# Mark Northam: 20 Reasons Composers Fail



## Reid Rosefelt (Apr 28, 2019)

Austin Wintory just posted this on Facebook. It's the Table of Contents from a pamphlet that Mark Northam published 20 years ago. 






@JohnG also posted something from Northam here.


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## Jeremy Spencer (Apr 29, 2019)

I resonate completely with items #1, #2 and #5. Over the course of several years, I find these three factors the real key to getting composition gigs. I think talent is a very small component. A large chunk of my gigs are a result of cultivating long term relationships; which lead to word of mouth. It is so vitally important to get out there and "pound the pavement", and to network. I have obtained good work from cold emails (with music samples), but that was purely being in the right place at the right time (luck). I personally know a few composers who are frustrated because no one is knocking on their door with offers...they have some sort of dillusion that they'll be sought out because they have music degrees and good demos.


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## Desire Inspires (Apr 30, 2019)

How exactly does someone “properly plan for success”?


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## dgburns (Apr 30, 2019)

I excel at all of those, in varying degrees and in varying intensity.

My sarcasm in on a rampage today, better get off the site and go rake some leaves.


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## Henu (Apr 30, 2019)

[ ] pass
[x] fail

Then again, I could right now be planning for success but after I've finally got our kids to sleep I think it's time to go play video games with my wife instead. Too bad, I could had been _someone_. :(


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## Desire Inspires (Apr 30, 2019)

Henu said:


> [ ] pass
> [x] fail
> 
> Then again, I could right now be planning for success but after I've finally got our kids to sleep I think it's time to go play video games with my wife instead. Too bad, I could had been _someone_. :(



Playing video games = success.
Having a wife = success.
Playing video games with your wife = success^2.


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## José Herring (Apr 30, 2019)

What ever happened to Mark? Remember him from the days when we were hustling here in Hollywood for films in the late 90's then I never saw him again. It's been like 20 years.

I hope he maybe got into library music or something. Good composer.


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## Tim_Wells (Apr 30, 2019)

It's a good list. I'm bad at networking. But it's hard to get good at something when you don't try...


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## José Herring (Apr 30, 2019)

Took a few minutes of digging but it looks like he's now an immigration laywer in Syndey Australia.

http://marknortham.com/


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## Jeremy Spencer (Apr 30, 2019)

ka00 said:


> At what age is it too late to rectify these failures?



It's never too late, and it's an ongoing process.


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## DerGeist (Apr 30, 2019)

bah, I fail for way more reasons than that.


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 30, 2019)

Before you get to that list, I'd add the big one: there are 50 billion talented composers - and 100 billion untalented ones - competing for every job that pays next to nothing.

Of course there are lots of ways to fail!

And yeah, Mark's a good guy.


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## José Herring (Apr 30, 2019)

Wolfie2112 said:


> It's never too late, and it's an ongoing process.


Music Agent Richard Kraft responded to a similar type question. His response was pretty cool. Basically saying that no matter what age, that this business is tough. 

There are composers that were at the top of the game that you never hear from again. Composers that got their "overnight" success in their 50's. Composers who break in early then fade away. 

It's just a tough limited business and success isn't just one thing. I know composers that nobody has even heard of making a fortune. Composers who are famous that are broke after their few hits ran out of residuals. Composers who are so frickin' talented that it's jaw dropping-- who use to be the big stuff or had promising burgeoning careers that are now teaching across the country.

Composers that have struggled well into their 50's that all of sudden just exploded in TV, ect...

This is a wild, non-EEOC regulated field where lightening can strike some and completely miss others and there is no real rhyme or reason for it.

I applaud Mark's effort to at least try to bring some understanding to the field, but he was also writing this in a time when the business was a lot different than it is today. 

You could eek out a meager living doing low budget films back then. Mostly back then it was generally understood that it was a business and people no matter at what level expected to pay for music. Synths were expensive, orchestral samples not really fully developed (and expensive). There was a huge difference between virtual and live so you could demand live players. That kind of all changed when samples became "good enough". Then demanding money for production became optional. 

Also, back in the day there were limited people making movies. You had to have a budget and a film made for $1,000,000 was the lowest that anybody could go. Therefore the films ended up being not that bad production wise and had stars in them and would end up on cable, foreign,ect... I would make upwards of $25,000 in a year for residuals on such films so could survive off of doing a few films that ended up on cable and global distribution. Then the laws changed and royalties were gutted at that level.

Then the internet hit and all of a sudden instead of competing with up and comers like Mark Northam in the Hollywood area we are now all competing internationally. I remember running across a guy that was hustling cable films a few years back and he was from Texas. I went home and told my wife, we are doing the same work only he gets to live in someplace that's affordable.  I enjoyed meeting him though because we got to chatting about royalties and expected income from cable films, ect...

I love this field and I love the people in it and if people fail and when I fail it's always boiled down to just not being good enough with people. Nothing to do with business or music.


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 30, 2019)

josejherring said:


> I applaud Mark's effort to at least try to bring some understanding to the field, but he was also writing this in a time when the business was a lot different than it is today.



Yup.


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## Mike Greene (Apr 30, 2019)

josejherring said:


> Took a few minutes of digging but it looks like he's now an immigration laywer in Syndey Australia.
> 
> http://marknortham.com/


Wow, not exactly what I would have expected. Very sharp guy, though, so I can totally see it.

I miss those events at Sportsman's Lodge and the Beverly Garland, sitting in a room with a hundred other composers listening to various talks.


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## Desire Inspires (Apr 30, 2019)

josejherring said:


> Composers that have struggled well into their 50's that all of sudden just exploded in TV, ect....


Yeah, that’ll be me!


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## Tim_Wells (Apr 30, 2019)

josejherring said:


> Took a few minutes of digging but it looks like he's now an immigration laywer in Syndey Australia.
> 
> http://marknortham.com/


 Wow ... that speaks volumes.


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## JJP (Apr 30, 2019)

Tim_Wells said:


> Wow ... that speaks volumes.



There's a lot more to that story. IIRC, Mark's wife is from Australia. Also he was a big activist for composer rights and took some strong actions on royalties and and other issues to help composers that impacted his career. He once said to me about his business, "I have to decide if we're activists or a business. It's looking like we can't be both."

Way too much history to discuss here.


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## chillbot (Apr 30, 2019)

Doesn't even take a few minutes of digging. He posted his story recently on a popular FB group. Don't want to repost here because it contains personal info and personal email but if anyone wants the full book from above he posted a link to it:

http://nlaw.com.au/downloads/20-rea...9tYXSvK1xF2uDum0777-7QQlotdvDSW7dhOX7PaFsu7b4


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## Tim_Wells (May 1, 2019)

JJP said:


> There's a lot more to that story. IIRC, Mark's wife is from Australia. Also he was a big activist for composer rights and took some strong actions on royalties and and other issues to help composers that impacted his career. He once said to me about his business, "I have to decide if we're activists or a business. It's looking like we can't be both."
> 
> Way too much history to discuss here.


Thanks for clarifying!


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## VinRice (May 1, 2019)

Desire Inspires said:


> How exactly does someone “properly plan for success”?



Ensure that your skills, knowledge and equipment are at a level above your present situation.


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## Desire Inspires (May 1, 2019)

VinRice said:


> Ensure that your skills, knowledge and equipment are at a level above your present situation.



Excellent. Let me collaborate with you to get myself up to par.


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## Jimmy Hellfire (May 1, 2019)

Composers love to talk about failure, self-doubt and rejection.


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## José Herring (May 2, 2019)

chillbot said:


> Doesn't even take a few minutes of digging. He posted his story recently on a popular FB group. Don't want to repost here because it contains personal info and personal email but if anyone wants the full book from above he posted a link to it:
> 
> http://nlaw.com.au/downloads/20-rea...9tYXSvK1xF2uDum0777-7QQlotdvDSW7dhOX7PaFsu7b4


Thanks for allowing me to fill in the blanks. It's always disheartening to see one of my fellow brother composer who hit town around the same time I did fall away. But, it looks like he landed in a good place. I wish him his continued success.


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## GtrString (May 2, 2019)

I can think of a number of rich world famous acts who excel in several of those failures..


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## dgburns (May 2, 2019)

VinRice said:


> Ensure that your skills, knowledge and equipment are at a level above your present situation.



No I think he means to visualize your success, and also prepare emotionally for it as well.

Just like lottery winners often blow their money and find themselves back to where they were before, it's important to adapt to the good things that come your way and not let it destroy you or those around you. Harder said than done. We seem to take rejection and failure more easily in stride than success. 

It's hard emotionally to deal with success. It's like a high that always comes with a very nasty hangover if you don't handle it right.


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## Tim_Wells (May 2, 2019)

chillbot said:


> Doesn't even take a few minutes of digging. He posted his story recently on a popular FB group. Don't want to repost here because it contains personal info and personal email but if anyone wants the full book from above he posted a link to it:
> 
> http://nlaw.com.au/downloads/20-rea...9tYXSvK1xF2uDum0777-7QQlotdvDSW7dhOX7PaFsu7b4


Thanks! I downloaded this and plan to read it.


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## VinRice (May 2, 2019)

Desire Inspires said:


> Excellent. Let me collaborate with you to get myself up to par.



I wasn't being snide. I genuinely mean it. I've been able to take chance opportunities in lots of different areas because I was prepared for it - purely on faith and often at great expense. I've failed badly in lots when I wasn't.


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## Henu (May 4, 2019)

I started reading it yesterday, and I have to admit that despite of my very sceptic first impressions, this hammer actually hits the nail more than once- the guy _does_ have a point on many things.


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## Desire Inspires (May 6, 2019)




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