New In The Pipeline - August 22, 2018: Stillness

I have a new stock music item in the pipeline, awaiting curation at AudioJungle. The title of this piece is "Stillness." It runs just under two minutes in length, and is a little different for me because I took a chamber music approach with it. The instrumentation is a harp and string quartet (two violins, viola and cello) playing a quiet to somber background. I could see this working for scenes in your audio or video productions where you want to convey a sort of thoughtful or even dreary sonic atmosphere. Check out the sample below...



As always with AudioJungle, it takes time for them to evaluate submissions, and there's no guarantee they'll accept it. If they don't, I'll be submitting to Pond5 and/or MotionElements, so stay tuned here and on my Twitter feed for updates.

What's Happening: Week of August 20, 2018

First, I want to announce that the prospective podcast I had announced a few weeks back is now on indefinite hold. I'm not holding my breath for it to actually happen at this point. Sometimes things just don't work out, and we move on.

Now for better news.

My featured stock music item this week is Inspiring Podcast Intro (30 Second). It's got a sort of magical feel to it, very light and uplifting. You can also license it in 15 second and six-second bumper versions. I hope you'll check it out.

Finally . . .

I have a new item in the pipeline and there's a story behind this one. A few days back a good friend called and asked if I could put together a game show parody intro with a brief scripted announcer bit up front. I grabbed my item Big Band Swing Intro (Short), channeled my inner Johnny Gilbert, put it all together and sent him two versions about an hour later.

Then I got to thinking. I don't really have anything that would work as a kind of kitschy game show parody. So, inspired by the theme from the long running game show The Price is Right, I put together an intro that might work for podcasters or other media producers looking to take a tongue-in-cheek approach to their material. I purposely used a special VST plugin to try and give the final version a sort of "retro" tape saturated 1960's-70s vibe. I call it "Fun Upbeat Retro Intro." Here's a sample of the thirty-second version.



I also put together a 15-second version, a bumper version, and a loop that doesn't contain the original melody but instead has little accents in the flute and muted trumpet. I'm also experimenting with a new watermark I created that also touts my main website ("thisbrucesmith.com"). If I decide I like it (or I see more traffic at the home page) maybe I'll make the adjustment permanent.

I've got a bunch of stuff currently in the pipeline, so keep tabs here and on my Twitter feed (linked in the top menu) for news of when and if things become available. As always don't be surprised if I get in a mood to write and put out updates or articles in between Sundays. Thanks for reading, and please stop by again soon.

In The Pipeline, August 14, 2018: Two New Items

I'm pleased to announce two new stock music items, one with variations, awaiting approval to go online at Pond5.

The first item is "Lifestyle Podcast Intro 3." This one has three versions: a 30-second full version, a 15-second short version, and a seven-second bumper. Unlike some of the other intros I've described as "lifestyle" intros, this one is very simple and mellow. Check out this preview of the full version.



The other new item is also pretty basic. I call it "Somber Moment." It's a looping underscore featuring strings, piano and marimba for sad, pensive or anxious scenes. Here's a preview of part of the track.



Stay tuned here and to my Twitter feed to be the first to find out when these items go online (or not).

In The Pipeline, August 2, 2018: Realize The Dream

I've got a new stock music item in the pipeline. I submitted this one to AudioJungle. It's been almost a year since I uploaded anything for consideration there, and I think both the content and sound quality are good enough to fly there.

The item is a motivational track called "Realize The Dream." In most respects, it's pretty standard as corporate/motivational music goes. However, I've been listening to so much stuff that using the same IV-V-vi-I chord progressions with variations that I'm sick of it. So I decided to spice it up by adding the VII into the mix. Also, I just took advantage of an IK Multimedia deal to get the CE version of Miroslav Philharmonik 2 for less than $40 (US) -- less than $30 after I applied available credits -- and really wanted to use the new string samples on this track. As you can hear from the preview below, they are much more lively and realistic than the ones in the original Miroslav or Sample Tank 3, especially the ensemble staccato strings that I used heavily on the track. Here's that 30-second preview from the 2:48 full track.



The package also includes a couple of loops for background bed use. As I mentioned, I submitted this one to AudioJungle, where the average wait time for approval or rejection is 14 days. In about two weeks I should know whether it's gong there, or if I'll submit it to Pond5 and/or MotionElements.

In The Pipeline, June 13, 2018: New Intros and Collections

I have two new items (with variations) in my Pond5 pipeline as of today.The first is another corporate podcast intro. This one is a little more uptempo and has a higher energy level than the others (in my opinion, anyway), and can be a terrific opener for your motivational projects, too. It has four versions: a :30, :15. bumper/stinger and loop. Here's a preview of the 30-second version:



The second candidate is a blues rock intro (really just a riff) that's down and dirty and based on the old Bo Diddley beat. It has three versions -- a :30, a :15 and a bumper/stinger (no loop for this one). Here's a sample:



That's not all . . .

Assuming all goes well and these items are approved, I plan to include them in two new collections I'm rolling out. I now have so many items in my podcast intro music collection (over 200 now) that it's probably unwieldy for prospective clients (like you, I hope!) to browse through them all. So, I'm planning to group similar intros into their own collections to make it easier, starting with rock podcast intros,

and corporate podcast intros.

I plan to support the rollout with YouTube video samplers of both collections. Keep an eye here and on my Twitter for updates as we go.

In The Pipeline: June 6, 2018 - City Shadows

I'm pleased to announce a new stock music item in the pipeline at Pond5. It's a blend of smooth jazz/R&B with a noir atmosphere I call "City Shadows." Here's a 30-second sample:



This track will (pending approval) become part of a new curated collection I've created at Pond5. I call the collection "Subdued," and it includes music with atmospheric vibes suitable to sit behind subdued moods in your videos or podcasts. You can access the collection from this link.

Meanwhile, several items that were in the pipeline are now online at Pond5. You can sample them all, plus other recent stock music items, at this Pond5 collection.

Check back here and on my Twitter feed for the latest updates, and don't forget my weekly updates every Sunday evening (US Eastern Time).

In The Pipeline, May 29, 2018: Inspiring Podcast Intro

I'm pleased to introduce a new candidate for my Podcast Intro Music collection. "Inspiring Podcast Intro" is a bright yet stately track in :30 and :15 lengths, plus a six-second bumper for YouTube and similar bumper ad content. This is a great choice for public service or society/culture formats, and you could consider it for business positive content as well. Here's a preview:



I usually update on Twitter when my items go live. If you don't follow me there, just click the link in the top bar of this page to access my profile. Thanks for listening.

In The Pipeline May 23, 2018: Positive Perspective

My latest stock music item in the pipeline is "Positive Perspective." This is a bright, medium tempo track to help promote good feelings in your explainer videos and similar corporate media content. There are two versions, a 3+ minute full version and a 38-second looped excerpt, which I used for the preview below.



For updates on availability, keep an eye on my Twitter feed.

What's Happening: Week of May 14, 2018

I have some new stock music in the pipeline since my last post here, so let me start with that.

My latest submission to my podcast intro collection is highly dramatic. So I'm calling it "Highly Dramatic Intro." My original idea was to call it "High Drama Intro," but I already have an item called "High Drama" and didn't want to risk getting confused later. It features lots of aggressive staccato strings and big legato brass, with percussion (of course!). I'm offering it in :30, :15 and stinger versions (no loop version on this one). Check out a preview of the :30 version.

New to my inspirational and motivational music collection is "Making The Difference." This is upbeat, motivational background music to help you convey positive messages in healthcare, lifestyle, political and other subject matter. It's a little over two minutes in length; here's a thirty second sample from the beginning of the track.



Both items are in curation at Pond5. Keep an eye on my Twitter feed for more information when I have confirmation that they are online and available to license.

My featured stock music item this week is Moving Ahead. It's a nice, bright soft rock tune that features a melodica/harmonica melody and is a good choice for healthcare, lifestyle backgrounds or character development montages in your family-friendly or rom-com projects. If you're interested, please check it out at Pond5.

Finally, here's a strange thing. Last time I was on the ASCAP site to register titles for the items now in the pipeline, I noticed I had royalty revenue for the April 2018 quarter. I'm not expecting performance royalties, because no one has licensed any of my stock music for broadcast (that I'm aware of yet). No cue sheets yet. So I looked at the report.

Apparently, ASCAP has worked out deals with various internet companies like YouTube, Spotify and iHeart to collect performance royalties on music. And that's good. On the less good side, my royalty total for all my stuff came out to exactly $0.01. And that might have been generous. At least they can't say I haven't contributed anything to their bottom line.

And so it goes. As always, I thank you for your support, whether it's licensing, streaming my album, EPs or singles, or just stopping by to read. Please feel free to stop in again, leave a comment or contact me using the form in this blog.

Until next time, take care.

B~)

In The Pipeline May 8, 2018: "Big Idea"

I've finished one of the tracks I was working on and submitted it to Pond5. I call it "Big Idea." It's a heavily-sequenced electronic track that's intended to bubble underneath how-to or explainer videos. Check out the sample below.



Assuming all goes well, I'll be tweeting soon that "Big Idea" is live and online, so keep an eye on my Twitter feed. If not, you'll hear about it in my next weekly update.

Cheers!

In The Pipeline, April 24, 2018: "Critical Seconds"

"Critical Seconds" is a fast-paced, urgent 60-second piece with strings and lots of cinematic-style percussion. It's designed for scenes where seconds count. Here's a sample:



Stay tuned to my Twitter feed for updates on the availability of "Critical Seconds."