I like to get things done
and I like making... things
I thrive on bringing ideas to life. From creating books and games to websites and musical pieces, I'm fuelled by a passion for creative endeavours, and getting things done.
A little bit about me...
Following a 15yr career as a business owner, offering music/audio services, I transitioned into pastures new. I up-skilled in web development before securing a scholarship on a competitive Software Engineering & Data Science course, competing against 20,000 other applicants, and I now spend my time combining my love for all things tech, music and art.
Brief history of my tech skills:
My love of coding came out of the blue. I was studying for an MSc in Music and Sound and began teaching myself C# so I could add sounds to computer games in the Unity Game Engine. I enjoyed the process so much that it sparked a whole new direction. Since then I've continued my self-directed study and immersed myself in my new passion. This portfolio website was built from scratch using HTML, CSS and Javascript, and the game on this site was built using a Test Driven Development approach.
Brief history of my audio skills:
For the last 15 years I've performed (Joy Crookes), toured (Edinburgh Festival), taught (ABRSM), examined (RSL), composed (Kuoni), scored, produced and treated audio for a range of content. In 2021 I composed the music to an award-winning short film called When We Fell↑. It was presented at festivals worldwide, won three awards and was nominated for the Audience Award by the prestigious British Animation Awards. Today, I release music independently as the artists Sponn↑ and Green and Pine↑.
| name: Ben Spooner |
| age: years young |
| favouriteBook: Hear The Wind Sing |
| techStack: Javascript, HTML & CSS |
| soundStack: Logic X, Sibelius & FMOD |
| education: Music and Sound for Film and Games (MSc) Distinction |
| hobbies: Reading, Walking, Eating, Learning, Cooking & Creating |
| Extra links: gitHub↑ | linkedIn↑ | KTMA↑ | blog↑ |
FUN FACT
I jammed with an eccentric British pop icon, quite unexpectedly when performing at a North London gig. Adam Ant arrived with an entourage and beckoned us mid set that he wanted to join us on stage. Which he did... we had a blast!
> VIEW MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL↑
Beginner To Composer...
In 14 Days
"Beginner To Composer In 14 Days is delightfully different. Moving swiftly from theory to action, Ben emerges as the teacher you always wished you'd had, championing radical creative freedom, improvisation and composition - even for beginners. Especially for beginners in fact. "Students need freedom to truly fall in love with their instrument" he writes, "frameworks that pique their curiosity over and over again so that practice becomes play". Whether you're a complete beginner or have a little knowledge up your sleeve, you'll adore this dynamic and intimate guide to learning the piano, peppered with evocative vignettes of a life lived with music at its heart. Best of all, you'll come away with a method you can use time and time again to create your very own music, captured on professional quality lead sheets you can share with other musicians, to bring your work to life. Suitable for adults and a useful resource for teachers. Complements graded and traditional approaches to learning."
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Try not to die...
Level complete