TIGSource Forums

 Hello,

 

I'm a freelance composer with some experience in the game industry, but still in a starting point.

I'm in a process of professionalize myself, so I want to gather lots of information.

I have various questions to developers that could hire a composer, here I go:

 

1- Do you receive a lot of e-mails of composers? usually you feel they send copy/paste mails?

2- How you would like a composer to present himself on a mail?

3- Do you usually work with a composer that you've collaborated before and you have confidence with? or you don't mind hiring a new composer because his style fits in?

4- If you meet a composer in an exhibition and he gives you a pendrive with his work so you can check it out, is this a plus point (if you like his work) to hire him? in another scenario, he just give you his business card.

5-  When you are working with a composer and he is doing his task on his studio (outsider), how do you keep the communication fresh and the confidence in the relationship growing.

1. Yes, by far the #1 email I get is from composers. It's hard to say if they're following a template or not, but when it's completely unsolicited I definitely get the sense it is

2. Do your homework and when presenting your portfolio or sample tracks, try to make it fit with the genre of the game you're emailing about. I've had a lot of folks email me about my relaxing life-sim game with dubsteppy EDM...

3. N/A, still in the process of evaluating candidates. Being new means nothing to me

4. Definitely a plus. The less work I have to do to listen to your music, the better!

5. I use Trello to track my own tasks, and I'm going to be asking the composer to use the same. That way we both have full visibility of what work is in progress or completed, and we can communicate via Trello card comments in addition to email or chat

Hi, I'm not a pro yet (I didn't launch any game yet) but I want to answer !

1. I received 2 mails from composers and it didn't look like copied/pasted ones. Anyway when you receive that few the only thing that matter is if the composer is talented or not.

2. Just say a few sentences about why you want to work on the game, where you're from and your past experience. Then a link to a soundcloud or a website.

3. For now I only worked on one project with a composer, so even if he was really good I better change. But here, it's because I don't intend to make money out of my current game so I can take risks.

4. Yes for the card so I can check his work later. I'd prefer he gives me a headset to check his work now rather than giving me a pendrive.

5. I'd like a mail every two or three days to tell me how is the work progressing OR sending me a mail like "today I did this, i'll give you the final result in seven days". In that last case I know if I have no news from him for six days it's because he told me he'll keep me updated in seven days.

1. I received two emails from composers, both personalized (although 1 one of them clearly didn't play the game :) )
2. The most important thing: show what you can do. Second most important thing: enthusiasm about the project.
3. I create my own music, but if I would want a style I'm not comfortable with I would probably look for something who's shown before that s/he can do this style.
4. I think a business card with a link to a portfolio is actually more convenient, and thus has a higher chance of me giving it a listen
5. N/A

Also, good idea to try to find your answers here!

1- Do you receive a lot of e-mails of composers?

- Not often but periodically.


2- How you would like a composer to present himself on a mail?

- Professionally and cleanly. Here is what I do, here is a link to examples of my work (a SoundCloud page works nicely for this).


3- Do you usually work with a composer that you've collaborated before and you have confidence with?

- Yes.


4- If you meet a composer in an exhibition and he gives you a pendrive with his work so you can check it out, is this a plus point (if you like his work) to hire him? in another scenario, he just give you his business card.

- For security reasons, I would not take a pendrive from a stranger and put it in my computer EVER. People use that sort of thing to spread viruses / remotely access computers. Give me a business card with your website link instead.


5-  When you are working with a composer and he is doing his task on his studio (outsider), how do you keep the communication fresh and the confidence in the relationship growing.

- Keep in touch through online means, share in-progress work along the way so I can comment on the direction the song is going and ensure it fits the game well.

I get a Lot of emails from composers.

Friendly with a wide range of samples to listen to.

If his business card provided an address to listen to the music, sometimes that's better. It's nice to receive a pendrive, but not a deciding factor.

Keep in contact, organise times to have a chat - even if it's just to say hi. Give the composer time and space to do their work.