NEED Road Rally Advice

[carsonandtesshenley]

Hey TAXIANS,

I'd like to know what I should bring to the Rally (as far as music is concerned) for the various handing out, submitting to panels, etc.

Do you suggest:
1) Entire songs or snippets? On a side note, let me know what you think of our sample music: http://www.box.net/shared/ovj90xehkg
2) One song or many?
3) Different CDs for different uses, and please tell me what those are!

Thanks for taking a moment to help. Tess Henley

[mazz]

I typically burn a cd with one song on it for any panels I intend to submit to. You can see the panels ahead of time on the published schedule.

I wouldn't recommend snippets. If the person you give your cd to is interested, they may want to hear how you develop your ideas fully.

Put your absolute best material on your cd and if you are a specialist in something, it might be good to emphasize that aspect.

I don't give out a lot of CDs but I do hand out tons of business cards.

Hth,

Mazz

[Casey H]

Hey TAXIANS,

I'd like to know what I should bring to the Rally (as far as music is concerned) for the various handing out, submitting to panels, etc.

Do you suggest:
1) Entire songs or snippets? On a side note, let me know what you think of our sample music: http://www.box.net/shared/ovj90xehkg
2) One song or many?
3) Different CDs for different uses, and please tell me what those are!

Thanks for taking a moment to help. Tess Henley

Hi
There is some info on this thread about preparing for the rally...
http://forums.taxi.com/topic24190.html? ... ng%20rally

The question about CDs for the rally comes up often so a few thoughts...

There are multiple uses for CDs at the rally...

Drivers Ed Classes: Some instructors will have the class hand CDs to the front, play a little and use it as a discussion point. You will almost always be able to get these CDs back at the end of the class.

Listening Panels: Listening panels have a drop box whereby random CDs are selected and tracks played for review by the panel. Odds of your CD getting picked are small given the numbers but it could happen. You CAN get these CDs back after the panel but it's a bit of a mess with so many people and so many CDs in one big box. So I never assume I'll get these back.

Mentor meeting: Members get one 10-15 minute meeting with a mentor. You will be able to play music from your CD for the mentor. If the song(s) you want to discuss with your mentor is not one you would put on CDs for other uses, bring that on separate CD. For example, maybe you have a song as a work-in-process, not professionally demo'd yet and/or wouldn't want to otherwise share.

Giving a CD to an industry professional such as publisher, library, etc: Although you should be prepared to do this if the situation arises, it is almost always better to exchange business cards and follow up a with an email a week or so after the rally. These folks get way too many CDs thrown at them at the rally.

Given all the above, I’d make some CDs with 5-10 tracks that you have high confidence in. If you only feel that strongly about three, put only three on it. Although it does matter somewhat, much too much is made of how many tracks to put on a demo CD. Reality is you either impress them with your first three (maybe less) or nothing else matters since they won’t continue listening. Avoid the impression that you don’t know what’s good or not. Absolutely lead with your best track(s)!

If you want to show a track(s) to someone outside the scope of listening panels, giving A&R, etc (things which must sound pro) bring that on a separate CD.

Make sure you label everything—CD, case or envelope, etc with your name and contact info. I mentioned on the other thread that for some classes you should have lyric sheets and rubber bands. If you hand in a CD for a listening panel, class, etc make sure you clearly indicate which track you want played! A post it with a little scotch tape for insurance is recommended unless you are OK with just writing on the CD envelope.

And as mazz said… full tracks, not snippets.

HTH
I hope to meet you!

Casey

[johncimino]

Another thing I'd definitely recommend is business cards. I was one of the few who did not have cards last year (my first). You can go to Vistapress and get a ton of nice cards cheaply.

[Casey H]

Another thing I'd definitely recommend is business cards. I was one of the few who did not have cards last year (my first). You can go to Vistapress and get a ton of nice cards cheaply.

Yes! Even more important than CDs (not that you don't need CDs)! If you read up on what folks have been saying you'll see that exchanging biz cards and following up after the rally is often more effective than handing out CDs. They don't have to be fancy! You can buy biz card blank sheets for your printer and use Word or a number of free or cheap programs.

[wickedsmaht]

Great stuff, Mazz and Casey! This topic should be stickied!

Another CD-related newbie question: regarding CD cases, are labeled paper sleeves OK, or should jewel cases be used so the info can be read on the spine?

[Casey H]

Great stuff, Mazz and Casey! This topic should be stickied!

Another CD-related newbie question: regarding CD cases, are labeled paper sleeves OK, or should jewel cases be used so the info can be read on the spine?

Great question. Conventional advice has always been to use a full size jewel case with info, especially genre, on the spine. Music supervisors prefer them because they can be kept on a bookshelf for easy access later. Later, the sup is looking for heavy rock beats and can see he has a CD labeled that way right there.

However, at a road rally, where industry pros may get lots of CDs, the extra weight and bulk might not be great. What I do is put most of my rally CDs in envelopes with the track listing stuck on the envelope with a neatly printed large label. I also take a few full size jewel cases, fitted with inserts just in case. So if I run into a special situation whereby I want to give out a CD in full jewel case, I can.

Remember that regardless of envelope or jewel case make sure the track listing is on the container! People often like to look down at a track listing while they listen and you can't see a listing on a CD label once it's in the player.

All of this gets back to the concept that it's often better to exchange contact info and follow up a week or so later than give a CD. Then you can send a full size jewel case at that time and maybe better target the submission. The most important thing is what impression you give that person so that they will remember you in a positive way when you follow up later. Time spent just being a person and not a CD-hand-out machine always wins.

One more thing... For film/TV, fancy graphics/packaging don't generally impress. Neatly printed, professional, easily to read labeling such as dark color on white background is fine. Don't waste your time on the graphics. For an artist looking for a label deal, that's different.

Casey

[Cat Herder]

I posted this on the other 1/2 of "Road Rally". It is not the full answer but I hope a helpful one. Some A&R types may want more than I list, but from my standpoint this is somewhat a minimal request.

"There is one Rally question I see often, and I hope I can shed some light on this. "What should I bring?" That probably would solicit 10 answers from 10 A&R and publishing guest, but I am sure there are some commonalities. First I want to know you are a professional, and in the first two seconds I can sometimes spot that. I call it the "Sharpie Disk". I don't mind disks, myself, in paper sleeves because they are easy to carry. I hate those thick bulky heavy jewel cases though. But when I see sharpie scribblings all over the CD I have just gotten my first impression of you. And that is a pretty sloppy impression. Print you CD labels. They do not have to be fancy. I just want to read them clearly. Think about that for a second and put yourself in my shoes. Now what do you print on that label. OK, you put your phone number. I don't know you, I'm not going to call you, but that is me, others may prefer that method, I just don't have chit chat time. That said, make sure your number is there. Next you put your website. I think that is a good idea although again, I do not have time to chase websites, BUT, I have done it in the past because the writer was that good that I wanted to hear more before contacting them. What is missing too often is an e-mail address which is the first thing I look for. No e-mail address, no demo, straight to the circle file. I am not in the business of chasing writers down. Again. I do not have time. Don't print black on blue, or orange on red, or some impossibly small font so I need a microscope to find your info.

How many works do I want to see, or how many genres. I do not care, as long as you have a sleeve to break them into track numbers, and categories, or genres. I cannot read track numbers on a CD label that is in my player. If you want to pitch a certain type of cue, or a specific piece to me, have a highlighter and highlight what you want me to listen to. If I want to listen to more I am smart enough to figure that out all on my own. In other words, be respectful and make it easy on me. You may be, and likely are 1 of a hundred or more demos I have had to haul a couple thousand or more miles. Make the work I have to do when I get around to your CD worth my effort.

[T&V Marino]

WHAT TO BRING TO THE ROAD RALLY?

Yes, definitely bring FULL songs -- and 3-5 songs per CD is fine. We've met dozens of music supervisors over the years who all agree that montages and "snippets" are not (generally) preferred. They want to hear the entire song or track.

Also, remember to bring BUSINESS CARDS!!!! It's really important to have them. You don't need to spend a lot of money, but it's worth the $10-20. And when we receive business cards, we'll take the time to write a quick note on the back about where we met the person and something that stood out -- like "we met John at the TAXI Rally 2010. He's from San Francisco and writes great drama tracks." We used to be terrible with names and faces but this trick has helped us a lot. Every year, we meet dozens of people who forgot or just didn't think about bringing business cards. In case you haven't figured it out yet, one of the greatest benefits of the TAXI Rally is building relationships and networking -- not just with the people on the panel, but with the TAXI members. If there's no way to contact you, or you don't have a way to contact them, then it's almost pointless to go!

Have fun at the Road Rally -- hope to meet you there!

Keep writing,

Tracey & Vance Marino
SongMakers

[mazz]

+1 on the business cards!

+1000 on the contacts with peers!!! Believe me when I tell you that it's possible to get gigs via your fellow composers!! I'm living proof!!

If you are an excellent player as well as a composer, it makes sense to gently promote that skill to your fellows as well. If you are Internet savvy, get the tracks done when you say you will and are easy to work with, that may be a way to generate some business. Also, other players and composers may want to play on your tracks which could lead to some collab opps. If the composer already has some action, it would be good to get some cowrites with them.

Thinking a little outside the box is allowed!!!