F.A.Q.

No one can. I can do a lot of things - concert band and chorus, rock, blues, folk, "praise and worship", etc. But if you're looking for house or rap, there are others who do it better. Just as with any art form, there are those who specialize in a range of styles. Van Gogh wasn't a cubist; the Beatles did a lot of styles, but not opera or big band. You get the idea.
JUST A REMINDER
Professional Work isn't Cheap
and
Cheap Work isn't Professional

Charges for Arranging, Transcribing and Writing Original Pieces are all based on a number of things.
1. The number of minutes in a piece. Only the minutes I write are counted. If a section is repeated, the repeated music doesn't count. Also, if I can use certain sections in a number of places, the cost is reduced even more.
2. The density of the measures. Density means if there are lots of notes or not so many. It also refers to the sophistication of the chords (augmented, diminished, etc.)
3. The number of lines of music. That is, are there just a melody line with lyrics and chords, a string quintet or a full concert band?
4. The number of lines of lyrics.
5. Whether guitar chords are included.

There are a number of things to consider when determining the cost of a song.

1. What are the skill levels of the singers and accompanists? If they are competent beginners, the arrangement would be simpler, often using unison parts. If they are more advanced, the parts would be different and be more complex.
2. Does the arrangement include a piano/keys part with written notation? There are all sorts of keyboard players, and so, some choices for keyboard parts. I can write a part (simple or advanced) or the keys player could simply play from the guitar part as many do. That would reduce the number of lines that you would pay for.
3. How many different horn/string parts would sound good? If you had a dozen players all playing the same part, that would be a bit overpowering. A dozen players could be divided into two to four parts, depending on the song and the style you want.
4. How long is the song? Cost is determined by the length of newly written material in the song. If all the verses and chorus are virtually identical, then I would charge just for the first time I wrote them, not for any copy and pasting I did.

The only way to get a solid answer is to Contact Me for a proper quote.

Also, I can offer “bulk discounts” if you order three or more songs at the same time. The discount would be from 10% to 40%, depending on the particulars of the song.
The melody would be one line; the lyrics another and the guitar chords are the third. The cost would be calculated based on three lines times the number of minutes. Remember, you only pay once for music that is between repeat signs.

See Pricing Examples page under Transcribing.
If I (Salt Cellar Creations) Compose a song or other piece of music for you, you don't need any permission. However, under United States copyright law, the composer retains all copyright ownership, even though you may have commissioned the piece.

If I Arrange a song or other piece of music written by someone else for you, there are a number of things to consider. The Bible says something about not stealing, so, YES, before I arrange a song for you that someone else has written, the FIRST thing that would need to be done is to see if anyone holds the copyright. The exception is that the song is in the public domain, that is, if the copyright has expired or there never was one (think Bach or Beethoven).

If I Arrange a piece the simplest thing for me to do is to check to see if it’s been approved for arranging. I work through an arrangement and marketing platform called ArrangeMe that takes care of all the copyright paperwork as part of their services. Once I finished the piece, I would upload it to them and you could buy it at a reasonable retail price. That would mean that other people could buy and perform the song as well; it would give you no exclusive rights.
If, for some reason, the song is not in the ArrangeMe catalog, which currently has over five million title, I can still arrange it, but it will take more work. We can try to contact the owner of the copyright and suggest that they submit it to ArrangeMe  to use. Sometimes that works. If not, then the first thing that MUST be done is to acquire a Permission to Arrange from the composer.
  • If someone still holds a song’s copyright, permission must be obtained. Otherwise, you, I or both could be fined HEAVILY, or even imprisoned.
  • If the song is in the public Domain, that is, no one holds the copyright, I can arrange it as long as we give credit to the original composer(s).
If you choose one of the above-mentioned methods to have me arrange a song, you can do the work yourself (it isn't that difficult) or I can for a fee, usually $50 plus the cost of the permission, which may be $100 or more. You would also need to be sure that you pay for performance rights. That would be ASCAP, BMI, CCLI, etc. Check with someone in your organization.

Salt Cellar Creations will be happy to help you determine if you need permission and how to start the process if you'd like to do it yourself, at no cost as long as Salt cellar will be the one doing the arranging.

Some places to look are
  • Hal Leonard, Inc - www.halleonard.com/licensing/index.action
  • ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers - https://www.ascap.com/
  • BMI (Broadcast Music Inc.) - https://www.bmi.com/
  • Capitol Christian Music Group - https://www.capitolcmgpublishing.com/
  • Music Services - https://www.musicservices.org/
PLEASE allow yourself enough time to complete this process. It may take from several days to several weeks.
The more you provide for me, the better the results would be. If I have to look a bunch of stuff up for you, I would have to charge for the time. I would need to know
  • The name of the piece, plus anything in parentheses or some alternate title.
  • The composers, of music and lyrics (if any). Please DON’T tell me who recorded it.
  • The copyright information, often found at the bottom of the sheet music, fake chart, etc. It will be preceded by the famous © symbol.
  • The name of the group that would be performing it. You could simply list Anytown High School or First Church of Anytown. If you want to RECORD the song, we need to do something entirely different. This is just for performance. (Churches, if you broadcast the music part of your services, you may want to check on permissions and/or licensing for that.)
  • The person responsible for the ensemble. Churches, if it’s a paid position, use that person’s name. If not, the Head Pastor’s name will do.
  • The instruments involved, including voices (especially if there’s a harmony to be written) and how many you have in your ensemble. If it varies, give a good estimate. I think they want to know the general size of the ensemble.
> You can upload a recording (it doesn't have to be great) to YouTube or Sound Cloud.
> You can e-mail an attachment of an MP3, WMA or WAV file.
> You can send by e-mail or snail mail: 
  • CD (or even a cassette)
  • The lyrics
  • A set of possible/recommended chords            OR
  • In the case of an arrangement, a copy of whatever sheet music you  have
> Of course, if you're local, you can always drop by the studio and sing it for me live.
> There may be another option I haven't thought of.
An e-mail attachment is good. PLEASE don't use the "Contact Me" form. That's just for an initial contact.

Snail mail is also fine. But, PLEASE be sure that I can read it. I know that a lot of artistic people (me included) express themselves best with pen and paper, but I want to express what you really want to say, not what I misinterpret your handwriting to mean.

If you have a great idea for a song, please include as much information as you can so I can make it as personal as possible.
The length of time it takes to complete a project depends on the length and complexity of the music. A transcription of your new song from a recording that includes melody, lyrics and guitar chords could take less than a week to complete. If the same song included a piano part that was more than just chords (a real piano accompaniment), it would take somewhat longer. It also depends on how many people have submitted projects ahead of you.

The bottom line is that, even though I use a computer to do the work, it is a creative human endeavor and takes a while.
  • If you want me to transcribe a song for you, I'll need an audio copy of it. 
  • Your desired instrumentation and style (“sounds like”)
  • Who’s going to be playing it (skill level)
  • Do you need a track?
See the Pricing Examples for a better idea of what might be needed.
It may be possible if the music is in a generally accepted form (a hymn or other standard song).

Unfortunately, I cannot simply overlay an extra instrument part on top of your lead sheets. I have discovered that there are many varieties of each song. I would have to do a standardized arrangement. I would have to make sure that the key that the arrangement is in is playable by the instrument you want to add. For example, if you're playing a song on guitar in the key of G and have simply slid your capo to the fourth fret, you are in the real key of B. That's not going to work.

Please Contact Me for a more detailed explanation.
Yes, indeed. I can do small wind or string instruments or ensembles. I can do organ, with or without pedals. Some ensembles have both piano and organ/keyboard; I can do an arrangement in which each instrument adds its own color and texture. It would give the effect of having a small orchestra since each instrument would be playing its own part.
These days, there are as many different styles of recording as there are musical styles. I primarily do live recordings, computer-created recording (Finale PrintMusic Playback) and a combination of the two. I play a number of instruments including guitar (acoustic and electric), keyboard, electric bass, acoustic drums, trumpet, recorder and sundry rhythm instruments. I have some semi-programmable drum sequences. My rig is 24-track digital recorder, an assortment of effects devices (including a vintage spring reverb), and an array of mics.

My recording technique fits a LOT of styles. However, there have been a few potential clients that looked elsewhere for their recording needs. Remember, we all have our special abilities. Keep an eye open on the website; I'll be including more samples of my work as time goes by.
Yes, conditionally. My aim is to work with your music so that will be completely satisfied with the result, but, as with any endeavor, there are limitations. To begin with, for any project, you will be given a representative sample of the project. If you are a first-time client and have an issue with it, l will do my best to correct it. If it is "un-correctable", then we can call it a learning experience, it won't cost you any more and you will be free to find another arranger/writer.
There is usually a down payment for any project; that would be non-refundable.

If I can correct it, we will proceed. Once a step has been approved, it cannot be changed.

If you are a repeat customer, I will assume that you liked what I did for you before, and the restrictions on the guarantee will be tighter.
Salt Cellar Creations can provide printed versions of any of its original and public domain pieces. Contact Me to get started. The cost would include the price of the printing itself (much lower than you might expect), the cost of shipping and a 5% or $10 service fee, whichever is less.