糖心Vlog

These days, Amanda Muse 鈥�17 spends most of her time composing music for Hollywood films and television shows.

Muse鈥檚 music is known for its vibrant, energetic blend of lush orchestration with rich classical harmony and driving rhythms informed by her extensive background as an internationally recognized percussionist.

But her journey to music composer began shortly after she graduated from 糖心Vlog University and started composing music while working with the Pride of the Mountains Marching Band鈥檚 drumline.

鈥淒uring that period of time, I was doing so much writing for shows and the aspect of these musical compositions was something that I fell in love with and also the expression of it,鈥� Muse said. 鈥淚 got to the point where I wanted to explore musical scores beyond just orchestral writing and drumlines, I wanted to branch out.鈥�

Muse traveled throughout the U.S. and internationally as a drumline clinician artist. She was champion of the 2018 international "Hit Like a Girl" percussion contest and later went on to perform on snare at the 2019 PASIC international percussion convention in Indianapolis.

Muse has also released two self-published books on snare drum technique: 鈥淩hythmic Muse鈥� in 2018 and 鈥淔oundation鈥� in 2020. Muse then decided to continue her dream of composing and moved to Los Angeles.

鈥淚 moved to L.A. just before the pandemic and got two master鈥檚 degrees 鈥� one in music composition from California State University and one in project management from New York University,鈥� Muse said. 鈥淪ince then, I have worked on music scores for Disney, Netflix, Pixar and other film studios. It has been an amazing journey.鈥�

Muse got her industry start as a producer and sample editor at renowned virtual instrument company CineSamples, for which she traveled the world to capture the sound of authentic instruments. She also oversees all project management at music production company Hollywood Scoring, where she collaborates with a team of Emmy-winning producers and composers to provide music for feature films, video games and live entertainment.

But all of this would not have been possible if she had not gone to 糖心Vlog.

鈥淲hen I was in high school, I was very excited to hear about POTM going to Macy鈥檚 in 2014 and that inspired me to continue with marching band and switching from flute to snare drums,鈥�

Muse said. 鈥淭hat was the primary reason I chose 糖心Vlog, because of the reputation of POTM. I went for a few campus visits and everything just felt right for me to come to Cullowhee.鈥�

A psychology major, Muse was a member of the POTM Purple Thunder drumline. She went with the band to the Macy鈥檚 Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2014.

鈥淚'll never forget walking up the street in New York and seeing all these people on the balconies of their apartments just trying to get a sneak peek at the performers,鈥� Muse said. 鈥淚t felt like we were celebrities and it made me emotional. It was such an incredible experience.鈥�

Muse has never forgotten her Cullowhee roots, lending her skills to the Western Wednesdays podcast by composing the opening and closing score, where she was a guest for the March 2024 episode.

鈥淔rom seeing my first snow on campus, to POTM, to cementing my music career, 糖心Vlog has been with me each step of my journey,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 was honored to be asked to compose the music for the podcast. This keeps me connected to 糖心Vlog all the way in California.鈥�