Shaping the Sounds of Television and Film: Alexandra Patsavas
If television and film have become ways that people find music, then Alexandra Patsavas is one of the guides
by Kaymaria Daskarolis
Owner of Chop Shop Music Supervision and Chop Shop Records, Alexandra Patsavas is one of the key players determining what we hear when we watch television or go to the movies. The granddaughter of Greek immigrants and the daughter of lifelong educators, Patsavas is pioneering new territory in the music industry while educating viewers and listeners worldwide. Along with her team of musical coordinators at Chop Shop Music Supervision, Patsavas delivers the signature sounds of many films and television shows. Through her new label, Chop Shop Records, Patsavas is expanding her reach.
How did you decide to become a business owner yourself?
I never set out to own my own business. I set out to work in the music industry. I started at the university and then actually had my own small business very early on booking shows and talent for the university. I went on to work with a number of big companies: Triad Artists, which became part of William Morris; Roger Corman’s company Concorde Films; and then BMI. Finally I started my own company about 10 years ago, in January 1998. I started my own company because I felt like it was one of the few ways I could control what I worked on. But I interact with many big companies and now I have a joint venture with Atlantic Records.
Why did you choose Atlantic?
I felt like they were very open to what I wanted to do. They are really fantastic at artist development, as well as working a band once they’re signed.
Is Chop Shop Records focusing on a particular genre of music?
We do focus on indie rock. Certainly you can find me on my MySpace page for submissions (www.myspace.com/chopshoprecordlabel). I don’t see branching out of my comfort zone too much.
When it comes to actual music supervision as opposed to the record label, how do you feel about branching out of your comfort zone?
I enjoy that. I enjoy the music challenges of a different musical era. Mad Men takes place in 1961-1962 New York. Carnivále took place in 1934. I’ve done period movies, I’ve done movies that focus on country music, we’ve done episodes based on classical music or ballet music, . . . that’s what makes this job so interesting. It’s the constant challenge of a hip-hop episode, of a historical episode. It’s a different scenario than a label.
Would you say this is your dream job right now?
I couldn’t imagine a better job than the one that I have.
What does your job as music supervisor actually entail?
The music supervisor is hired by the director of a film or the executive producers of a television show to shape the signature sound of the music of the project. That can include the theme song, any song that’s sung on camera, the soundtrack that accompanies the project, the songs that are used within the body of the episodes or films, . . . it’s really anything that has to do with music.
What do you like most about your job?
I enjoy the incredible intelligence and creativity of the people I get to interact with. That’s what makes this job so satisfying. And I have always had such a strong affinity for music. This is a way I can not only focus on brand-new artists, unsigned artists, and little-known artists, but also classics from this century and the last.
What are some of the biggest challenges of your work?
Timeframes can be very challenging, especially as we move on later into a television season. The schedule from when the episodes are actually shot until when they air is more compressed. We definitely have to hustle in order to get everything not only approved creatively but cleared legally for air, and that’s challenging. The creative process is challenging in general. Sometimes it takes a little while to find the perfect music for something.
How is the experience different when you are supervising the music for a show like Without A Trace where the music is setting the tone and the mood as opposed to a show like Gossip Girl where it’s practically another character on the show?
It’s really about the executive producers’ expectations for what the music is going to mean. I think when music is a character we certainly focus a lot on the music culture surrounding the character. On Gossip Girl I do a video blog, we have character playlists – we create an interactive way for the fans to become interested and part of the music culture of the show.
Your job sounds really glamorous. Is it as glamorous as it sounds?
No. (laughs) There are certainly very glamorous things about it. But mostly I am in my office with my headphones on or on the phone. I keep very regular hours and then more hours on top of those regular hours.
Like your participation in the Tribeca Film Festival?
Right. Which was so fun. It’s always something I look forward to doing. This year I announced one of my bands, The Republic Tigers, who released the first album on my new label. I also got to curate some music for the Tribeca Film Festival. We tried to focus a bit on New York music with The Hold Steady and The Virgins, which I’ve used quite a bit on Gossip Girl.
The Bad Veins, the fourth band you featured, won the Target Music Maker Award.
Target generously gave a $10,000 unrestricted cash prize that the band can use in any way they want. It’s really fantastic to be able to do things like that.
Listeners in Greece and other countries where shows like The O.C. are syndicated are being introduced to music they’ve never heard before because of you and your team. How does that feel?
It’s fantastic. How rewarding is that? That we’re making an impact. That is super rewarding. I would love very much to go to a conference in Greece sometime. I’m sure there’s a music business conference that takes place in Athens. I get a lot of e-mail from Greece, actually.
How did you feel when you learned you had been nominated for a Grammy?
What better honor than to be honored by your peers? The Grammy committee is made up of our peers so it was very exciting – especially for a television soundtrack, which almost never gets nominated.
When did you first feel like you got to a place where you could call your own shots?
In the beginning, when I first started music supervising, bands were much less apt to feel like it was a good idea to allow their music to be used in a film or television show. They were not so into the idea of marrying their piece of art with a picture. It’s gotten much easier over the years. Artists are into the opportunity now, and that’s changed everything more than anything else.
