Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

Charlie McCarron

Join the quest! Learn how composers and songwriters create music in this podcast hosted by Minneapolis composer Charlie McCarron. Whether you’re a music composition grad or simply an occasional noodler on a guitar, each guest has a new perspective for you on the creative process of composing and songwriting, along with some concrete ideas to apply to your own music.

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Top 10 Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

Synesthetic Composing with Mary Beth Huttlin

Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

03/20/13 • 29 min

Dr. Mary Beth Huttlin is not only a talented composer and clarinetist, but she's also gifted perceptually. She has perfect pitch and a constant stream of melodies in her head to draw from. Mary Beth also experiences auditory-visual synesthesia, meaning she perceives colors when she hears music. In episode 24 of Composer Quest, Mary Beth talks with me about how these gifts affect the way she listens to and makes music. We also discuss why Bach is possibly the coolest composer ever.

Audacity Producer Desmond Simmons is Big in Japan

Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

09/18/13 • 31 min

Desmond Simmons, a.k.a. Precise Hero, produces music using only open-source software – he says his computer is too old to handle anything other than Linux. So how did Desmond’s DIY mixes end up on the Japanese label P-Vine Records? Creative fortitude and a collaborative spirit have been keys to Desmond’s success. In this (50th!) episode of Composer Quest, Desmond shares his thoughts on our remix culture, and why 70s Brazilian music is the best kind to sample from.

Schizophrenic Synthpop Storytelling with Felix Frost

Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

12/11/13 • 32 min

Experimental songwriter Ben Simon (aka Felix Frost) caught my ear when I was judging the SpinTunes songwriting contest. His album Phineas Flux has a really shiny pop sound, but it almost never repeats the same phrase twice (in fancy composer language, that’s called “through-composed”). We talk about his elaborate plot-driven songs about cowboys and pirates in this episode of Composer Quest.

Quest 8: May the Four-Hand Piano Be with You

Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

04/02/14 • 12 min

In honor of Star Wars Day (May the 4th be with you), our eighth Composer Quest quest will involve the number four. Your challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to write a piano piece for four hands (two pianists at one piano). You’re also encouraged to work the number four into your piece in other ways, like the harmony, rhythm, or form. The best pieces will be performed by Susan Hsu and Franco Holder here in Minnesota on May 4th (6pm, Underground Music Cafe).

Film Scoring 101 with Adam Conrad

Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

06/17/14 • 49 min

In this special summer episode of Composer Quest, composer Adam Conrad shares a ton of great insights about how music works in film. He also explains why he transitioned from using MIDI mockups to writing everything by hand, for real musicians.

Composing with Knobs and Patch Cables, Featuring Mike Olson

Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

10/29/14 • 59 min

Mike Olson schooled me in the ways of old-fashioned analog electronic composing, where you only have dials and cords to create music with. In this episode of Composer Quest, Mike shares how his creative process works when he’s at his Moog modular synthesizer. We also talk about how to sound-treat your home studio, and what makes music go from merely “perfect” to “hair-raisingly transcendent.”

Merry Podmas: 7 Composition Podcasts

Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

12/09/14 • 42 min

Welcome to this special Christmas episode of Composer Quest! Since I’ll be taking a break from interviews (until I find a few more patrons...wink wink), I thought I’d share a few of my favorite music composition and music production podcasts. If you’ve been listening to Composer Quest, you’ve heard from many of these podcast hosts before.

Song Exploder’s Hrishikesh Hirway on Songwriting

Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

04/22/15 • 63 min

Hrishikesh Hirway removes as much of himself as possible from his interviews with musicians in Song Exploder. In today’s episode of Composer Quest, we get to hear from this mysterious podcaster about his own songwriting process. He also shares what he’s learned from all the talented songwriter guests on Song Exploder.

Season 4 Finale: Jon Brantingham Returns

Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

07/01/15 • 98 min

For the Composer Quest Season 4 finale, I asked Jon Brantingham back to chat. He shares some great insights on musical form, film scoring, and the Gustav Mahler orchestration style.

Crowdfunding a Creative Bender with Tim Cheesebrow

Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

03/06/13 • 28 min

As a dad of two young kids, songwriter Tim Cheesebrow has limited hours in the day for music. But he recently wrote an album's worth of material in a self-imposed solitary confinement at a cabin in northern Minnesota. He's now in the midst of a crowdfunding campaign to produce this new album, Home in the Heartland. We talk about his three main sources of inspiration: his family, the concept of home, and a Carl Sagan-inspired philosophy of universal connectedness. Oh, and we also talk about extraterrestrial music.

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FAQ

How many episodes does Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast have?

Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast currently has 166 episodes available.

What topics does Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast cover?

The podcast is about Minneapolis, Music, Music Theory, Writing, Podcast, Podcasts, Songwriting, Arts and Performing Arts.

What is the most popular episode on Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast?

The episode title 'The art of lyrics with fiction writer Ryan Ruff Smith' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast?

The average episode length on Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast is 50 minutes.

How often are episodes of Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast released?

Episodes of Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast are typically released every 6 days, 18 hours.

When was the first episode of Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast?

The first episode of Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast was released on Jan 2, 2013.

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Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast

Charlie McCarron

Top 10 Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast Episodes

FAQ

How many episodes does Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast have?

What topics does Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast cover?

What is the most popular episode on Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast?

What is the average episode length on Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast?

How often are episodes of Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast released?

When was the first episode of Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast?

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