Sheet Music: the Map to Your Score

VOLUME XXXII NUMBER ONE SPRING 2017 F O R T H E R E C O R D Sheet Music: The Map To Your Score By Jeremy Borum ot every score will need to be written time consuming, and schedules often will down as sheet music before it’s re- not permit you to take that time, but score corded. However, if you’re hiring musi- preparation can be a valuable process both Ncians, those players almost always need monetarily and creatively. something written down for them. Scoring The cost of good orchestration and score for media is very particular and the parts for prep might be worth it though. At every live players are usually written out note for budget level, it’s common for half of the note. Composers vary widely in their need music budget or more to be used during and ability to notate their ideas, but generally the recording days. In order to keep costs the larger the project is and the more live down, every effort must be made to achieve musicians there are, the more important sheet both speed and quality in the studio. One music becomes. of the keys to efficient recording sessions is One of the keys to I’m fortunate to work almost exclusively excellent sheet music which is well thought with live ensembles. As a result, my career out and appropriately notated for the context. efficient recording has been largely centered around sheet music Sheet music is a written language which for the last 15 years. In addition to being a allows the abstract concepts and emotionality sessions is excellent busy orchestrator and working with live of music to be written down, much like written orchestras all over the world, I also do a lot words can express the abstract nature of sheet music which is of work with sheet music publishers and I thoughts and feelings. Different instruments was part of the development community at and genres may require different dialects well thought out and Sibelius before it was sold. I am deeply into of notation. If your music is fluently and appropriately notated for notation in a way that only a small subset of eloquently written, then your communication musicians is. I’m going to share some tips and in the studio will be substantially more the context. tricks about sheet music preparation that may effective, leading directly to a better end help to improve or streamline your processes, product. If it’s not well prepared, it can cause hopefully resulting in more free time and confusion and unnecessary questions which better art. The basic workflow I describe here waste expensive studio time. is usually the fastest and most accurate way Tim Davies sums up the importance of C O N T E N T S to get from raw MIDI to a printed score. appropriate notation nicely. “When you put Marketing Yourself To Obtain If you are outsourcing the creation of sheet new music in front of an orchestra, be it at Work In Cinema Music music, then score prep becomes a hard cost a session, a read-through in college, or a 5 that’s difficult to work around and it can be a rehearsal of the LSO, they have to read the big one. If you have the time and experience notation at face value. Understanding today’s Tech Talk 7 to do it, preparing your own sheet music can performance practice—or more precisely, the lack of a standard practice—becomes very save a lot of money. It is also a chance to look Why Embed Metadata? 9 at your music in a new light because it can important, and will help you spell things out be very clarifying to see your music the way in a way that gets exactly the sound you’re Benj Pasek & Justin Paul: the musicians will see it. If you use a copyist, looking for in the clearest and most concise Ambitiously Optimistic About way possible.” they usually won’t have any authority to Getting Things Done 12 change the music. When you notate your Whichever notation platform you decide own music, you get another opportunity for to use, you need to know it inside and out. Musical Shares 23 creativity before your sessions. It can be very The software won’t do everything for you. Continued on Page 16 F R O M T H E E D I T O R ' S D E S K The Value Of Music By Lori Barth President he value of music has been the topic of discussion for quite ASHLEY IRWIN a while. Lower budgets, declining record sales, piracy and Vice Presidents ARTHUR HAMILTON streaming services, which have all taken a huge bite out CHARLES BERNSTEIN ofT our earning power, make many of us wonder how we are Recording Secretary going to make a living. But getting the “new music world order” JONATHAN DAVID NEAL to truly recognize the problems is an uphill race to the bottom. Treasurer/CFO Navigating the system, while proving challenging, is what we have to do, since this is what we CHRISTOPHER FARRELL do. The value of music — priceless. g The SCORE LORI BARTH, Senior Editor Advisory Board ALAN BERGMAN DIAMOND MEMBERS MARILYN BERGMAN CHARLES BERNSTEIN Van Alexander Ray Charles Arthur Hamilton Mike Post Dennis Spiegel Kristen Anderson-Lopez George S. Clinton James Newton Howard J. Peter Robinson Mike Stoller BILL CONTI Lori Barth Bill Conti Mark Isham Lalo Schifrin Matthew Strachan CHARLES FOX Alan & Marilyn Bergman Clint Eastwood Robert Lopez Richard Sherman Patrick Williams JAMES NEWTON HOWARD Dennis C. Brown Dan Foliart Johnny Mandel David Shire John Williams Chantal Burnison Charles Fox Peter Melnick Alan Silvestri Maury Yeston QUINCY JONES Carter Burwell Elliot Goldenthal Randy Newman Mark Snow ALAN MENKEN THOMAS NEWMAN LALO SCHIFRIN DIAMOND SPONSOR / SPECIAL FRIENDS MARC SHAIMAN Jay Cooper HOWARD SHORE ALAN SILVESTRI DIANE WARREN PLATINUM MEMBERS PATRICK WILLIAMS Mark Adler Steven Bramson Alexandre Desplat Atli Orvarsson Kubilay Uner CHRISTOPHER YOUNG Avni Altin Nicholas Britell Bear McCreary Gary Rottger Angela Rose White HANS ZIMMER John Beal Alf Clausen Garth Neustadter Howard Shore Austin Wintory Marco Beltrami Joseph Conlan Joey Newman Carlo Siliotto Amin Bhatia Mychael Danna Thomas Newman Edward Trybek In Memoriam Advisory Board Members ELMER BERNSTEIN PLATINUM SPONSOR / SPECIAL FRIENDS JOHN CACAVAS Beth Krakower Derek Machann JERRY GOLDSMITH MAURICE JARRE PETER MATZ GOLD MEMBERS DAVID RAKSIN Cato Tim Davies Trevor Howard Pru Montin Garry Schyman Jack Allocco John Debney Russ Howard III Greg Moore Tony Scott-Green Directors Elik Alvarez John DeFaria Wei-San Hsu Mitchel Moore Roxanne Seeman RAMON BALCAZAR Sara Andon David Delhomme Asuka Ito Sandro Morales Elizabeth Sellers Neil Argo Arhynn Descy Joel Iwataki Jeff Morrow Batu Sener LORI BARTH Alexander Arntzen Massimiliano (Max) Di Carlo Corey Jackson Helene Muddiman Leon Serchuk FLETCHER BEASLEY Sebastian Arocha Morton John Dickson Clydene Jackson David Murillo Rochelle Sharpe Charles-Henri Avelange Kevin Dorsey Ken Jacobsen Jonathan Neal Fletcher Sheridan MICHAEL LEHMANN BODDICKER Ramon Balcazar Joel Douek Garrett Johnson Eimear Noone Ryan Shore RUSSELL BROWER Steve Barden Dennis Dreith Quincy Jones Abby North Michael Silversher DENNIS C. BROWN Nathan Barr Bruce Dukov Federico Jusid Matt Novack Helen Simmins-McMillin Joe Barrera Jr. Robert Duncan Seth Kaplan Liam O’Brien Gregory Smith GEORGE S. CLINTON Jeff Beal Laura Dunn Dave Kinnoin Cindy O’Connor Scott Smith MIRIAM CUTLER Joel Beckerman JC Dwyer Grant Kirkhope Greg O’Connor Stanley Smith Brian BecVar Stephen Endelman Christopher Klatman Bijan Olia Mark Smythe BENOIT GREY Charles Bernstein Joel Evans Kevin Kliesch Anele Onyekwere Arturo Solar IRA HEARSHEN Burak Besir Sharon Farber Lynn F. Kowal Julia Pajot Sally Stevens LYNN F. KOWAL Edie Lehmann Boddicker Liz Finch Michael A. Lang Hannah Parrott Neil Stubenhaus Michael Lehmann Boddicker Arlene Fishbach Didier Lean Rachou Nate Pennington Karen Tanaka HÉLÈNE MUDDIMAN Peter Boyer Shelley Fisher Christopher Lennertz Greg Phillinganes Jeremy Tisser GREG PLISKA Bill Brendle Pablo Flores Tori Letzler Art Phillips Charles (Ched) Tolliver ELIZABETH ROSE Richard Bronskill Attila Fodor Mark LeVang Stu Phillips Pinar Toprak Kevin Brough Andy Forsberg Michael Levine John Piscitello John Torcello ADRYAN RUSS Russell Brower Alexandre Fortuit Katherine Liner Kim Planert Tyler Traband GARRY SCHYMAN Dan Brown Jr Pam Gates Michael Lira Chandler Poling Genevieve Vincent Benedikt Brydern Grant Geissman Charley Londono Mikel Prather Jay Wadley ELIZABETH SELLERS Kenneth Burgomaster Alexander Geringas Zoe Lustri Damir Price Jack Wall AUSTIN WINTORY Dennis Burke Jim Gilstrap David Majzlin Judi Pulver Diane Warren Bill Cantos Scott Glasgow William Malpede Mac Quayle Mark Watters Past Presidents Kristopher Carter William Goldstein Gerard Marino J. Ralph Beth Wernick RC Cates Joel Goodman Tracey Marino Ron Ramin Frederik Wiedmann JOHN ADDISON Sacha Chaban Mark Graham Vance Marino Trent Reznor Alan Williams RICHARD BELLIS Jay Chattaway Harry Gregson-Williams Billy Martin Allan Rich David Williams Simone Cilio Lorna Guess Benjamin Mason Lolita Ritmanis Eyvonne Williams BRUCE BROUGHTON Shawn Clement Christine Hals Harvey Mason Carlos Rivera Jonathan Wolff JAY CHATTAWAY Elia Cmiral Crispin Hands Arlene Matza-Jackson Dan Romer Jerry Cohen Wayne Hankin Michael McCuistion Atticus Ross Gernot Wolfgang RAY COLCORD Kaveh Cohen Bruce Healey Joel McNeely Enis Rotthoff Catharine Wood JAMES DI PASQUALE Jim Cox Reinhold Heil Jeffrey Michael Adryan Russ Doug Wood DAN FOLIART Leah Curtis Linda Herman Bruce Miller Jeff Russo David Wood Imre Czomba Shari Hoffman Bryan Miller Steven Saltzman Christopher Young ARTHUR HAMILTON Chanda Dancy Lee Holdridge Tricia Minty Paula Salvatore Maciej Zielinski MARK WATTERS Jana Davidoff Scott Holtzman Brian Moe David Schwartz ISSN

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