Iâve spent the last couple of months working on a project for Empathy Museum - listeners (literally) walk a mile in someone elseâs shoes. It was a series of non-narrated stories, working with a minimal music budget.Â
So this month I wanted to share a few tips and tricks to elevate your scoring and sound design if youâve got a small or non-existent budget. (Btw, if you or your client can afford to commission a composer, please do!)Â
1) Use music stems
A lot of the music on free or affordable sites is too big and overpowering for podcasts - there can often be a YouTube meets corporate vibe. But some sites will give you access to the stems, ie just the melody, bass or percussion lines. This allows for a much more measured, pared-back sound. Epidemic is good for this.Â
2) Layer, layer, layerÂ
Layering multiple sound effects is a simple technique but it really levels up your whole sound design. Try sound effects over a simple rhythm or melody.Â
3) Try Splice
Splice is an affordable source of music samples -itâs the go-to for a lot of musicians. I use it to make electronic/house music, but then I realized some of the samples are perfect for podcast scoring. If you use search terms like âpianoâ or âguitarâ, itâll throw up short, often simple melodies that are the ideal length for transitions. It also has a bunch of good field recordings you can use for ambi. (This isnât an ad, I just really rate Splice!)
4) Build your own archiveÂ
Take the time to amass your own archive of field recordings. Youâd be surprised how often they come in handy, and can sound better than what you find online, even if youâre only recording on your phone. (Bear in mind where youâre allowed to legally record in your country/state - typically fine as long as someone doesnât have a âreasonable expectation of privacyâ.)
5) Compose your ownÂ
Itâs easier than you think to learn how to write short riffs or melodies using software like Ableton. Thereâs tons of tutorials online, and friend of the newsletter Katie Semro offers affordable classes.Â
Jobs
đš Peggy Girshman Fellowship ~ KFF ~ Washington DC
đš Producer ~ KCRW ~ Santa Monica, CA
đš Producer ~ Wondery ~ Remote, US
CoursesÂ
đ¤ Resonant Chambers ~ evening of live sound performances ~ 5 MayÂ
đ¤ Think Like a Business: Creating Opportunities as an Independent Producer with Emily Shaw ~ SoundPath ~ 9 May
đ¤ Third Wave Podcast Workshop ~ workshop in Los Angeles taught by David Weinberg ~ 29 July - 2 AugustÂ
đ¤ Pod-Pod ~ audio residency at UnionDocs ~ 11 September - 18 December
Quick note: I took part in the 2021 Pod-Pod, so hit me up if youâre thinking of applying and have any questions. Thanks for reading and supporting The Audio Storyteller!