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Original post by kindjie
Thanks Nate! Your advice about taking feedback gracefully is very important in a creative industry often driven by reputation as much as skill.
Great! Glad it helped!
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Original post by kindjie
I actually find myself in the client position and found your post helpful as well. Are there certain questions a composer should be asking a client to help direct the feedback? Conversely, what are some of the ways a client can get the most out of a composer without asking for endless revisions? I'm worried about micromanaging and not taking full advantage of a composer's creativity.
Well here's what I ask for when starting a project with a client:
What word(s) would you use to describe the game? Then I ask for as many visual examples as possible. Concept art, screen shots, etc. Finally I ask what type(s) of references do they have in mind for the audio of the game? References can be anything: a CD they feel matches, other video games, other films, classical pieces, etc.
When getting feedback about a piece that isn't working I try to narrow it down. Just saying "I don't like it" doesn't qualify as good feedback. It's simply too vague. I need specific points as to why this music track isn't fitting the game. Something like "I don't like this track because the pacing is too fast, too frantic. This level isn't supposed to have that much anxiety- that happens later in the game." This gives the composer an objective to change, to tweak. Something to address. For clients that do not have much musical knowledge it can be much harder to discuss the merits of a song with a composer. In this case references work wonders! Just one caveat: don't fall so in love with the reference song that you reject everything else that the composer does. I've seen this happen before. Also when using a reference with a composer it's VERY helpful to say what you like about it. For example:
"I chose this track as a reference for this part of the game because of the pounding drums! It just has so much energy, so much dread. I think something like this would work perfect here!" Also feel free to say what you don't want from a reference file. "So... yeah, keep the drums. But.... take out the kazoos. I don't like that. Too goofy."
Side note: There are times when you can let a composer surprise you! Especially if it is something that you have high amounts of faith in their abilities and instincts. Giving a composer complete freedom can be an extremely powerful and inspirational thing. You just have to know when to do it. :P You have to know how to do it. It could be as easy as: "Hey, we're just starting out and while I have a vision for the audio of this game, I know that you're the audio expert here. So for the first level, just surprise me. Look through the design doc, the visuals I've given you and the basic vision of the game and then supply what you think will be the best audio fit. From there we'll meet up and discuss how your vision jives with the rest of the project." I had a project manager do that with me once. Basically he said go for it. Do whatever you want, I completely trust you. It was so different from the usual "meet all of these criteria" that I found myself hugely inspired and went for it. He loved the music and I loved working with that client. It is risky though because sometimes what the composer comes up with may not work well... so this tactic is best used with someone who has an established sound and workflow. (In other words don't try this with a brand new composer- he or she is still learning the ropes.)
Basically it comes down to being more specific. Giving your composer as much info as you can. Sure music is objective and people's tastes vary greatly. But the more info you give your composer on what you want and then later on any revision requests- the more likely you'll both get what you want! A great game with great music!
Thanks,
Nate
