April, 2014...
Hey everyone! Once again, this post of mine has come a few days late, but there was a good reason, I promise. On the 1st May I went to a seminar about film music production at The Edge, at the State Library of Brisbane, & I really wanted to write about it for my monthly post. Philip Brophy, who is an experienced industry professional composer with a career spanning several decades, presented the seminar. It was so refreshing to hear him speak about some of his projects, and to hear the similarities between his approach and my own.
During his presentation, we watched a short film called “Jack”, about a young man dancing and responding to various locations around Melbourne suburbs. It was an interesting short, but even more interesting to me was the manner in which Philip created the accompanying musical soundtrack. Philip described how he was presented with photographs of the locations to be used on the shoot, and from there he created multiple rhythmic drum patterns for each location. These were given to the director, who edited the drum patterns along with the footage and then gave that back to the composer who then added more layers of music. So this was a truly collaborative creation between the director and composer. This is a rather unique way of approaching film composition, but it really did work out well.
Immediately after the seminar, I sat down to write some notes as I reflected on the advice & ideas about composition, and I was pleased to find during his talk I shared with him a lot of similar ideas about music, film music & how you approach creating film music. I was going to edit my notes to incorporate them into my post, but I quite like my notes how they are, just as I wrote them...
"A standardized approach to something doesn't make it so, or make it necessary. Keep the music up and present. Allow it to be heard, and heard well. Don't dictate to your audience or patronize them. They do not need to be lead by the hand. They are capable of working it out for themselves. Give your music the space it deserves. Let it be music. Don’t try to force it into something it’s not. Keep an open mind. You can’t put a square peg in a round hole, so don’t try to. Rules are meant to be broken, attitudes are meant to be tested, and even altered. Think outside the damn box. Allow yourself the freedom to create something of beauty. There should be no distinction between film music & non-film music. Music is music. Give the music to your director and tell them to live with it for two weeks before calling you. Two weeks to adjust to it, and absorb it for what it is. Music has a way of bonding with the listener over time. Make music for yourself. Make music to be enjoyed. Make music to be loved..."
Here is a picture of The Edge at the State Library of Brisbane. Nice pic, huh?! So, next time you’re watching a film, spare a thought for the composer & pay closer attention to the music. There’s a lot of beauty to be discovered in a soundtrack...
Take care,Bryan
March 31, 2014...
Hello there friends and music lovers! It's that time again when I write a monthly installment into my little world of music & music creation. But this time I wanted to talk about something else. Something a little more personal. This month, I wanted to talk about death & how music has the potential for healing & and even assisting you through the grieving process...
It's a kind of heavy subject, but I'm sure there are many people out there in the world who have lost someone close, someone dear to them. And it's been in music where they've found solace and a way to escape from the pain & the immeasurable grief that can at times be completely overpowering. I know what that feels like. I lost my older brother the day after his 25th birthday. He died of cancer at a very young age. He was a couple of years older than me, & someone I looked up to very much. We had a pretty great relationship. We both had very similar interests & goals in the music realm; both of us singers/performers & we both loved musical theatre. At the time he was diagnosed with cancer, we were both in professional productions, seemingly living out our dreams. Then it all came crashing down like a ton of bricks...
I got a call from Mum saying my brother missed a rehearsal because he had stomach pains, but it was nothing to worry about. Then the next call, she said it was something more serious but to tell anyone who asked that it was a stomach ulcer or something innocuous like that. That's when I started to really stress out. I was living on the Gold Coast & my brother was in Melbourne, so it wasn't like I could pop over to see him & get more answers. It was really difficult to keep my head screwed on during the show's rehearsals, & as he got progressively worse, everything got progressively harder...
I was lucky to get a huge amount of love & support from my family, friends & cast members, especially the show's Director who had himself lost his sister when he was young, so he completely understood where I was & how I was feeling. Eventually my brother lost his battle in a Brisbane hospital, brought home to be nearer to the family. My world had come crashing down around me. Here I was, in an amazing professional musical production of "HAIR", meant to be having the time of my young life, yet I was falling to pieces. The show did go on, but it was hard… So unimaginably hard… The cast all came to the funeral & I sang with them one of the songs from the show "Where Do I Go?" which was kind of fitting...
That moment at the service, when I moved across the church to join my cast members to sing at my brother’s funeral, was a really beautiful & poignant moment. The release that comes from singing like that, of being able to express yourself so triumphantly, with conviction, with unrestrained emotion, is just priceless. It helped me so much right then & there. And I continued to release my feelings at each & every performance during the run of shows. It was a really important part of my healing & grieving. It allowed me a healthy channel to purge myself of bottled up emotion. I looked forward to every performance, to the part where I was meant to cry for another character, because it came so much easier after what I went through. That show was one of the best things that ever happened to me, at the worst time in my life. Without music, I don't know what I would have done...
I'll always be thankful that music was there for me & it continues to do so. Don't underestimate the power of music. It really can help you in your darkest hour. All I can say is that I hope the music you love is there to help you in your times of need...
Take care,Bryan
February 28, 2014...
Hey there wonderful people! How is everyone? Did you all get woo’ed & enjoy some good lovin’ on Valentines Day? Haha.. Hopefully you did, cause love definitely makes the world go around...
I am sorry to report to you all that I don’t have any more music to post for you all to sample this time around, but that’s only because I am busy finishing of some final arrangements to the soundtrack for World War Future. It’s such a big job that’s quite time intensive, and a lot of work for one person... but it’s a labour of love & I’m always learning new things each time I launch Logic Pro. I’m loving it!
I almost missed the month once again, but managed to realize that there’s only 28days to Feb. Good thing I noticed! Anyway folks, I’m keeping this post short & sweet. I’d better get back to it, lol...
Take care,Bryan
January 27, 2014...
Happy New Year everyone! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas & New Year season with their family & friends. I know I sure did. I had my birthday right after Christmas on the 27th & I was extremely lucky to share it with a very special group of family & close friends, who I’ve known for forever & a day. It was a really special occasion & I feel very lucky to have had such a terrific celebration.
So, 2014 is now well underway & it’s time to get past the party season & knuckle down on the things that matter most - writing more music! Work is still going well on the soundtrack for World War Future & I have another demo track to share with you all once again. This track is for “The Boardroom” scene & has not yet been given final approval, but nonetheless, I wanted to share it with you all so you have the chance to get a better feel for the music that will feature in the film. Please take a moment to have a listen & feel free to share this link or send in your comments or thoughts.
I think I nailed the brief on the momentum that was required for the boardroom scene, but I’ve yet to get the final approval on this track as our film’s producer, Dale, is currently in New York working hard on another project. Fingers crossed I got it right & this track also makes it in to the film soundtrack.
As always, if you haven’t gone to the facebook page for the film by now, please follow this link & then share it to all of your friends! Help spread the word about this great Australian Independent Film and stay up to date at www.facebook.com/WorldWarFuture
Take care,Bryan
December 21, 2013...
Hey there everyone! Are you all ready for a big Christmas Day feast with your family & friends? I hope so! So, the end of the year is upon us & it's time to step away from work, rejuvenate the mind & body, and to spend some quality time with those who mean most to us & to remember to be grateful for all that we have, especially when there are so many people in this world that go without. I've travelled overseas a bunch of times to some under privileged places & have seen how some people live. I definitely feel like I'm one of the lucky ones as I have a stable home, job, family, friends & all the perks of a modern society. Spare a thought & a few coins to help those in need, if you are able to do so.
Now it's time to talk about music! Everything for World War Future is going really well, and postproduction is currently underway. The film will not be ready by the end of this year, but will be done early 2014. Dates are still to be confirmed, but such is the nature of an independent film that doesn't have a huge team of people working on it. This production is being put together but a very talented but very small team. So the moment more information becomes available, you all will be amongst the first to hear about it! In the mean time, I've posted another track that will feature in the film, called "Broken". Please have a listen & like/share with the world!
So, please enjoy this piece of music from the film, and to check out more info about this awesome Independent Australian Film, go to www.facebook.com/WorldWarFuture and click on those like & share buttons!
Once again, I’d like to extend my sincere gratitude to all those who took the time to like my page, follow me on Facebook or Twitter, and come here to read my monthly posts. I am very grateful for all of the support and encouragement I’ve received throughout 2013, and I’m very excited to see what’s ahead in 2014. Make sure you have a very safe, joyous and Merry Christmas with your family & friends. See you all next year in 2014!!
MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Take care,Bryan
November 20, 2013...
Well, the end is in sight and work on the Australian Independent Film "World War Future" is slowly but surely coming to it's conclusion! It will be a great moment to see the final film and to be able to share that with all of you. It's been a really great and exciting process working on this project! If you haven't already checked out the page for the film (and thanks to those who have), please go to www.facebook.com/WorldWarFuture right now and get excited lovely people!
As of this month, I'm now a contributor to a very exciting new website called DoFunky! I have written for them my first of many album reviews and my very first one to get the ball rolling is for Tina Arena's newest album called "Reset". You can check out my review by going to www.dofunky.com.au/2013/11/tina-arena-reset-album-review.html which has attracted lots of views, and a handful of google 'pluses' along the way. It's a great site with lots of cool topics including music, film & TV, games, cosplay & more. Be sure to bookmark into your list of favourite websites wwww.dofunky.com.au and keep your eyes peeled for my future album reviews in the coming weeks.
Now, it is about time I gave you all another track to hear and it just so happens that I recently posted to my Soundcloud page a new progressive dance track called Mad Mage. It's a thumpin' track that is going to accompany an iOS & Android game of the same name, that will hopefully be available to buy online with a few months time. It's a really cool retro style game, where you're the Mad Mage trying to rescue your lost kitty! I'll be sure to let you know when this cool game goes on sale, but for now, you can listen to the track by going to www.soundcloud.com/bryanvitellaro/mad-mage and don't forget to like it or leave a comment.
Take care,Bryan
October 21, 2013...
Back again for another blog entry! Boy how time flies by! I have to say that writing this blog is an entirely new adventure for me. One that I seem to have gotten to a little late in the month one more than one occasion, sorry about that! I’m such an easily distracted person at the best of times, and maybe that’s a thing with creative people. Actually, I do remember having a conversation with one of my great & very talented friends who is a graphic artist & painter - shameless plug: www.benitta.com - and she has similar traits like I do, and can struggle with attention span sometimes. That’s definitely a good description of me. I once nearly bought a t-shirt that said “Easily distracted” but instead the t-shirt I bought had written on it, “Requires constant supervision”. So funny & so true...
Like everyone & many other artists out there, I too have a day job. It’s not one that I hate or detest, which is really nice, and it’s fairly relaxed, close to home, I can wear casual gear (jeans & t-shirt) which is a HUGE selling point for me, and it’s to do with technology & gadgets, with one of the tech giants. It suits me well, keeps regular income & allows me time away from there for important musical projects that I’m working on, such as “World War Future”, which is my entire focus right now. There is nothing more frustrating than being at work and wishing to be home creating music, but the flip side of that conundrum is that when I take time away from my day job to get ahead on my projects, it’s absolute heaven to be creating music. My appreciation for the time allocated for my music is not floundered or wasted. I find myself to be a heck of a lot more focused and dedicated, and the “easily distracted” version of myself is nowhere to be seen...
I really consider myself to be incredibly lucky to be able to have grown up learning music, and making music a huge part of my life, and I absolutely encourage anyone to give their kids an instrument that they can grow and learn with in their youth. It doesn’t mean that your child will become the next Justin Bieber or whatever, and that should never be the goal either. What music brings to a person is far beyond aiming to become rich & famous, although I will totally admit that I wanted that for myself when I was much younger, but it’s definitely not anymore & hasn’t been my focus for a very long time. My dream has changed. My dream is to put myself into the privileged position where I can make a regular living from creating new music & sharing it with people in what ever format it lands in, be that movies, TV, pop songs, video games, phone apps or anywhere else that requires a tune - I’d even say good old elevator music! Ha, doesn’t that music need an upgrade!
I wanted to be sure that my blog post was ready and done BEFORE the month ended, lol.. So, I don’t have a track to post here just yet but stay tuned! Another preview track for “World War Future” is coming very soon! I will obviously be posting about it on my Facebook, Twitter & Soundcloud pages the moment it’s ready! And as always, please share the music with your friends and feel free to leave your comments, thoughts or hit the like button...
Take care,Bryan
September 30, 2013...
Hey there again lovely people! I have been planning on having another musical demo to show you all this post, something to wet the appetite and give you another glimpse into the music I've been writing for the Australian Independent Film "World War Future" ( www.facebook.com/WorldWarFuture ) - please like the page if you haven't already!
I recently had another meeting with Director Dale Norton about my progress with the soundtrack, and he has confirmed that this next track I'm previewing here will be included in the film! That's really exciting as I feel this piece is really beautiful & will add a great atmosphere to particular scenes. I'm very excited to hear your comments & feedback for this track. As with any creative process, there will always be certain attempts that won't make the final cut, and that's cool. It's all part of trying new sounds, new melodies, & it's really important to recognize when something isn't working, and it's time to try a new tact. I'm really proud of this piece. I think it has come together beautifully. The instrumental piece is called "War Lullaby" & I hope you all enjoy it...
There's still much more music to write for this film & I'm savoring each minute of this experience. My facebook artist page has recently passed 2,000 likes, which I think is incredible & I'd like to extend my gratitude to all of those who have made the effort to follow me online and enjoy my posts with your 'likes' & comments of encouragement. It really does mean a great deal to me to find so much support & I thank you all very much. It's going to be surreal & the biggest buzz to finally watch the film at the end of the year when it's complete. That will definitely be a brilliant moment for my music & for me personally. Well, I really need to stop talking now & get back to working on some more music!
Take care,
Bryan
August 13, 2013...
Time keeps getting away from me & I forgot to post my entry from July! It’s really great being busy but I feel bad for neglecting my blog entries - woops! So, today I’m posting for two months - July & August...
I’ve been so excited about writing the soundtrack to “World War Future” & it’s time to start spreading the word near & far for what will be a fantastic Australian Independent Film that I encourage you all to show your support for! Please go to www.facebook.com/WorldWarFuture and like the page to be sure you’re kept informed with all that’s happening. And please please please, share it with your friends & family - the more eyes & ears the better! I truly feel blessed by all of your support I’ve received so far & I can’t wait until you all can see the final results...
As an exclusive sneak preview, I wanted to share with you all a sample of music from the film. This track is called “Waiting For The War” & this instrumental piece I wrote is the reason I got the job! Hopefully there will be more treats & exclusives I will be able to bring to you all as the post production for the film continues on, but for now, please have a listen to my track...
Waiting For The War - www.soundcloud.com/bryanvitellaro/waiting-for-the-war
Take care,
Bryan
July 18, 2013...
Work is progressing really well on the music for World War Future, which is the Independent Australian Film I’m currently working on. To see the trailer and find out a little more about the project, see last month’s blog entry below!
As mentioned in my post from April, I recently went north to become a godfather again to two of the cutest kids you’ll ever know, Isaac & Chelsea. And on the day of the christening, there was a great big gathering & BBQ with lots of people - it was a great day. That afternoon, I was finally getting some quiet time with Chelsea, my 4month old god daughter, who’d been passed about like a ‘pass the parcel’ prize & rightly so, she was getting quite grizzly, the poor little darling. So, I took my chance for a cuddle, to nurse her to sleep after the crowds had left. As she fidgeted in my arms, I began to hum a tune to her & slowly she settled and fell asleep in my arms - it was beautiful. I was standing in the backyard, watching the north Queensland sunset, holding my beautiful goddaughter & humming to her gently. I took the chance to record the melody on my iphone - baby in one arm, iphone in the other - so I could come away and turn it into something, and here is the result - “Chelsea’s Theme”.. I hope you like it..
Chelsea’s Theme - www.soundcloud.com/bryanvitellaro/chelseas-theme
Take care,
Bryan
June 8, 2013...
It was another crazy month and time got away from me, meaning I didn’t post an update in May - sorry about that! My bad… But I do have some really exciting news to share with you all that will quite possibly make up for not posting last month! Are you ready? Here it goes...
I can now announce to you all that I have already begun composing an original music soundtrack for an upcoming independent Australian film entitled "World War Future", written & directed by Dale Norton, who is a very talented guy and an amazing independent filmmaker, based here in Brisbane. I’m incredibly excited to be a part of this collaboration and the best part is that I have soooooo much music to make! I don’t have a release date to share with you all just yet, as the film is still in the stages of post-production. But, trust me, the moment those dates and venues become available, I will most definitely be shouting it from the rooftops so you all can check it out!
To assist me in the creative process, I got to read the script last week and let me tell you, it's going to be so amazing! I am ridiculously excited & can't wait to see the finished product with my music as the soundtrack!
Now comes the part where I get to share with you all some links where you can see a trailer for this production and find out a little more about the director and my collaborator, Dale Norton, and also see some of his other terrific work. You can stay tuned to see the latest updates on Dale’s facebook page by clicking this link here, hitting the LIKE button & then sharing it with your friends...
http://www.facebook.com/whaleyfilms
Be sure to check out http://whaleyfilms.com.au/ to see more about director Dale Norton, and a collection of some of his past productions. But for now, here is the current trailer to “World War Future”, right here...
I have to tell you, I cannot take any credit for the music in the trailer, as that was already a part of the production prior to me coming on board, but it is a great source of inspiration for me and has already helped in shaping the direction of the music I am currently writing. I could very well be tempted to share with you all some demo samples of my work during the creation process for this film, and hope to gather some feedback along the way from you all...
As the picture just below here shows, the 3rd May 2013 was the day that I joined onboard this production after meeting with Dale, with a great and many thanks going out to my very good friend Luke Josey, who was instrumental in arranging this connection of creative minds...
So, as this production progresses through the post production phase, I would love it if you could please share, repost, like or comment on these updates so that together we can get as many sets of eyes & ears watching and listening to trailers and music previews, to help make this awesome independent Australian production become as successful and much loved as it possibly can be! I’m really looking forward to showing you & sharing with you as much as I can about this project and the process (without giving too much away of course!). So stay tuned to my social media pages and check back here for the next blog entry!
I’m so damn excited! Wohoo! :)
Take care,Bryan
April 28, 2013...
I’ve been so busy working and developing some ideas that I almost forgot to write my post for April. What a slacker! It’s been a busy month with lots of late nights in front of the computer again, but it’s all for a good cause. I’ve been making new connections and planting a few seeds here and there, and hopefully when they sprout, the bloom will be a new beginning for my music and me. And that’s all that I can say about that... ;-)
I’ve been trawling the internet looks for interesting blogs about music and the craft of songwriting, because you are never too old to learn something new! Anyone who thinks they’ve learnt it all is either fooling himself or herself, or they have made more dollars than they hold blood cells within (and if you’re that rich, who cares!). I’ve got myself some new books about songwriting to read through and even more online material. Some of them are packed full of tutorial information, some with videos and lots of handy hints to store away in the brain for future reference. When I find something really cool and interesting, I usually post it either on my facebook page or on my twitter page so please click the follow or like buttons and you might find a slice of inspirational content for your next project.
This weekend I will be heading north to become a Godfather to two more little adorable munchkins, which is really very exciting! So the weekend for me will be with family and friends, and possibly a short little muse that could sprout another instrumental piece. Hmm, “Chelsea’s Theme” has a nice ring to it... What do you think?
Take care,Bryan
March 9, 2013...
So, I’ve been busy tinkering with lots of new and interesting ideas recently. In particular, I have been developing a new multi-genre track that will feature a very ‘left of centre’ artist - certainly not what you’d expect anyway. The point that I am trying to emphasize here is that this track will be very different in it’s cross-genre play and I’m interested to see how the final product is going to be received.
This bring me to a very subjective question, but here goes… Where does the line of genre mixing go wrong and when does a song become an unpleasant thing to listen to? And who decides where that line in the sand exists? I guess the obvious answer has to be the purchasing public who are buying the song and supporting the artist who is daring enough to blur those lines of normality or expectation. But when you look at things historically, isn’t it somewhere in these ‘in-between’ states that we find and can recognize a flourishing new subgenre? There have been countless artists who have borrowed from one performer and pinched a little sunshine from another elsewhere, only to blend it all together and produce their own new breed of performance art. And luckily for us, the result is something new and interesting to both the eyes and ears.
Artists have been copied, cloned and mimicked since performance began, God knows way back when, and I don’t think we’re immune to its effects in 2013 to be quite frank. I am excited by new and exciting styles of music, and I can only hope that when this track that I’m developing is finally finished, I might find positive feedback. How exciting!
Take care,Bryan
PS: I am absolutely thrilled that my artist profile on facebook is attracting so many new likes recently, and that I’ve surpassed my first thousand likes! It’s incredible and I’m so grateful! For those who haven’t been there yet, please go to www.facebook.com/bryanvitellarosongwriter and click on that like button!
Ferbuary 8, 2013...
A couple of weeks have past since I launched my new website (that you’ve obviously seen because you’re here on it now, lol) and the response was terrific! I’m getting more hits on my Soundcloud account because of the linked music and audio commercials, and my Twitter & Facebook pages are slowly but surely growing also, which is great. Feel free to forward a link to my pages - any of them - to all of your friends & family, so together we can spread the love of music!
Like many others, I’ve got myself a list of ‘must read’ books sitting in a neat little pile just waiting for me to read them, and I know that they will all be filled with inspiration and motivation to keep the momentum! Some of them are about songwriting, and the rest are written by Paulo Coelho - he’s amazing, you should check him out! There are so many aspects of life and the world around us that delivers so much inspiration and ideas for a ton of music. I constantly write ideas in the ‘notes’ app of my iPhone, such as lyric ideas and sometimes I even write down just a song title, because if it’s powerful enough, it will develop itself into a piece of music with you as the conduit who merely scribes it. The other app that I find immensely useful is the dictaphone recorder application. The only problem is that it’s mostly at night when I can’t sleep, my brain will begin to piece together a musical idea or a chorus of a song and I’m damned if I can’t rest until it’s ‘sung’ into my phone, saved for another day to tinker with.
Many people have asked me, “Which comes first, the music or the words?” and I have to say that it always changes. I get lots of ideas in the shower, mostly because it’s so relaxing being under cascading water and the acoustics are always better in the bathroom. And of course, late at night when I can’t sleep. So, I’d like to ask you reading this now, what would you write about if you were to write a song? What is your motivation? From what life lessons would you draw upon? Go to my facebook artist page and tell me what you’d write about. Go to www.facebook.com/bryanvitellarosongwriter and drop me a line or say hello!
Take care,
Bryan
January 22, 2013...
So the day is finally here! My brand new website has gone live today & I’m absolutely stoked! I think this site looks amazing & I’m so grateful to Simon who put all of my ideas together & made them work, even with my bright yellow colour choice. He’s done wonders with building this site & it’s worked out brilliantly, so thanks again Simon! If anyone wants to be put contact with Simon for a website for themselves, their band or for their business, please get in touch with me through my contact page & I will gladly put you direct contact with Simon. :)
There has been a lot of preparation getting to this point with both the website and with my music, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. The best things are always worth the time and effort. Personally, I’ve been through a lot of changes in the past 12 months, and getting this website up and running is the end of an era, but it is also the beginning of a brand new chapter in my professional life. I’ve reassessed and changed my goals, my attitude & my perception - all for the better. I’ve happily left 2012 with all of it’s good times & bad times in the past where it belongs, and I embrace 2013 with open arms, open eyes & an open mind, ready to accept an abundance of opportunities & inspiration that the universe will send my way.
I’m incredibly grateful for all of the support I’ve received from my family, friends and (dare I say) ‘fans’ that have liked my artist page on facebook (www.facebook.com/bryanvitellarosongwriter) or follow me on twitter (www.twitter.com/bryanvitellaro) and so, to you all I say a heartfelt “thank you”. I truly appreciate and look forward to your continued love & support, and I can’t wait to share with you all my next songs & pieces of instrumental music!
Take care,Bryan
An earlier blog from my university days...
http://lovinthedoofdoof.blogspot.com.au
Check back soon to read my next blog entry!