音乐作曲家

“Every day is very, very different but for the most part I wake up around 8:30-9am. I eat breakfast and then I open my current project session (each music track is written in one session), check e-mails and do some research on YouTube and iTunes. Research, meaning watching new movie trailers and listening to new songs, film scores, etc. I don’t actually begin writing and mixing music till about 11am, but I have everything ready in case I get a request from a client.

I write, edit, mix or arrange music from about 11AM till midnight. I do take exercise, lunch and dinner breaks. Most days I try to work for about 10-12 hours but that can always vary. This is for weekdays. On weekends I try to work about 5-7 hours; sometimes less if I don’t have a deadline. Again, this changes all the time depending on a number of factors. It’s important to mention that I have an incredibly flexible schedule, which I think is vital for creative people. Some days I simply cannot force myself to write any music, so I may take a few hours and go to the beach or the mountains. These breaks are incredibly important for musicians. Count this as an extremely advantageous aspect of this profession — I don’t think people working a 9 to 5 office job get the luxury of doing that.” Oscar Flores, Composer

• DAW software: Cubase, Pro Tools
• Instruments: Piano/Synthesizer, guitar, other instruments
• Musical theory and composition
• 倡议
• 对音乐的热情
• Being able to tell a story with music
• 同理心

• Established composer: Assist with his work, learn more about the craft and establish connections.
• 自由职业者: Music composers create music for all different kinds of things such as:
  • Feature films
  • Television shows
  • Movie trailers
  • Videogames
  • 商业广告
  • Corporate videos
  • Digital videos
  • 纪录片

“In terms of projects, I am a freelancer, so I don’t work exclusively for any single person or company. However, I will say that about 95% of my work is focused on motion picture advertising (i.e trailers and TV spots for Hollywood films). This is the work I do for Louder Productions. Other projects may include student, independent and feature films, video games, commercials, corporate videos and documentaries. Most composers are freelancers and work on a variety of projects. Some composers do have agents, publicists and other people helping them get certain films or TV shows. Having an agent is not necessary but once a composer is very well known and established, an agent becomes indispensable. Agents will pitch for jobs, including blockbuster and other big films, knowing the strengths of their clients. These pitches would be very difficult to make without the help of an agent. Film, TV, videogames, commercials require different amounts of music under varying deadlines, but in general terms, they are very similar in that they need custom music. Many composers work in all of these industries since applying the knowledge gained in one type of media is always applicable in the other ones. Again, this is speaking in general since music genres vary greatly!” Oscar Flores, Composer

• Competitive and hard to get a foot in the door, need perseverance: This career is not just about talent. It is about initiative.  
• Isolation: “A very important part of being a composer is spending many, many hours alone — in isolation. We have to be very focused on our music and, thus, require privacy at all times. This in turn is very detrimental to our social lives. This may be the biggest sacrifice one makes in this profession.” Oscar Flores, Composer
• Long hours and a strong work ethic are a must: “Sometimes it feels like being on call at all times since clients will want revisions and changes done under very tight deadlines. These may come any day and at any time. More importantly, I never know when this will happen, so I always have to be prepared. It can be both very stressful but also very exciting. In terms of professional expectations, the people I work with do require the best quality music delivered on time. I think they also expect me to always be positive and not complain about whatever request they may have for a music track. This is not hard to do since it’s an amazing job, but it’s worth mentioning that there’s little tolerance for people with negative attitudes or unenthusiastic personalities. Remember, this profession is about simplifying other people’s lives, so being easygoing is perhaps the single most important attribute to possess.” Oscar Flores, Composer

• Played musical instruments.
• Noticed the film scores of films and television shows.
• Loved to create music!