Music is a universal sound which can create emotions and express feelings. Music also
soothes the mind. There is rarely anybody who is not touched by music in some
way at some time in their life.
Making music is an inborn talent, one
has to horn this talent by attaining training in this area. If
you as an individual, is creative and have a passion and talent for music, is willing to
put in typically long hours of work be it at nights or weekends,
composing music could be the right career for you. At times an hour or two is
enough to create music, but at others it could take days to create an original idea or a
melody. It takes a lot of hard work, perseverance and patience to reach a level
of success that you may desire. But even a single hit song could make your life
worthwhile. Composing music is a source of self expression which can bring you immense satisfaction.
Composers aka song writers are people who create original music ranging from pop to jazz to classical. A
composer creates and writes music, and combine it with lyrics to give a new
song. Musicians in this field create music or lyrics alone or create both
together. Composers are required to write music creatively based on their
knowledge of sound, understanding of various musical styles and taste of the
audience to which it has to be presented. A song writer or lyricist must
understand the theme, mood, the audience and the music into which one is putting
words.
Professional composers may do this for a variety of clients or employers.
Some people write music to be recorded by others for commercial sale while
others may write scores for theatrical or movie productions. Composing
can refer to an original piece of music, the structure of a musical piece,
or the process of creating a new piece of music. Sometimes a composer
has to be an arranger. An arranger has the ability to take a piece of
music, and write parts for various instruments. They can change any part
of a song to suit their needs. There are a separate category known as
Jingle writers who specialize in writing music for radio and television
commercials. Composers create musical themes and background for film,
television / radio jingles, folk songs and for albums. They create musical
works that can be performed by orchestra, voices, groups of musicians
and soloists.
One interested in this career must train in music, maintaining focus on music theory, composition, and music interpretation.
A composer must be able to play at least one instrument very well. They
can compose pieces of music, tape it on a recorder, try multi track recording,
adding something new each time or building on it till they get a good melody. Composer must know the harmony and technique behind the music. Useful
skills in composition include writing musical
notation, music theory, instrumentation and handling musical
ensembles (orchestration).
Other skills include extended techniques such as improvisation, musical
montage, preparing instruments, using non-traditional instruments, and
other methods of sound production. Those in this area are often required to know about the
business aspect of song writing such as copyrights, networking, publishing,
contracts, performing rights etc.
Music composers often work with advertising firms, production houses, recording
companies, music publishing firms, film, television, radio etc. Jingle
writers can get in through contacts in ad firms and production houses,
contacts with directors / producers help to get in film/ television companies. Today
the advent of satellite television, the growing popularity of the music channels
and corporate sponsorship of musical events, has all made music big business.
Although fame and money in this field depends a lot on luck and getting a good
break, but once you are established there is ample scope for making good money
in this field.
