Composer Channel - how quickly your songs go live

[Christopher Duncan]

Hey, guys.

I haven't been as active on the forums the last week or two as I'm pretty slammed with work, so thought I'd take a moment to catch you guys up on the latest station stuff.

We're mixing and putting up the previously recorded shows such as the new Composer a la Carte series with Deirdre and Charlie. However, to get people's songs on the air quickly, newly submitted songs are first added to the GPO Variety Hour show. Since these are one hour shows, before each new edition can be added to the schedule, we need an hour of new songs.

Currently, we have about half an hour's worth of songs in the queue from Peter Cernuska, Rob Dart and Steve Mitchell. It's nice to finally be caught up with you guys! http://www.northernsounds.com/forum/images/smilies/smile.gif As soon as we get another 30 minutes of tunes, we'll add this batch.

So, when you submit songs, bear in mind that how quickly they get added to the schedule depends entirely on how quickly the new songs are coming in. If you'd like them up faster, poke a friend in the ribs and tell 'em to send in some of their stuff, too. ;)

Charlie and Deirdre have a few weeks off, and during this time we're kicking around ideas for new shows. And of course, we've got a few more editions of Composers a la Carte to mix in the interim.

We're also seeing a significant increase in traffic due to just a single entry in an Internet radio list site I bumped into. This clearly makes a difference, so anytime you run into a web site that lists radio stations, shoot me the link and I'll add an entry for the Composer Channel.

Anyway, that's all for now.

Bidibudea, budea, budea... http://www.northernsounds.com/forum/images/smilies/smile.gif

[YBaCuO]

Is there still the 5 minute limit per song? That is awfully low.

YBaCuO

[Christopher Duncan]

Yes, there's a 5 minute limit, which won't change. It makes it easier for more people to be heard in a show, and also helps keep people listening through a good pace and variety. If listeners don't care for one piece, they'll stick around and check out the next one if songs are shorter, but if it's 30 minutes they just leave and everyone loses.

Many composers have longer pieces that they've broken into smaller movements for our shows and it's worked nicely. You might also consider the limit as a creative exercise. Most of all, though, look at it in terms of being considerate to others, as that's the primary reason I made that decision.

[SeanHannifin]

While the five minute rule may seem kind of restricting for some pieces, I agree that it is needed and is a good decision. :)

Thanks for your continued work on the station! I'm off to submit my last piece :D

[jesshmusic]

Not even a piddily little 7 minutes? :rolleyes:

My average length runs about 7 minutes except for orchestral...

It is about time for an orchestral suite with individual movements below 5 minutes....

... but 7 minutes sure would be sweet! ;)

[jc5]

Considering that many of the submissions or of an orchestral/symphonic nature, a ten minute limit would probably be more suitable?

I don't even have GPO, so for now at least I couldn't participate in this great service anyhow, but there is my opinion for what it is worth. :D
Most standalone orchestral pieces I have composed of late have exceeded five minutes, with average timings being between 6-8 minutes - and I know for a fact that those averages will extend to most.

The time limit reasoning makes perfect sense, but there is a great deal of music that will be locked out in this way. There are certain things that simply can't be tackled in the same way in under five minutes.

Anyhow, I'll just conclude with more kudos for the entire Composer Channel endeavor. I look forward to possibly being able to participate once the new collections such as the Strad become available. :)

[Polaris]

While I can sympathize with everyone on the time limit, I have simply edited a couple of my contributions to get under the limit. I then comment on my composer page about the edits.
If a piece of music sounds interesting to me I will investigate the composer page for information about the composition. If there is a link to additional music, I will check it out.
Don't deprive the listener of your work simply because you dislike the time limit. Challenge yourself to display your work in abbreviated form. If listeners are interested, they WILL investigate!

David (Lang)
Polaris - Classical/New-Age using sampled traditional instruments.