That combination of performing pop tunes and classical training is a winning formula for a composer. Having been in bands and having a classical background, it was no big deal writing jingles, says Keller. I had the street teaching as well as the formal education. The music they create might draw on all of these influences. Although they are writing for commercial purposes with a client s specification, there are major differences between jingles, songs, and scores.
Songs are emotional ideas that allow people to imagine the feeling.
Jingles are things that make a person feel like reaching for their wallet, and movie scores paint pictures in your head, says Hulse who has written jingles for such clients as Benihana, Coca-Cola and McDonald s. As a composer, never take your heart to a jingle session because somebody will say they hate it and you have to change to where they say they like it. In a movie score, you put your heart right out on the table because that s what will make the music sing to the picture. In a song, you re trying to portray something emotional, so you have your heart with you, but keep it tucked away because you ll reach some people and not others. A song and a jingle are similar, adds Keller.