Orchestral and other musical arrangements, cross-genre collaborations, original and additional composition.
For times when I am to some extent re-inventing an element of the character of a piece. This could be an orchestral arrangement which merely enriches and supplements the original instrumentation, or one which completely re-invents, reharmonises it, adapts its style and even adds new textures or counter-melodies.
Each and every job is entirely unique, but will begin with you supplying me with a brief along with any initial material. For collaborations with popular artists in particular I will often then begin by transcribing the basic material, and creating a sample based midi mock-up of the arrangement which (if scheduling and fee structure allows) can then be supplied for comments, re-drafted if necessary, and finalised as a demo sketch in audio/midi form. This is then moved into notation software for full detailed orchestration, and finally the score and parts are prepared. Many of my regular clients skip the drafting stage entirely and are happy for me to work very quickly directly to notation!
Orchestration from midi mockups, scored sketches.
A more technical, solutions and problem solving based aspect of my work aimed at fully realising the instrumental and colouristic intentions of a composer for live players.
For instance, a client may produce a sample based midi mockup of an orchestration which they want me to interpret and orchestrate for a real life set of orchestral players. This mockup could be very simplistic sketches combined with a brief comment about the composers intention which require significant further orchestration on my part, or they could be fully written, separated instrumental parts which are being translated more directly to the page via some careful problem solving and management of dynamics, colour and technique.
Rarely, but occasionally sketches may arrive in the form of piano reductions, hand notated scores etc as well!
Transcription from audio.
Often a part of various projects, I am highly skilled in transcription from audio. For particularly complex pieces I may even slow down the audio to achieve a transcription that is as accurate as possible. If you require audio transcription it is advisable to supply the audio in as high-quality as possible, and if you happen to have access to separate audio stems for different elements of the track, even better, this will drastically speed up the process! Though of course these are often not available in which case I can work from the stereo file.
Digital score and parts layout and engraving, proofreading, professional printing, binding and other physical music preparation and organisation
Preparing cleanly engraved, practical, legible music is incredibly important in ensuring that any rehearsal, recording or performance goes smoothly. Over the years I have performed copying services on many projects both in film & TV and for the concert hall and various publishers including Faber and Chester Music (Musicsales) so I am versed in both publishing standards and the slightly more pragmatic studio standards of preparation. I maintain printing facilities for jobs of all sizes, but should state that as I principally provide these services as an “Add-on” to my arranging and orchestration services I will sometimes need notice to order in sufficient paper and toner stocks for the very largest jobs. Short notice jobs for which I am not also orchestrating may be referred to one of my colleagues who can act as a dedicated copyist for your project.
Feel free to contact me using the contact page on my website.
When requesting a quotation or estimate for my services it is important to provide as much information as possible.
For instance, for a musical arrangement I will need to know the number of musicians and exact instrumentation available, I will need to know what the source material is (e.g. link to an audio recording) and what the brief is for the creative aspect. For orchestration I may instead ask for an example midi file even if it is a work in progress or from a previous project so I can see how you organise your work.
I will also need to know about any proposed deadlines – dates you would intend me to start work, perhaps dates to provide a draft for you to give feedback, dates for final drafts, and dates for any recording sessions, rehearsals or performances.
Once I have a full idea of your requirements I will send you a quotation of my fees for the project. Sometimes this may be a “ballpark” figure for early stage enquiries, or it could be a fully costed complete fee, a fee that includes contingency options, or even a pay as you go hourly rate. The exact nature of the fees will depend on the level of flexibility required in the project and even if I initially I can only provide a ballpark fee guide I can usually provide a full quotation no later than the point as which I have received material to begin work.
As an MU member I use MU guide fees for all services, available as hourly or per bar/page rates, though these are often negotiated either as a bulk rate quotation, simple pay as you go, or an estimated total fee with a guide range and options for contingency funding. Please see the link below for current MU rates.
Note the MU provide fees for arranging, and fees for music preparation (along with things like printer porterage, overtime and standby fees), HOWEVER I recognise that many jobs involve a mix of arranging and music preparation, therefore I have a range of “in-between” fees set between the MU arranging and music prep rates depending on the mix of work involved in any individual project.
Please note my fee structure does include overtime payments. These are applicable for instance when a job falls behind schedule requiring me to work unsociable hours that were not pre-agreed as part of the schedule at the start of the work. If from the outset your project requires some late nights though, don’t worry, this is fine as long as it is properly planned for during negotiations and not sprung on me last minute!
In some cases a formal contract is required to begin work whilst in others (i.e. with regular clients) a suitably worded email will suffice. Of course where a contract is required from your perspective I am happy to oblige.
It is advisable to put a schedule in place at the start of the project. This will include deadlines for both me AND you! Some of these deadlines will be flexible, others will be rigid. Where possible formal contracts can be used to formalise our agreement but at a minimum I require written confirmation of our basic agreement via email. This means that if we agree a schedule or fees over the phone I may follow up with an email confirmation.
Once the work has been delivered in its final form (that is, the date my involvement ends, not the performance or recording date), I will provide the final invoice.
PLEASE NOTE, fees should be paid IN FULL within 30 days of invoicing. Failure to pay fees on time may incur statutory late payment fees being applied to your bill. For new clients an upfront 50% deposit may be applicable, and likewise large projects spanning several months may require payment in several tranches throughout the working period.
