Fewer NEW listings this time?

[tower888]

Is July a slow month for Film/TV listings? It seems like this time there are fewer NEW listings (in the blue boxes) than usual. There seems to be two main new listings... 1) The Director of Audio Products who only takes Pro Tools LE files, and 2) The film composer who is joining forces with the Music Supervisor. Beyond those two listings (which are spread out over different genres, but all go to the same two parties), new listings seem pretty sparse this time. Actually, I remember the "Pro Tools LE only" listings from before, so I'm not so positive they're even really new.This isn't a complaint, as I realize most things in the world have an ebb and flow to them... It's just an observation, and I'm wondering if this is typical for the summer months? Do things pick up in the Fall?

[didger]

I'm only new around here, but already I've seen things go up and down a bit, and of course most TV shows are not in production over the summer. It seems to me that pilots would be needing music, though. Who knows.I'm pretty happy and pretty busy now and don't generally have complaints about Taxi, but I do feel like your number 2 example is a bit of a scam. Are "CONTEMPORARY ACTION DRAMA INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS," "ORCHESTRAL ACTION INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS," "WORLD ACTION INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS," "CONTEMPORARY POP/ROCK INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS" and "LYRICAL THEME COMPOSERS" all five completely separate types of people? Since the listing says they're not looking for pieces to license, but are looking for composers, I would think this should be one listing that requests 3 tracks from those genres - like the other "Serious Instrumental Composers" listing. I'd rather send a reel with 5 one-minute excerpts of music from those styles plus two full tracks and submit that for $15 rather than submit 1-3 tracks to each of those five listings and have taxi screeners verify that I can do each of them. That'd be easier on us, easier on the client... the only reason I can see not to do it that way is that it's less work and less income for Taxi. I don't know... maybe the client asked for it this way to keep their auditioning process clear, but it doesn't make much sense to me.Okay, no more complaining. Back to work. I happened to be working today on a "Lyrical Theme" for something else, so I'll see if I can kill two birds with it.

[solardaze]

Can anyone clarify for me what a "Lyrical Theme Composer" is? sorry if its a dumb question

[Casey H]

Jul 15, 2009, 3:07pm, didger wrote: I don't know... maybe the client asked for it this way to keep their auditioning process clear...It might be good to find out if this (or other explanation) is the case before throwing the "scam" word around.

[didger]

Sorry it wasn't clear, but it was a purposeful exaggeration meant in a light tone of voice. Still, I think "Action instrumentals incorporating electronic, orchestral and/or world elements" would get the same pieces from the same Taxi members as three separate listings and serve the client and the members just as well. Just like the other listing I referenced that basically says "good composers of any genre!" These guys want something so much more narrow, yet it's separate listings. Well, I didn't mean to start the Spanish Inquisition, I just thought it was weird!"Lyrical Themes" - To me (and the non-Taxi client I'm doing one for), this is sweeping open country "Man from Snowy River" type stuff. Or the pretty "Lord of the Rings" stuff. Moving, inspirational, sentimental. Like it says, mostly strings & choir with a bit of percussion (cymbals swells into the big appearance of the main theme). Make'em cry.

[slideboardouts]

Jul 15, 2009, 3:07pm, didger wrote:I'm pretty happy and pretty busy now and don't generally have complaints about Taxi, but I do feel like your number 2 example is a bit of a scam. Are "CONTEMPORARY ACTION DRAMA INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS," "ORCHESTRAL ACTION INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS," "WORLD ACTION INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS," "CONTEMPORARY POP/ROCK INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS" and "LYRICAL THEME COMPOSERS" all five completely separate types of people? Since the listing says they're not looking for pieces to license, but are looking for composers, I would think this should be one listing that requests 3 tracks from those genres - like the other "Serious Instrumental Composers" listing.You would think that, and it totally makes sense, however I have learned that that is not the case.Some libraries will want composers who can do a wide range of material, but others want "specialists." Some publishers/library owners believe that a composer can only do one genre authentically (and they all want authentic music).Here is a story that I'll reproduce here to the best of my memory's abilities:At the 2008 rally I was at lunch with a very successful film and tv composer and I remember him saying that one of the libraries he works with he is "The Latin Guy" or something (maybe it was I different genre, I can't remember now). And that is the only kind of music they want to hear from him. Now, I know full well that this composer can pull off ANYTHING and make it sound TOTALLY authentic. But if he says "hey I have some great sounding orchestral instrumentals I would like to submit" the publisher says "I've got a guy for that."Yeah, it makes no sense, but that is the way it is apparently.So it is very possible that this is a library that wants *a* "Latin Guy" or *a* "Hip Hop Guy." Not a "Jack of all trades" type of composer. -Steve

[tower888]

I had been thinking something similar to Didger... But not quite as extreme. It seemed like the NEW updated listings this week in the TV/Film category consisted primarily of two libraries looking for music, but they were spread out over several ads (in different categories) to make it seem like there are more NEW listing in TV/Film than there actually are. If that was the case, I understand why it might happen. Members expect a constant flow of new opportunities, so why not divide a listing or two into many multiple listings?However now reading the idea from Steve that perhaps both libraries are looking for "specialists" in each of the categories, it all makes a bit more sense to me... IF this is the case. I guess there is no way for us to know, until some of us start to get contacted by either of those two libraries about our music (if we're so fortunate!).I expect to see ebbs and flows in the amount of new listings though. The demand can't always be at a constant level, can it? I received a private Taxi message (in response to my original post) stating the total number of new listings (including Artist/Record Company listings for the month of July)... But I was actually just referring to the latest update (on July 15th), and was referring only to the TV/Film listings. It seemed like that update consisted primarily of the two aforementioned libraries, but divided into many separate repeat listings in different categories. Again, NOT a complaint... I just wondered if it's a slow time right now, and if it will pick up in the Fall?Thanks for the responses everyone!

[matto]

Music libraries are in the business of providing tightly categorized music to their clients in the media industries.I would be very surprised if the requests from those companies were any different than the listings supplied to us by Taxi.I've worked with many libraries (I do this for a living), and it's very rare for one to just be generically looking for "composers" or "a bunch of music". They are typically looking for something very specific (or for a number of very specific things), and for composers who understand this and can deliver a very specific product to them.So it would seem highly unlikely that this one company called Taxi asking..."hey can you just send us a bunch of instrumental composer demos" and then Taxi would've turned around and turned this request into the 5 very specific listings CONTEMPORARY ACTION DRAMA INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS, ORCHESTRAL ACTION INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS, WORLD ACTION INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS, CONTEMPORARY POP/ROCK INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSERS and LYRICAL THEME COMPOSERS in order to "pad" the listings. If they'd wanted to do this, why would they have worded each listing identically to make it blatantly obvious that these were different requests by the same company?It would also say it's just a tad presumptive to say what "would be easier on the client". I'm glad Taxi doesn't make these types of assumptions and lets the client decide what's "easiest on them". Most of these clients know what they are doing and what they are looking for...matto

[didger]

Yep, understood. I'll just clarify one more time that I was being a little bit tongue in cheek, just obviously not very well and it turned into a bit of a rant, then I just hit post rather than think, "hey that was dumb, why post it?." I for one certainly didn't think that Taxi took one request from a client and turned it into five listings. I was just wishing that it hadn't been that way.It's especially the action cues that bugged me personally as my natural tendency is to mix world, orchestral & electronica all the time anyway!

[tower888]

The only reason I noticed anything was because of the "Pro Tools LE only" listings. There were several posted on July 1st, then more posted as "new" on July 15. Seemed odd to me at the time. I think this has been more or less cleared up now though... at least in my mind... through the plausible explanations some of you have suggested.It will be interesting to see if there are more "new" listings from the "Pro Tools LE only" library next update, and if they are in new categories. This whole issue (if you want to call it that) was really just an observation, as far as I'm concerned.