In her article ChatGPT Needs More Cowbell (Source: The Atlantic) – Nancy Walecki describes the history of jingles and the influence that human creativity has on emotional response. The piece centers on the idea that great commercial music – the kind that gets stuck in our heads – is built on crafting catchy, pop-like mnemonics, but also a willingness to take musical risks, which humans are more prone to do […]
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DALLAS—October 29, 2025— Stephen Arnold Music (SAM) has created sonic branding and custom music for Gray Media’s slate of New Orleans Pelicans NBA basketball broadcasts. The music package builds upon SAM’s previous collaboration with Gray Media for its sports programming, including Atlanta Braves Major League Baseball coverage, extending Gray Media’s cohesive sports identity while capturing the unmistakable spirit and sound of New Orleans. The three-minute theme was recorded live in […]
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For over three decades, we’ve had the pleasure of crafting unforgettable sonic identities and custom music for many of the world’s top international brands, and we’re continuing to amp things up! From distinctive sonic identities for major news and television networks, to sonic logos for worldwide corporations and entertainment groups, to brand themes for global festivals, our creative team strives to emotionally connect audiences with brands across every platform. Take […]
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From city traffic to airplanes to handheld devices, the world today makes a lot of noise, and it’s not all good. In urban environments, people often experience extended periods of excessive noise levels – above 90 dB – which can lead to serious health risks. Noise reduction efforts are underway in many of the world’s most populated cities, and as a sound creation agency, we at SAM felt it important […]
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At the 2025 All-Star Game in Atlanta, Major League Baseball commemorated the 51st anniversary of Hank Aaron’s historic, record-breaking 715th home run with an unforgettable tribute created through a ground-breaking blend of projection mapping, pyrotechnics and immersive music and sound. Immersive entertainment pioneer Image Engineering produced, while sonic branding leader Stephen Arnold Music (SAM) created the soundtrack for the emotionally charged spectacle broadcast live on Fox Sports and experienced in […]
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What sounds take you back? Is it the whimsical music of an ice cream truck, a commercial jingle from Saturday morning cartoons, the ‘one-up’ chime from a video game, or maybe a hit song from a summer road trip? Our senses are really good at triggering past experiences, and sound is one of the most powerful. Examining how we process the audible world can shed light on why sound is […]
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Wow, this is really powerful! A recent post by our sonic research partners over at SoundOut has revealed that sonic branding is the most effective brand asset when it comes to maximizing brand awareness. The article references research completed by System1 and TikTok [Source: The Long & Short (Form) of It] which analyzed nearly 900 short-form ads and 92,000 consumers. Among the findings, sonic assets (e.g. sonic logos, brand mnemonics, […]
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DALLAS—March 10, 2025— Stephen Arnold Music (SAM) created sonic branding and custom music for Gray Media’s newly launched slate of Atlanta Braves baseball games. The package includes an original score, featuring all live orchestration, providing Gray Media with a strong and distinct sonic identity as a sports broadcaster and distribution partner. The three-minute theme has a modular structure that makes it easily adaptable to a range of programming and marketing […]
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Many folks might not be familiar with Garland, Texas, but they have most certainly heard it, whether they realize it or not. This artsy town northeast of Dallas is home to Audio Dallas (formerly Autumn Sound Studios) where Willie Nelson recorded one of his most celebrated albums, Red Headed Stranger, in January of 1975. This year marks the 50th anniversary of this seminal work and the City of Garland decided […]
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Welcome to the new home of Stephen Arnold Music (SAM)! Our brand new studios have been custom built from the ground up and feature 5,500 sq. ft. of creative space in the newly renovated Cotton Mill building in McKinney, Texas. The new space is outfitted with a custom designed live room capable of recording everything from solo musicians to live orchestras. We’ve also constructed a state-of-the-art control room and tuned […]
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