Stephen Arnold (composer)
Stephen Arnold |
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Stephen Arnold
Stephen Arnold is an Emmy winning jingle writer whose clients include major TV Networks. His company, Stephen Arnold Music, has a revenue approaching $3 million[1] in 2003.
Biography
Early life
Stephen Arnold was born in Dallas in the early 1960's. Arnold discovered a passion for music at an early age whilst strumming his guitar in a junior high version of The Beatles. Most famous for it's petroleum industry, Dallas was not the kind of environment for a 22-year-old who dreamt of forming the next Beatles so in 1974 – after a couple of stints as a singing waiter and an ill-fated gig in Las Vegas[2]
Arnold, at the age of 22, headed to Los Angeles seeking his fame and fortune.
Los Angeles
While chasing his dream of becoming a rock-and-roll star in L.A in the ‘70s, Arnold worked for free at the United Western Studios and learned the ins and outs of music production.
I was setting up mics and stuff like that, but I was getting to watch people like Neil Diamond and the Beach Boys record. But eventually I had to start paying the bills. (Stephen Arnold) [3]
For three years Arnold worked at his dream to become ‘the next big thing,’ but in 1977 he would return to his home town of Garland, setting up his own small recording studio.
First Jingles
With the financial hardships of a struggling musician behind him, Arnold’s first paying job as a musician was producing a jingle for his parents’ arts-and-crafts store.[4] Within a year, he’d done jingles for Valley View Shopping Center, Friendly Chervrolet, Ebby Halliday and many others.
At around $750 to $100 per jingle, Arnold figures he couldn’t have brought in more than $30,000 in revenue[5]
Stephen Arnold Music
Today, Arnold is president of his own company, Stephen Arnold Music, and is known for writing jingles for major TV Networks including ABC News, CNN Headline News, Sinclair Broadcasting Group, the Weather Channel, and more than 250 local stations. Confirmation of Stephen Arnold’s standing in the jingle world was confirmed when he was awarded an Emmy for his compositions for Comcast in 2003. [6]
The company began in 1993 when a friend invested $50,000 so that Arnold could form a corporation with three employees. By 1997 Arnold had earned enough money to buy out his friends’ investment.
Sonic Branding Lectures
"No one sings your graphics or whistles your animation."
Stephen Arnold)
Stephen Arnold is most known for his sonic branding, and offers seminars explaining the psychology behind music and how it triggers emotional responses. Famous melodies from TV shows such as Friends and I love Lucy are studied to show how each of the melodies works to establish a level of familiarity with its audience.[7]