iChat as File Sharing Tool

A good file transferring system in paramount to being a session musician nowadays.

All Macs come with iChat and I've used it for years as a way to communicate with composers and collaborators as we are working. But to transfer files I use to use iDisk. But as of June of this year iDisk is no longer. I was bummed and I started using DropBox, which I love. But lately I've noticed that dropping into and through iChat has gotten much faster. And they are accepting much bigger files. It seemed to handle 20-40 mb files with ease. Other files transfer sites include...

Gobbler
Box.net
Yousendit

7 Reasons Why You Have No Gigs

7 Reasons Why You Have No Gigs

A Session From Way Back...

The Theme from Herman's Head

Had crap for gear but the composer and the engineer made me sound good. Think I was playing an Ibanez Roadstar through a Yamaha Rex 50 and a Fender solid state amp and an Acoustic 164 amp. Like I said "crap".

IMDB

IMDB stands for Internet Movie Database. Most people use it to find out things like... who's that actress is in that Adam Sandler movie? Or what other movies has that director directed?

It's a great resource for the movie buff. But a necessary resource for those in the position to hire someone in the business. It's a way to check credits and references. Therefore it's an excellent resource for some one who wants to get hired.

In the TV and film business it's pretty much a sure bet if you want to get hired your chances increase if you have at least a few credits on IMDB. Once you get referred to a composer as a musician or a director as a writer/composer odds are one in one that they'll search you in imdb.com.

You may have some up there you don't even know about it. You can add credits. Or more likely others will actually post your credits while entering credits for an entire project. When I first heard about it I went to check it out only to find out I had a page and was already attached to several films and shows that I'd worked on. Cool. 

Once I figured out how to update it myself I began to look up composers that I'd worked with and adding myself to projects that they'd hired me for. If I couldn't remember which projects I'd worked on I would send them a link to their page and ask them which ones I'd played on. This did two things: Remind them I exist and potentially add credits to my page.

Here's my page.

The Grass Is Always Greener...

I hear that a lot.  Not those particular words but something with the same inference.

For example, sitting in studio with a bunch of musicians, someone laments, "man I should've been a songwriter."  When someone else chimes in, "that producer is going to make a mint off our tracks."

Or a fellow pop song writer hears that I write for TV and says, "oh yeah man, that's where the money is."

And then when hanging with a TV writer friend and he finds out I'm writing pop songs, I hear, "oh yeah man, that's where the money is."

Record producers with higher aspirations start signing talent or publishing songs.

Publishers and managers want to be executives at major labels.

Major label exec's want to be a label owner.

In other words no matter how high up the ladder you are the grass is often greener on the other side.

This discontent with one's position isn't a bad thing, unless it turns you into a bitter, unpleasant human being.  It can instead be the fuel that keeps you moving in a upward direction, or at least keeps you moving.

Learning and growing are necessary skills to get and stay busy in your field of choice not just the music business. Realizing that you can always get better or learn a new skill is the surest way I know to stay busy.

Making a living as a guitar player...

Here are some ways I've paid the bills as a musician:

Working in a Record Store
Working in a Guitar Store
Running Sound at a Nightclub
Teaching Private Lessons
Teaching Clinics
Teaching a Class at USC
Guitar Coaching Actors
Copy Work (doing charts) - You'll need Finale 2011
Playing Jazz Gigs
Playing Top 40 Gigs
Playing Classical Music at a Restaurant
Playing Weddings (classical guitar)
Playing Rock Gigs
Playing in Cover Bands
Playing in Original Bands
Playing in a Pit Band (for plays/musicals)
Playing in Worship Bands
Leading Worship
Writing Worship Songs
Writing Rock Songs
Writing Classical Songs
Writing Pop Songs
Writing Music for Television
Writing Music for Film
Being a Music Director
Being a Contractor
Playing on Records/CD's
Playing on Movies
Playing on TV Shows
Playing on Jingles
Sidelining in TV Shows (on camera appearances)*
Producing Records
Developing Artists

All of these things I got paid to do.  Music is a great career for those who like variety. The opportunities up and down the music biz food chain are probably why you don't see a lot of musicians waiting tables.

With the exception of my second job at a Mexican restaurant right out of high school and a job working for a jewelry manufacturer, all of the jobs I've held have had something to do with music and/or playing guitar. It's not a career for the easily discouraged or for someone who likes or needs job security. But it is a field that rewards creativity. And chance takers. And those confident and skilled.

The musicians who continue to hone their craft and develop the skills employed by those further up the ladder employing them will see their career continue to grow, along with their sphere of influence. I've seen it happen all around me as well as in my own career.

* - for example, that's me in the blue vest...