ASCAP’s Richard Bellis Plus Matthew Margeson, Michael Bearden, & Joe Trapanese – HuffPost 8.7.13

Mike Ragogna: What advice do you have for new artists?

Richard Bellis: Give yourself a goal, a specific time frame in which you want to achieve a certain financial plateau, lifestyle or body of work. You can always renegotiate that time frame with yourself but, if you just take things as they come, day by day, you will find it very hard to stay motivated. Staying motivated in a world of unprecedented competition is essential.

MR: What advice do you have for new composers?

Matthew Margeson: Write, write, write. A common mistake is that even if a person knows everything there is to know about music, theory, orchestration, etc… It doesn’t necessarily make them a good story-teller. Storytelling is an art in itself and takes a lot of practice. Write to as much picture as you can. Try different ways to score different scenes when you have time, because there are always little discoveries to be made.

Michael Bearden: I have three pieces of invaluable advice I got when I was young. One, always, always, always be yourself! There is already one John Williams and he’s pretty good at being him, so why do we need another one? Two, Michael Giacchino told me once, and I’m paraphrasing, “When they ask you to write a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, don’t write a thanksgiving dinner, write a peanut butter and jelly sandwich!” Three, and my favorite from Dave Grusin. When I asked him advice on writing for my very first feature film he could tell I was nervous. He sat me down and told me, “The secret to scoring film is that there is no secret. Look at the film. Let the visuals influence you, and then write some ƒ&@*# music!” I never forgot that.

Joe Trapanese: Never underestimate hard work on your technical skills as a musician. Everyone always talks about ‘getting the gig’ and how competitive the whole industry. I’ve noticed that when all is said and done, the people who have long and healthy careers continually strive to become better composers and musicians.