Meet Cliff
Clifford Haines is a composer and aspiring producer creating cinematic, emotional, piano-driven music…
Whether you're here to listen, create, or find music for your next project, you'll find compositions designed to move the moment and help tell a story.
CTH BIO:
As of now I am starting my 3rd act in life as an Original music Composer and Producer using my 45 years of original piano compositions that I have written since I took my first piano lesson at the age of 23 in 1980 using a Bastien Music Theory and Learning book written for 5 year olds. I learned all the music theory, composition and playing skills from my teacher Rev. Richard Johnson from Aurora IL over the next 5 years and 3 recitals where I learned who I was experiencing queasy nervous lows and the unbelievable highs of starting and finishing a piano recital as the only adult playing. I am so glad I gave my self that gift at 23 and so pumped now to be able to use my piano theory skillset along with those 45 years of original piano tracks to start my new career as a publisher of original music in most every genre.
My first career was supposed to be a professional baseball player for the Chicago Cubs but due to lack of talent and being a pitcher with a chronic sore arm at 19. That forced me to fall back on the classes I took at college while playing baseball, which was for a computer science major just by chance. That major started my 2nd career for the next 50 years in software development, sales and consulting and starting two software companies. The latter being CTH Technologies which is starting to wind down as of this year.
Now I am ready to start this 3rd and final career exploring my passion to be become a published song writer with all of the songs I have composed old and new and all of which started coming to me just a few months after I started piano lessons in 1980. I guess I figured it was a gift from the universe so I kept on writing the pieces on music staff sheets, notebooks, scrapes of paper, napkins and always recording song bits and parts on cassette tapes, Tascam 4 track recorder, voice memo machines and sometimes calling my home answering machine and humming melodies (yes, old school).
CTH Goals:
My goal in starting CTH Music is to perfect my producer’s workflow in order to take all of my old and new single piano tracks and create professionally produced multi-track, mixed and mastered songs which will be sent to Music Publishing and Licensing companies (MLCs) with the hope that they will then be pitched to all of the media content providers around the world to be selected for use as background, credits or scene enhancing music in Film, TV, Streaming Service shows, Documentaries, Commercials, games, etc. to help me to get ears on my music and sent out to the universe.
Souling:
My term for “rolling around in your soul to get to know it better” to help you find out what really need to live your best life. Music can really help you get to know your soul.
My hope is that most of my music, i.e., “Souling”, will provide you with that calming, relaxing and inspirational feelings to give you inner peace and promote mental health to keep your dreams alive and well nourished.
Listen:
My Cliff Notes Lead Sheets:
I create one of these detailed document lead sheets which of course I call “Cliff Notes” for every song that I write and produce which is the only way I can create anything that hopefully doesn’t suck:
CTH Music Studio:
Music Equipment:
YAMAHA MODX M8 Keyboard
YAMAHA Baby Grand CLP-500
Arturia Keylab 88
Audigo Recording Device
Music Software:
Cubase 15 DAW on Windows Laptop
SUNO Studio Premier
Moises Studio
Stacatto AI Instrument
Sondo AI for Music videos
PicToPop AI Image Create/Edit
GarageBand on MacBook Air
Dear Music,
I’m sorry I can’t quite play the exact beautiful, emotional melodies and harmonies I hear in my head most every time I sit in front of my perfectly still and quiet piano.
But I am so thankful for the marriage of computers, numbers and composition/producer recording and editing software that has finally been created over the last 30 years (especially the last 3) that has allowed me to recreate all the music that has ever popped into my head, heart, fingers and toes like a gift from the universe in the way that I truly imagined it would sound from the very first time I heard it in my head.
I’m thrilled of the possibilities to help celebrate what you love and the memories you have made with my music as a soundtrack to help lift up your most cherished pictures and videos to weave back and forth through your past while you’re watching and remembering them.
I want to use the power of emotional, reflective and inspirational music to help people feel better about life again if they feel like they’ve lost that spark, passion or light in their lives.
Sometimes when I put my hands on the piano keys and I feel like it grabs my hands and starts moving them around like on an ouija board until my fingers press down once they find their place to start... That’s when the good stuff happens like gift from a spirit.
We’ve all heard that numbers don’t lie and since music. Composition and theory are all based numbers, then music never lies as well. It always comes alive in your mind, heart, soul and voice.
My hope is always that my music will lift up your Heart and Soul to feel totally at Peace...Hands down.
Songwriting is not just writing chords in order and words that flow in and out of your mind. It’s just as important to capture the rhythm and phrases of everyone you interact with as they speak and move around you and write about it.
Always remember to...
Take the risk.
Go too far.
You can always rein it back in or break those reigns and keep pushing forward and most importantly never stop moving cause once you do at any age...you’re done.
Having music in your life will never let you be done.
Sincerely,
Your biggest fan, Cliff
