We want it Contemporary/Hip/Cool

What does that mean?  When you think about it, there are a helluva lot of different styles of music that different people would consider hip, or cool, or whatever.  That’s why I actually love it when I’m told to, “just make it hip.”

Trust the composer

You hire a composer either to A: make your creative vision of the music a reality or (my favorite) B: to add his creative vision to your project.  I guess what I really mean is ‘trust your composer.’  Let the composer impress you with something awesome, something that you might not have thought to ask for, something that supports as well as adds to the production.

Version advantage

We don’t mind doing a version or two, if there is time.  You can use that to your advantage.  If you already know what you want, you could ask for that AND for something the composer dreams up.  If there is lots of time, let the composer do a version BEFORE you tell him what kind of thing you were thinking about.  This won’t work for spots where you know the target market or the spot or the client demands something specific, so no need to waste time there.  But if nothing specific is called for, let the composer run free for a version or two.

More time equals more better

If you want to make something really original and creative, you need to give the composer time.  As much time as you can.  Book the composer early, and keep the deadline as far away as possible.  It can only make the final results better.