Jeff Van Dyke
I’ve had an interesting week. A week of being in a town that I don’t reside in. A week of meeting new people I didn’t know before. A week of seeing a side of technology I haven’t explored. A week of seeing a slightly skewed version of the music industry. I did all of this by attending the game developers conference, otherwise known as the GDC. What I found was a new spirit of the music community.
What do I mean by that? What is this spirit that I write of?
In the film world it’s fairly cutthroat. A kind of I’ll take what I can get and I won’t share it with you. There’s also a sense of sharkdom. Where older composers will take underlings and generally keep them there. Not a great way to break in the biz.
In the TV world it’s kinda similar. Lemme get what I can and not share with you.
In the major label system it’s also a closed door type of thing. Don’t call us, we’ll call you kind of thing. None of it is conducive to expanding the business.
These are part of the reasons why I’ve tended to go my own way. I like to work with people who can give of themselves and share. I like fair. Enter my first trip to GDC and not really knowing what to expect. What I got was a bit of an education that there is a different world out there.
The most interesting thing was how many companies were there and that they were open and receptive to meeting people that can help on the next project. It was very very different from the vibe I tend to get with other fairs of the music world. Add to that getting a chance to sit in on the G.A.N.G. awards. That really felt like a place I wanted to be. Love that.
In the spirit of thinking game music, I’m rolling with a video game song I helped in the creative process. It’s not available online. But what the hell. I was asked by Jeff Van Dyke to help on this piece of music he created. I won’t divulge the game, but I will say it was pretty darn popular.
Enjoy the music.
If you’re a composer and have some gumption, I’d recommend getting your tuckus to next year’s GDC. I know I will be going.