100% clobbering ... wow ,

[cosmicdolphin]

aHHHHH yes... bleep bleep dit dit dit blooop ... issat really music ?.. thanks Russel.,, down here in the scrum .. with ya.

Yes it's actually quite an art form in itself, there are some famous composers within the scene people like Rob Hubbard, Martin Galway and Koji Kondo.

The fact that they could squeeze an interesting tune out of these things is amazing given the tiny amount of memory & resources they had available.

I will be having a crack at this listing myself !

[sansharbour]

Jules

I remember when I started I tried to squeeze my older stuff through the pinhole of a Taxi listing requirement
I got lots of returns. It was a bit of a jolt because even though the songs were good I didn't hit the target

Picture yourself at a Rifle Range
When you first start off you most likely miss the target until you make a commitment to hitting the bullseye.

You ask what does it take?
Listen to todays music and stop trashing it.
Apply similar techniques, sounds and beats to your material
Watch Taxi TV .....it's a hell of an education
Attend the Road Rally and have your eyes opened
Think MOOD and stick to it
Read Demystifying the Cue by Taxi member Dean Krippaehne
Try new things Break out of the box and get excited about the new music you are creating
Don't give up.


Start from point 0 today ...create new material with the simplest instruments


Most of all have fun!

Don

[CHuckmott]

My 2 cents, and feel free to offer feedback because I am a newbie in that particular corner of the world, but , while there are many pros who insist on using their old gear, It's because it has a certain character that works for them when programming their own sounds or modifying existing patches.

As for me , being a guitar player, with a few food real instruments, maybe a good amp sim, good drum software, maybe good electronic drum software , a bass , a decent synthesizer, controller.....can keep you creating for the rest of your life.

[TimWalter]

Jules

I feel your pain... literally and figuratively... I deal with this a lot, lots of returns. Taxi has high standards... but it can be done.. there are a number of folks who have pretty consistent success rates (as high as 20 to 30% forward rate over a bunch of submissions... that's about the highest Ive heard, so even the best do approximately an All Star baseball player batting avg).

I just got a return last nite that bummed me out.. but, in times like that, we have two choices: quit (which I have talked myself out of when i got emotional about it a few times) or pick ourselves up, learn what we can, recalibrate, and write, submit and forget again and again. Rejection is never easy. But we're all in this together... Taxi is probably the most supportive community I've run across to date.

Oh, and one more thing... when guys like Andy and Russell take the time to give you pointers, pay special special attention.. Both of these guys are legendary on these boards for their helpful advice and comments.

All the best.
Tim

[ochaim]

We all feel your pain because we've all been there, sometimes still there.

You asked what does it take. Some hints to that are probably in the feedback of those 2 dozen returns. Cross reference them with the listing details and you'll likely get a better sense of what their criteria is like.

I think being able to capture the feeling of an era is valuable, just realize, though, that it's only helpful if the listing is asking for music from that era.

Interestingly enough, there was a listing or two for classic, old school house not too long ago and I really could have used that M1 piano patch!!

[eeoo]

Listen to music that gets forwarded in the "forwards" section of this forum. Listen to the catalogs of some of the big music libraries. Listen to the "ala" examples in the listings. Listen until you understand them as well as you understand your favorite 80's band. Pick a current genre you think is in your wheelhouse and post your results in peer to peer and be open to constructive criticism, don't be precious or thin skinned. Revise and post again. Rinse and repeat. It's a long haul but an enjoyable and rewarding one with the right frame of mind. Enjoy the ride!

EO

[Russell Landwehr]

Lots of really fine advice here.

My biggest trick to composing to a listing without sounding dated is to listen to the provided a'las and anything I can find that is in the same wheelhouse. And I listen to them as often as possible. And I don't listen to anything else until I successfully compose something on target.

It takes that constant immersion in the genre and style to get your brain to key in on the idiosyncrasies of a narrow musical target.

Russell

[ExcelMusicStudio]

I'm grateful for the good words.. all made note of & duly reprogrammed into that grey squishy stuff upstairs ... ... I am actually a fast learner... so none of this is wasted on me... Gracias mi compadres.


watched all the taxi tv there is.. ( eyeballs watering ) getting the game rules & tools. cheers from jules. he he

[TheElement]

Staying current is key. I listen to top 40 radio all day long (unless I'm out then I don't listen to any music). this is the station I listen to in my studio (which is also my bedroom lol) so I listen a lot and use my monitors to listen not only to radio but also youtube and when I do get a chance to watch... TV. I use my studio monitors to listen to everything.
http://tunein.com/radio/181FM-UK-Top-40-s126794/

[mojobone]

All good advice, here. I'll just add that if you're not getting regularly rejected, you're not a working composer, so...congratulations.