Ambient Composing Secrets: Scoring Under Dialogue For Film & TV

[@DanielBastionMusic]

REALLY enjoying these progression style videos where you walk through the construction of a track/cue one layer at a time. It shows not just what sounds to use but more of the thought process/technique behind building up a song. It's like in cooking, the difference between just learning a recipe vs learning a technique. You can learn 1 chicken recipe or you can learn how to pan fry and then unlock THOUSANDS of recipes. Great video!!

[@jonasfriedman]

Really appreciate this analogy and that this style is working for you / everyone watching - its how I was able to learn by sitting next to other more experienced composers as they built up a track or cue one piece at a time

[@jenssieckmann]

I always get at least three points out of any of your videos: 1. Showcasing the workflow of a professional, 2. practical tips and advices regarding VSTs and plugins. 3. Inspiration. There are far more, e.g. business and career stuff which is secondary to me while I am only an amateur. Please keep up the good work. Thank you so much.

[@jonasfriedman]

Really happy to hear, thanks for the kind words and happy to hear these videos are helpful!

[@declarkson]

Very impressed. I think I'll get the course as a Christmas present to myself.

[@jonasfriedman]

Hope you enjoy! FYI holiday sale will end this coming week

[@es__music]

Hey Jonas, so I just purchased your course and I have to say you are one of the best educators I have come across. I have spent way too much money buying courses and you are by far the most clear and concise. I was wondering if you had plans to add more videos to your course. I was hoping to learn more about the following: 1) Music Theory - the minimum things to learn when getting started as a composer 2) MIDI ensemble chords and how to orchestrate each instrument 3) Song structure and how to move from one section to another ( I struggle with this one) 4) Mixing process Thanks!

[@jonasfriedman]

I am so appreciative of this comment @es__music thank you for the kind words. There are plans to add more videos to the recent course you purchased AND to release other courses that cover more of the topics that you mention, especially number 3) song structure and moving from one section to the next as well as more in depth information about the mixing process. Thanks for your support and involvement in this community, stay tuned for more!

[@lacourprod]

Hello, I am a filmmaker in France, and I stumbled upon your video by chance. I rarely comment, but I wanted to congratulate you on the sound quality of your voice recording. I have rarely heard a tutorial of such high quality. And the best part is that the visuals are really beautiful too. I'm subscribing right away for the quality of your work ;)

[@jonasfriedman]

Appreciate it!

[@DarkSideofSynth]

Such a splendid cue. It began so 'weak & non-descript' and turned into something really fitting to an emotive scene.

[@jonasfriedman]

Thanks @DarkSideofSynth , appreciate you checking it out

[@OfficialStevenCravis]

Brilliant channel, including the way you use sounds.

[@jonasfriedman]

Really appreciate it! Happy to know it’s helpful

[@MenonkNaldo]

Beautiful. Very well done ! :)

[@jonasfriedman]

Thank you very much!

[@ddigital333]

Great Video - thanks!

[@jonasfriedman]

You're welcome!

[@JulianHamlin]

Excellent tutorial. Real gold.

[@jonasfriedman]

Happy to know it was helpful

[@GilreathDental]

Beautiful cue Jonas. I love the walk through. Thanks for doing this.

[@jonasfriedman]

Appreciate it!

[@RasiRon]

Helpful and informative- impressive

[@jonasfriedman]

Glad it was helpful!

[@caizza3]

This sounds so premium - straight out of a cinematic movie 💪

[@jonasfriedman]

Appreciate that!

[@pianomanny1397]

Great video! First time I came across ambient scoring. Very helpful and creative. Thank you.

[@jonasfriedman]

Glad it was helpful!

[@bonuebonue]

Great content, great production of the video. Very helpful and inspiring: subscribed!

[@jonasfriedman]

Really appreciate it! Happy to hear

[@14theguitarman]

It feels like a private lesson! ... Thank you! 👍

[@jonasfriedman]

My pleasure!

[@liesbetleroy]

Great video, thank you!

[@jonasfriedman]

Happy it’s helpful

[@jamiesontobeymusic]

What an amazing video! Instant fan and will be watching all of your videos.

[@jonasfriedman]

Thanks so much! Really appreciate it

[@Ragnar.Iceland]

Thank you for your generosity and sharing this knowledge with us! Love & Respect

[@jonasfriedman]

my pleasure! Thanks for the kind words

[@tapeexperiments]

Cool cue, Newman vibes.👊 Also, I like that you show this type of cue can work great for many different types of scenes.

[@jonasfriedman]

what a compliment! Thomas Newman is one of my absolute favorite composers, could listen all day

[@Bitimi]

Awesome tutorial, Jonas! It really helps you to think through process of layering instruments to build something interesting to listen to. Thanks for sharing your knowledge!

[@jonasfriedman]

My pleasure @Bitimi , happy to hear it’s helpful

[@BobMiceli]

You do such a great job explaining your techniques. really enjoying your videos!

[@jonasfriedman]

Thanks for the comment - glad the videos are helpful 🙂

[@AdilConstantineMusic]

This was a fantastic video. Love the information, the pace and the video production quality. Discovering your channel this early makes me feel like I found a hidden treasure not a lot of people know about. I’ve been a musician for a while and always been curious about composing for film and TV and your channel has been binge worthy! Subbed and liked and looking forward to more vids ❤

[@jonasfriedman]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@mikaelbaggstrom]

I've been a subscriber and loyal viewer for a time now, and I have to say your videos are top notch quality in every way! =) - A question if I may, since I also make videos: what type of camera, lens etc. do you use for this amazing cinematic image?

[@jonasfriedman]

Really appreciate it! I use a Sony A7iii with a GM 50mm 1.2 lens. Truth of the matter is the lens is nice but the biggest impact is made by lighting. Knowing how to light the set and myself made an amazing difference to the “perceived quality” of the video.

[@mikaelbaggstrom]

​@@jonasfriedman Thank you, appreciate the insights. =)

[@Malikeththeblackbladee]

Thank you for these useful tips , really nice approach for scoring .

[@jonasfriedman]

Glad it was helpful!

[@relooch]

very underrated channel, great video!

[@jonasfriedman]

Much appreciated!

[@marklholloway]

Awesome tutorial and lovely ambient soundscape! Liked and subscribed! 👍✅🖤

[@jonasfriedman]

Appreciate it 🤘

[@lindabrittain4392]

What a beautiful soundscape you have created here Jonas. Such a blend of colours and not over complicated. Thank you for sharing your skills.

[@jonasfriedman]

Appreciate it @lindabrittain4392 ! Thanks for checking it out

[@Godreran]

Thank you for these videos, keep up the great work. Hope you're doing well

[@jonasfriedman]

Glad you like them!

[@kenzi-music]

Amazing work!! Helped me so much

[@jonasfriedman]

Really great to hear! Appreciate the comment 🤘

[@azizalami835]

One of the most pleasant & inspiring tutorial I’ve seen on KZbin so far ✨❤

[@jonasfriedman]

Thanks so much!

[@indikasampath5440]

Wow..I always try to compose music for scenes in my tv series. I had a little knowledge in ambient music..thanks

[@jonasfriedman]

Happy it’s helpful

[@GANGBENGAL]

Hey I just discovered your channel. Gotta say the content is insanely good! It's awasome that you're really selfless with the information you're sharing and you give the 'why' in your process. Probably one of the best production channels on here! Looking forward to more great videos.

[@jonasfriedman]

Really appreciate the kind words! Thanks for checking out the channel lots more on the way!

[@stevesutube]

Superb. A really insightful video

[@jonasfriedman]

Glad it was helpful!

[@dolittle6781]

Excellent! Love the arc you created. A big concern on the business side is how competitive the field is and how to make money. And ya kinda have to be a go getter, gotta be able to sell yourself. If you are not such a person it’s time to start learning how. Then of course be a great composer. Don’t forget to be a nice guy without letting people take advantage of you.

[@jonasfriedman]

Thanks! You are right you have to be a go getter - but that’s any business honestly. Being a composer is about being a business owner and entrepreneur 95% of the time. There are few employee opportunities- even when I worked as an “additional music composer” under someone else I was always a private contractor with my own business and the lead composer was my client. It wasn’t an employee employer relationship

[@TilliKommunikation]

Great piece! 👍

[@jonasfriedman]

Thanks for listening

[@AmbientGuitarWorks]

I love composing like this. For stock music libraries what kind of length would you suggest for these underscore ambient tracks?

[@jonasfriedman]

2-3 minutes

[@peterlepahin]

Wow, great content. This is exactly the type of videos I need. It gives a lot of ideas and insight when dealing with production music (which is currently my main focus). And it's nice to see that a lot of things I do/use resembles to your way of working. Anyway, keep up the good work, and great thanks for these tutorials!

[@jonasfriedman]

Appreciate the comment Peter! Really happy to hear the tutorials have been helpful

[@envrie9423]

Arctic swells are too good to be true for a free library, just immaculate. Love your work, thanks so much for this 💙

[@jonasfriedman]

Totally agree - they’re fantastic!

[@dpixvid]

So good! Thanks!

[@jonasfriedman]

My pleasure appreciate you checking it out

[@Theprettyone234]

Really great video, super helpful as always!

[@jonasfriedman]

Glad to hear it!

[@es__music]

When you say a 4th or a 5th, is that 4 semi tones up the keyboard from the scale root note or 4 up in that scale only?

[@jonasfriedman]

As someone else pointed out - it’s possible I misspoke, the root is C so if I’m playing around harmonically with that first pad, I’m hitting the F and G to add color to the texture - 4 semi tones in that scale only

[@es__music]

@@jonasfriedman ahh okay cool. Because it wouldn’t different in each scale so that makes sense. Thanks for the response!

[@cseymour88]

Jonas, you have such great, quality content. I love how you often use accessable plugins and easy to understand musical language. You are to the point and give good reasons as to the musical decisions you are making. Thank you for offering us so much of your knowledge in such a concise and digestible way.

[@jonasfriedman]

Really appreciate this comment - very kind words and I’m so happy to hear the information is helpful!

[@yvanroustan4426]

very good video format : fast and clear ! thank you Jonas to share your knowledge with us !

[@jonasfriedman]

My pleasure! Thanks for checking it out

[@gregfellman8622]

You make it look so easy! Thank you for sharing your insights and experience. This is so helpful.

[@jonasfriedman]

Glad it was helpful!

[@andrewmanzano]

Wow, your stuff is so great! Love these techniques and soundscapes! Is that first one from Omnisphere?

[@jonasfriedman]

Thanks Andrew! Yes it’s Adagio Singing Bell Harmonics from Omnisphere

[@adamz3090]

Sounds very cool man! I like these type of ambient subtle underscores. Sounds almost like 1 or 2 premade synth together, but only composers know its a bit more complicated than that :) Would be happy to collab in the future!

[@jonasfriedman]

Appreciate it!

[@brianpitts5959]

I'd love to know where the singing bellsing bell harmonics pad came from. Cant' find it anywhere. Great content will def take course.

[@jonasfriedman]

Thanks @brianpitts5959 - it’s from omnisphere

[@Doty6String]

do a video on hitting specific timestamps with music! (nice cue as usual)

[@NigelMerrick]

This is exactly what I needed right now, thank you, Jonas! What I love so much about your content is the clear explanation of the concepts and thought processes behind them, which make everything feel so much more accessible and doable. Loved the final piece, too 🙂

[@jonasfriedman]

Thanks Nigel, really appreciate it!

[@Frank.Zimmermann]

Hey Jonas, once again a fantastic video. I really like the musical result. And I notice how flexible your musical idea works with the selection of sounds and their combination. Very interesting and appealing I find the approach with the entry of the bass sound, which does not start on the keynote and rather grabs me emotionally and enlightens my curiosity upright, how everything further develops dramaturgically. Very good! Warm thanks, it is again very helpful for me!

[@jonasfriedman]

So happy to hear that it’s helpful Frank. Thanks for your kind words and checking out the video 🙏

[@JRyanKern]

How much are you glued to a click and tempo grid for this kind of cue? I can see that there are certain hits where the chord changes and everything comes together, but for things like the reverse artifacts and any solo-ish ad libbed parts in there do you just ignore the tempo/meter?

[@jonasfriedman]

For lose pads or the reverse artifacts I’m not too glued - basically when it’s something that makes it so you can tell there’s a tempo and rhythm it’s very much on the grid - but other wise on a cue like this a if I’m there’s no live players I do whatever sounds right

[@TonyThomas10000]

Very nice work!

[@jonasfriedman]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@forcedopinion1]

Much appreciation for this video. For whatever reason these are the cues that I struggle with the most. How do you keep wallpaper continually interesting?

[@jonasfriedman]

A lot of people find these cues difficult because it’s about being subtle and minimal but still effective - simple is really hard to accomplish and I still am working towards making my compositions more simple while still being interesting. So far I feel finding really specific sounds and being comfortable with letting them shine without getting in their way is helpful

[@DallasCrane]

Love those synths wow

[@jonasfriedman]

🤘

[@mvarrone995]

Great content as always! 🎉

[@jonasfriedman]

Appreciate it!

[@es__music]

How do you record your mic and the daw audio together?

[@jonasfriedman]

You mean for these videos? I route my daw’s outputs to sends that are setup with my Apollo interface (called virtual 1&2) I use nuendo to demonstrate on and then record the microphone and daw into cubase - which I have open as a separate application recording while I do the videos in nuendo.

[@Sirwilmusic]

Great video!!🔥🔥

[@jonasfriedman]

Thanks so much!!

[@isaachernandez7619]

Hey Jonas is the Singing Bell Harmonics something you created or is it from a library or vst? Thanks and great video.

[@jonasfriedman]

Omnisphere patch!

[@Squidaniel]

Great video as always. Where is that Singing Bell Harmonics pad found btw?

[@jonasfriedman]

I forgot the first word it’s Adagio Singing Bell Harmonics - omnisphere 😉

[@Squidaniel]

@@jonasfriedman thank you sir!

[@phonemproductions]

Thank you Jonas! What's your take on using group compressors for such work? Also, I know that's it mostly a matter of taste and consideration for how you want each layer to breathe... But your arp, at the end, and how you made it wander in and out, made me think of when we might use sidechain with long attack and release on the settings.. Thank you! :)

[@jonasfriedman]

Really cool thought regarding side chain - do to the nature of film scoring I don’t personally use compression on groups as much as individual instruments to give the mix stage more freedom. The exception to this is if there’s a drum set or more traditional “rock or band instruments” and then I create separate groups for those that do have compression and those groups feed into my master stem busses. It’s a very different thank when I mix a pop or rock track where I use side chain and group compression often

[@phonemproductions]

@@jonasfriedman Alright! Thanks for the answer, take care and have fun!

[@scantrontest]

Excellent video. Been really enjoying making my way through your videos. I'm curious if in your experience do you ever work closely with the sound designer / fx editor to discuss elements they're working on that may contribute or conflict with your music? Are there ever conversations about who's covering what in a scene and do you ever send bounces to each other to work off of? Usually in my experience everyone typically works on their own until everything hits the mix stage but sometimes these conversations come up and have been very helpful.

[@jonasfriedman]

Great question - these conversations typically take place (in my experience) during the spotting sessions. The director / producers and composer watch the scenes and talk about areas the project will benefit from music being more prominent or alternatively, being less prominent or not there at all and letting sound design and effects take over.

[@jaythansparksmusic]

Awesome...! Which library is SINGING BELLS HARMONIC found...??

[@gregfellman8622]

Hey Jaythan! It's on Omnisphere.

[@jonasfriedman]

Omnisphere! A great VI

[@jaythansparksmusic]

@@jonasfriedman Hmmm, I couldn't locate it. It's a stock patch, right...? Or which developer?

[@jonasfriedman]

@@jaythansparksmusic “ Adagio Singing Bell Harmonics “ - see if that works to find the patch in omnisphere’s search feature

[@jaythansparksmusic]

@@jonasfriedman BIG Thank YOU. Yes..., Adagio made the difference.

[@alexd2970]

Hello I don't find dark rude preset in omnisphere , is it in an add on ?

[@jonasfriedman]

It’s dark brood I don’t believe it’s an add on

[@alexd2970]

Found it! Thank you so much for your free videos, they are amazing!

[@jonasfriedman]

@alexd2970 🤘

[@rrsimonetti]

Hello. I love it! I'm also a soundtrack composer, and my specialty is composing and producing ambient music. As well as being relaxing, it's so rewarding to produce and record sounds like this. Very good ideas. One question: which bookstore would you recommend for sync music? I see several bookstores distributing different styles of music, but I don't know which ones work "more or less" with ambient music. Big hug, success. You've gained a subscriber. Rodrigo RS

[@jonasfriedman]

Hey @rrsumonetti - I’m not sure what you mean by bookstore for sample libraries? Can you clarify. Appreciate you check out the content

[@rrsimonetti]

@@jonasfriedman Bookstores are like companies that accept our music, and distribute it in their music libraries, where people looking to license music for TV, films, series look for music for programs, scenes, series and the like.

[@jonasfriedman]

@@rrsimonetti thanks for clarifying - I don't do too much sync. Almost all of my work is to work on film, tv or game projects and I haven't done library music in a number of years so I'm not likely the most reliable resource for which libraries are best

[@rrsimonetti]

@@jonasfriedman Oh yes, I get it. Very good. I hope that one day I'll be able to work like this too... with specific projects. Cheers.

[@benfletcher5696]

Any chance that you are planning to release your Tension Pads as a stand alone plug in?

[@jonasfriedman]

Maybe in the future, I don’t know what that would cost to create and kontakt was just more accessible for me when building it

[@cheribarkman1784]

Awesome

[@basspartout]

Beautiful. Nice work!

[@jonasfriedman]

Thank you very much!

[@nikitapisek2901]

Great 👍

[@jonasfriedman]

Thanks so much 🤘

[@redguitar6062]

Something I find very frustrating when using ambient pads is the rhythmic LFO pulsing that is sometimes impossible to track down in the instruments. It can often be very obvious and takes away from the general feeling. I can hear it in your Singing Bell Harmonics patch.

[@jonasfriedman]

That can definitely be annoying - I always appreciate when synths are simple and it’s super easy to find feature like that to turn them on of off - unfortunately so many synths have UI’s are are too busy (imho) …it can be a head ache to find the knob you want!

[@redguitar6062]

@@jonasfriedman fabulous composition just the same and definitely something to aim for.

[@jonasfriedman]

@@redguitar6062 appreciate it

[@JohnSmith-it9hq]

Really enjoy your videos, and the wealth of practical information that you provide. But as a music theory nerd, I cringe a bit when you use sharp note names in c minor (d#, g#)..c minor has 3 flats ! Anyhow, you're a successful working composer, so it's just semantics on my part..

[@jonasfriedman]

Ahh i totally get it! I’m the first to admit I still have a lot to learn in regards to stuff like that since I come from a very non traditional background 🤪

[@JohnSmith-it9hq]

Keep doing what you're doing, it beats reading about music in books!

[@MediaMusik777]

How do you get gigs? Are you a full time KZbinr and composer ?

[@jonasfriedman]

Hey @MedicalMusik - I am not a full time KZbinr but am very much a full time composer. That said I love posting to this community and do so as often as I can. I typically juggle multiple projects, primarily in television with films in between seasons. I get work 3 ways currently. 1) projects brought to me from my agent 2) projects from my own networking and cold emailing…basically relationships I’ve e built over time and 3) from other composer who bring me onto their projects as either a co-composer or additional music composer.

[@IsaacCreager]

D sharp is not the minor third in the key of C. D sharp would be an augmented second. The Minor third would be an E flat.

[@jonasfriedman]

Yep - I am self taught and never really studied music theory so I still admittedly need brushing up on properly communicating these things. Thanks for clarifying for anyone here

[@MitchellMwangi364]

Sora existed 5 month ago?

[@jonasfriedman]

Stock footage from storyblocks

[@miroslavhons6205]

Great educational content, yet another video I watch and make notes right away! Many thanks for breaking the composition down - I will try to apply the way of subtle cue at my next game music demo. All the best & keeping fingers crossed with onboarding sponsors - your promotion of VI's and their use in practice deserves more attention!

[@jonasfriedman]

Appreciate the kind words, always great to hear the content is helpful