An Introduction to DRAMEDY Music

[stevebarden]

Since there have been some recent listings for dramedy cues, I thought I'd chime in with my thoughts on this style. Since I've had thousands of placements in this genre I feel qualified to speak about it.

As with any musical style, if you are new to something it pays to spend a lot of time listening to examples to better prepare yourself for success. Since there are not a lot of standalone musical examples out there I thought I'd present some of my music tracks. You can watch a lot of reality TV to hear the music but it's often buried in the background and even then it's only snippets. Here is a link to 20 of my cues that have been used in hundreds of TV episodes many, many times:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... atwNtXH8ox

Basic Instrumentation:

Instrumentation: The basic color palette is pizzicato strings, mallet instruments (marimba, vibes, xylophone, glockenspiel), woodwinds, and percussion
Melody: Pizz strings (obviously!), clarinet, bassoon, almost never flute, trumpet (rarely, but primarily muted with harmon or cup)
Harmony: Pizz string, mallet instruments (marimba, vibes), arco strings, piano
Percussion: bass/snare, shakers, bongos (these work surprisingly well!)

The above instrumentation is just a starting point. You can make anything work if you blend well and add things sparingly. Use a lot of space and make the music breathe. I like low woodwinds (bassoon, contra bassoon, bass clarinet) for comical sounds, and woodwind flourishes to add life to the cue.

Let me know if you have any specific questions I can answer. Happy writing!

Steve

[markhimley]

Thank you, Steve!! You rule, seriously such an amazing and generous person. Much appreciated!

[elionthebeat]

Thanks for the info! Appreciate it.!

[andygabrys]

that's money Steve! thx!

[ComposerLDG]

Great info, Steve, thanks!

[mobster85]

Steve thank you so much for this post and for your help on my post earlier. That is extremely generous and unselfish of you. Je Awesome.

Peace,
Bob LoGrasso

[SteveBaruah]

Great post, Steve. And thanks for the show the other night. Learnt a lot!

[SteveBaruah]

Hmm, all of the videos on the link are showing as unavailable....

[Cruciform]

Good idea, Steve. Not a genre I do but I always loved the music in "Desperate Housewives".

[MarkDoyle]

Thanks a million,Steve. This makes it all very clear.

Thanks again!
Mark Doyle