Music design is a great deal of fun. Many people are playing and recording music these days, and good cover art or flyer design really makes a visual impression while conveying to the listeners and audience members what you’re all about. At this point I have designed probably hundreds of CD and record covers, as well as logos and websites for musical artists. In fact, Music Design is how I got started as a designer: my band needed flyers, so I took it upon myself to get it done. Pretty soon other bands were asking me to make their flyers, and my career was launched. Good music design:

• Makes a visual impression
• Is stylistically appropriate
• Adheres to the format
• Remains engaging over time

Makes a visual impression:

Who hasn’t considered buying a CD or LP based on the power of the cover art alone? I know I have. A well designed cover compels a potential fan to pull the record from the racks and examine it more closely, and thus increases the odds that they will buy it.

Is stylistically appropriate:

Of course, cover art should be stylistically appropriate and indicative of the music inside. For example: if the cover art consists of rolling hills and green forests, then odds are pretty good that the music inside is not hip-hop. Cover art should be engaging but not be overly surprising.

Adheres to the format:

There’s a variety of ways to consume music these days: CD, LP, downloads, streaming, etc. Each of these has different constraints for art work and good graphic design will fit whatever format the music is delivered on.

Remains engaging over time:

Many regard Music Design as an art form unto itself. When cover art is well executed it stands up to repeated viewings while the music is playing, as well as create an association with the music. The music and it’s cover art are a package deal.