We were lucky to catch up with Josh Madoff recently and have shared our conversation below.
Josh, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
I have been playing and producing music for most of my life. However, it wasn’t until I became a composer for Film and TV that I truly found my stride.
I have always found that the best, and most formidable, version of myself, is unlocked when I am entirely focused on helping others. Unfortunately, this has made it very difficult for me to bring the full force of my spirit to my art. After all, if I am making this music to fulfill the desires of my own passion, who am I helping other than myself? It could be argued that by striving to make beautiful and meaningful music, I am adding joy to the world, but that has never seemed (to me) a direct enough path to helping others. This led to a great hesitation in me, that prevented me from ever working at my full potential.
Once I began working in Film (and eventually TV), I noticed that this hesitation had completely disappeared. Not only was I able to finish every project with greater efficiency, I found that I was pulling off some of the most technical and ambitious ideas of my career.
The reason for this is simple: The highest priority for a Film and TV composer is to be of service.
As a composer, I serve the Film or TV show. I serve the story. I serve the vision of the director. I serve the priorities and needs of the production. Within that service, there is often room for my voice to come through, but I do not serve my own voice or gratification. Rather, my unique voice is one of many tools that I utilize to serve the greater vision. And knowing that I am not here for selfish reasons, but to help and serve, allows me to bring the full force of my spirit to each project without any guilt or hesitation.
In a Film or TV show, there are so many factors that I cannot control. It is an intense collaboration between a large group (or groups) of people, each with their own personalities and ideas. However, I can always make sure that, within the realm of what I can control, I am helping as much as possible. And when I fully devote myself to the idea of service, it yields the best possible outcome for everyone involved. It helps me bring the best version of myself to the table, which in turn makes it better for everyone I work with, and better for the project as a whole.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I am a composer and sound designer for Film and TV.
I love using sound and music to help tell stories. It is my job, above all else, to make sure that I am contributing to the overall story of the film or tv show, using music and sound. Sometimes, the most powerful choice I can make for a scene is complete silence. For certain scenes, my job can be as simple as making a basic one-note drone to accentuate a certain mood. Then other times, I have to make giant orchestral and rhythmic pieces combined with distorted synthesizers and live percussion to make an action sequence more exciting. For another scene, I might be writing slow and elegant music to pull at the heartstrings.
Composer, in my case, is a somewhat misleading title, in the sense that my primary job is not to make awesome music. It is to serve the Film or TV show, with my music, whatever that means. Before starting this line of work, I had played and produced a huge variety of different styles of music. This was actually a huge impediment to my success as an artist. I never stuck to one style long enough to find any significant success. I went from composing and orchestrating Classical music. to playing in Gospel churches and in the Philly Neo-Soul scene, to writing Afro-Cuban Big Band music, to writing original compositions and arrangement for small Jazz ensembles, to producing a dozen different styles of electronic music, just to name a handful.
After a while, I started feeling more like a collector than an artist. I was collecting all of these disparate skills with no larger goal in mind. However, now that I work in Film and TV, I am actually able to put all of these different skills to work. In one single film last year, I got to write, record, and mix a 1950s style Mexican Bolero, a giant Afro-Cuban percussion piece, an other-worldly Synth and de-tuned piano piece, a series of epic short orchestral pieces, an innocent music box piece, and an intense techno piece that combined elements from every other piece. I love writing and producing so many different kinds of music, and now I get to do it as my job!
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
1) Learn to finish your work:
I’ve found it best, in the long run, to focus on “What is the best possible piece I am currently capable of completing?” and then taking that piece all the way to the finish line. Repeating this process has helped me progress exponentially faster than focusing on work that is currently out of my reach. New and higher level skills have come naturally, over time, as I have learned to finish my work and start the next project.
2) Be the best collaborator possible:
The busiest and most successful people I know are the best collaborators. They are always positive and fun to work with. They prioritize being as helpful as they can in every project.
3) Enjoy the process:
Life is short, and if you are devoting much of your life to a passion and not enjoying it, it literally means you are not enjoying a large portion of your life. As an added benefit, having fun will take the pressure off of you, and make you a more competent and capable version of yourself, ultimately bringing your goals to fruition much sooner.
I find it helpful to take time each day to connect with my passion for what I do, reminding myself how much I love music and sound design. This keeps me focused on having fun, even when I am facing stressful deadlines. When I’m having fun, I do my best work, so its a win-win.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I’m always looking for new opportunities to collaborate with people!
Even if I have a big TV show or Film on my plate, I love having other cool projects on the side, regardless of budget. In general, my criteria for projects are:
– Working with nice and fun people that always treat others with respect
– Working on new and exciting ideas that I have never heard of or seen before
– Working on projects that have clear goals in mind (making sure things I work on will actually get finished)
Anyone interested in working with me as a composer or sound designer can reach me through my website:
www.joshmadoff.com
Contact Info:
- Website: www.joshmadoff.com
- Instagram: @joshmadoff
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/musicschool/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/JOSHMADOFF
Image Credits
Steve Belkowitz
