will have some effect on what you're writing (though there's no reason to focus only on one or the other).

Finally, don't get caught in the placement numbers trap. Quality placements generate *a lot* more money than lots of crappy placements. I've found it's extremely easy to get placements. It's hard to get ones that pay any real money.

There are, of course, a lot more considerations that are best learned by just getting started and figuring it out. These points were just the first things that came to mind... definitely not A to Z.

rgames


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## wst3 (Sep 15, 2013)

SimonCharlesHanna @ Sun Sep 15 said:


> Oh gosh! What a reply!
> 
> I must apologise for not making myself clear - I was speaking about selling music on those "library" sites.



My bad... my impression was formed from the first sentence where you talked about putting it off - so many folks seem to struggle with picking libraries that it seemed like that was the question.

oops!

So to answer your "REAL" question, I can't add much to Mr. Ame's answer except to reiterate that luck will play a part, and you need to do whatever you can to amplify your luck.

I spent some time pitching to libraries several years ago, and back then it was not unusual to get constructive feedback. In my case I did not make the cut because they were still expecting recordings of live players (dates me a bit eh?) and I was using libraries, and not terribly good ones at that.

Now if I had a time machine<G>... I could have overcome that objection in any number of ways, hiring an orchestra was not one of them, but I probably should have re-orchestrated them for purely electronic instruments. I didn't, and of course I have no way of knowing if that would have helped... I guess my point is, if you are lucky enough to get constructive criticism act on it immediately.

Oh, and I think one of my points from my previous response actually still holds true! 

Write every day!


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## ghostnote (Sep 16, 2013)

maybe this can help:
http://www.thebusinessofmusiclicensing.com/


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## Cruciform (Sep 16, 2013)

Michael Chrostek @ Mon Sep 16 said:


> maybe this can help:
> http://www.thebusinessofmusiclicensing.com/



+1

If you know nothing about the music library business then spend a few bucks on Emmett's e-book.


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## doctornine (Sep 16, 2013)

Absolutely - it's the best 13 Euros you're going to spend.

Bottom line - start now, this is a slow turn around business.

=o


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## jaredcowing (Sep 16, 2013)

In addition to previous advice, I think the first thing to look into and decide is the exclusive vs non-exclusive question.. that will decide which libraries you'll be targeting, and may possibly also influence what kind of music you want to write. If you search these forums using the terms "exclusive" and "non-exclusive," you'll find plenty of discussion on this topic. Also try searching using the term "re-titling." Another excellent resource, in addition to the e-book mentioned above, is musiclibraryreport.com (which includes not only a directory of libraries but also comments from musicians on each library, and a forum for music library topics).


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## Greg (Sep 17, 2013)

1. write great, licensable music
2. email said music to publishers that specialize in whatever genre your songs are
3. if its licensable for them, they will publish it.

There is no luck involved in getting published. All it takes is good music. However getting that music licensed does take lots of luck


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