Painless Creative Briefs (For Music Creation)

If you hire a composer, or you're a composer who's been hired, you'll need a creative brief. This remains true regardless of the industry - advertising, games, tv, etc.

This is an agreement that defines style, scope, and any other relevant information that has a material impact on the delivered track. All such briefs should contain one or more references (a piece of music that communicates stylistic vision) - here are two ways I approach this:

Approach #1:

Single reference accompanied by:

1. A general vibe description

2. Timecodes for moments you seek to emulate, with description (tempo, instrument etc)

High degree of specificity, useful for ads or other linear works heavily reliant on temp music for emotional beats in the narrative.

Approach #2:

Two or more references serving as a "musical venn diagram", accompanied by succinct descriptive text. The overlapping qualities form the foundational logic for the new track.

This method provides greater creative freedom with room for interpretation, useful for mood music, casual game loops etc. when you are establishing a general "feel" that isn't necessarily linked to a defined linear narrative arc.

Hybrid Approach:

You can mix and match depending on your needs. Every track you require should get its own references unless you're looking to create multiple tracks of identical style.

Benefits:

Both approaches provide client and contractor with a creative contract/agreement between the two parties with defined stylistic requirements.

This can include additional language detailing penalties for work that doesn't meet the requirements, or excessive revisions resulting from scope/brief changes after material work has already begun.

Both the client and contractor gain clarity, security, and predictability. Good contractors are happy to be held to account by accountable clients - this is the best type of collaboration.

About Me:

Xiao'an is a founding partner at Li & Ortega, which has created music for: Ferrero, Samsung, Fanta, Meta, GlaxoSmithKline, Pan Pacific Hotels, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Ikea, Dreamworks, NBC Universal, Disney Interactive, WebMD, Hogarth Worldwide, We Are Social, Moving Bits, The Frameyard, Offset, Trees Please Games, King, Supercell, Playstudios, Wooga, Mobilityware.

More at www.xiaoanli.com and www.liortega.com