How To Succeed In The Music World. Part 2

So you still want to be a star?

Part 2

Whatever kind of music you are, you must define your definition of success. If your definition is "a superstar rich and famous" and "good luck" ... but if your definition is a creator to do what you do in life by sharing your music with them, who will listen, "then you succeed. And if you have the bottle to stick to your own sound and style, your own beliefs about how music should sound, then you have a better chance of long-term success.

But beware - flying in front of the convention, which is ongoing, it is always difficult. But trends fade and die - original talent and the music!

If you recorded an album, then you get the independent feedback, both musically and technically. Friends and family will always say that your music is "great" (and hey, that's fine, you need support). But the person who tells you everything you do is good, can be good for your ego, but they are of no practical use at all! The harsh reality is that you need good constructive criticism from independent sources who know what they speak. Well, easier said than done, but there are publications like "Sound on Sound", for example, provide demo reviews.

Another trick is to find your local studio and pay for time to study engineering (or, better yet, the owner of a studio if possible), only to hear her recording. Pick their brains and ask their advice on all aspects of registration. I did it myself and was very valuable. You should make sure you can return to the sound engineer and who can relate to what you do. But at the end of the day, is paid only to listen and help you leverage your experience. Believe me, many studies will be happy to do it when they realize that you are serious about accepting constructive criticism and are willing to pay the rate of study for him. But again, be sure to find someone who has experience and some empathy with the music they make.

The reason for this is so important is that often when you start to make a first album, they have the knowledge or equipment to make your nothing more than a demonstration. Unfortunately, the aspiring musicians that many are so close to his "creation" do not understand that music is not as good as they think it is, especially in the art!

It is always good to remember that there are probably tens of thousands of people around the world (or even millions, who knows?) Does the same as you. There is no shortage of home studios turning the music and no shortage of organizations, including the Internet, how do you say "Make it Big."

So the trick is to stand out as "different from the rest," while conforming to a standard that is "professional." How can I define a professional? If someone took the time and effort to registration beyond a demo at home. Well, I know this may seem a bit obscure, but the truth is that it is difficult to define, you just "know."

Music is very subjective - we all hear different things in it, yes, we all need different things from music to make it acceptable to us either a composer or a listener. There are great musicians who are technically amazing playing various instruments but record music that is devoid of soul or passion and constrained by self imposed musical constraints. Conversely, there are musicians with little or no schooling, which can blow your mind with incredible music and imagination, because they are not constrained by formal musical training. It is also interesting to note that being a competent musician does not contribute to a competent composer of music! And even a competent composer can not necessarily inspire the composition with that special ingredient that makes people sit up and take notice.

It 's also true that a good musician / composer is not necessarily a good studio engineer! This, I think that is often overlooked. Too many composers think that because they have access to all singing, all dancing in the workplace and / or a computer, can be very recording. More often than not, nothing is further from the truth. Dial is an album of talent and technique, is another, very different talents. Mastering the album is once again a very different talent. I do not mean the individual can not do all these things well. Sure he can, with years of experience, and also involving other sources.

Too many times I listened to a demo where the composer believes that music and recording is "great" when in fact it is not. Registration and use of sounds is cheesy and corny, but the composer could not hear him because they did not "out of the box", which I would say. They have not stood back and really listened to music recording and comparing like for like against professional recordings of the genre.

It 's a difficult lesson to learn, be self-critical of their creations and, sometimes, to understand that creation is actually far from perfect and that sometimes the best place to create a bin and that you must restart the second idea. But this is probably one of the main lessons learned is a musical journey.

It is also important to note this fact, an unpleasant taste. His album can be. There may be some nice songs, well recorded, etc etc, but just can not be good enough to be anything more than an indie album that sells a few hundred copies. That's life!

It 's the simple fact that record companies listen to the first 20 seconds of the demo and then shut it down and send a demo bin if not immediately make an impression.

This is not just a man / R is. A few years ago, a multinational that had demos so your A / R department could not process all of which gave a lot of demos to everyone, even the cleaners to sift through. Everyone ends up doing the same - if the CD has not made an instant impression, then it has been "to the next."

Of course, this may seem unfair, but if you are a label executive trawl through thousands of demos, how do? Again, I am a small independent label, so I know what it is.

I'm not recording a demo to send to a major label. I'm telling the story of hammer the point that many people making music, your way of thinking everything is "the best album," must be realistic - you probably have a better chance of winning the UK lottery and Euro lottery one week to get a record deal!

But this should not stop you! Your demo should be properly recorded and saved that you can operate it and sell it yourself. In this day and age, it is probably the best way forward. Of course, continue to send copies to record companies, but also remember that record labels will be looking for a good, much more than music. They are looking for an experience, an image, a visual artist and much more to the music industry today.

His music should have an identity that stands out from the rest and must have the emotional. The realization of what is very, very difficult and in fact can not be taught or learned. I truly believe that music is a magic ingredient that makes the hair on the head of the listeners in the interest of benefiting the people or not. And that comes from the musician - not the production, engineering, mastering the record label or elsewhere - that is the defining essence of the artist.

So what I'm saying here? Well, to summarize, embark on the path of becoming a musician with passion and conviction, but agree that the chances of greater success through a record deal is virtually impossible. Understand that you must listen with open ears to what you do and learn to be critical of your music. Constructive criticism of your closest ally through people whose opinion you value and trust. Yet hard as you think it will have some success, to realize that it will be even harder!