Touring electric cellist and composer for films and games. 2021 TEDx Talk performer. Film and game soundtracks with original compositions featured at Filmpalooza, the 48 Hour Film Festival, and the Indie Short Film Series.
Let me use my expertise and passion to bring your project to life! My name is Brianna Tam, and I'm a touring electric cellist, as well as a composer for films and games. I was a 2021 TEDx Talk performer, and my music has been featured in award-winning films.
I regularly improvise during my live-looped performances, as well as in recording. I've recorded everything from metal, to hip hop, to soundtrack music.
I look forward to turning your vision into a reality!
More Info: https://www.briannatam.com/
Contact me through the green button above and let's get to work.
17 Reviews - 3 Repeat Clients
Endorse Brianna Tam- check_circleVerified
Brianna wrote a very beautiful accompaniment cello part for my song cover. Was very communicative and took into consideration all my requests for the part Thanks Brianna!
- check_circleVerified
Brianna did a great job and gave me much more than I asked for. Highly recommended!!
- check_circleVerified
I contracted Brianna to compose, record, and mix a few custom pieces, thinking her sound was a perfect fit for my project. She asked a ton of relevant questions to insure the mood and tone of the music would meet my expectations (which they did perfectly!). Turn around time was really fast, and it was always exciting to listen to what she had created. I couldn't be happier with the finished project, and look forward to working with Brianna again.
- check_circleVerified
Again a great pleasure to work with Brianna, beautiful work!
- check_circleVerified
Brianna was wonderful to work with. Her playing is amazing, able to follow music notes as well as providing options with her own musicality, and the recordings were clean and sounded great. Even when my files had some trouble, she was very understanding and able to work through them. Throughout the process, Brianna was communicative, professional and helpful. Grateful to work with her and an absolute pleasure - highly recommend!!
- check_circleVerified
Again a great pleasure to work with Brianna, fast and efficient, great musician!
- check_circleVerified
Brianna is a very skilled and musical cellist. She is also very easy to work with, positive and happy to make adjustments. I will use her again and highly recommend her for someone looking for a warm, expressive tone.
- check_circleVerified
I really love working with Brianna. She is a very talented intrumentist. She understood quickly what I needed for the song and played a beautiful score with expression and emotion. I will work with her again soon.
- check_circleVerified
This has been my second time working with Brianna! She’s a geniuses and it’s an absolute pleasure creating with her. I sent her a concept and and an inspiration from an Hans Zimmer track I like. Brianna executed exactly what I had in mind. She even doubled up on string parts to make the string section sound more full. Brianna responds quickly and is always professional! Thank you so much!
- check_circleVerified
Amazing experience! Really quick to deliver, she listened to all my feedback and recorded while taking them into consideration. Great skill as well! She did an outstanding epic cello solo for my song!
I'm definitely sure I'll hire her again in the future! :) - check_circleVerified
Extremely gifted player and with a wonderful gift for arrangement. Easy to communicate with. Brianna made everything come to life. So grateful.
- check_circleVerified
It was a pleasure to work with Brianna.
I am very pleased by her performance and the way she improvised on my composition.
She is fast to respond and to produce.
Will work with her again. - check_circleVerified
Completely blown away by the incredible ear that Brianna has and the quality that she produced!! She was very easy to work with and was extremely patient and accommodating with fine tuning each part to make sure it was just right. You can hear based on the tracks she provided that she loves the art of music and commits 100%! I would highly recommend working with her!
- check_circleVerified
Brianna is an absolutely amazing talent to work with! She is professional and has huge musical imagination. She made my song in completely new sound, with this extra mile for the client and very fast and clear communication. Her cello style is flawless and she is very creative.
I definitely recommend Brianna if you want to work both with dedicated professional as well as very talented artist. - check_circleVerified
Brianna is a really talented cellist and I will definitely reach out to her again in the future! She was great at taking direction, and the delivery was very fast and seamless. Her ability to learn my difficult Bossa Nova song really shows me that she's able to adapt to all genres quickly.
- check_circleVerified
Excellent musician, completed my project very swiftly. Highly recommended.
- check_circleVerified
Brianna was a joy to work with. She took an idea I had, and breathed life into it. She's very reasonable and easy to work with. Brianna keeps a good attitude and has a very quick turnaround. I enjoyed how thorough she was with communication, and how she went above and beyond to get the goal met. I you need an intimate or even BIG string section in a track, she's your girl!
Interview with Brianna Tam
Q: What do you bring to a song?
A: I bring a rich tone, diverse colors, and my expressivity to the songs that I record on. My goal is have listeners' perk their ears when they hear my cello come into the song. I can bring whatever emotion or style the client needs for their project. I also use my creativity and composition knowledge to elevate a client's idea, if they so desire. This includes adjusting their idea slightly to make it catchier, or more fitting for the cello, as well as adding harmonizing layers that perfectly complement the main layer.
Q: What's your typical work process?
A: I'll listen to what the client has so far, and then ask them about their vision for the project, and what they hope to accomplish by adding cello. It's important to me that I know exactly what they want. That way, if they need or want help beefing up the cello part, or adding more layers, I know what approach to take. I then record, and mix the parts as necessary.
Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?
A: People seem to think that I wont want to work with them because they play a certain genre or they're concerned that their compositional skills aren't up to my level, but I'm truly open to trying out any genre, and if you need assistance getting your project to the level that you want, I am definitely down to help where I can.
Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?
A: What's your vision? What inspired you to write this song/piece? Why do you want cello on your project? What sound are you hoping to achieve by adding cello?
Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?
A: Include as much detail as possible! The challenge with collaborating is accurately sharing your idea with another human being, and then hoping that they're on the same page with you. The more information you provide, the more likely you'll get the results that you seek.
Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?
A: 1. Acoustic cello 2. Electric cello 3. Amp 4. Loop pedal 5. High quality camera OR recording device (i.e. a Zoom)
Q: How would you describe your style?
A: Minimalist with some rock/metal characteristics, but never over the top. I've also been told that I tend to incorporate some hip hop characteristics into my music.
Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?
A: Hans Zimmer. I love his music from a listener and compositional standpoint. Also, he often works with string musicians.
Q: Can you share one music production tip?
A: If you want the "surround sound" feel, one way you can achieve this is by creating a "left" and "right" bus channel for each range. For instance, you would have a "highs" channel, a "high lefts" channel, and a "high rights" channel. Then, you use the directional mixer to send your "high lefts" as far left as you would like, and then apply the same principle to the "high rights." This way, you have a centered channel, a left channel, and a right channel, which makes the listener feel like the sound is all around them. You could even make a channel to have the parts feel like they're behind you. This is all part of "shaping" your sound.
Q: What type of music do you usually work on?
A: Classical, hip hop, film score, singer-songwriter
Q: What's your strongest skill?
A: Playing expressively in such a way that captivates everyone in a room
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
A: My album!
Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?
A: I promise that my product will exceed your expectations, and that it'll make you feel some type of way emotionally.
Q: Tell us about your studio setup.
A: I have both my acoustic and electric cello (Yamaha), an AKG C414 condenser mic., a PreSonus AudioBox 1818VSL, a Yamaha keyboard, an Acoustic amp, and a bunch of guitar effect pedals.
Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?
A: I'm inspired by cellist Giovanni Sollima, whose a classically-trained cellist who often writes music that delves into genres such as rock, metal, and minimalism, yet, he never sacrifices the integrity of his music. His music is catchy and accessible, but never simplified as a means to increase traffic. I'm also inspired by Hans Zimmer; his music takes films to entirely new heights and really brings the story and characters to life. This is a crucial skill to have as a composer, which is why I admire him so much.
Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.
A: I'm a session cellist as well as an arranger. Using my knowledge as a composer, improviser, and experienced musician, I often help clients spice up the part(s) or idea(s) provided. In that way, I often help the client write/arrange the cello part(s), and then record for them.
I was the Cellist, Composer, Producer, Engineer in this production
- CelloContact for pricing
- String SectionContact for pricing
- String ArrangerContact for pricing
- Composer OrchestralContact for pricing
- Film ComposerContact for pricing
- Full instrumental productionContact for pricing
- Yo-Yo Ma
- Tina Guo
- Jacqueline du Pré
- Warm Audio WA47 Tube Mic
- Yamaha SVC-110 Silent Cello
- Logic Pro X