Meet the Committee

Blair Mowat - Student Liaison

How did you get started and what advice would you give to a composer starting out now?

I did the two-week ‘Summer Intensive Pacific Northwest Film Scoring Program’, which taught me a lot of what I needed to know before I’d even thought about higher education. I then studied music at Durham University, which gave me a great academic grounding in lots of different areas of music, as well as allowing me to meet lots of people who I’d later be collaborating with on a professional basis. I also did an MA at Bristol University in Composition for Film and Television. I learnt a lot from the course and it also gave me the chance to spend an entire year focused solely on what I wanted to do without any other distractions. I conducted orchestras at both Durham and Bristol, which was an amazing way to develop my orchestration skills first hand, as not only did I have to analyse and deconstruct some amazing music but I also had the chance to try out some of my own arrangements. Finally, as everyone will tell you, it’s ‘who you know’ that will really help you get ahead in the business. It’s about getting your music out there in the right places so people start to take notice!

What was your first job?

I did a lot of theatre music and short films at university that were part of my education and then suddenly when I was in the ‘real world’ I was actually being paid to do what I’d done before at university for fun. One of my first big commissions writing music to picture was from the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, composing music for an animation series. It was a nice feeling getting that cheque through the door.

What work are you most proud of?

I’m working on a feature film at the moment called “No.7” which is a Bollywood thriller set in East London. I’m already getting the feeling I’ll be proud of this one as it’s really pushing me out of my comfort zone by forcing me to write music in a totally different style. Suddenly guitars and piano are replaced by Sitar and Tabla. It’s rather daunting but great fun!

What’s your training and what training do you need these days?

As I mentioned earlier I’ve got a BA (Hons) in Music from Durham University, an MA in Composition for Film and Television from Bristol University and various other bits and bobs such as the ‘Pacific Northwest Film Scoring Program’. I was lucky in that I knew from an early age I wanted to write music for picture for a living, so I was able to tailor my education around this. I took a very formal and traditional approach to my training but that’s just one way of going about it and there’s certainly no guarantee of getting work once you’re finished. Many of the best industry practitioners had no such training at all. In the end it’s about talent, determination and working out how best to realise your own potential.

How do you put a price on your work?

I work to PCAM guidelines whenever possible. I try to make it clear to my employers what it is they’re paying for. It’s not just the final product they are paying for because to achieve that product they’re getting the benefit of your experience, your training, your equipment, your contacts and, most importantly, your time.

Would you ever work for free?

No, not where others are making money and I’m not. If people do that then they are slowly destroying the music industry and devaluing composed music – preventing everyone from ever making a living from it in the future. However, I will write music in my personal time for projects or short films where their budget is non-existent and I’m friends with the director or believe strongly in the production.

What software do you use and what’s your favourite piece of kit?

I use Logic. In my opinion it’s by far the prettiest of the DAWs out there and great for writing music to picture. When you’re spending all day in front of a project you at least want it to look nice and do what you want intuitively. My favourite piece of kit is my Apple 8-core Mac Pro with 10GB of RAM. I have great fun trying to ‘max it out’ with various plug-ins and virtual instruments.

What single thing do you wish you had known when you started out?

I was always worried about finding my ‘voice’ as a composer but then I realised that is something that develops naturally over time and is also constantly changing with each project, or at least it should be!