I am so excited to share this! Over the last two years, my life as a musician with a simple goal (producing a full length album) has taken an incredible path, raising my composing, recording, and mixing abilities to truly professional levels. Not only am I collaborating with brilliant musicians from all across the world, I am also being taught by an amazing mentor and having my songs produced by world-class producers!
How it all started…
Back in 2013 and 2014 as I was working on recording and producing my first EP, Keeping the Dream Alive, I stumbled across a website called How to License Your Music (HTLYM Premium) and a musician named Aaron Davison. I spent a hundred bucks and worked through some of the course materials and I learned a lot along the way, but I did not complete the course at that time as life was pulling me in other directions. While working on the course content, I happened to meet and have a brief chat with composer/producer/engineer Gary Gray, who offered training as part of Aaron’s course offering. Gary is an amazing musician and recording engineer who was personally mentored by Chick Corea, Quincy Jones, Phil Collins, and several other musical luminaries. Little did I know that many years later, Gary would change my life.
Fast Forward to the end of 2019: With the milestone age of 60 slowly nearing, and the goal of completing a full length album by that age, I jumped on the opportunity when I saw that Aaron was offering his updated, full set of training materials again, including some one-on-one work, for a very affordable price. This ultimately led me back to Gary and in July of 2020 I attended my first “MasterMind” jam session – a virtual meeting between Gary and several dozen musicians he was mentoring for several hours every weekend via Zoom, at no additional charge beyond the initial, inexpensive fee to join HTLYM Premium. Gary is a very giving spirit who has as one of his cornerstone philosophies the objective to simply “Help Another Human Being.”
In the coming weeks and months, I would get to know a group of wonderful people who shared my passion for music (many of whom were far more experienced than myself) and I would become part of this community of engaged, caring professionals. I learned that Gary was seeking volunteers to become a part of a start-up company he was working to develop, focused on sync licensing and education. By that fall, I took the plunge and became the IT Director for what would become Transcend Entertainment and Music (TEAM). TEAM is a music licensing and education company with a mission to “Create a Renaissance in the Entertainment Industry …” (our full mission statement is included in the logo above, learn more at our website: transcendmusic.team).
Producing Masterpiece Music
Over the two years since joining what would become TEAM, I have steadily learned more about the various knowledge domains that one needs to become adept at in order to have a chance in the music licensing business. These include music theory and composition, recording engineering (including mixing and mastering), production, the music business, personal development, an understanding and appreciation of a wide range of musical styles, and more. All of this is tied together with “The TEAM Process”, whereby we learn to create radio-ready songs with “no emotional weak links”, leveraging the brilliant Comparative A/B reference track system developed by Gary, along with many other powerful techniques.
We are constantly aiming for masterpiece recordings – songs that stop you in your tracks and make you think, “I have to share this, people need to hear this!”
Here are a few of the songs I have completed so far:
- “Liam Neeson” (a rock instrumental influenced by ZZ Top and the kick-ass attitude of the “Taken” action star):
https://soundcloud.com/garygrayproductions/liam-neeson-by-kelly-walsh/s-L2bwiHRNsNp - “Hand Me Your Heart” (a bluesy, mid-tempo song inspired by my 30+ year relationship with my wife, with a little dark humor added based on her love of Halloween):
https://soundcloud.com/garygrayproductions/hand-me-your-heart-by-kelly-walsh-produced-by-gary-gray - “Fly, Fly Away” (a jazz-influenced instrumental completed with the help of my musical colleague Ian Newman playing the bass and drums):
https://soundcloud.com/garygrayproductions/fly-fly-away-jazzrock-instrumental-by-k-walsh/s-6K8R74mNfEz
While I am thrilled with the quality of these songs, I am also constantly inspired by the amazing music my colleagues in TEAM are producing. Here are a few of the masterpieces that move me to improve on my song writing and production:
- “Feeling Into Myself” by Travis Nilan: https://soundcloud.com/garygrayproductions/master-feeling-into-myself-2
- “Lost/An Arrival” by Joseph DeNatale: https://soundcloud.com/garygrayproductions/lost-an-arrival-1
- “Innocence” by PJ Tobin: https://soundcloud.com/garygrayproductions/master-innocence-15hi
What’s Next?
As I write this in June of 2022, TEAM is ready to launch! We recently acquired the very successful music licensing education site New Artist Model, developed by music industry luminary Dave Kusek (founder of the Berklee Online School of Music and part of the team that created MIDI). We’ve announced our partnership and will be sharing more about our, reinvigorated education offerings soon!
Additionally, Gary is starting to shop some of the masterpiece music TEAM members have produced! Gary has become a go-to producer for Disney/20th Century Fox and has won numerous Telly awards thanks to his work with CBS and other major media outlets, so we’re super excited to see TEAM music find its way into your favorite streaming media content!
As for me personally, I have just been promoted to Vice President of Production and Quality Control for TEAM, and I have numerous new songs nearing completion. I am so looking forward to sharing this new music with everyone, as I continue to create and complete the tracks that will make up my forthcoming record, A Light in the Darkness. My future as a musician, and TEAM’s future as a music industry juggernaut, have never looked brighter! And I could not be more grateful.
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If you’re a musician interested in learning more about TEAM,
we’re putting together an awesome introductory webinar –
just drop us your email and we’ll make sure you’re on the invite list!
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Super piece about your music career and development Kelly, well done!
Thanks so much Fergal! You’re an excellent example of the kinds of talented musicians we have in TEAM, with a great heart, helping TEAM get established while advancing your skills, music, and career! (Check out Fergal’s music at https://www.fergalnash.com/)