Library on DVD

We have recently cataloged our entire library in wav files onto a single data DVD. This has proven helpful for many producers. If you would like to receive our 372 piece library on DVD for your perusal, please let us know. We'd be happy to send it.

Why we are Different....

We don’t use MIDI, we use MUSICIAN.

We don’t TELL you, we ASK you.

A SAMPLE to us is NOT an instrument…
it is a FREE demonstration of our services.

A CLIENT is a CREATIVE PARTNER.

A REVISION is a further step toward CUSTOMER SATISFACTION.

We don’t ENGINEER music, we CREATE aural pictures.

A DEADLINE is a DEADLINE….Period.

We can help your visuals....ask us how.

Music and the Mind

Daniel Levitin was a music producer and is now an expert in the neuroscience of music; how humans relate to and perceive music and sounds. Here is an article that explains it very well and can perhaps help when picking cues to marry to visual scenes.
Click Here

Big Dog on a Stick

Shortly we will be offering our complete library on a flash drive. While we are organinzing the files, we could use your help. Please tell us what you prefer:
1. mp3's or Wav files?
2. File info via id3 tags and metadata or spreadsheets with all the data logged?
3. mp3's at 192 or higher?
4. wavs at 44 or 48
5. Anything else?

Please email us your thoughts....we will discount your order 50% for any good suggestions.

The Perfect Voiceover

While we supply alot of music and sounds to productions, we are often asked for tips on recording the spoken word effectivily. Here are a few suggestions that have worked for many:

• Have the speaker warm up his or her body to raise energy and awareness.
• Provide vocal exercises such as humming, yawning, sighing and tongue-twisters to loosen and warm up vocal cords.
• Talk ahead of time about what to expect in the studio or on the set.
• Offer suggestions on how to keep a consistent distance from the mic.
• Help the speaker find a suitable vibe to fit the copy.
• Loosen them up from the beginning; help them laugh and feel comfortable – encouragement goes a long way.
• Get multiple retakes while saving the original keepers. Knowing they already "nailed it" often brings a more relaxed performance.
• Know when you have gotten the most from the subject.

A Transition Cue

Transitions in video can be a sweep, wipe, fade, effect, or blackout etc. Here is a complimentary audio transition cue done in an acoustic tambre. We have found it to be very useful in a number of ways. It comes from our Acoustic collection.
Click here for the cue.

Smaller is Bigger

Why are so many people excited about viewing and listening to programs through handheld devices? Control. Control to watch what they want when they want. But the product is often not ready for the small venue. Creating top level programming that feels like it belongs in this format takes a special level of care. This market is being touted by experts as a new, vast frontier. This is a great opportunity for the indie producer to wedge into a niche. On the audio front, attention is being paid to producing extra mixes in mono (for cellphones) and optimized for a small speaker. There is also a need to different stings, bumpers, and sound design to assist the video producer to tailor the product for the intended medium. It is definitely time to start looking to this medium as another necessary venue. YouTube, Google Video, and the like are great places to get a feel for this new vibe. This could be a great way to leave your mark.

A Jazzed Up Ending

One of the favorite sessions I was involved in was with a live jazz trio. The musical results of this 2 day session is documented in the Big Dog Music Design Jazz Collection. Here is a cue, for your use, with our compliments. We call it "Jazz Ending". As always, please send us clips of your work with our music.

"Inspired by Themes"

Big Dog Music Design has had alot of requests for what we call "Inspired by Themes".What we mean by "Inspired by Themes" is that we create a piece of music that is very reminisient of a certain requested piece that is well known. It needs to be a piece of music that the listener is caused to think of the "inspiried by theme" or recalls an era or mood but is not that piece of music and cannot in any way be labeled as a copy. This allows the production company to create a mood in line with what the original piece of music would invoke but not have to pay the license fee associated with a 40 year old classic song from a tv show etc. We have been very successful for many clients with this type of product creation and invite you all to give us a try if your piece dictates such as need.

Using "Comp" Tracks

Video images seem to come even more alive when they are married to music. Sometimes what seems to work conceptually, does not work in the editing bay. Hence, "comp" tracks can save alot of re-working before a final client review. So many times, the first track in becomes such a part of the edit that the intended final music just doesn't work as well.

We are happy to supply you with samples of our music, at no charge, to try against your footage.

Check out some samples online by clicking here.

If it works, simply purchase the disc or we can search our archives for something more suitable.

Email us your musical needs wishlist...

The 2006 Olympics, NBC, and Big Dog

This past winter Olympics held in Torino Italy was broadcast around the clock by NBC and The USA Network. A number of Big Dog Music pieces were used throughout the broadcast on both networks. We are happy to have been a part of such a universally historic event and look to supply more music in 2008.

Christmas in September

As I sit here in the '00's version of a library i.e. Panera Bread, I see the leaves falling and the sky get darker faster. It reminds me that projects in post right now probably need Holiday music. That is one of our favorite things to do. We compose original Holiday-sounding music as well as re-makes in various genres of public domain Holiday songs. Recently we did a version of O'Christmas Tree in a Surf guitar/Dick Dale vibe. It was fun! Soon we will post it for your listening pleasure. In the meantime, please let us know what you need in holiday sounds. We might have it or we can create it. Talk to you soon. leroy@bigdogmusicdesign.com

Need a Reggae Vocalist

We are currently working on a project that requires a reggae tinged male vocalist. If you know anybody in Chicago, please contact me at: leroy@bigdogmusicdesign.com
Thanks

Bob Parsons 16 Rules

I won't often use other peoples' material for the Big Dog Blog, Bob Parsons' blog contained this post recently and I felt compelled to lift it for those who have not read it yet. Enjoy!

Here are the 16 rules I (i.e. Bob Parsons) try to live by:

1. Get and stay out of your comfort zone. I believe that not much happens of any significance when we're in our comfort zone. I hear people say, "But I'm concerned about security." My response to that is simple: "Security is for cadavers."
2. Never give up. Almost nothing works the first time it's attempted. Just because what you're doing does not seem to be working, doesn't mean it won't work. It just means that it might not work the way you're doing it. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it, and you wouldn't have an opportunity.
3. When you're ready to quit, you're closer than you think. There's an old Chinese saying that I just love, and I believe it is so true. It goes like this: "The temptation to quit will be greatest just before you are about to succeed."
4. With regard to whatever worries you, not only accept the worst thing that could happen, but make it a point to quantify what the worst thing could be. Very seldom will the worst consequence be anywhere near as bad as a cloud of "undefined consequences." My father would tell me early on, when I was struggling and losing my shirt trying to get Parsons Technology going, "Well, Robert, if it doesn't work, they can't eat you."
5. Focus on what you want to have happen. Remember that old saying, "As you think, so shall you be."
6. Take things a day at a time. No matter how difficult your situation is, you can get through it if you don't look too far into the future, and focus on the present moment. You can get through anything one day at a time.
7. Always be moving forward. Never stop investing. Never stop improving. Never stop doing something new. The moment you stop improving your organization, it starts to die. Make it your goal to be better each and every day, in some small way. Remember the Japanese concept of Kaizen. Small daily improvements eventually result in huge advantages.
8. Be quick to decide. Remember what the Union Civil War general, Tecumseh Sherman said: "A good plan violently executed today is far and away better than a perfect plan tomorrow."
9. Measure everything of significance. I swear this is true. Anything that is measured and watched, improves.
10. Anything that is not managed will deteriorate. If you want to uncover problems you don't know about, take a few moments and look closely at the areas you haven't examined for a while. I guarantee you problems will be there.
11. Pay attention to your competitors, but pay more attention to what you're doing. When you look at your competitors, remember that everything looks perfect at a distance. Even the planet Earth, if you get far enough into space, looks like a peaceful place.
12. Never let anybody push you around. In our society, with our laws and even playing field, you have just as much right to what you're doing as anyone else, provided that what you're doing is legal.
13. Never expect life to be fair. Life isn't fair. You make your own breaks. You'll be doing good if the only meaning fair has to you, is something that you pay when you get on a bus (i.e., fare).
14. Solve your own problems. You'll find that by coming up with your own solutions, you'll develop a competitive edge. Masura Ibuka, the co-founder of SONY, said it best: "You never succeed in technology, business, or anything by following the others." There's also an old Asian saying that I remind myself of frequently. It goes like this: "A wise man keeps his own counsel."
15. Don't take yourself too seriously. Lighten up. Often, at least half of what we accomplish is due to luck. None of us are in control as much as we like to think we are.
16. There's always a reason to smile. Find it. After all, you're really lucky just to be alive. Life is short. More and more, I agree with my little brother. He always reminds me: "We're not here for a long time; we're here for a good time."
used by permission of Bob Parsons (http://www.bobparsons.com) and is Copyright 2005 by Bob Parsons. All rights reserved."Copyright © 2004 - 2005 Bob Parsons All rights reserved.

Beethoven on Business

I stumbled upon into this quote recently... Thought it was interesting that artists through time have faced the same occupational hazards.

"No one should drive a hard bargain with an artist."
--- Ludwig Van Beethoven

Film Credit in "Hunting Humans"

Hunting Humans is an indie film that has a life of its' own. I first met Kevin Kangas through a purchase he made from me on Ebay. He told me he was a filmmaker and needed a mixer for sound. He bought my mixer and when I shipped it I slipped a cd into the box. Years later he calls me to ask if he can use a few songs in his film. Yes, of course! A year or more later he announces that he secured distribution and festival appearances. A year after that the film appears on Amazon and in major rental outlets.
We love that! If you have a creative project, let's talk. We are here to work with you and be part of the production...no matter how large or small.

Pump Audio and Big Dog

Big Dog Music Design is proud to announce that we are now a content provider for Pump Audio.
Pump Audio boasts over 10,000 royalty free cues by independent artists and composers. Their customer base includes many notable TV shows and production companies.

What's a Blish?

Big Dog Music Design is now an audio content provider for Blish. Blish is a digital content provider. They offer downloadable content such as graphics, audio, programs, photos, video etc.
Their selection is growing and has some eclectic choices! Check it out. Tell 'em Big Dog sent ya.

We'll Take Adjectives for $200

A major driving force for maintaining this blog is to show you what we do, how we do it, and how we can contribute to your projects. Here is a cue we send out to you called Chinese. It is from our Ethnic Collection. The way this cue came to be was we were asked to create an aural mindpicture portraying a "serene feeling as if you were floating above a vast garden with no thought of gravity." We love that! Whenever we start to mindmap a new project, one of our first questions is: "give us as many descriptive adjectives as possible, please". Then we often deliver 2 or 3 different impressions from those words. We view the process as if we are painting a picture that strives to create an undeniable, simply stated, obvious mood and feeling.

A Great Deal....or is it?

There are some awesome deals on Royalty Free Music on the web these days if price were the only factor. Sometimes it seems it is just the only selling point.

But a major factor in all over-the-top audio/visual/video productions is effective sound design i.e. great music, engaging SFX and the producers' ability to obtain it all easily. So, can you choose great audio assets by price only? Probably not.

Do you hear great writing and musicianship? Do you feel it? Would that particular piece be the soundtrack for an event in your life (if you lived your life on a TV screen:) When you consider that most reputable royalty free libraries provide for virtually unlimited use of a music piece, why not simply buy the best sounding cut period? The cost per use can be miniscule.

How can a producer or editor obtain this all easily? Greater and more versitile selectivity. Shortly we will be offering our library pieces via digital download. You can purchase as little or as many pieces as you need.

We invite you all to tell us how we can make our download site the best for your needs. We only have your audio asset needs in mind. Thanks for your help.