Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/115625
Jonathan Mills has been on both sides of the production library world, first as a user, and now as a service provider. See page 30 for more. Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night to a song playing in your head? Of course you have. While it might drive you crazy at the time, it does hammer home the importance of a tune. So when a network needs to promote their offerings, or a television show needs to heighten drama or humor, finding the right piece of music is paramount. While some have big, beefy budgets that allow for licensing or a composition, many do not, and that's where production music libraries come in. These libraries are deeper than ever, with options for just about every situation. They also offer easy search options or one-on-one account reps who will help you get what you need. And sometimes, they are started by those who at one time were searching for the right sound of their own. MUSIC SUPERVISION Trygge Toven (www.vidsyn.com) is a Hollywood-based music supervisor working in television. His most current job is on David Kelly's new medical drama, TNT's Monday Mornings. His background also includes music supervision for television marketing, working on series promos, trailers, IDs and film. When asked to describe his current job, he says: "I work with producers and directors to find the vision of the sound for their show; I also work toward finding and clearing the music with the rights owners." Depending on the need, Toven (@tryggetoven) will scour production music libraries or opt to license a song. It all depends on the requirements and budget, he says. "A lot of times we'll need instrumentals for the show, and production music libraries offer multiple versions. Maybe one offering is without a lead, but has a rhythm version, another is just a drum section instead of having a lead. It's nice to have the multiple versions, and everybody is getting better at that." Even the major labels with big songs, he says. "You can usually get instrumental versions of the music if you need to cut the vocal out under the dialogue, which is nice." Over the years Toven has worked with many different music sources, including Non-Stop Music before and after the company was bought by Warner Chappell. "I worked with them on my marketing projects because they had deals with the networks, and are a really good go-to for finding what I need." He estimates that he has used thousands of their cues in marketing spots for ABC and Fox. "They have so much selection and it's all made specifically for these types of spots." Having someone from a music library's staff help with the search is essential to finding the right song. "Libraries are growing and getting bigger and bigger, so it's always good to have a person on hand who really knows the catalog and can connect the dots, because I can't know every single song that's out there." He says with Warner Chappell, that is typically the same person, his account manager. "It's someone I deal with whenever I'm looking for a certain scene or trailer.They can help me with something that's going to make sense for what I need." When Toven started on Monday Mornings, a show that focuses on doctors being critiqued by their peers, the pilot was already done, so his job was to build on what the producers were going for in terms of music. "At that point it was trying to match the emotion of the scene and was working off what makes sense for the story arcs," he explains. "A lot of times shows will have musical themes for each character. While true to some extent on this show, that was taken care of by the composer. Instead I pulled preliminary songs based on the pilot and the show in general, and then worked off the scripts and met with the editors and producers going forward. Sometimes scenes just need a lyrical song to help translate the human emotion on the screen" Monday Mornings is a medical drama, so the music needs to be very emotional. "We are dealing with deep human conflict, and there is a lot of death and a lot of fear, but some hope as well. I am not only looking for singer/songwriter, I try to venture out. And it doesn't matter about the actual genre as long as it's hitting the correct sentiment for what the show wants that week. We try to get an overall vibe throughout the show because every story has a theme to it." Toven says the show's composer, Danny Lux, has done a great job painting a picture with the characters. "That is especially true with the first couple of episodes, because you are helping tell a story and depict who a character is through the music. This is typically accomplished through licensed songs, he says. "Again, for me, I just try to help along the story." For Monday Mornings, he typically opts for library offerings for source music. "If there were big emotional scenes, I usually go to new independent artists. They have some pretty decent vocal tracks library wise, but when I am looking for a perfect song I check out every possible source." For example, he needed a very emotional piece to support a scene where the doctor has to apologize to the widower of one of his patients that didn't make it. "We went with the song 'Guiltfree' by an up-and-coming artist Bootstraps, and it turned out great." There are many libraries and placement companies out there in the industry, and a ton of companies representing smaller labels. "But they don't have as many people to market them," says Toven. "They are representing them just for synchronization and TV and film. It's about finding the company that has the right people on board to help me finish the creative process." PROMOS & MORE Faye Walker is VP of marketing at Santa Monica-based FearNet (www.FEARnet. com), a TV network, VOD channel and Website that's dedicated to horror, suspense and thriller content. Owned by Sony Pictures Television, Comcast Corporation and Lionsgate Entertainment, FearNet airs classic films, blockbuster movies, network broadcasts, independent features, foreign flicks and TV shows, along with original programming intended to spook, scare or simply just creep people out. FearNet's audience skews equally between males and females, who are young, www.postmagazine.com Post0313_028-33-Sound LibrariesRAV7FINALREAD.indd 29 Post • March 2013 29 3/4/13 1:26 PM