Composer Quest: A Songwriting and Music Composition Podcast
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.
- Update frequency
- every 5 days
- Average duration
- 49 minutes
- Episodes
- 166
- Years Active
- 2013 - 2017
Quest 4: Elfluenza, the Christmas Musical
I hereby challenge you to the 4th Composer Quest quest! We will be writing songs for a new Christmas musical, to be performed by the first, second, and third graders at KMS Elementary (in the rural t…
00:15:43 |
Wed 07 Aug 2013
Marketing Your Music with Patrick Hertz
Tinderbox Music’s Patrick Hertz specializes in promoting music to college radio stations. In this special episode of Composer Quest, I ask Patrick a bunch of listener-submitted questions about the mu…
00:40:24 |
Wed 31 Jul 2013
Young Composer’s Contest Winners Taylor Isberner and James Farrell
MusicWorks MN Director Tim Cheesebrow (from Episode 19) is the mastermind behind the new Young Composer’s Contest here in Minnesota. Two talented White Bear Lake composers were chosen as the winners.…
00:17:08 |
Wed 24 Jul 2013
Music Composition and the Law: How to Protect Your Creative Work
In this special episode of Composer Quest, I talk with entertainment lawyer Blake Iverson of Friedman Iverson Law Firm and entertainment law student Sarah Howes about how to copyright your music and …
00:48:24 |
Wed 26 Jun 2013
Quest 3: Arias on Tap
Join us for the third Composer Quest Quest! Write a classical aria for the Twin Cities Opera on Tap group to perform. For this special podcast episode, I talked with singer Eryn Tvete, who co-hosts t…
00:14:31 |
Wed 19 Jun 2013
Highlights from the First Composer Quest Concert
We recently had our first ever Composer Quest concert at Yoga Sol. The Twin Cities Trio performed some awesome listener-submitted arrangements of pop tunes and film/video game scores for bassoon, cla…
00:24:07 |
Sat 01 Jun 2013
Season One Finale: Dmitri Tymoczko on Music Composition
Composer and Princeton professor Dmitri Tymoczko shares some excellent composing advice in this season finale episode of Composer Quest. Dmitri says that working on music theory as a composer is like…
00:29:39 |
Wed 15 May 2013
Quest 2: Conversation
Your composing quest, should you choose to accept it: co-write and co-record an original piece of music with a random Composer Quest listener, based on the theme “Conversation.” Your finished track w…
00:12:13 |
Tue 14 May 2013
Torley on Creativity, Asperger’s, and Music Production
A truly unique figure in the electronic music world, Torley describes himself as a “time-traveling, universe-crossing, autistic, cyberpunk monk.” I was drawn in by the (over 800!) videos on Torley’s …
00:30:00 |
Wed 08 May 2013
Follow Your Dreams! With Candy Bilyk
Theater, film, and video game composer Candy Bilyk shares the best piece of advice she ever heard from Katy Perry: “Follow your dreams!” Candy was happy to share her own (actually practical) advice o…
00:30:00 |
Sat 04 May 2013
North Korean Cannibal Songwriting with Joe Graves
My cousin Joe Graves’ songwriting skills somehow flew under the radar in my family, until he finally performed some of his songs this past Christmas. In Composer Quest Episode 36, Joe plays and talks…
00:29:58 |
Wed 01 May 2013
Movie Score Trivia with Director Elliot Diviney
Minnesota filmmaker Elliot Diviney taught himself to compose film scores to lighten the budget in his money-sucking filmmaking habit. In episode 35 of Composer Quest, Elliot and I talk about his newe…
00:29:42 |
Sat 27 Apr 2013
Physical Songwriting with Jenny Katz
For wordsmith Jenny Katz, writing lyrics feels like rolling marbles around in her chest. I can’t say I’ve ever had such a physical reaction to words, so it was fascinating talking with Jenny in Compo…
00:29:53 |
Wed 24 Apr 2013
Reddit Sensation Cameron Scott Boster on Folk Songwriting
Folk singer/songwriter Cameron Scott Boster posted his 24-song album on Reddit a few weeks ago and got a huge response from listeners. In Composer Quest episode 33, Cameron shares some of the stories…
00:29:50 |
Sat 20 Apr 2013
Robot Drummers and Patrick Flanagan of Jazari
Cyborg percussion ensemble Jazari was created by "token human" Patrick Flanagan. He made a kind of robot drum circle that beats on acoustic bongos, cowbells, a djembe, and more. In episode 32 of Comp…
00:30:00 |
Wed 17 Apr 2013
Songwriting Genesis with Emot’s Matt Leavitt
In episode 31 of Composer Quest, songwriter Matt Leavitt of the indie band Emot talks with me about his belief that the very first time you work on a song is often where the best ideas come from, and…
00:30:00 |
Sat 13 Apr 2013
Throat Singing and Chopping Beats with Prism House
Brooklyn experimental duo Brian Wenner and Matt O’Hare talk with me about their production process in episode 30 of Composer Quest. In the latest Prism House EP, Reflections, Brian Wenner’s beats are…
00:30:00 |
Wed 10 Apr 2013
Musical Illusions with Dr. Diana Deutsch
I was thrilled to talk with Dr. Diana Deutsch, a pioneer in the field of music perception and psychology (she literally wrote the book on music psychology). Diana has discovered a number of famous mu…
00:29:58 |
Sat 06 Apr 2013
Orchestrating a Time Travel Musical with George Maurer
Jazz Pianist George Maurer has been a working composer for over twenty years. In episode 28 of Composer Quest, George imparts his words of wisdom on making a living as a composer. He also shares tips…
00:29:34 |
Wed 03 Apr 2013
Metal 101 with Devin Earlywine
Metal isn't for everyone, but guitarist Devin Earlywine is okay with making music 90 percent of listeners won't enjoy. In Composer Quest Ep. 27, Devin talks about how metal isn't all about doom and g…
00:28:26 |
Sat 30 Mar 2013
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