Film and TV
Westworld: How the Music Unlocks This Week’s Big Twist (Vanity Fair)
What’s going on with Caleb? A musical tour through film history and some insight from Jonathan Nolan help us unravel the clues.
Top TV Song Last Week: April 8th: “Doomed” by Moses Sumney | April 16th: “Wicked Games” by Ramin Djawadi (Tunefind)
The last few weeks have seen tracks from Westworld top Tunefind’s popular songs list.
How Issa Rae built the best soundtrack on television (HYPEBEAST)
With Insecure’s fourth season underway on HBO, Issa Rae joined HYPEBEAST to talk about her goals with her new Raedio record label, the music curation in each episode and the importance of community to creatives.
How Chvrches Scored the Netflix Deal of the Music Industry’s Dreams (Rolling Stone)
As other revenue streams start to dwindle, sync deals are increasing coveted by the music industry — but the window of opportunity is small and fast-moving
How Composers Are Navigating the Giant ‘Jigsaw Puzzle’ of Scoring During Coronavirus (Variety)
Providing atmosphere, lending emotion and propelling the action, an orchestral score adds much to a TV series, so when the coronavirus threat shut down Hollywood five weeks ago, composers faced a quandary: How to retain that special sound if musicians can no longer record together in the same studio?
Tiger King music supervisor Randall Poster discusses the documentary series’ rise (Brown Daily Herald)
“As it evolved, I kept thinking to myself, ‘God, this is really good, this is great storytelling,’” Poster said.
Why the Wonders Are Reuniting 24 Years After That Thing You Do! (Rolling Stone)
Fictional one-hit-wonder band talks reuniting for COVID-19 relief, paying tribute to the late Adam Schlesinger
SHAED’s ‘Trampoline’ Sends Grey’s Anatomy Back to Top of TV Songs Chart (Billboard)
After popping up in the 18th episode of Grey’s Anatomy’s 16th season last month (March 19), SHAED’s “Trampoline” paces The Hollywood Reporter’s Top TV Songs chart, powered by Tunefind, for March 2020.
Songs For Screens: Hall & Oates’ Synch Bonanza Continues With ABC’s The Goldbergs (Variety)
John Oates, one half of Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees Hall & Oates, is part of one of the most robust catalogs in modern pop music, spanning six No. 1 singles and 16 top 10s.
How a Finnish BDSM movie breathed new life into a Baroque cliche (Guardian)
Film soundtracks from Flashdance to Gallipoli have called upon the stately spare sadness of Albinoni’s Adagio, so much so that it has been denuded of meaning. The work itself isn’t even authentic.
The Music Behind Tigertail (NetflixQueue)
Director Alan Yang and Tigertail music supervisor Zach Cowie break down one of the film’s best tracks by 1960s Taiwanese rock star Yao Su Rong & The Telstars.
Industry Insider: Rhythm Couture CEO Kyle Hunter (Magnetic Magazine)
Rhythm Couture specializes in music production for ads, television, and film and boasts a diverse roster of producers, composers, singers and rappers.
Gaming
At Work With Steve Schnur, Who Decides the Music in Your Favorite Video Games (Rolling Stone)
“One rule for myself and for the team is we are never allowed to listen to the radio. I don’t want us ever influenced,” says EA’s longtime music head.
Video Game Music Composer: The Interactive Music of SPYDER (Gamasutra)
Spyder is a highly-thematic score, with a pervasive main melody that appears in countless variations throughout the game.
A guide to creating sound and music for mobile games (gamesindustry.biz)
King’s audio director Vanesa Tate discusses the five things you should think about when creating music for mobile games.
Advertising
Harnessing the Power of Music in the Age of Social Distancing (Muse by CLIO)
Have you ever thought of music as a character in commercials, videos and other forms of advertising? At times it can be overlooked or underutilized, but regardless of its role, it has a function just like the other characters in the work.
Mastercard dethrones McDonald’s to be named best audio brand (Campaign)
The 2020 Best Audio Brands ranking – which measures brand performance against criteria including trust, recognition, engagement and efficiency – saw Mastercard jump 71 places from last year to claim the top spot, beating 2019 winner McDonald’s.
Business
How are the Music Industry & Sync Community Mobilising to Combat Coronavirus? (Synchblog)
We examine the response to the pandemic and speak to industry figures to find out how a business founded on creativity can find solutions to the improbable impact of COVID-19.
Meet The CEO Fighting For Women In The Music Industry (Forbes)
As founder and CEO of synch licensing company Low Profile, Pearce is one of few women who run their own music business. And now she’s using her position to help achieve safety and equality for women working in the industry.
The legal underbelly of livestreaming concerts (Cherie Hu)
Because livestreams sit at the intersection of recording and live performance — especially if the streams are archived after the fact — they can involve literally every kind of license in music: Masters, mechanical, sync, performance, trademark, name/likeness, the list goes on.
The New World of Sync: How Two Sync Music Pros Are Surviving COVID-19 (Digital Music News)
How is the sync music sector adapting to life under COVID-19? We asked two leading pros in the space for their survival strategies and assessments of the situation.
eOne appoints Maria Alonte as SVP creative integration (Music Week)
Alonte will oversee eOne’s creative servicing hub for film, television and varied content producers looking for music solutions for their projects. The appointment is effective immediately. Alonte is based in Los Angeles.
Anastasia Brown Named Top Content Strategist for Visionary Media Group (Variety)
Anastasia Brown, a veteran music supervisor who has long been a key figure in connecting Nashville with Hollywood, has been appointed chief content strategist of Visionary Media Group. She’ll direct content across platforms for the company’s music, TV, film and scoring projects.
Innovation in Isolation – How the AIM Sync Conference Went Virtual (Synchblog)
In the first instalment of our Innovation in Isolation series we chat to AIM’s Guy Lowman about transforming the AIM Sync Conference into a virtual event.
New: Coronavirus Sync Resources
GMS Weekly Online Educational Panel Series in Collaboration with Mondo
The Guild of Music Supervisors have launched a free weekly online educational series featuring top music supervisors, composers and artists. While geared for students, it is open to all. Don’t forget to catch any panels you miss on Mondo’s YouTube channel.
The Ivors Academy’s Remote Recording Directory
A free and open database to connect composers for film, TV and games with professional musicians able to record from home has been launched by The Ivors Academy.
Sync Summit’s Sync Cafe
SyncSummit is hosting a Sync Cafe Daily Chat at 1PM ET to bring everyone together during the Coronavirus crisis so we can come together, speak about music, business and life. If you want to take part, just fill out the form below for access.
The Guild of Music Supervisors Canada hosts virtual 1:1 meetings with music supervisors
The Guild of Music Supervisors Canada is offering Canadian musicians the opportunity to virtually meet with Music Supervisors across the country.
BMG Production Music’s Hidden Hit Maker’s Sample Challenge
BMGPM & TELE MUSIC are offering ten producers the chance to feature on a very special compilation album and be rewarded for their creativity. All of BMGPM’s synch income from this project will go on to support other creatives during this difficult time.
Want to add a resource to this list? Get in touch with emma@synchtank.com
New: Tip of the Fortnight
Every fortnight we’ll be featuring a tip from a sync professional or company. We love these tips to optimise sync potential during Covid-19, courtesy of Syncsmith:
Current situation is no less than devastating, artists entire ecosystems have been decimated with diminishing hope of any immediate reprieve. As one of the last bastions of cashflow we needed to do something, so we spoke to leading music supervisors to get their advice… pic.twitter.com/8gXMUTyUrX
— Syncsmith® (@syncsmith) March 17, 2020
Sync Job Spotlight
Manager, Sync Licensing – Ingrooves, UMG (LA)
You will work within the Sync Licensing & Publishing Administration team, handling a dynamic range of responsibilities to establish and grow Ingrooves Sync Department and revenue.
Subscribe
Get the latest Synchblog posts + key industry news in your inbox every Tuesday. Subscribe now.
