A Composer's Journey - Learn the Art of Composing podcast artwork
Music

A Composer's Journey - Learn the Art of Composing

by Inside the Score

Chart positions today · Mexico

Not on the Mexico charts we track today.

If you like A Composer's Journey - Learn the Art of…, try…

Latest episodes

  • The Making Of An Epic Orchestral Adventure - Time Machine

    February 20, 2023 · 16 min

    I walk you through a short, epic orchestral adventure, taking you through some mixing decisions, and scoring decisions that can lead to exciting orchestral textures with natural orchestral forces. This audio was taken from a YouTube video…

  • The "Big One" to Focus On (Beginner or Advanced)

    April 25, 2022 · 6 min

    This episode talks about the one big question you should ask yourself if you're trying to develop and grow as a composer. From years of teaching, I've learned that beginners and more advanced composers can get so much out of studying the…

  • How To Actually Develop A Musical Style

    April 20, 2022 · 12 min

    This episode talks about developing a musical style, and specifically: What exactly is musical style, and how can we develop our own unique voice?  In the last part of the episode, I mention my upcoming free Composer Workshop, which is…

  • Help me to Design a Composer Workshop

    April 12, 2022 · 6 min

    I'm excited to announce a Composing Workshop, which will happen live from April 29th to May 6th! It's completely free, and while I've drafted the lesson plans, I need your help putting the finishing touches in! Listen to this podcast to…

  • How Memorizing Music Will Transform Your Composing

    March 28, 2022 · 12 min

    After last week's illuminating conversation with David Conte (check out the podcast episode), I decided to try out memorizing a few short pieces of music, to see what the experience teaches me. Spoiler alert - I'll definitely be doing more…

Show 7 more episodesShow fewer episodes
  • How to Actually *Learn* Composing - Composition Pedagogy with David Conte

    March 21, 2022 · 42 min

    This is one of the most illuminating conversations on music I have had in living memory. Our guest today is David Conte, who is Chair of Composition at the San Francisco Conservatory, student of Nadia Boulanger, and apprentice of Aaron…

  • How John Williams Writes for Percussion (Not What You'd Expect)

    February 28, 2022 · 15 min

    This episode explores Williams' writing for non-tuned percussion, particularly in his cue "The Quidditch Match" from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. We look at how John Williams uses percussion in ways you might not expect, and…

  • The Five Phases of Composing

    February 11, 2022 · 24 min

    This episode talks about the five essential phases of composing that experienced composers generally go through, and why it might be a great idea to adopt them. It also shares details of my upcoming training on composing.  If you want to…

  • John Williams' Orchestration in Harry Potter, 'Leaving Hogwarts'

    January 31, 2022 · 20 min

    This episode explains how valuable it is to "learn from the masters". I spent last night transcribing a track from one of my favourite film scores; in the latter half of this episode, I show you what John Williams' music sounds like with…

  • Stuck in a 4-Chord Loop? Here's Why Your Beginning Matters

    January 25, 2022 · 10 min

    In this episode, I explain how to avoid problems like the '4-chord loop' that plagues a lot of music, and why the beginning of your piece is crucially important when handling this kind of problem. To join my list and be the first to hear…

  • My Composing Process: The Creative Phase

    January 18, 2022 · 12 min

    This episode talks about the power of the 'Creative Phase' - a period of sheer creativity at the start of each project. I talk about how to implement a creative phase, and what it can do for your writing process. If you want to join the…

  • My Composing Process and Tools

    January 11, 2022 · 23 min

    This episode looks at my composing process and tools, referring to a track I wrote and mocked up in the first week of January. We talk about all the gear, software, and processes you'll need to go through to produce your own fully mocked…

Full episode archive on Apple Podcasts →

About the show

Composing music can be incredibly fulfilling. In this show we explore techniques, tools, ideas, and the art of composing. We'll consider both traditional and more modern styles of composing, from the concert hall to film and TV. Each episode will focus on an idea, technique, principle, or a great piece of music which we can learn from. The aim is for every episode to give you practical, actionable advice which you can use in your own music, and which will help you to grow as a composer.