Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

For the Season 2 finale episode of Composer Quest, I interviewed Chris Koza, who had the crazy idea to create four concept albums in one year, following the change in seasons. These Rogue Valley albums turned out to be a huge artistic success. One song even ended up in Ben Stiller’s personal collection, and subsequently The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. Chris shares some songwriting tips and tricks, and we dig into the concepts behind his concept albums, like how he wrote a song for each of the 12 full moons.

Alex Cooke majored in Math, Psychology, and Theater, but he eventually came back to his first true passion – music. He’s an interesting guy, and in this Composer Quest interview, we talk about everything from composing in odd time signatures to the most common Red Hot Chili Peppers chord progression. He also shares a bunch of practical advice on making your pieces both playable and artistically cohesive.

I guarantee you’ve heard music by Silas Hite before. If you didn’t play Sims 2 or see Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, then you at least heard Silas’s score for the ubiquitous Mac vs. PC ads. Silas is proof that freelance composing is a viable career. In this episode of Composer Quest, we talk about his percussion-driven scores for the documentaries The Record Breaker (a Vimeo Top 10 film of 2013), The Invention of Dr. Nakamats, and Stories from the Evacuation. Silas also shares his creative process behind his rock records, and gives some tips on freelance composing.

Evelyn Glennie lost her hearing by the age of 12, but that didn’t stop her from becoming a percussion virtuoso, a three-time Grammy winner, and a Dame Commander of the British Empire. In this Composer Quest interview, she shares some really interesting ideas about dynamics and writing for percussion. We also talk about her collaborations with Björk, composer John Corigliano, and guitarist and improviser Fred Frith.

My talented friend Tyler Tholl evaded coming on the Composer Quest podcast for over a year, but finally my pestering paid off. I was really excited to visit Tyler in his studio and see the man behind the curtain at work. His new Maple and Beech EP Flashes and Floaters (made with drummer Pete James Johnson from episode 15) sounds amazing, and in this episode we get a thorough dissection of the composition and music production techniques Tyler used. We also talk about Tyler’s producing for the new Borderline EP by Paul Spring (from episode 11). Stick around until the end, and you’ll get to be a fly on the wall in Tyler’s studio, as he produces the intro theme to this Composer Quest episode on the spot.

Paul Fraser went into the CalArts composition program with the mindset that he would spend half his time making weird music, and half his time composing for animations. He’s since worked with some amazing animators, including the creators of Adventure Time. In this episode of Composer Quest, Paul shares his creative process in composing and sound designing animations. We also talk about some of his creative personal projects, like his “Weekly Splice,” where he gathers one sound every day and mixes seven of them together at the end of the week.

As a singer with a very pure tone, Adrienne Albert has been recruited to work with many talented composers over the years, including Leonard Bernstein, Philip Glass, and Igor Stravinsky. In this episode of Composer Quest, we talk about Adrienne’s own composing process. She shares some stories behind her music, including how she used woodwind players to represent a chorus of animals in her Alaska-inspired "Animalogy."

The MNKINO filmmaking group and the Composer Quest podcast are teaming up to bring you a fun challenge for the summer. Filmmakers will make short films, composers will write scores for them, and the Composer Quest Orchestra will perform these scores live along with the films. Sign up at composerquest.com/quest9

In order to be more productive, composer Justin Merritt once tried polyphasic sleeping, meaning he slept only a couple hours per day. After countless hours of busyness, he finally came to the revelation that he just needed to feel bored to become inspired. In this episode of Composer Quest, Justin and I talk about how Buddhist philosophies have influenced his life as a composer, and he shares some great composition advice he gives to his students at St. Olaf. Justin also explains how he invented a unique system of creating scales and modulating, which he used in his beautiful piece “Lachryme” for string orchestra.

When he was just 14, Joey Johnson started touring with America’s Polka King, Frankie Yankovic. Joey has carried on the tradition with his own polka band, and in this episode of Composer Quest, he shares everything he knows about accordions and polka. Joey’s original tunes have been featured in a number of commercials and TV, and we talk about the pros and cons of being published in a production music library.

We get a sneak preview of Nathan Eliot’s first solo album, Universe in Me. Nate talks about singing super high as a countertenor, and bringing his mandola into a special ed classroom. The album Universe in Me (coming out soon) was written by Nathan Eliot and produced by Andy Thompson. It also features drummer Alex Young, cellist Dan Lawonn, and bassist Andrew Foreman.

“Outsider” composer Rick Sowash has 14 beautiful chamber music albums to his name, all self-published and fan-supported. After graduating from a prestigious music school that he hated so much he refuses to name, he vowed to stay independent of any academic or commercial organization. In this episode of Composer Quest, Rick shares his entire strategy for making it as an independent composer, which he’s been perfecting for many years. We also get to hear how Rick converted orange juice, French toast, eggs, and bacon into music for a treble clef quartet.

Fellow composition podcaster Tom Snively has been producing new tracks weekly and picking them apart on his show Making My Own Music. However, his inner composer was dormant for many years as he worked as a computer programmer, then as a financial planner. In this episode of Composer Quest, I talk with Tom about his new venture to make a career out of composing and producing. He’s been experimenting with writing video game scores, jazz saxophone tunes, new age music, and a spoken word track based on Philly cheesesteaks.

Ellen Stanley (aka Mother Banjo) brought her banjo over to the Composer Quest studio to share some songs and stories. We talk about everything from her Walden-inspired song to her unusual connection to Paul McCartney. In addition to her banjo-playing career, Ellen is the executive director of the Minnesota Music Coalition, and for eight years she worked as a publicist for Red House Records. So she also shares some advice on networking, getting airplay, etc.

If some episodes of Composer Quest are like delicious deserts, then this one is like eating your vegetables. Just in time for tax season, we have a special episode on tax tips for musicians and other creative professionals. Attorney and CPA Brad Begley shared lots of tax advice at an event hosted by the Minnesota Music Coalition and Music Mafia Minnesota. It’s especially helpful for freelancers and people with a growing creative business.