When I Grow Up I Want To Be A...Jingle Composer

Description

Jingle composers are the professionals that produce memorable slogans and/or engaging melodies, mainly broadcasted on radio and sometimes on television commercials. Jingle Composers often come in one of three forms:

1. As a freelance writer

2. As a staff writer at an ad-music production company

3. As the main writer of their self-owned music house

Very closely related to television and film scoring, this field is highly competitive so only the most talented jingle writers can make a living at it. As another form of advertising, jingle writers (freelance or staff) are usually hired by Ad-Agencies to work on a specific project for a specific client. Today, with the ever-increasing cost of licensing preexisting music, a growing number of businesses are rediscovering the jingle as a more affordable option for their advertising needs. Because of this, jingle writing can be a very lucrative trade for those that don’t mind long hours in the studio and the pressure of demanding deadlines. Freelance writers make anywhere from $200 to $500 per song where as staff composers typically make up to $2000 per placement depending on the size of the ad agency and their total payment for that particular job. For this reason, most jingle writers prefer to be part of (what is generally called) a music house under whom they get the larger payment in addition to consistent work. Some music houses even offer salaries and benefits on top of commission payments and residuals. However these staff positions are not easily obtained and are rare in today’s market.

Day in the life

Although it is possible to make a decent living as a freelance writer, staff writers under music houses get much more work because their employers are contacted directly by companies in need of music advertising services. In a typical situation the company would contact the music house and asked them to submit four to six demos for a national commercial. After getting multiple demos from one or more music houses the ad agency and its client picks a winner and usually asks them to make some changes before submitting a final version of the jingle. It is important to note that ad-agencies expect all submissions to be broadcast ready as they cannot make any changes to the audio. After a few months the winning music house gets paid for the job and any artists that sang or played an instrument on the jingle starts receiving their residual payments.

Education & Experience

According to emusician.com, interning at an ad agency is the ideal first step at becoming a professional jingle writer. This experience will give you the insight you need to effectively place your material. The most successful jingle writers are business savvy, they have experience in playing an instrument and singing, extensive knowledge of music history, theory, literature, and orchestration, and familiarity with computers, MIDI, and music notation software. Other highly sought attributes of Jingle Composers include:

-Ability to read music

- Experience in composing and improvising

-Keyboard skills

-Participation in music ensembles

-Private instruction in piano and one other instrument or voice