GUEST ARTIST
LECTURE.
Twists, Turns and Breakthroughs:
Inside the Work of a Recording, Touring & Composing Career
Marty Beller, Grammy Award-winning composer and longtime drummer for the iconic alt-rock band They Might Be Giants, brings students inside the real world of a professional musician whose career moves seamlessly between recording, touring, and scoring for the screen, on stage, in the studio, and in the creative spaces where projects come to life.
This 90-120 minute interactive lecture is designed for university music students and is ideal for lecture series, visiting artist programs, and music school forums.
Drawing on decades of experience drumming with They Might Be Giants and scoring for Film/TV, Marty brings students into the recording studio, onto the stage, and into vibrant creative meetings, immersing them in a whirlwind of twists, turns, and breakthroughs. Do you want this all-consuming, exhilarating lifestyle more than anything else in the world?! Yes, you do!
Students leave with a clear understanding of what a working music career looks like and a real picture of what comes next. They will have learned about real workflow, taking direction, digesting feedback, and making creative decisions, whether recording, touring, or scoring. Most importantly, students will be inspired to develop their own unique voice as musicians and collaborators.
Marty showed our students that a career in music can take many shapes and inspired them to pursue their own creative vision.”
Colton Dodd
Professor at Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins University
The Rundown
Let It Fly
Put Your Personality Into Your Music
The moment I realized that individuality is your greatest asset.
The Big Break
My First Show with They Might Be Giants
How I got the gig, made the most of it, and what I learned along the way.
Composing
From the initial call to the final mix
How to approach key creative meetings, turn adjectives and emotions into music, and deliver on the client's vision.
You Got The Job
Time for your first creative meeting
Students take on the roles of composer and showrunner, guided by Marty. Stranger Things is the “show” for this roleplay.
In the Studio
Recording with They Might Be Giants
Take direction, process feedback, trial and error. Be ready to pivot. Be inventive and musical. Make your part immediate. Serve the song.
The Million Dollar Question
How do you get gigs?
There is no formula, I wish there was, but these ideas have worked for me (I've got the stories to prove it).
Q&A. I Love Q&A!
Beyond the Lecture
Marty would be genuinely excited to extend his time on campus and has designed his lecture to be flexible and adaptive. Here are some examples: Extended/Expanded Lectures, One-on-One Coaching/Mentoring, and Ensemble/Studio visits.