We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Cameron Adams a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Cameron, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.
The key to keeping my creativity alive lies in collaboration. I’ve been fortunate enough to work alongside some immensely talented composers and musicians, and being in that kind of creative environment pushes me to step outside my comfort zone and challenge my own creative barriers. Working with such high-level players, who I fully trust to help me bring my vision to life, inspires me to take more risks in my writing, knowing it will lead to a recording session that’s more engaging, rewarding, educational, and ultimately more successful.
If I ever find myself at a creative standstill, whether composing a new piece or scoring a film, simply picturing the recording session is enough to pull me back into the writing process. When I’m able to record with LA musicians, I know they’re bringing decades of dedication and experience to the scoring stage. That alone motivates me to meet them at their level with a score that’s thoughtful, intentional, and meticulously written and prepared.
However, not every project I work on calls for or can support a live recording. In these instances, I turn to my other method for keeping creativity alive: listening to music. I’ve been curating a playlist of my favorite works by my favorite composers, and often a brief listen is all it takes to bring me back into a refreshed creative space, eager to keep experimenting and brainstorming to find my next musical idea.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
It took some time for me to find a career path that could fulfill my many interests and passions, but I believe my role as a media composer is the perfect fit, giving me a seemingly endless well of projects and opportunities that sustain me creatively and collaboratively. I’ve been obsessed with filmmaking ever since I was a kid making Star Wars fan films with my dad’s old camcorder, and my love for music has only grown since my grandfather encouraged me to take piano lessons. Composing for film has been the natural intersection of these two passions, and it allows me to work hand in hand with wonderful directors, producers, and musicians—all with the common goal to tell meaningful stories.
Storytelling is at the heart of what I do, and I’ve found that ‘music’ as a storytelling device has spoken to me more than anything else. I typically compose on a piano, and despite being limited to just 12 pitches—and often only 7 at a time—I never cease to be amazed and deeply inspired by the limitless palette of emotion and potential musical combinations in front of me. Moreover, when those pitches are combined with the infinite colors of an orchestra, the creative and storytelling possibilities are truly staggering.
I think of scoring a scene as solving a puzzle. Every composer will solve that puzzle differently, yet there are no objectively ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ solutions. That open-ended nature is what I find most engaging about composition, allowing me to develop and express my unique musical voice. The directors I’ve formed a strong collaborative relationship with have a similar approach to storytelling as I do, and they trust my musical instincts to elevate their narratives. When I break down a scene with a director prior to scoring, we don’t speak in musical or technical terms—it’s all about the story, the emotion, and what the audience should feel. In that sense, I sometimes consider myself a ‘musical translator’ for the director, taking those abstract storytelling ideas and conveying them through the musical grammar I’ve developed.
These intimate and respectful collaborations, paired with the privilege of recording live musicians, make me love what I do. Regardless of scale and scope, I will always seek out projects offering the chance to tell rich stories through meaningful collaborations with filmmakers and musicians alike.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
For anyone pursuing a career in music, the most important quality to possess, I believe, is just to love what you do. It seems simple, but it’s the difference between those who will continue to work in music and those who will drift away from it. This certainly isn’t to say every moment will or should be joyous—far from it—but there will be an indescribable drive and necessity within you to create music. The path to a full time career as a musician or a composer is a terrifically challenging one, but those who truly love their craft will stick through it without hesitation.
The next most important quality for me is having the vulnerability and openness to seek help and support from family, friends, or loved ones. Trying to navigate this career alone would be unnecessarily difficult and overwhelming, so I’m incredibly grateful I have people I trust and can turn to if I’m feeling uncertain, uneasy, or just in need of perspective.
The third most important quality to develop is the ability to stay calm and collected. In the world of music, and scoring especially, things go ‘wrong’ constantly. There’s always never enough time, money, or sleep. Given this reality, the skill to remain phlegmatic and serve as a problem-solver during challenges is invaluable. When scoring a film, your real job is actually to bring a sense of calm to the production. No matter what is happening behind the scenes, the director and producer should have no doubt that you will deliver the score as promised, and you should have that same confidence yourself.
These are three fundamental qualities I would advise anyone to cultivate, whether pursuing music or anything else. They aren’t wildly technical or hard to grasp, but they are vital for developing and sustaining a healthy and prolific career.
What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?
I consider myself exceedingly lucky to say that my parents have offered their full love and encouragement towards my musical and film endeavors since the very beginning. I know that kind of support isn’t something everyone has, so I don’t take for granted that they never once questioned my decision to pursue music. Granted, I would have chased this career with or without them, but having them alongside me for the journey has made it all the more meaningful and harmonious.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://cameronadamscomposer.carrd.co
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cameronnorthadams/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@CameronAdamsYouTube/
Image Credits
Christian Amonson, Quiana Adams, David Stanley
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