Sustains at the End of Film Cues

Sustains at the End of Film Cues You should always make sure to have long enough last chords/sustains in film music cues that are supposed to “vanish” into nothing as the fade-out time needed might be longer than you think. If you end too early, the fade-out might be...

Circular Breathing

Circular Breathing Circular breathing is a technique used by woodwind and brass players to create a theoretically endless stream of air being able to play theoretically forever. The technique works in the way that you fill your cheeks with air before your lungs are...

Dynamic Shaping of Sustained Brass

Dynamic Shaping of Sustained Brass Brass instruments have the greatest timbral change over their dynamic spectrum. Therefore swells, crescendos, sffz, fp are highly dramatic and very effective on them. If you use long sustained brass chords or tones on key parts of...

Pedal Points

Pedal Points Pedal points are very common in film music, meaning usually that you change chords over a sustaining bass note. Even very dissonant chords in relation to the bass note work under such circumstances. Pedal points are great for buildups. In a busy sequence...