RE: [Harp-L] Re: Harmonicas in commercials..submissions

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

"Eric Garcia"  wrote:
<anyone know a good way to submit your harmonica playing services
<to commercial agencys for work??

Eric,

Ad agencies don't usually hire the musicians.  Ad agencies hire 
recording studios, usually studios that specialize in jingle work, and 
the studio manager hires the musicians.

Before you look for jingle work, make sure you know how to read music 
passably well, and that you can produce 16 bars of decent playing in 
just about any style that harmonica has ever been used on.  Not every, 
or even most, studio gigs require that you know how to read, but the 
best-paying ones do, and your chances of getting a callback if you ever 
show up for a gig that requires reading and don't know how are slim.

Also make sure that you have a set of harmonicas in every key, and that 
they're in tune and ready to go, all the time.  A lot of studio gigs are 
called in at the last minute.

With that in place, the procedure I follow whenever I move to a new city is:
1) get out the yellow pages and identify every recording studio within 
50-75 miles.
2) Call every studio in range, introduce yourself, ask what kind of work 
they do there, and ask if you can send a demo CD.  Extra points for 
asking questions about their business and how they see the local 
recording scene--who's tops in what area, how the business is changing, 
and all that.  Make sure to ask who the CD should go to specifically.
If they say "no, don't send a CD, we already have a harp player," don't 
argue or denigrate the competition.  Thank them for their time and ask 
if you can check in with them again every 3 months or so. Impress them 
with how easy to get along with you are.  Nobody wants to be stuck in a 
small room, under deadline pressure, with the client standing there, 
trying to get a decent take out of a jerk or a prima donna.  So don't be 
a jerk or a prima donna.
3) Send a demo CD with 5-7 cuts on it, each no more than one minute in 
length, CLEARLY LABELED WITH YOUR NAME AND CONTACT INFO.  Ideally, every 
cut demonstrates your ability in a different style.  Include a short 
note describing your qualifications and experience. Highlight what makes 
you special.
4) Follow up the CD with a call two weeks later. Thank them for their 
time and attention, and tell them you'll check back every once in a while.
5)  check back every 3-6 months with a brief phone call.
6)  Wait.  It takes 6-12 months for the calls to start coming in. Nobody 
uses harmonica on every recording, except a harmonica player.  It took 
me a year from the time I started looking for studio work in Boston 
until I got my first gig there.  I took me 8 years of phone calls to get 
a gig with one producer.  In both cases, I got lots of repeat business 
working with great musicians and engineers on a lot of fun stuff. 
Patience and persistence pay off.

Final comment: I cannot overemphasize the importance of making yourself 
really, really easy to work with.  Be smart, capable, and alert, and 
give them what they're asking for before you suggest something 
different.  Remember that for jingle work, the job is all about making 
someone else look and sound good.

Regards, Richard Hunter
hunterharp.com
harmonica blog at http://myspace.com/richardhunterharp
Latest mp3s always at http://broadjam.com/rhunter