Chapter 18

an opening credits sequence in a film or other media production that includes the main title (the portion of the production that displays the title of the work).

the portion of the title sequence in a film or other media production that displays the title of the work.

a traditional Japanese scale derived from the tuning traditions of the koto instrument that features the intervallic structure of W, H, 2W, H, 2W (2W simply means two whole steps, or a M3).

the principal scale used in traditional Chinese music, which has an intervallic structure of W, W, W+H, W, W+H.

intervallic combinations in Indian classical music (and other musics) that are designed to color an atmosphere and create specific moods.

a compositional guideline used in media scoring, assigning approximately 80% of the expression to the drama and emotional atmosphere of the scene, while the remaining 20% is used to define the region in which the scene takes place.

a type of composition for media that involves pieces that are created “from scratch” and based on the specific requests of a director, producer, or other client for the purpose of filling the needs of a specific project.

a type of scoring that involves creating music for a publisher that needs to generically fit a multitude of situations for the publisher’s clients.

ready-made compositions for television, radio, and live events that feature a consistent sonic atmosphere and are used to support specific emotions or situations.

a brief piece of music that is used to transition between sections of programming, such as into and out of commercial breaks.

creating full pieces of music with memorable beginnings, middle sections, and endings that are designed such that editors can easily take out certain sections, rearrange sections, or otherwise edit as they see fit to appropriately match the situation for which they need music.

a piece of music that is used to support a movie or video game trailer.

the act of modifying a sound source in some way to create a new sound.

a process that involves recording live sounds and manipulating them by way of computer processing (e.g., time-stretching, adding effects, editing waveforms, etc.) to generate new sounds.

a sub bass sound that sonically articulates an important hit point in a piece of music.

a termination of a rise that never delivers the full impact that was implied or expected.  Often, this lack of a sonic “payoff” results in a stronger effect than the powerful climax that was anticipated. 

a compositional technique used for video game implementation that consists of multiple loopable sections of music that can alternate back and forth at given points without creating discontinuities. 

a small audio file—often a short stinger or atmospheric clip—that is used to bridge together the larger looping sections within a horizontal re-sequencing scheme in a game composition. 

a common approach to interactive game composition that effectively breaks a large composition into autonomous units that can function both individually as well as with any combination of the other parts. 

an organized version of a larger session that records similar sounds (and/or those related by instrument family) into groups to create a more manageable session that can be easily recreated by other producers in different DAWs, often for the purpose of a final mix.

mixes in the same desired style as a producer’s project—often provided by the client—that are used as artistic guidelines.

reference tracks that are edited to picture to provide an understanding of emotional and artistic pacing and atmosphere.