What's your business, and who are your customers?
I compose music for films, and my customers are directors of films and, of course, the audience.
Tell us about yourself
I've been a musician most of my life. I remember being very young and roaming around the Eastman theater while a youth orchestra rehearsed Mozart's Jupiter Symphony. I was thrilled with the power of it. I picked up a guitar in junior high and kept going until I had a master's in classical guitar many years later.
Most of my music career was spent writing songs, educating, and performing, of course. I began composing music for films about five years ago, just as I was turning 40. I'm a late bloomer. It seemed right, and just my speed. The best part of scoring films is the challenge of capturing a story in music and weaving that throughout the movie in a relatable way. I love creating music that pairs smoothly with the visuals, performances, and stories.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
I'm proud of the skills I've grown from scratch. Both modular synthesis and orchestration are vital skills for me, skills that took years of study to get where I'm at now, and I'm nowhere close to where I want to be. Other than that, I'm happy the films I've worked on were screened where they were, and they received the attention they did. It gets me excited for the future!
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
If something seems hard and it seems like I can get away without doing it, I just won't do it. But if I want to do it, I modify my approach until the dam breaks loose and I've got the momentum to solve it. It's all about the approach.
Like, I wanted to learn all the ranges, color-tone ranges, and transpositions of each instrument in the orchestra. I couldn't do that with my old set of memorization skills (aka, repeat it mercilessly). So I started to research the best way to memorize that stuff and found a better way (Loci method). Now, those ranges are stuck in my brain.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Mind your stories and feel your feelings. The things you tell yourself need to be challenged and reshaped, and feelings that you feel need to be felt. Simple as that. I'm indebted to Cassie Parks for her incredible guidance here.
Nurture your skills. It's just fun getting better at what you're best at. I love studying orchestral scores and learning about new synthesizers!
Nurture your network. A life well-lived is a life full of good friends and colleagues. When someone pops into my head, I often reach out and tell them that. It feels right, no matter what profession you choose.