Bob Ballard Music

Wow! What an incredible conference it was! So many great people all working to help artists succeed. My tribe!

Mark Frieser did an incredible job, once again, putting it all together. Sync agents, publishers, tech wizards, songwriters, producers and artists all in one subterranean room beneath Sunset Blvd in the bowls of the El Cid. A unique experience that was filled with good vibes and optimism, rare commodities it seems these days.

For me, it was extra special. I finally met Mark in person and many of the great people who were in Mark's online courses with me over the last few years. We connected in a way that is only possible outside the bounds of a Zoom call. I also hung out with some great new friends and created new collaborative possibilities. I am very excited about what's next. This Sync Summit is sadly the last in-person event Mark will be doing, but a virtual version will continue. Mark has been at this for 12 years now, so he wants to devote his energy to other aspects of his business and career.

I wasn't going to attend. On the morning the conference began, flooding rains were underway and the experts were predicting a disastrous storm. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to make the 3 hour drive to LA from out here in Palm Springs and would not be able to get back home. After I watched a couple of the opening virtual sessions, I was inspired to get to the summit come hell or high water, and I did! I am SO GLAD I gave up my excuses and did it. The experience was life-changing for me in many ways. Spending long hours alone in my studio tends to make me forget what leads to success - real relationships with real people.

I guess it's about time I resumed posting here. I get a fair amount of traffic to this site, so I think it is worthwhile to post once in awhile. I am kind of old school and think I have to have something spectacular to report before I post anything. I know that that is not true. Besides, I DO have something spectacular to report.

I have found a fantastic producer and mentor, a very special human being who is helping me get my music to the masterpiece level. Although my music is pretty good, or so I have been told, it is not realy ready to pitch to music industry folks. My producer believes and I agree, that music is not ready until there are no emotional weak links, from the first note to the silence at the end. What are weak links? Places where the listener loses focus or is distracted from the emotional experience of the music. We are working to revise the best music in my catalog so that it is masterpiece quality; no emotional weak links.

Right now, we are focusing on those compositions that are closest to being ready by removing and fixing the emotional weak links. To start, we are producing new versions of my instrumentals, particularly solo piano pieces. We already have three fully produced, masterpiece quality pieces which we are shopping for sync licensing opportunities. Our plan is to have seven more pieces completed and ready to go by September, maybe sooner the way we are going! These ten solo piano pieces will be distributed as an album as well as singles.

In order to progress, I am learning my weak points and working to improve. For me, music theory has never been a strong point. Although I learned a lot of it years ago, I didn't seem to use it much so I mostly forgot about it. Thanks to my mentor, I have found how important music theory is and how much it can help me create music and get it into a useful form for production. I thought I knew a lot about music production, and I do, but as a mostly self-taught audio engineer and producer, there were some nagging gaps in my knowledge which hindered my progress. Now, I know what these gaps are and have developed a much more focused and efficient approach to my work.

So, basically I have returned to the proverbial “wood shed” to improve my production chops and am doing  much better music at a faster pace than ever before. I know that greater success is just around the corner and I am looking forward to sharing it with you.

Peace & Blessings

Bob
 

Hello friends!

I hope this holiday season finds you in good health and in a place that you find comfortable and secure. I am doing my best to cope with a rapidly changing world and express who I am through my music, an endeavor that has been going on for a long, long time but of which I never tire. It’s in my blood going back at least 500 years that I can trace, back to my namesake, Robert Ballard, the lutenist and composer in King Louis XIV's royal court. A fascinating story really, but too much to get into here. You can find out more on my Patreon page. 

Here is a summary of what I have been up to lately.


New Music 

I am pleased to announce that I have found some amazing collaborators and am working with them on a couple of new songs. In fact, Carol Lester and I just finished Swing Me, a light, playful song about children having fun in a park. This is a totally new area for me, but Carol is an expert in children’s music; she develops and delivers music workshops for children in the New York metro area. Carol wrote the lyrics and melody and sang the vocals while I composed the music and produced the song. She has a great voice and melodic sense. We have high hopes for this one. 

Higher Ground is new rock song that some industry folk have likened to the Doors music. Pretty high praise, I loved the Doors back in the day. The song is about the impending climate crisis, a topic that seems to increasingly occupy my mind. Sometimes, it feels so overwhelming that I want to escape to somewhere safe where all people of good intent can live. Would you join me there? Released on all streaming platforms December 15, 2021. 

Hold On is about my mostly unsatisfied desire to be with my children and grandchildren. They live 3,000 miles away and I am rarely able to visit them. The pandemic has made such a trip virtually impossible for me, but I know it will pass someday soon. I sometimes feel very sad about not being a real part of their lives as they quickly grow up. Unfortunately, alienation from family has been a constant situation for most of my life. I hoped that the isolation would end when as time went by but I was wrong, at least so far. Will be released on all streaming platforms January 7, 2022. 

Other Projects 

I am exploring the possibility of re-arranging and modernizing some old R&B and rock songs. As someone who lived through that era and was inspired by that music, I have a special connection with those songs. These days, remakes are popular and there are opportunities to place new versions of old songs in film and TV. In fact, some think it easier to use a cover song than an original song in a production because people have some familiarity with it. However, the remake must have its own unique identity and therein lies the challenge. I am making good progress on recreating a couple of old Motown hits. 

I am working on a way to make more realistic recordings of my singer/songwriter material. By “realistic” I mean more like I perform them live. Studio recordings are higher quality than live recordings, but sometimes lose part of the energy that live performances carry. I am trying out different recording techniques that would allow me bring more of that live energy into the recording while maintaining studio quality. 

Sync Licensing 

I regularly participate in professional conferences to stay up to date on the music business and find ways to produce and license my music in TV, film and other productions. I have been participating in the Sync Café and Support program and will be starting a new sync licensing program in January. Through these programs, I am making some great contacts in the industry, including award-winning music supervisors, producers and agents. I am now an active member of the sync music community and love hanging with these great folks. 

Although I can’t say anything about it yet, there is a strong possibility that my music will appear in a major TV series and in a sports advertisement. Nothing is certain in this business, but at least I know that some of the people responsible for making these decisions really like the music I gave them. Stay tuned! 

Right now my music is appearing in a recurring Reelz TV production, “Cult of Personality,” the Charles Manson Episode. They used Surf’s Up for the production because of Manson’s connection with the Beach Boys back in the day. My favorite publisher, Music Partners, secured the placement of my music in this production. A short segment of this same tune appears in one episode of the old Kardashian TV show Kourtney & Khloe Take Miami. 

Well, that’s about it for now. Seems like a lot but I love doing it. All of this is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream for me. Making a difference and making a living from making a difference is what I live for. 

If you feel so inclined, please consider being a Patron. It really helps to keep me going. Also, please share my music with others who might enjoy it. 

Thanks so much for your interest and support.

I wish you a Happy New Year, a year that brings us more peace, greater prosperity and love.

Hello friends!

I hope this day finds you in good health and in a place that you find comfortable and secure. I am doing my best to cope with a rapidly changing world and express who I am through my music, an endeavor that has been going on for a long, long time but of which I never tire. It’s in my blood going back at least 500 years that I can trace, back to my namesake, Robert Ballard, the lutenist and composer in King Louis XIV's royal court. A fascinating story really, but too much to get into here. You can find out more on my Patreon page.

A Little Levity is in order!

Here is a summary of what I have been up to lately. 

New Releases 

Night Came Down, although not a new release, has been getting a lot of attention because of the huge forest fires here in California. I am using the song to focus attention on the victims of these fires and help raise a little money to help them. My partner, our pets and I were fire refugees after the Thomas Fire burned us out of our place in Ojai, CA in December 2017. Night Came Down is about my experience that terrible night and the ensuing aftermath. In addition to my web site, you can also stream and download it here. 

Without You is actually an old song that I wrote and recorded in 2006. However, it was never mastered and released so I did those things and sent it out into world. The song has released been distributed to the streaming platforms and it is also available on my web site. I significantly changed this song to create a version that I could perform a solo which I did for years. The newly released version is the original vision I had of the song and am glad I had it recorded at a beautiful studio in Montecito, CA. It was great to work with some great professionals there. This version features some awesome guitar playing by Jim Monahan and even a solo cello. 

Snow Moon has been released on all major streaming services as well as on my web site. I have received a good reaction from folks and am working on getting it licensed in a film or TV production. Upside Down is another new song and like Snow Moon, is different than my standard folk rock, singer/songwriter stuff. I am challenging myself to expand my musical universe and incorporate some new techniques and structures. 

Happy Day is a first for me; a really happy upbeat song. Industry folks who have heard it liken it to pop rock bands of the 70’s like the Partridge Family and the Cowsills. Although this kind of music was definitely not what I liked to listen to back then, I created it for music licensing opportunities that use this kind of light, simple music. I was in a good mood that day too! I was told that Happy Day would be great for TV ads, so I am working on that angle too. Maybe it will make people smile and feel a little better. 

I have three more songs and a couple of instrumental pieces that will be done soon. All of them represent a continuation of my creative expansion and exploration. However, one of these songs needs lyrics which is always a challenge for me. I looking for a collaborator/co-writer on that song. I tend to write melodies first and then create words that match the melody and convey the emotional content that the music engenders for me. However, I am making good progress on the other songs and hope to complete them next week. 

Licensing 

I regularly participate in professional conferences to stay up to date on the music business and find ways to produce and license my music in TV, film and other productions. After I attended the Summer 2021 Sync Licensing Conference, I participated in a special listening session with the woman who supervises music for Vice Media. She loved my instrumental, Running Blades, and plans to use it during the Fall 2021 production season. I am submitting a special version of Happy Day for another music supervisor who thinks it would work in an ad and a show he is working on. I also have received interest in several of my songs and instrumentals from a well-known music library. 

I am continuing to pursue new licensing opportunities through a couple of new networks that I have joined recently. Things look very promising, but I can’t reveal details yet. 

Right now my music is appearing in a recurring Reelz TV production, “Cult of Personality,” the Charles Manson Episode. They used Surf’s Up for the production because of Manson’s connection with the Beach Boys back in the day. My favorite publisher, Music Partners, secured the placement of my music in this production. 

Radio Play 

Night Came Down and Snow Moon are appearing regularly in Eagle Nest Radio’s internet playlist and Blue Sunset and Cloudless Sky have been broadcast on Pat Kearn’s Local Music Showcase on FM 107.7 in the High Desert. His weekly 4PM show features artists from Joshua Tree, CA and surrounding areas. If you miss the live show, you can listen to the podcast here. 

Well, that’s about it for now. Seems like a lot but I love doing it. All of this is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream for me. Making a difference and making a living from making a difference is what I live for. 

If you feel so inclined, please consider being a Patreon patron. It really helps to keep me going. Also, please share my music with others who might enjoy it. 

Thanks so much for your interest and support.

Hello friends! 

I hope this day finds you in good health and in a place that you find comfortable and secure. I am doing my best to cope with a rapidly changing world and express who I am through my music, an endeavor that has been going on for a long, long time but of which I never tire. It’s in my blood and in my genes going back at least 500 years that I can trace, back to my namesake, Robert Ballard, the lutenist and composer in King Louis XIV's royal court. A fascinating story really, but too much to get into here. You can find out more on my Patreon page. 

How do you like my new hair? LOL!

Here is a summary of what I have been up to lately. 

New Releases 

Locked Up is light-hearted, humorous look at living with the lock down. It is a personal story of isolation and near insanity that many can relate to, a situation that begs for a little levity. Here is a song that makes us smile, turning loneliness to laughter. Good medicine for us all. Also available via all major streaming platforms. 

Locked Up got a nice write-up on A/R Review and was added to the rotation on two popular internet radio stations, Eagle Nest Radio & Radio Free Exile. I am also working on a Locked Up video that I hope will be entertaining. I finished the storyboard and we started filming it yesterday. It is really a lot of fun! 

Reason To Live was just released last week. This song is about the spirit and the heart of so many of the people I met on the streets. Homeless, houseless people who were determined to find a reason to live despite their circumstances. I was inspired by them, so much so, I started a non-profit organization to empower them and show us who they truly are through artistic self-expression. It was called the Hearts of Fire Project and it consumed my life for a decade. You can listen to Reason To Live on my web site or on all of the major streaming platforms. 

Two more songs, Upside Down and Snow Moon, are now mastered and posted to my web site. I post all my music there first before distributing it to the digital music platforms. Both of these songs are different than my standard folk rock, singer/songwriter stuff. As I mentioned in my last post, I am challenging myself to expand my musical universe and incorporate some new techniques and structures. I hope you like them. 

I have four more pieces that will be done soon (I hope). Three are songs and one is an instrumental. All of them represent a continuation of my creative expansion and exploration. Two of these songs need lyrics which is always a challenge for me. I tend to write melodies first and then create words that match the melody and convey the emotional content that the music engenders for me. It can take awhile… 

Licensing 

I regularly participate in professional conferences to stay up to date on the music business and find ways to license my music in TV, film and other productions. I attended the Summer 2021 Sync Licensing Conference and the ASCAP Expo. Both were great opportunities to learn about what types of music are needed currently and who is licensing music right now. I made some great connections and have already submitted some music as a result. Although the music sync business operates on a “don’t call us, we’ll call you” basis, I feel like I am making progress. 

Right now my music is appearing in a recurring Reelz TV production, “Cult of Personality,” the Charles Manson Episode. They used Surf’s Up for the production because of Manson’s connection with the Beach Boys back in the day. My favorite publisher, Music Partners, secured the placement of my music in this production. 

Senior Music Makers Group 

As a result of meeting people at the online conferences, I started a group to support senior music makers. We had our first Zoom call last week and I am hopeful that it will coalesce in the near future. 

Music In New Video – “Not Homeless Enough,” from Hear Us 

I composed, produced and donated music for Not Homeless Enough, a new video from Hear Us, a non-profit organization that is bringing the reality of houseless people to our attention and connecting them with badly needed assistance. This short video explains how so many fall through the cracks. Homeless, but not homeless enough to get help.

Well, that’s about it for now. Seems like a lot and it is but I love doing it. All of this is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream for me. Making a difference and making a living from making a difference is what I live for. 

If you feel so inclined, please consider being a Patron. It makes a difference. Also, please share my music with others who might enjoy it. 

Thanks so much for your interest and support.

Bob

Twitter: @BobBallard

Hi all!

As you probably know, I am always searching for opportunities to license my music to film and TV productions as well major artists. In response to a call for an old-style R&B tune, I searched my archives for Only In The Dark, a classic, Barry White-style love song. I recorded it 17 years ago in my original studio in Massachusetts before I moved to California. I was a novice audio engineer at that time yet managed to write and record this tune with the help of a lyricist, Lila Rose, and a great singer, Leon Beal.

However, there was a fatal flaw in the lead vocal performance, three very prominent off-pitch notes that I was not able to correct at the time because I didn't notice them. When I eventually realized the problem, I no longer had the original session files or access to the singer, so couldn't fix it. Last week, I discovered that with the technology available in my studio today, I was able to surgically and seamlessly bring the errant notes into proper pitch. Now, the tune sounds just about perfect. Check it out here and let me know what you think.

Locked Up, my amusing song about coping with the pandemic is getting better all the time. I added some horns to this rocking song and it sounds great. I hired some well-know brass players from New Orleans to perform those parts and they are busy doing that right now. I can't wait to hear what they come up with. As usual with session musicians, I have them play the parts I wrote as well as create and record their own version. No surprise, but their versions are usually better than mine. I play a lot of instruments, but I can't know the intricacies of all of them, especially brass. The only time I tried to play brass was when I took a few saxophone lessons in sixth grade. The only think I got out the sax was gobs of spit that I poured into it. LOL!

Well, that's it for now. Stay tune for more cool stuff!

Hello!

Feeling great about the possibility of no masking and gigging again! Some venues are reopening and more will be soon. I can't wait to perform again for a live audience; it is so different than doing virtual concerts. I tried doing those for awhile but it was unnatural for me and the technical aspects were distracting. I finally gave up. I might try it again if I can figure out a way to make it work better for me and for those who may be watching.

I have been working hard in the studio, producing some great new music. Some of my recent releases include two hard-hitting rock instrumentals:

Tough Road

Space Chase

I am also close to finishing Locked Up, an amusing look at surviving the pandemic, truthful and real yet a bit tongue in cheek. Other songs that will be coming out soon include Upside Down and Snow Moon. I am excited about these songs and I think you will be too.

I am excited about a major upgrade to my studio - new computer! I ordered a state-of-the-art Apple iMac M1, the latest technology. It is supposed to be way faster and more powerful than any iMac because it uses a new ARM M1 chip that Apple developed. Producing music puts a tremendous strain on computer resources and demands a powerful computer to work properly and efficiently. My old iMac is great too and was state-of-the-art in late 2012, but it is having a hard time running the latest software. It will be awesome to have no resource constraints anymore.

On the publishing front, one of my most popular instrumentals, Surf's Up, was used in an episode of Reelz' Cult of Personality about Charles Manson and his gang. Surf's Up is a retro 60's beach rock tune reflecting Manson's connection with the Beach Boys back in the day. This is the third time Surf's Up has been used in a Film or TV production.

Well, that is about it for now. I hope you like hearing from me and learning more about me and music. I hope you sign up for my email list and let me know what think about my music. Your feedback is important to me.

Take care!


 

Hello all!

Lots going on right now. Several new songs and instrumentals in process and I am looking forward to wrapping them up over the next two weeks. One of my songs is a tongue and cheek interpretation of the pandemic experience. It is humorous but also very real. I can't wait to get it done. Going to add a great sax track to the song as soon as I find the right player to record it.

Night Came Down was pre-released on streaming to services this week and will be universally released on April 23. This song is about living through the 2017 Thomas Fire, the largest in California history at the time. After begging to get through the fire lines to save our pets, we arrived at our house with ash and flaming embers flying in our faces driven by 80 mph winds. Smoke filled our house and our lungs as we rushed through the rooms gathering a few essentials and our frightened pets. For the next several days, we ran from the fire. First to friends and then to a hotel 60 miles away. The fire seemed to chase us; within days, smoke was surrounding the hotel. We headed back south, passing again through the smoke as the fire lined the highway. Nothing was ever the same again, the fire changed everything. We were virtually homeless for weeks. Eventually we found refuge and a new home in the desert. Night Came Down is about all of that and more.

Local venues here in the S. California desert are beginning to show signs of life. Within the next few months, things might be "normal" enough for me to return to the Joshua Tree Saloon where I was a regular before the pandemic struck. I have been vaccinated, so at least I have done my part. Hope others do the same. Although FB Live performances work for some, I find it frustrating and not the level of quality I want to provide my fans. However, I did revive my Patreon membership so there is still hope. I have been working on expanding my social media presence on LinkedIn and Twitter as well as using music promotion and distribution platforms like DISCO, Distrokid, Bandcamp and YouTube. Hopefully, providing more points of interaction will help potential clients and fans find and enjoy my music more.

Thanks for your interest in me and my music. I appreciate it!

Hello everyone! Thank you for visiting my web site. Glad you are here.

My latest production - Cloudless Sky - was just released on all major streaming and download platforms. I am so excited to have this song out there. I wrote it during a trip to Massachusetts in 2019, during that fondly remembered lead up to the pandemic. I was so blessed to be able to make that trip before the lock down began.

I visited many of the places that were significant in life. I drove by the schools I attended, the houses where I had lived and some of the places I worked. It was a trip down memory lane but also a time introspection inspired by those places that had held so much significance in my earlier years.

Lately, I have been experimenting with the various ways of marketing and distributing my music. As always, all of my music is available for listening and download on this web site. I also post videos regularly on my Face Book page about my work in the studio and my plans for new music. There are so many ways to get music out there these days, but also thousands of artists trying to do the same thing. I have tried some Live performances on Face Book but I find the experience lacking in so many ways, both for me and for fans. Yes, it may be better than nothing, but without a live audience, it is very hard for me to get into it.

Since live performance venues are still shut down here, licensing my music to film and TV productions has been my main avenue for earning money. But that is a tough egg to crack too. I have had a few small licensing successes but would really like a lot more. To do that, I am researching which productions need music and what kind they need. When I find a match possibility, I submit my music to the appropriate person if I can find an email address for them. I also submit music to music libraries which serve the film and TV business. I have had some success there too.

As the vaccinations ramp up, I am hopeful that we will see an end to the pandemic and all the suffering and isolation it has caused. Aside from feeling trapped at times, I have been fortunate to weather the virus well. I have had one vaccination so far and will be getting a second booster shot in a few weeks. I must say, it feels great to have a least some real defense against the virus.

My plan is to release a series of singles over the next few months and then a six-song EP. My fans will get early access to those songs here on my web site. Of course, I am working on new songs as well as producing new instrumentals. Lately, I seem to want to add vocals to my creations, so what would have been instrumentals are becoming songs. On the burner right now is a song about the pandemic lock down, a classic delta blues tune and a totally re-imagined version of the classic Over The Rainbow. I don't know why but that song has always made me feel like I could totally escape my life and go to a better place. Escapism has been a life theme for me since childhood.

Well, that's about it for now. Take care and be safe!

Links To Cloudless Sky:

Apple Music
Spotify

I couldn't let any more time pass without at least checking in here and saying hello. I have been focusing on recording my music in the studio and am producing music that meets my professional standards. I have also found a great mastering engineer that I am working with and I think you will hear the difference in quality that his mastering makes.

I promote my music on my Face Book page because I have a good sized, 400+ fan base there. I released "Night Came Down" a couple of weeks ago and will be releasing three more new songs over the next few weeks. I add all of my new music to this web site as soon as it is released. My songs are uploaded and distributed on all major streaming and download services like Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, Amazon, etc.

In addition to my songs, I write a lot of instrumental music. Tonight, I uploaded an awesome and very unusual instrumental, "Midnight Ride," It is written in 7/4 time and took me awhile to figure that out. I didn't start off to create music in an odd time signature, but after I worked with it, I realized that is where it fit. And it works! I pitch this music to the film and TV industry folks in hopes of getting it licensed in a production. I'm still getting royalties from a couple of placements I made years ago, so I must be doing something right.

Since all live music venues have been closed for quite some time here in my area of S. California, I haven't had a chance to perform live. Nothing else is like performing for a live audience and I miss doing it greatly. However, I have been doing some Facebook Live broadcasts and plan to do more. These are broadcast from my Bob Ballard Music page on Facebook. If you are interested, there are several video performances posted there as well as some from my past gigs.

Like many, I have feeling blessed that this very hard year of 2020 is coming to an end. I have been hunkered down for months now and so far have avoided getting the virus. I hope that you all stay safe too. Let's hope and pray for a better year, a year filled with love and respect for each other.

Peace & Love to All.