Alex Stagg, a dBs Institute master’s graduate, recently joined the team at minus 5db, an LA-based production music company, where he is taking the skills he learnt at dBs Institute to the next level.
At dBs Institute, we provide diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate music production courses that aim to prepare students for long and prosperous careers in the music industry. Graduates from our Bristol, Plymouth and Manchester campuses, as well as our online master’s degrees, have taken what they learnt during their studies into the world and forged successful careers in several areas of the music and gaming industries.
Alex Stagg, an MA Music Production & Sound Engineering graduate who we spoke to last year about his work with New Century, is one of those graduates who has taken every opportunity given to him from dBs - and it’s paying dividends.
Excitingly, Alex recently joined the team at minus 5db, a studio creating ‘library’ or ‘production music’ based in LA, as an Assistant Composer, in a journey that started during a guest lecture with composer Paul Whitehead at our Manchester campus.
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“Before that guest lecture from Paul, I didn't fully realise what library music or production music was,” says Alex, “We had the lecture, and then, suddenly, something clicked and I realised this actually would suit me really well. Not only can you create film music and TV music, but also pop music, which I love writing.’ That lecture really opened my eyes to library music. Off the back of that, I started getting more involved in my free time with writing that kind of music. Then I did my ‘Professional Development’ module specifically on how to be a production music composer because I wanted to do some more research into it.”
Doing that foundational research for his ‘Professional Development’ module led Alex down his current path to minus 5db, where he works “across the company for multiple composers,” setting up mixing sessions, editing recordings, running the company's social media, and chipping in with composing, including for this year’s DP World Tour and Boston Marathon coverage.
The job came about through engagement with an industry contact that was developed during Alex's time at dBs "I interviewed the Founder and owner of minus5db twice - once as part of my 'Professional Development' module, where we had to design a career plan for when we graduate, and the other as part of my final 'Project Realisation'". Off the back of this, a strong relationship was developed between the two, opening the door to an interview opportunity at minus 5db. "Because they’re based in LA, they had to consider whether or not employing someone UK-based would work for them. However, I was able to offer all the skills they were looking for and they decided to go for me, which I'm very grateful for. I feel very blessed.”
“If I told my 12-year-old self that in 15 years, I'd be working for a music production company in L.A., I don't think I'd believe him. It is quite surreal. Shortly after joining the company, they flew me out to L.A. for about two and a half weeks. They’d never met me in person before, so they wanted to meet me and for me to see the studios. Also, to get a feel for the team and how they work on a day-to-day basis. They also set me up with all my gear, made sure I've got all the plugins they use and bought me a new computer. It’s been great!”
With plans to head out to L.A. again this year, Alex is hoping that his production music work will generate enough royalties to allow him to relocate across the pond and work in person at the studio full time. What could become a completely life-changing experience and see him move to Tinseltown was forged at dBs, where the independent research Alex engaged with during his studies helped him land the role and where “what we learnt on the mixing and mastering modules is what I’m doing regularly. Having that knowledge and foundation to build off has been super, super helpful.”
“The most important part of studying at dBs was being able to have that open communication with the staff and with your fellow students,” continues Alex, “Having that support network and a reason to put a lot of time into researching subjects, because it was contributing towards my course, was invaluable. If I had been just trying to learn solely off my own back, and I didn't have the course, I don't know if I would put quite so much effort into researching it.”
“Also, having open discussions with lecturers in my mixing and mastering modules, coming back home, trying out the things we've discussed on my mixes, making errors (and doing things well!) and then going back to uni and getting feedback was very useful. The continuous feedback loop helped me a lot, and it always gave me a reason to want to progress. If you just work at home without getting any feedback, you can get a little bit blind to whether you're doing something well or not.”
Looking forward, Alex is “excited about getting stuck more and more into the whole composing side of my role.” Although the admin side of his work is “super important” and will lay the foundation for him to become a more effective and efficient composer, writing and composing more music for trailers, films and TV shows is what he has his sights set on next.
“My plan for the future is to keep getting credits and getting more sync fees,” he says, “If you land something big, especially trailer music, the money is really good if you get it right. I'm taking it day by day and trying to be the best assistant I can be every day, and then, hopefully, that will naturally progress into me establishing myself in the company, getting given more opportunities to compose, and then off the back of that, landing those credits.”
“It's nice to know that when I do come to composing, I've got all these super-talented, inspirational guys around me who will give me incredibly helpful feedback and support. A lot of the music that we produce we record live. We work with a lot of world-class remote musicians and hold many of our recording sessions in places like Abbey Road, and overseas in Budapest. One day, I'm hoping that my music will be recorded live at Abbey Road. If I can get to that point, that would be a dream come true.”
Alex’s tenacity and drive to force his way into the industry, alongside what he learnt at dBs Institute, has helped him land this role. So, would he recommend others study at dBs?
“Yes, I absolutely would recommend studying at dBs Institute!,” he says, “dBs gives you that opportunity to really immerse yourself in what you love. It gives you opportunities to discover pathways and skills that you didn’t know you had . It also allows you to meet like-minded people and contacts who can potentially open doors to you within the industry. That’s what it's all about at the end of the day, meeting the right people, being your best self and constantly putting yourself out there. If you approach life at dBs with that mindset, there's a huge amount you can get out of it. Get stuck in with everything that you can!”
Want to follow in Alex’s footsteps? Learn more about our music production courses and take your next step to a career in the music industry.
