For those struggling with a return...

[sermusicusa]

Ya thats cool, but not all of the critiques have not been very helpful. They are just amplifying why they didnt forward your track.
They should be more in depth in order for us to make the corrections required to get the forward next time and/or learn from the experience.
However, whats funny is that many of the rejected cues ive submitted have been forwarded by another reviewer, so what does that tell you about OBJECTIVE Reviews?

Seems like they are SUBJECTIVE to me.

Dont get me wrong, I've had a few critiques that have helped, but most of them are not helpful in the least.

[VanderBoegh]

Seems like they are SUBJECTIVE to me.

Of course they are subjective. We're dealing with human beings in the screening process. This isn't an automated multiple choice test.

~~Matt

[sermusicusa]

Seems like they are SUBJECTIVE to me.

Of course they are subjective. We're dealing with human beings in the screening process. This isn't an automated multiple choice test.

~~Matt

Matt, you misunderstood.
You can write OBJECTIVELY. Impartial, Neutral, Unbiased. Being Subjective is giving your opinion. If they want to give their opinion that is fine as long as it doesnt interfere with their job which is to discover what tracks match what their client is looking for. If one is too subjective, one's opinion would get in the way of the required task. Also I would include EGO into that. Well I am the 'reviewer' so my opinion is all that counts. Well that's not 100% true is it. Same goes with if they 'like' the track. Just because they Like it personally doesn't mean it is the correct track for that listing. Same if they dislike it. If they don't like it personally doesnt mean its the wrong track for the listing. That is why one must be objective when reviewing the tracks to make sure they match the criteria set forth in the listing.

I certainly do not want someone who is biased against me rating my tracks. The reviewer should be completely impartial and have a reason for not selecting your work and should give reasons why it was not selected with a note in there on how to improve for the next time. But unfortunately not every critique is that specific and thus we lose something as composers when we try to improve. So that part of a critique can be the opinion part, what the reviewer thinks will help make the track better and they should be specific not vague, but ultimately if it gets forwarded should not be a matter of opinion. It should be based on if the track matches the description of the listing and/or the sample tracks' vibe and composition. Unfortunately that doesnt always happen.

I was not suggesting that they should be robots. But hey, everyone wants robots to control everything now dont they ?

[ResonantTone]

Matt, you misunderstood.
You can write OBJECTIVELY. Impartial, Neutral, Unbiased. Being Subjective is giving your opinion. If they want to give their opinion that is fine as long as it doesnt interfere with their job which is to discover what tracks match what their client is looking for. If one is too subjective, one's opinion would get in the way of the required task. Also I would include EGO into that. Well I am the 'reviewer' so my opinion is all that counts. Well that's not 100% true is it. Same goes with if they 'like' the track. Just because they Like it personally doesn't mean it is the correct track for that listing. Same if they dislike it. If they don't like it personally doesnt mean its the wrong track for the listing. That is why one must be objective when reviewing the tracks to make sure they match the criteria set forth in the listing.

I certainly do not want someone who is biased against me rating my tracks. The reviewer should be completely impartial and have a reason for not selecting your work and should give reasons why it was not selected with a note in there on how to improve for the next time. But unfortunately not every critique is that specific and thus we lose something as composers when we try to improve. So that part of a critique can be the opinion part, what the reviewer thinks will help make the track better and they should be specific not vague, but ultimately if it gets forwarded should not be a matter of opinion. It should be based on if the track matches the description of the listing and/or the sample tracks' vibe and composition. Unfortunately that doesnt always happen.

I was not suggesting that they should be robots. But hey, everyone wants robots to control everything now dont they ?

I think the point that Matt was making is that you’re never going to get complete objectivity. Music is not 1s and 0s. Yes there is criteria for a listing, but there are also intangibles. These people are paid to have opinions, and there’s a reason that they are in that spot and you and I are not. Their opinions on our submissions are the reason music libraries go through taxi in the first place.

As far as being more helpful goes, I’ve had returns that felt like they gave a little more direction than others. At the end of the day though, the simple fact that it got returned and the little checkbox as to why should be enough for you and I dig deeper into honing our craft vs getting upset about it. (Which was really the heart of the original post)

If you’re saying that someone is being subjective towards your music because of some vendetta towards you personally, I’d say that’s something to chat with taxi about.

Best of luck though, and stay encouraged and positive.

Andrew

[sermusicusa]

No, I dont think its anything personal. At least I would hope not. What I said was I certainly dont want someone who is biased against me rating my tracks. Does that bias exist? I dont know. I would hope not considering these people do not know me at all. But I can pinpoint a certain person that sure like to reject my tracks every time with barely a clue as to why or even offer a suggestion as to how to improve. I do not know if that person is still with the company or not. I would hope not. As I am not the only one who has felt his wrath.

I am not going to repeat what I said above. I stand by it. Opinions matter, but so does the listing requirements. If the track meets the requirements, should that track not be considered? Would it take an opinion to figure that out? No.

I too have had returns that have been more helpful and I will tell you that most recently I applied their suggestion to a track and wouldnt you know it, I resubmitted the newly done track (With their suggestion) and it was forwarded. Now was it forwarded by the same person who gave the suggestion, I dont recall, I dont think so. Was it a coincidence that it was forwarded this time around? Probably not because after I looked at their suggestion, I replayed the song several times and agreed that what they suggested was a great suggestion!
I wish we had more of that. That was the point of my original post in reply to your post which I must say was very good. Sorry I forgot to mention that.
I am not pissed every time I get rejected, I just want to make sure I am not wasting my time and Taxi's time by sending in the wrong track to a listing when the listing itself may not match up with what the reviewer's opinion when he sends back the critique. Basically I believe the track fits the description in the listing and sometimes it appears the reviewer does not. There is grey area in there? Or am I reading the listing wrong... or do we just disagree on terminology? etc

I am one who does not like to throw away tracks. Much like someone else said in another post, those tracks caught on at another library so they were used. Which is why I dont throw things away, however, if someone takes the time to really listen to something I am doing and says hey man I can help you, try this idea out. I will certainly listen. We all can use help and encouragement. But a lot of times we do not receive that unfortunately.

Thank you for your original post, it was a good one.
Cheers

[sermusicusa]

Returns hurt less than they used to now because I view them differently.
A forward means it could be the right song for the right thing at the right time.
So, not a forward just means it was not the right song/piece for the right project at the right time. It could still be a good song. It could still be a freaking great song. But it just wasn't the right song for that particular project. You can't change the project so don't beat yourself over it. Just write some more

You are absolutely right with this. You can always use the song later down the line. Its not the end of the song by any means.