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February 2016

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Hi All,

Well here we are into 2016. Robin and I hope you all had a great holiday season and wishing you a fruitful 2016!

Seems like each day brings a new challenge to production music making. How about the "Performance Free" model? Ugh! I'm always looking for opportunities so I'm a guy whose glass is always "half full". I do remain optimistic that we can all rise above the challenges of making money with our music!

Latest PRO Payments

BMI payments came out a couple of weeks ago. How did you fare with your latest statement? Check out this topic to see what others had to say. Ours went sideways, I hope yours did better!

Visit Our Sponsor

PRODUCTION vs RF Libraries?

Wall_E asked,

Can someone explain to me in a schematic way what are the differences between PRODUCTION music libraries and RF music libraries? Pro and cons? Should I focus on one of them since I'm starting from scratch? Read more for some great explanations.

The 80% Rule

Image of depressed businessman tearing his hair

by Robin Munson

Years ago, when I was taking the yoga teacher training, I remember something my mentor, Christy, said that has stayed with me ever since. We were talking about how hard it is to be consistent in your practice - whether we're talking about meditation, or asana (the physical poses of yoga), or for some of us, composing music. Read more...

How Much To Charge?

Ever wondered how much to charge for a film project,

game or TV show? A lot of composers have asked that question. MLR reader xeon92 wanted to know and received a lot of great feedback. Check it out here.

20% Off Sale!	20% Off On Any Subscription! Enter Coupon Code FEB2016 when checking out. Don't forget to share with friends!
Offer Expires: February 7, 2016 (no retro-active sales)

Opening Your Own Music Library

Want to open your own music library? Think it's easy/hard? One MLR poster wanted to know and got a lot of great feed back. Find out more here.

More Recent Topics And Comments

Sounds fair for a PMA library?
Best online solution for mastering and software alternatives?
Cue Sheet Surprises (but good ones)
Implied Contract

You can check out all the forums here.

Earn Free Access To Music Library Report

While it is true that there is a charge to access the music library listings there are many areas that remain free and include a wealth of knowledge.

There are also ways you can gain free access to the music library listings by helping to build MusicLibraryReport.com into a better site and a more vibrant community. Check it out here.

Composer Poll

Composer Poll: Check out the composer poll and make sure to vote! Lot's of interesting questions such as "How Many Tracks In Your Catalog?", "How Many Different Libraries Do You Currently Have Music With?". Find out what your fellow composers are experiencing. Read More

Joke Corner

How do you get two piccolo players to play in perfect unison?
Shoot one.

What's the difference between a fiddle and a violin ?
Who cares - neither one's a guitar

How do you know when the stage is level ?
The drummer is drooling out of both sides of his mouth ..

Did you hear about the guitarist who was in tune ?
Neither did I

Why are so many guitarists jokes one liners ?
So the rest of the band can understand them

http://www.ducksdeluxe.com/jokes.html

Robin's Good Eatin'

Multigrain Apple Muffins

From Eat Like You Give A Damn: Recipes for the New Ethical Vegan
by Michelle Schwegmann and Josh Hooten

I discovered this recipe just yesterday. Art and I ate 10 of these little beauties in 24 hours!!!

Ingredients:

1 3/4 c. spelt flour or white whole wheat flour

1/2 c. sugar

1/3 c. flax meal

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 c. plain or vanilla nondairy milk (I used almond)

3 tblsp vegetable oil

1 tblsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 c. very finely chopped apples (about 2 small, peeling optional) (I opted not to peel the apples and I chopped them in my mini food processor to save time.)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a twelve-cup standard muffin tin with cupcake liners or mist with cooking spray.

Put the flour, sugar, flax meal, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda and salt in a large bowl and stir with a whisk to combine. (I sifted the dry ingredients, but you don't have to.) Make a well in the middle and add the milk, oil, and vanilla extract and stir to combine. Stir in the apples. The mixture will seem very dry, but keep stirring to distribute the moisture evenly through the batter. Spoon into the lined muffin tin using about 1/4 c. of the batter per muffin. Bake for 16-18 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Let cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes. Then remove and let cool completely on a wire rack. (You can substitute pears for the apples if you like.)

Your house will smell amazing! You'll be so happy!

Robin's Yoga For The Stressed-Out Composer

Relief for Upper Body, Shoulders, Arms and Hands

As musicians, we know that playing our instruments and entering data can, over time, cause fatigue and stiffness in our upper bodies, including shoulders, arms and hands. Here are a few little stretches that can alleviate tension and get that synovial fluid between the joints moving again. I promise, it's worth taking the time.

1) Garudasana Arms (variation): Upper back and shoulders: Extend both arms straight out in front of you. Cross right arm over left so that it extends as far across the chest as is comfortable for you. Bend the left elbow so that it forms a right angle. You should feel a stretch across the upper back. Reverse sides.

2) Roll the shoulders back so that the shoulder blades drape softly down the back. Clasp the hands behind the low back keeping a micro-bend in the elbows. Arch the upper back lifting the breast bone and float the hands away from the body. Hold for 3-4 breaths, expanding the chest.

3) Inhale and shrug the shoulders up to the ears. Exhale and allow them to drop with an audible sigh. 3X.

4) Shoulder Roll: Inhale and draw the shoulders forward and up. Exhale and relax the shoulder blades down the back. 3X. Then reverse the circle inhaling the shoulders up and relaxing the shoulder blades down the back. Then exhale the shoulders forward. 3X.

5) Triceps Stretch: Extend the right arm straight up toward the ceiling, palm facing in. Bend the elbow of the right arm. Then extend the left arm up and gently press the right elbow inward. Reverse arms. 2X each side.

6) Hands in prayer (namaste) position pressing palms together at center of chest. Inhale and dip the fingers straight down, roll the backs of the hands together and offer them out like a book with pinkies side by side, palms upward. Exhale and reverse the circle - Roll the hands back towards the check with backs of hands together, continue rolling so that the fingers point downward, and continue in this direction until the hands are back to prayer position. 3X.

7) Do some wrist rolls, making a fist and rolling the wrists right (3-4X) and then left (3-4X).

Don't Forget!

MLR Jukebox: Show off your music on MLR! Read More:

Critiques: Want some feedback on your music? Tap the wisdom of MLR's readers. Read More:

Newbie Info: Answers to the most common questions if you are just entering the music library world. Read More:

Well that's it for now. Remember: Patience and Persistence. In the music library business as well as in life!

Art and Robin