TO BE CREATIVE ON POINT IS NOT ALWAYS EASY. EVERYBODY KNOWS THE SITUATION WHEN YOU ARE SITTING IN FRONT OF A WHITE SHEET OF PAPER TRYING TO FIND THE RIGHT BEGINNING AND THE RIGHT IDEA. HAVE YOU EVER EXPERIENCED YOURSELF IN SUCH A SITUATION AND HOW DO YOU MANAGE TO FIND THE BEGINNING?

“I think everybody knows such days when you have to work to get your own creative juices into motion. In such cases it is helpful to be inspired by virtual instruments / sample libraries. Sometimes a patch can be enough to trigger a new idea, which I can refine and work on.”

HOW DO YOU MANAGE TO FIND THE RIGHT WORKFLOW? DO YOU HAVE ANY RITUALS OR METHODS THAT HELP YOU TO GET INTO THE SPIRIT OF A THEME?

“The project information and spotting files I receive from customers are usually sufficient to get some general ideas for the project and to define my musical journey. I arrange the combination of instruments that I would like to use for the whole project or individual tracks. All the real instruments and microphones are placed in a semicircle behind me and on my work rig I additionally load the respective sample libraries into my template. At that moment I mostly have a musical idea in mind that I record and elaborate on.”

HOW CAN SAMPLE LIBRARIES SUPPORT YOU IN YOUR DAILY WORK? SURE, THEY ARE HELPFUL FOR TIME CRITICAL PROJECTS, BUT ARE THERE ANY OTHER BENEFITS?

“Besides the time saving the cost factor is not to be underestimated. With the help of current sample libraries you can simulate the sound of a real orchestra quite realistically. Today’s sample libraries are recorded in superb sounding and often very popular studios and concert halls. So you save the costs for a good orchestra and also the costs for the location rent and technicians. Even if the music will be finally recorded with a real orchestra or solo musicians an already great sounding sample library mockup will give the customer a detailed preview of the music which usually helps a lot.”

HOW DO YOU RATE THE QUALITY OF SAMPLE LIBRARIES IN COMPARISON TO LIVE RECORDINGS?

“The current sample libraries are generally well recorded and programmed. For a layman the results that you as a composer can achieve in the box are often difficult to distinguish from an actual live recording. Nevertheless the human aspect and the feeling that real musicians breathe into the music are missing sometimes. Working only with sample libraries can make a composition sound cold, artificial and sterile. If there is time I always try to record one or two live instruments to warm up the whole thing. A real orchestra recording with a good orchestra is obviously the best choice, but it’s also a budget matter.”

WHAT DOES YOUR FIRST CONTACT WITH A NEW LIBRARY LOOK LIKE? WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO YOU AND WHAT IS NECESSARY FOR YOU WHILE TESTING THE NEW PRODUCT?

“I am equipped with the most of the regular orchestra libraries. So I often search for libraries which inspire me soundwise and with which I can achieve my aims quickly. If a library requires me to program for hours and hours to compose a realistic and clear sounding line I directly rule it out. Under a rough deadline I am really happy about every library that can be played with ease and furthermore sounds brilliant and by that saves me precious time.”

HOW DO YOU JUDGE YOUR OWN COMPOSITION? WHICH FACTORS PLAY A ROLE?

“In general the customers judge the composition. I always aim to get as close as possible to their vision and in the best case to exceed their expectations.”

IS IT POSSIBLE THAT YOU RECOGNIZE THAT YOU FOLLOW THE WRONG DIRECTION WHILE COMPOSING? HOW DO YOU REACT?

“This does not happen very often, but in such cases I radically delete everything and just start over again”

HOW DO YOU HANDLE CUSTOMER’S CRITIC IF HE/SHE HAS GOT ANOTHER VIEW ON THE RESULT AS YOU HAVE?

“The customer is king and knows what is best for the project. Sometimes misunderstandings occur or the composition is too ambitioned and misses the mark. If nothing was right I compose a new track from scratch. But usually I am on the right track and I only have to adjust certain passages. This includes technical changes like formats and sound improvements, but also deleting or adding musical parts. But as of now we of the Dynamedion team have always satisfied our customers.”
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Henning Nugel