Most used music genre for film & tv

[matto]

Sept 25, 2009, 8:40pm, mazz wrote:For library music, I'd guess #1 would be whatever is culturally "hip" at the moment you're writing.After that, whatever is timeless.I would agree with this, IMHO there is not *one* dominant genre, one of the reasons being that there is so much different programming...think about sports, drama, comedy, news, science, reality, talk shows...all have a different musical focus.To put a finer point on what mazz is saying, while "hip, current" music is probably number 1 in any given year, it has the disadvantage of dating a lot more quickly.A hip hop library CD may have a shelf life of 5-10 years depending somewhat on the market. A CD of beautifully recorded, timeless acoustic guitar or piano music, or traditional ethnic music, may have a shelf life closer to 25-30 years.So while the hip stuff may outperform the timeless stuff during the years it's relevant, the timeless stuff may do better in the long run. matto

[mfowler]

It's tough... whether to specialize or spread out amongst the various genres. I'm spreading out since in the past I've played a lot of top 40 in bands and I like variation. I guess it depends on whether or not I have (or can obtain) the skills to produce enough quality tunes, followed by quantity. I'd never heard of TripHop... but I did some critical listening and analysis and did manage to get a forward. I'm proud to say I've been rejected in almost all genres, but I'm growing because of it.And I definitely agree with Matto about the "timeless" aspect as well. I was watching the David Foster and Friends on PBS and his older songs really sounded great and relevant. Marlin

[Casey H]

Another thing to consider is not many of us are good at a wide variety of genres and often, trying to write something in a different genre doesn't produce great results. I've often seen people (such as rock folks) say they wanted to "try their hand" at a country song or a hip-hop one when they really aren't ready at all to produce one that is commercially viable.That doesn't mean one can't switch genres and succeed. Not at all! But it does take a tremendous amount of study and commitment. So, since film/TV has needs for almost all genres, it often can be best to perfect what you are good at, maybe with *some* branching out. Casey

[mfowler]

I'm branching out because I really don't have a favorite genre... it may take a while to figure out what I'm good at.. maybe nothing, but it is fun trying!

[wta]

This is a bridge I think we've all had to cross at some point, to figure, "What is going to get licensed, what am I good at producing and what do I like to produce" not always in that order. I've had the same type of issues writing for performance directed music as well and I found that no one could answer the questions for me cause they're just too general so my resolution was to pick my niche and produce my guts out making every new song better than the last because the bottom line is if its a great song in broadcast quality production very few people will say, "No that tune is to good for my library and clients"...

[ibanez468]

Sept 26, 2009, 5:14pm, hurowitz wrote:Another thing to consider is not many of us are good at a wide variety of genres and often, trying to write something in a different genre doesn't produce great results. I've often seen people (such as rock folks) say they wanted to "try their hand" at a country song or a hip-hop one when they really aren't ready at all to produce one that is commercially viable.That doesn't mean one can't switch genres and succeed. Not at all! But it does take a tremendous amount of study and commitment. So, since film/TV has needs for almost all genres, it often can be best to perfect what you are good at, maybe with *some* branching out. CaseyYeah Casey, these are good points to keep in mind. I did try my hand at a coupla' different genres that I wasn't really used to playing, more than once (hip hop, acoustic guitar instrumentals, and a few others) and as you mentioned, didn't produce favorable results. So I decided, for the moment, to stick to what I was able to get more favorable results with (rock, some hybrid orchestral-type stuff, which would include drama, suspense, or action, etc...). I'm still willing to give the electronica stuff a go, depending on what the listings are asking for.I'll probably even give the hip hop thing a try again, eventually, if there's a listing that comes along that sounds/feels right for me to try and tackle. I've had a few production breakthroughs over the past month or so, working on my sound and all, and might be ready to give a few of those other genres that weren't successful for me the last time around, another shot! Again, that will all depend on what kind of descriptions are loaded in the listings.But when things begin to crash & burn, my philosophy has always been to: GO WITH WHAT YOU KNOW!

[Casey H]

Some types of branching out and expanding horizons are much easier than others. I think a rock guitarist would not have as a hard time producing acoustic instrumentals (not trivializing) as a country writer would have doing hip-hop, for example. Sometimes even as lyricists we forget how different the writing styles are. Co-writing can make it more likely you can be involved in another genre.As discussed on these boards often, writing as an indie artist doing gigs and selling your own CDs is not the same as film/TV. The former really has no rules. They only have to please themselves and their buying audience. And if it's all for personal pleasure, there certainly are no rules. Casey

[k o star]

So True Casey... that's why I'm not looking to go acoustic nor Country anytime soon...Hip hop would be much easier for me to get into cos it's pretty much using synths & has that loop element to it...Thanks All for Ur input...The thing is I'm happy with what I specialize in & always looking to improve on that particular style... but I do feel it's time to expand a bit, at least for the film/TV side of things...Oh yes, totally agree about Co-writing...Collaboration is a gr8 learning experience!!Matto, I like what U mentioned abt writing timeless pieces... With TV, does Hi-impact speedy sport racing stuff count as that?? =)K

[guscave]

Funny that I run into this topic. As it turns out I spent a good part of this weekend watching (or rather listening) to a lot of TV (motorcycle's in the shop so needed something else to do.. I notice a large amount of hip-hop and R&B grooves on the reality shows on networks like EOnline and MTV. While there was a strong rock presence on Discovery and TLC.

[matto]

Sept 27, 2009, 3:37pm, reasondemon wrote:Matto, I like what U mentioned abt writing timeless pieces... With TV, does Hi-impact speedy sport racing stuff count as that?? =)Kel, some sports music is relatively timeless, but it's usually the more orchestral stuff. The more "extreme sports" oriented stuff which is more rock or electronica based will generally date more quickly, as production values in those styles evolve more rapidly.