Hi there

My name is Andy and I am a demosong maker.
I have watched with a certain masochistic horror at some of the comments concerning demosongs in recent posts and felt that it would be a good idea just to clarify a few things. I do this as an individual rather than on behalf of one of my clients - the locked post below is your point of reference, and in no way is representative of them, or their point of view.

Most demosongs are composed, programmed and performed by just me. On a lot of occasions they are edited by one of my best friends (he's better at it than I am). Most are played by me in realtime - Super Articulation Saxophone and Nylon guitar for example, occasionally something will be programmed only. I am given a "picture" or reference for what is considered the right direction and then I conjure up the piece. There is some back and forth discussion, sometimes there are complete rewrites. It is my job to deliver what my customer wants.

Sadly it is not a recording studio full of musicians - I would be very happy if it were - it is me and my imagination, a brief or specification, and the desire to try and make the instrument sound as realistic and inspirational for the buying customer as possible. This is quite a challenge but I think that I am getting a bit better at it now.

There are many retail outlets that are unable to provide staff with enough in-depth knowledge or skill to present a product as perhaps it might be shown to best effect, so it is the function of the Demo button to replace or enhance the face-to-face relationship. Lets face it, how many shops could afford Peter Baartmans or Michel Voncken on their books for 5 days a week?
Or even, how many Peters and Michels are there out there in the world?
(The answer is - less than 2)

I strive to deliver a piece of music that combines musical, arranging and programming integrity whilst achieving the desired effect specified by the client, just as I do when composing for TV, corporate functions or producing records. If you dislike the melody - fair enough - I am not a huge fan of Mahler myself. The aim is to make it sound as good as it can be. Do we not all strive for this everytime we turn on or tune up?

It is an immense privelege to be offered the opportunity to work with such great people as I do. The small team that I work with frequently go way beyond normal physical limits in order to get this stuff to you. If you saw it from my position at, say, 3 in the morning for the 4th straight week you would be as in awe of them as I am.

I hope this sheds a little light - I thought I would like to let some steam out of what appeared to be trench warfare - I can hopefully consider removing my flame resistant apparatus now and go back to work.

On an additional personal note, I had the further privelege of visiting Domenico at his Lionstracs factory in Italy a few years ago, and I can tell you, he is a real hero. With the resources he has to hand compared to the market leaders he is doing an incredible job.

Ciao Domenico

and peace to all you keyboard lovers out there