Ellen Stanley (aka Mother Banjo) brought her banjo over to the Composer Quest studio to share some songs and stories. We talk about everything from her Walden-inspired song to her unusual connection to Paul McCartney. In addition to her banjo-playing career, Ellen is the executive director of the Minnesota Music Coalition, and for eight years she worked as a publicist for Red House Records. So she also shares some advice on networking, getting airplay, etc.
Feb 26, 2014•37 min
If some episodes of Composer Quest are like delicious deserts, then this one is like eating your vegetables. Just in time for tax season, we have a special episode on tax tips for musicians and other creative professionals. Attorney and CPA Brad Begley shared lots of tax advice at an event hosted by the Minnesota Music Coalition and Music Mafia Minnesota. It’s especially helpful for freelancers and people with a growing creative business.
Feb 26, 2014•1 hr 5 min
After a failed dolphin keyboard experiment, Seth Horowitz decided to change roles from dolphin trainer to biopsychologist, neuroscientist, aural therapist, and author. In this Composer Quest episode, Seth shares his knowledge of how echolocation works, and how he used his knowledge of bats to sound design an alien race for a sci-fi show by the producers of The Walking Dead and Heroes. We also talk about his aural therapy recordings engineered to induce sleep, nausea, pain relief, etc.
Feb 19, 2014•38 min
If you heard the Questmas episode, you’ll remember Josh Wilson’s thrilling adventure to find a fortune cookie in Taiwan. I’ve gotten a kick out of his quirky YouTube series Mr. Wilson Presents, which is a great example of how classical composing can be fun and approachable. Of course, this “infotainment” is not without Josh’s flair for music theory terminology. In this Composer Quest episode, Josh teaches me a thing or two about how to structure a symphony like Haydn, how to write upside-down “t...
Feb 12, 2014•39 min
Laura Marie believes one of the keys to great songwriting is overcoming self-consciousness and writing with brutal honesty about your own life. In this episode of Composer Quest, we talk about the benefits of forcing yourself to write consistently, and Laura shares songs and stories from her song-a-week project.
Feb 05, 2014•30 min
At Berklee College of Music, Pat Pattison created the world’s first songwriting major. He has taught a host of talented songwriters, including Grammy winners John Mayer and Gillian Welch. I was introduced to Pat through his free online Songwriting course (check coursera.org), and his method of “preserving the natural shape of the language” has really helped me analyze my own lyric writing. In this episode of Composer Quest, I ask Pat about his theory that our language can be interpreted like a p...
Jan 29, 2014•30 min
The 7th Composer Quest Quest is here! As Valentine’s Day quickly approaches, I challenge you to write a piece of music for your valentine. The twist is, it must be for your valentine to perform, not you. So if that special someone plays an instrument or sings, this is the perfect opportunity to give him or her a unique gift. Don’t feel limited to writing for a romantic valentine, either; you could also choose a friend or family member.
Jan 25, 2014•13 min
Craig Carnahan has been a part of the American Composers Forum since it was small enough to fit in someone’s living room. In this episode of Composer Quest, he shares some advice on writing grants, getting performances of your music, and arranging copyrighted material. Craig explains how ACF’s Innova recording label works, and why it’s such a great opportunity for composers. We also get to hear a few of Craig’s original pieces.
Jan 22, 2014•37 min
Chris Kukla shares some practical advice about freelancing as a video game composer: where to find gigs, how to get paid, and how to work with your clients.
Jan 15, 2014•30 min
The infamous trio Lazerwülf joined me for a Composer Quest interview about their new charity single to raise money for children in Africa. We also unearthed some deep cuts from the Lazerwülf catalogue.
Jan 08, 2014•27 min
Santa visits the Composer Quest studios to kick off this special Christmas episode. You’ll get to hear music from the past three quests. First, we travel out to rural Minnesota for KMS Elementary’s heartwarming performance of our collaborative Christmas musical Elfluenza. Ms. Hamann’s 1st-3rd graders also give us composers some advice. Next, I reveal which orchestral carol arrangements were chosen and performed by the Amadeus Chamber Symphony. Finally, we get to experience Mr. Wilson’s epic jour...
Dec 20, 2013•41 min
Experimental songwriter Ben Simon (aka Felix Frost) caught my ear when I was judging the SpinTunes songwriting contest. His album Phineas Flux has a really shiny pop sound, but it almost never repeats the same phrase twice (in fancy composer language, that’s called “through-composed”). We talk about his elaborate plot-driven songs about cowboys and pirates in this episode of Composer Quest.
Dec 11, 2013•32 min
Music Psychologist Victoria Williamson is an expert on earworms – songs that stick in our heads. In this episode of Composer Quest, she reveals her findings on what makes a melody sticky. Vicky also answers my other pressing music psychology questions: Why do babies have an innate sense of rhythm? Why did Clive Wearing, a severe amnesiac, retain his ability to perform music? When did humans start playing instruments? Also in this episode, you’ll get to hear the sound of the world’s oldest instru...
Dec 04, 2013•30 min
Guitarist Dylan McFarling is obsessed with studying the work of other songwriters and composers, all the way back to Bach and his ingenious Musical Offering. In this episode of Composer Quest, Dylan shares his songwriting tips and explains how string quartets have inspired the way he orchestrates guitar and voice in his songs. Also in this episode, you’ll hear some beautiful, previously unrecorded songs that Dylan performed live in the Composer Quest studio.
Nov 27, 2013•34 min
Composer Richard Russell is a philosopher at heart. In his mission to become a better composer, he went back to school to study the big questions surrounding aesthetics, music, and beauty. He has also dug into both existential and practical composing topics in his podcast Creativity and Composition (one of my favorites). I’m pleased to bring you this Composer Quest podcast interview with Richard, in which we discuss everything from feminist musicology to Plato to getting performance royalties fr...
Nov 20, 2013•31 min
After nerding out about video game soundtracks for 20+ years, Michael Chadwick finally started composing his own, a few of which are for games that don’t actually exist. In this episode of Composer Quest, we chat about Michael’s score for his made-up RPG Ebben Flow, his chiptune album Average Town, and his soundtracks he composes for his everyday activities (eating a muffin, doing the dishes, etc.).
Nov 13, 2013•33 min
DJ, opera singer, and film composer Brooke deRosa is making a name for herself around LA. She recently sang operatic vocals on Ghostface Killah’s new album 12 Reasons to Die and performed on Jimmy Fallon with the group. In this episode of Composer Quest, Brooke gives us some practical advice she’s learned from scoring over 15 films and TV shows in the past five years. She also shares tips on composing for vocalists.
Nov 06, 2013•29 min
Have you ever drawn a fortune from a fortune cookie and thought, this would make an awesome song? No? Well neither had I, until just recently. So I decided to make that our challenge for the sixth Composer Quest quest. I’m hoping this one will inspire you to meet up with other songwriters and composers to get your creative gears really turning.
Nov 06, 2013•19 min
Your regular Composer Quest host has been replaced by a Demonic Overlord. Enjoy this talk with William Dodson and Wendell Jones, who compose Halloween music as the duo Sideshow Sound Theatre. Stay until the end to hear a brand new song by the Demonic Overlord himself, about one of his favorite pastimes.
Oct 30, 2013•31 min
Poet Brian Laidlaw has been teaching songwriting at McNally Smith College of Music, in which he challenges students with assignments like writing from the perspective of a murderer. In this episode of Composer Quest, Brian shares some of the best lyric-writing tips you’ll ever hear on the podcast. We also talk about his Internet Cat Video Festival performance, which aired on Animal Planet. As a special treat, Brian premieres a powerful new song called “One Tree Falling.”
Oct 23, 2013•36 min
DJ/producer duo Sjoerd Huissoon and Tim van Doorne are on a quest to get one huge dance hit with their project Ducked Ape. In this episode of Composer Quest, I interview Sjoerd and his manager Budi Voogt about what it takes to break into the dance scene in the Netherlands. We also talk about what Budi looks for in new artists to sign on his label, Heroic Recordings.
Oct 16, 2013•34 min
Cognitive neuroscientist Wilma Koutstaal studies and teaches about creativity at the University of Minnesota. In this episode of Composer Quest, she shares words of wisdom with all of us who want to be more creative. We talk about how to to get unstuck from writer’s block, how to move between abstract and detailed thinking, and how to avoid procrastination.
Oct 09, 2013•34 min
Every week, disquiet.com music journalist Marc Weidenbaum feeds his community of hungry sound artists a creative new challenge. In this project, called Disquiet Junto, Marc challenges composers to produce tracks based on an ice cube, or an Instagram photo, or the sound of space plasma hitting the Voyager I. Marc joins me for this episode of Composer Quest to share some of the coolest and most influential sound art pieces. Marc also explains why he believes music as we know it will be totally abs...
Oct 02, 2013•31 min
I’m excited to announce a brand new Composer Quest competition! The Amadeus Chamber Symphony is in need of Christmas carol arrangements for their holiday performances with the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University choirs. The performances are attended by over 1,500 people, so it will be great exposure for the chosen composers. Eight arrangements will be performed, recorded, and featured on my podcast.
Sep 30, 2013•13 min
Student jazz players have likely come across the name Dean Sorenson – his jazz curriculum books have been published by Kjos music and played in schools across the globe. In my Composer Quest interview with Dean, I ask him about how he makes music fun and playable for younger jazz players. We also talk about the differences between improvising and composing.
Sep 25, 2013•30 min
In this special episode of Composer Quest, multi-platinum songwriter Kevin Bowe tells us everything he’s learned about getting your music published and placed on TV. He also explains how to get the biggest piece of the music royalty pie you can. He’s a really entertaining and knowledgeable guy, so I’m happy to bring you this hour+ of great music business advice.
Sep 23, 2013•1 hr 20 min
Desmond Simmons, a.k.a. Precise Hero, produces music using only open-source software – he says his computer is too old to handle anything other than Linux. So how did Desmond’s DIY mixes end up on the Japanese label P-Vine Records? Creative fortitude and a collaborative spirit have been keys to Desmond’s success. In this (50th!) episode of Composer Quest, Desmond shares his thoughts on our remix culture, and why 70s Brazilian music is the best kind to sample from.
Sep 18, 2013•31 min
Guitarist, composer, and podcast producer Anthony Joseph Lanman has racked up over 350,000 followers on Soundcloud – a number most classical musicians can only dream of. You’d think this huge listenership (along with advanced composing degrees) would result in instant job opportunities in the composing world, but Anthony is still figuring out how to make a living writing music. Regardless, he has dedicated himself to writing classical music of this era. Through his compositions and his two podca...
Sep 11, 2013•31 min
The stereotype of African rhythms being complex and fascinating is completely true. I found out firsthand during my nine months in a very remote part of Tanzania, living at Hanga Abbey and teaching English, computers, and music to kids in the village. Since most of these kids don’t have access to instruments, they found a way to make totally compelling songs using only their voices. In this episode of Composer Quest, I feature some of my students’ music, plus an interview with one of Hanga’s coo...
Sep 04, 2013•30 min
I set out to create the first episode of Composer Quest Season Two, and ended up with this heavenly look back at my musical history, embarrassing demos and all. So now, for something completely different…
Aug 28, 2013•31 min
