Technology Today: Film Composer James Schafer

[cortezforever]

Would you be interested in a job? I need some scoring added to a track.

[Mariaottavia]

Congratulations!! Much success with your career!! Looking forward to hearing more of your film scores! Sincerely, Maria Ottavia

[espressonatural]

Will this song make (rage) MR RECYCLE DEMO SONG is on YOUTUBE let my know what you think.

[63legendary]

That was dope, man. I have tons of respect for composers. It's a little tougher than what I do. The ease of beatmaking comes from within myself. I know what I'm feeling. but you on the other hand have the TASK of expressing other people's emotions...Kudos!

[1947rayjohn]

wow i have one word to you.............its excellent

[nickmaymusic]

Very interesting video and from what I could hear of the music, it sounded excellent!

[whotaughtyou]

PLAINTIFF

[jackballed]

@whotaughtyou Meh?

[Rasterius]

good job! and cheer up man :)

[moviescorecomposer]

Congratulations James and Major Respect To Your Humbleness. Many Blessings and Success To You In The Future. Have A MusicFilledDay!

[Nyar88]

Great video James. What model desk are you using? It has the pull out piano draw.

[thomasleur]

How much does this cost. Cause i'm planning to make a little studio myself.

[marquinhocarvalho]

Bravo, James!! Congratulations!!!

[DaveThePianoDude]

Thanks James for opening up your studio to us.

[Gencturk92]

john williams is the best composer, bernard herrmann and jerry goldsmith were great too.

[jonesboy35757]

Congratulations! You did a great job!

[Geedygeedy]

How in the the world did u utilize and connect 4 PCs and 2 MAC PROs??

[funkmonkey06]

amazing

[davidrundmc]

Hello, my name is David, I would like to know which computer is using to move all those tracks without having any problem, what features are needed?

[cityscape585]

i had to watch this for homework u shouldn't of uploaded it

[AHHSBand]

FINALE!!!! :D 5:04

[nyckillaheat]

logic is the best

[TheLilla100]

he uses Logic Pro! :)

[DonnyDaison]

lol I have a lexicon mx300 one RU above my motu 828

[UpRoarProductionsUK]

good mixer! Same as mine haa!

[truplek]

I like it!

[mimaxworld]

@tmack1337 ok but that's risky and fairly stupid to borrow so much money. I'd just easier when you are rich. you can expirment with the latest low latency, state of the art equipment. i'm becoming composer/sound designer and i'm really into muisc business.

[sixvideos]

lexicon mx200... i had the mx300, sold it.

[mimaxworld]

if you are not rich you cant do this...

[Airs8tronic]

@mimaxworld no not true, im broke and i could do this... infact im planning to

[mimaxworld]

@Airs8tronic ok but you got borrowed it than... Everybody knows good monitors, good room acoustics, good hardware synthesizers, controllers, mixers. Maybe in future you can afford this but not now while your broke dude... When did money falls outta sky?

[Airs8tronic]

@mimaxworld

a good producer/composer needs not tools to sound good but the ear. regardless of what you have, if youve a good ear and practice at it you can make anything sound good using mixcraft and some shitty logitech pc speakers.

[mimaxworld]

@Airs8tronic Nice! A good discussion! it's a pity im not English. I can't explain everything in good english but i'll try. Every pro needs good transparant monitors. Those are relative expensive, because many people want them. Engineers always want the best possible situation, because bad acoustics can cause bad mixes. One rule is that good audio engineers needs good ear & eartraining(like standing waves knowledge) and good stuff. Its the combination what makes a good producer a good producer.

[Airs8tronic]

@mimaxworld my point still remains, problems in your mixing because of your speakers should show up when you reference on other systems. even then a good ear should be able to hear this anyway :3

[mimaxworld]

@Airs8tronic hmm do you know anything about frequency respons of speakers(coloured sound) or monitors(uncoloured sound)? you know that cheap speakers don't cover the whole audiorange(20 hz - 20 khz). A good ear can't hear frequencies whose arent represented by the speaker/monitor.

[Airs8tronic]

@mimaxworld missed my point entirely, if youre referencing youll get a good idea what system is missing what. :3

[TheLord3o0oS]

John Williams is waiting for you

[Loki659]

Haha wtf Hans Zimmer at 1:43? Was he in the competition?

[cinemats]

@Loki659 haha :D It's in Hans studio

[Enrisico007]

1:43 thats hans zimmer....lol

[MagnusRulerHardt]

MINISTRY OF ROCK! I LOVE IT!

[manfredicomposer]

Your a good composer. 

[MagnusRulerHardt]

@manfredicomposer

Funny and obvious comment xD

[Jovijov]

this guy...

[conorJones]

I'm studying film scoring at Berklee College of music, this looks like sooo much fun!!!!

[TGS265]

congrats james, I will be watching your work and hope to be on your level some day ...Keep up the good work!!!

[darklightnessful]

its my dream too to be film composer

[wagerfilmART]

interesting interview.

[HU0Sproductions]

You guys crack me up. good work on your composition

[TABproductions3000]

his studio reminds me of 17 again

[robdrums69]

Don't mind me asking James, but how much is that kind of studio desk cost? and where did you get it from??? just curious and congrats and great job btw.

Thanks

Robdrums69

[potasiu2]

i dont get it. Why do the music digitally and then just discard it for the recorded version? Isnt that redundant? I'm not saying that the recorded version isnt better, but in that case all you need is a pen and lots of sheet paper to score a film.

[RogueRotting360]

@potasiu2 Obviously he's not trained enough to do that?

[dariunas]

@potasiu2 It's composed and written using the high quality samples. This allows the composer to really hear what they're writing... then the digital version is treated as a mock up. The true vision with the best 'render' of the written work is then transitioned by the orchestrator.

I compose, but could never do it in the classical method :( I'm not classically trained and play everything by ear...

[potasiu2]

man call it what you want but that is called REDUNDANT WORK. For composition you only need the three P's. PAPER-PEN-PIANO. Music will flow more than enough through that, given a trained ear.

[dariunas]

@potasiu2 I disagree, completely. Tell this to some of the greatest jazz artists. The method of effective composition is entirely dependant on the individual. Like I said, I cannot read music, let alone write it, but can compose confidently with a keyboard and recording software and I NEED to hear it... Paper and pen is not much use to me. A piano, maybe... but then I need to hear and feel all the timbres I'm working with, as that affects the direction of my composition.

[oggfish]

@potasiu2 See technology as a extention to the `old school` way of writing. Its a bliss for me to hear instantly what a piece will somewhat sounds like in the end. Its kind of amazing how my piano playing style changes when i hear strings insteat of a piano sound coming out of the speaker as i play. It closes the gap between me being a musician and me as a composer. Those 2 roles are now linked more effectively because of technology.

[potasiu2]

@oggfish I'm sure that most of the greatest composers that ever lived had lots and lots of vsts. This was their secret. :)))

[praestant8]

@potasiu2 There is no one way to be an artist.

[fortune32]

takes more time and ability... If there were no Comps. you could discard 99% of composers today. A comp replaces intelligence, something not many people have in combination with talent.

[potasiu2]

yes, but that is another matter... the point is that mr. James Schafer is doing redundant work by being tricked into thinking that he won smthng :)). I mean no disrespect and I have no doubt that mr Schafer is an excellent composer, but personally I wouldnt do what he's doing. They should keep the originals of what he's doing now, otherwise is pointless. And it sounds cool also as is.

[jackballed]

I think you need to do your research concerning modern film composers a little more. The purpose of their electronic performance is mostly so the director/producer can hear what the music for that scene will sound like before they spend thousands of dollars to record it. They also end up mixing some of the electronic performance in with the live musicians when the music budget is miniscule. A perfect example being James Schafer's silent film: his budget was small so he combined the two.

[potasiu2]

my research? ha. Maybe, but then most of the ppl here dont have a clue how a draft cut is made. It is sufficient enough to have a good keyboard to lay down a rough score for the producer's / director's ears if there are trust issues.

[jackballed]

That's the way the world works bro. When you are contracted to build a house, the buyer likes to see a drawing or model of what the final product will look like. Same goes here: when you're contracted to write music, the buyer likes to hear what it will sound like and shape it before you throw down the big bucks to record it. However, if you prefer to write all by hand on paper and are wealthy enough to record a 100 piece orchestra each time a director wants changes, by all means do what you do.

[potasiu2]

yes, I'm sure that all the film composers today heard that a lot. pfa; imagine going to John Williams and saying: mr. Williams I want a score for my film, but can I hear it VSTed first?

[jackballed]

First, the fact that you call mocking up a score "VSTed" shows your ignorance and that you have no knowledge whatsoever about film scoring. VST is the type of plugin for Steinberg based software. Again, DO YOUR RESEARCH before you start an argument. All you're doing is making yourself looking dumber and dumber every time you post a new comment. Second, composers who work on the piano have people to mockup their music in the computer for the director to listen to. Research!

[potasiu2]

look friend, I'm not looking for a conflict on youtube; last I checked it was a free world, thus having the opportunity to share my pov freely. Please next time you address me, do not assume that you know anything about me or that you can deduce the level of knowledge I posses from my comments, because that would only make an ass out of U and ME :). Cheers.

[jackballed]

Yes, you are entitled to your POV. That's why I haven't said anything on your comment about how writing synth scores is redundant and you wouldn't write that way; that's your opinion which is fine. But when you ask why composers do something a certain way, I answer you with the reasoning and then you jeer at the facts, well you're going to have conflict. The only person who looks like an ass is yourself for telling someone in the film music industry they know nothing about film music.

[potasiu2]

somehow you felt obliged to answer questions I have never asked m8, and you still keep putting words in my mouth. Anyway, this is drifting way OOT. You didn't understand anything from what I said and I wont try reasoning with your ill temper. I cant understand why do you take such a high personal offense.

[jackballed]

("Why do the music digitally and then just discard it for the recorded version? Isnt that redundant?") Are these not question you had asked? A few of us answered them for you and then you kept coming back with a negative attitude towards a way of film composition that you don't agree with. I'm confused at what words I'm "putting in your mouth." I'm also confused at how you can tell a person's temper through text.

[garrick2007]

Film scoring looks very interesting since im more of a video guy then audio, i use logic 9 right now mostly for concert recording for video and live streaming all together. Question for anyone with the knowledge, is their a advantage with having a hardware based, reverb/compressor/limiter/EQ because right now i just use my motu 8pre and everything else is software based.

[praestant8]

Well you can devote more space and memory towards sample sets and libraries instead of processing and FX. I think it is individual preference with gear and how you relate to it.

[Pricher1991]

all this sad electric music...

[flamesh2d]

hey congrats on the award and quick ? what are the pros and cons for semi-weighted and weighted? thanks you

[PETSH0PB0YS1]

my personal opinion is that if you program quickly and you are having to do intricate work then semi weighted is better(live work)...but piano feel and expression then weighted is better...hope that helps..cheers

[TheSkepticalIdealist]

since zimmer doesnt "write" music I think its silly that he presented the award when technically he wouldnt be able to win since he wouldnt be able to submit a written score.

[DanielCiurlizza]

Actually I think he does write music... I mean, as far as I can tell. You can tell when he records with an orchestra. He has his score in front of him and he makes changes and writes notes.

[TheSkepticalIdealist]

Do you have video on youtube that shows that at all?

[DanielCiurlizza]

Hey just curious... did you mean "write" like with a writing utensil or did you mean a music notation software? I know for sure he uses music notation software and he knows how to write music. And I'm sure he corrects and rewrites stuff. Though I'm not sure if he writes ALL of his music out. That would be so much work. But I'm checking for some videos on that right now.

[TheSkepticalIdealist]

Write as in notation yes, he plays stuff into the computer and he has orchestrators that copy out parts and flesh out the material. If you have something that can show otherwise Id like to see it. Not hating on Zimmer, I love his stuff just never seen any evidence that he knows that stuff.

[DanielCiurlizza]

Yeah that's understandable. Well, since I've already watched endless amounts of Hans Zimmer interviews before I saw your question. I really don't feel like going back and searching for only 5 or 6 instances where you see him writing music down on paper. So I guess if you're really interested in Hans, you can probably find the answer to your question by watching all the videos on youtube. Anyway, I'm going to stop being obsessed with his work now. Good day, my friend!

[DanielCiurlizza]

...openly obsessed, that is.

[RabastanLstrng]

Hans Zimmer admits to being self-taught, but he can definitely read and notate music. There are a couple of interviews on here that show him reading over scores and making corrections.

[TheSkepticalIdealist]

@RabastanLstrng if you can find those videos I'd like to see them. Just copt the last part of the url into a comment. cheers.

[linneaLS]

have u write songs to beyonce?

[jarooFLtutor]

ministry of rock: orchestra

[kleinetl]

Its my dream to be film composer.

When did you start? How did you start?!

plz tell me !

[theBbOoSSss]

nice studio setup

[IrfanDesai]

free lockerz invites, PM me and send me your e-mail!

[jamieross1991]

this is just cribs for geeks

i love it!

[abelizable]

2 hours of non stop music ... now that's tough

[ronnied1]

Hi I'm studying composition and music priduction.Just want to know from you if there is any particular website where I could download a video clip to practice my commposition techniques.Thanks Ronnie Dandan

[abelizable]

let me know if you find a website .. i'll let you know if i do

[REMSTATE]

James Schafer my compliments

is an Italian composer

ross quaresmini

Watch my video and music

lacrimata pace!!

best regards

ross quaremini

[canadaduncan]

Well done dude! Film composers are a special bunch, proud to be one! Best of luck with your career (if ur reading this of course)

[mysticradio]

did you study music?>

[Topenigma]

watching this guy at work, inspires in me the drive to move on with my own music.....thanks man....sometimes we all need a little recognition, through being reminded by others.....

[abelizable]

have you guys seen zimmer's studio .. it's filled with tons of gear .. i doubt he needs all that if it doesn't play a major role in his scoring

[Rani9000]

wow, thanks for posting.

when i think that Bernard Hermann only used manuscript paper and a piano to compose.. i guess we're far from it nowadays

[yisacknayrabin]

But not necessarily for the better. A composer should be able to write a symphonic score with a pencil, paper, and piano-without having to load up the sounds to "hear what they'll sound like". That's the difference in knowing what you're writing versus layering your way through it. Herrmann, Goldsmith, Williams etc, did/do that brilliantly. While Zimmer couldn't find his way around a written score to save his life. Interesting how the Herrmanns and Goldsmiths were such better writers...

[yisacknayrabin]

At any rate just my 2 cents on the Herrmann thing. James did a great job with the YFCC and won it most deservedly. Congrats!

[Rani9000]

i totally agree

[jackballed]

Film composers today don't use computers because they know less about composing for an orchestra and need to "hear what [it] sounds like," they do it more for the director's satisfaction--so the director can get immediate results. Also, writing into the computer bypasses many steps to make scoring a film much quicker. Finally, I think you should be careful what you say about Zimmer. I think he's very underestimated and knows far more than you think.

[yisacknayrabin]

Sorry, but If there's one thing he's not, it's "underestimated." Zimmer is the biggest star of the film music world and gets first dibs and top dollar on any gig in town that can afford him. It's no secret that he's not much of a "reader," let alone a pencil and paper composer--as he's admitted on numerous occasions.

[potasiu2]

@yisacknayrabin

I'm sorry, I didnt hear that... can I have more d minor in my earphones? :))

[androoow]

bulls**t!!!!

[danielwills93]

so he kinda has a ghost writer to do the notation for him? Its understandable that he won... with all that equipment and gear... leaves composers like me in the gutter =/

[King31395]

Nah, JUST having all that gear doesn't make you good.

Knowing how to actually compose good effective music, mix and mastering your cues is what makes you good (which this guy TOTALLY is).

Get good on what you've got now...your gear collection will grow from there.

[abelizable]

yeah .. gear just shows how committed you are to your music and you are willing to invest your hard earned money for it

[jackballed]

No he doesn't have a ghost writer. A ghost writer writes every note for somebody and then that somebody takes all the credit. James is saying he writes every note, then has someone put it to paper for him for time considerations.

[metheanalogkid]

Daniel, even John Williams uses external orchestrators to do the boring part of the process ;)

"All that equipment" does more or less the same things you can do on a G4 with a $50 iMic. So, shell out your 50 bucks and start making music.

[Tgreenfi08]

Now that's what I call investing in your music

[nusua]

I'm coming close to having 2 PCs....sigh....

[BezemerPeter]

when is the next competition?

[andreagiuseppe]

good question

[Artadmiration]

Nice work! check out my stuff sometime

[jeremyfrancis]

pretty cool. always wanted to participate in that competition, i KNOW i couldn't win. not being pessimistic, just realistic.

[theJagaJazzist]

incredible; for a guy that I'm guessing, spending most of his time in front of a computer(s), doesn't wear glasses.

sounds great though

[drummtb333]

holy shit 8 gigs of RAM

2 fukin macs

[King31395]

Thats what I WAS THINKING!!!

[murphyluke]

Did he say 6 PC's too? Or did I mishear him?

[King31395]

Yes indeed he did...he referred to his 6 PCs.

Probably been collecting gear for years like most of us...just on a MUCH bigger scale :)

[King31395]

whoops, he said 4 pc's (on one monitor)

[codeythornell]

how much does it cost to get that studio setup

[jwd0808]

After listening to all five finalists, Schafer's version was the most polished. It also conveyed emotion in an understated way - quite nice indeed.

[jwd0808]

Nice - but how young is young? He looks like hes about 30+

[friendjonny]

"young" in this case probably means "not yet professional"

[jackballed]

He was 25 during this video - I emailed him not long ago.

[losangelesstrippers]

Congrats on your win James. And congrats on being the firs human being to actually pay for every piece of software you use in your studio. I have gone to multi-million dollar studios and yet they still use cracked software. Again you deserve this on two level. For being and honest man and for being a talented musician/composer. You seem like a very down to earth person and hope your dreams come true. Good luck.

[King31395]

Good point! It does seem pretty rare that someone would actually 'buy' all the software they use.

I do the same (but don't have quite the collection James here has :)

[Clayjrjr2]

Same here... you gotta buy all your equipment.... not only is it morally wrong, but it could screw up your reputaion if people find out... and ruin any chances of selling music.

[King31395]

True!

[no1r]

Great, i wish you good luck!

[RoofBoys]

Does the furniture have label tag?

or who desgin it? it looks perfect

for my studio haha:)

[RoofBoys]

I like you're music! .

U know exactly what to do.

[ditroiamusic]

Sounds like a beautiful score. Congrats....that is a nice desk :)

[TheVeganWizard]

Anyone know what kind of desk that is?  I need one! =)

[tommyk77]

8GB of RAM? Pah! I smoke 8GB.

Lol, just kidding. I'm using 4GB on my little ol' MacBook :-(

The new Mac Pros have 32GB though

[King31395]

WHAT???!!! :)

Unreal.

[jackjohnH]

Congrats! Finale is Crap though, the sounds are not authentic

[PlayTheCold]

finale isn't for sounds, it's for notation. The sounds it uses are garritan, which is probably the cheapest library on the market. Try East West or Edirol.

[DanielCiurlizza]

I would say East West Symphonic Orchestra is was better than Edirol.

[TheSkepticalIdealist]

it is lol

[DannytheDogCN]

finale has full vst support it can be used like any sequencer being able to mix midi and audio tracks. instead of seeing midi blocks you see notes which makes composing easier. I use EWSO among others with it.

[chchaisson]

Ha! I had the exact same question. Its so difficult to find good studio furniture...

[Olphus]

You live where,)

[GuitarArt]

Gran estudio.