Composing a Theme: Premier Hockey Federation Sings a New Song Boutique agency Audiobrain crafted the league's anthem for branding and broadcast By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital
Friday, January 14, 2022 - 8:19 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
There are many pieces of the live viewing experience that sear lifelong memories into the minds - and hearts - of sports fans. Perhaps one of the more underrated elements of madeleine in our collective sports conscious is music.
That is especially true of the sport of hockey, where, just last year, one of the most talked-about storylines of the NHL's reunion with ESPN was the return of the brand's iconic theme song.
On the women's side of the game, the top-flight North American women's professional hockey league was rebranding itself, and the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) was looking to bring a fresh audible identity to its newly minted brand.
The PHF turned to the team at Audiobrain, a boutique sonic-branding agency based in New York City, to develop a pulsating, energetic theme that would not only accompany the league's new name and logo but debut on broadcast alongside a season-long live-distribution deal with ESPN in the U.S.
You have to engage and bring emotion to the consumer, says Audrey Arbeeny, owner and Emmy-winning executive producer/creative director, Audiobrain. They have to feel something. I've been doing this a really long time, and, when I listen to this piece of music, I get excited.
The process of developing a sports-television theme is an intriguing one, and, for the team at Audiobrain, it's one that includes a lengthy research process. Composers consumed anything they could about the league to identify its brand energy. That included watching multiple NWHL (the league's former name) games, consuming press conference, and talking to key stakeholders in the league: executives, coaches, and players.
By the time we start writing, says Arbeeny, we all sit down, and we say, What makes this different? What's going to make this stand out? And that music is so unexpected. It is as strong as any broadcast-brand theme that we've ever written.
https://www.sportsvideo.org/new/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/OpenMusic_re-encoded_edit.mp4
According to Arbeeny, the key qualities that were identified - and ultimately influenced the final product - were empowerment, inclusivity, and integrity. The team also aimed for a gender-neutral feel in its use of strings and brass.
We follow a branding process, she explains. There's a discovery, and there's research. How is the brand positioning itself, what does it stand for, what are its values, and what are its core attributes?
We're not just writing 15 demos and saying, Tell me which one you like,' she continues. Every one that we write, every concept that we write, the composers tie it back to what we heard from the brand, and that's how we get the right characteristics into the sound.
Audiobrain has quite a legacy in media music and sound effects: its r sum includes some Olympics work for NBC, the Microsoft Xbox 360, and a past edition of the Major League Soccer anthem. The group currently has six award-winning composers on its staff and has been serving the industry for more than two decades.
I knew not only of Audrey's [ability] to create and understand music as a business but [her ability to] understand how to use music to brand, says PHF's executive media consultant Michael Cohen. That was important for this project because, as the Premier Hockey Federation enters its seventh season, it's the most extensive production ever of games being on-air anywhere. We didn't want to just start and throw these things on a media platform without really starting with What is [the league] supposed to feel like, look like, and, importantly, sound like?'
In addition to the primary theme, the Audiobrain team also worked closely with Cohen and the broadcast side to develop a variety of teases and bumpers that fit a traditional broadcast package. What will hit viewers' ears at the top of a game broadcast vs. the open of a league-branded podcast, or when the game goes to a commercial in the middle of the second period, or during a Goal of the Week segment at an intermission break.
The PHF established this theme to be universal, not one designed just for the live game broadcast. This is a theme that will accompany the league in all environments, be it in-venue or on content across social platforms.
It's a cohesive, unified communication, which is where all of voice and sound are going now, says Arbeeny. It is gigantic.
The Premier Hockey Federation returns to action on Saturday wen the Metropolitan Riveters visit the Connecticut Whale at 1 p.m. ET and the Buffalo Beauts visit the Toronto Six at 2 p.m. Both games will stream live in the U.S. on ESPN+.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
02/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/07/2026
Standalone processors acknowledged for the innovation and value they bring to Pro AV
Cobalt Digital, a leading designer and manufacturer of signal processing ...
02/07/2026
Synamedia announced today the appointment of Dr Tzvi Gerstl as Chief Executive Officer. Paul Segre, who has served as CEO for the past six years, will transitio...
02/07/2026
Screen Australia backs audience-led filmmaking with new insight-driven initiativ...
02/07/2026
Screen Australia refines guidelines for Narrative Content Development and Docume...
02/07/2026
Maxon Autograph: Introduction to working with Tables
Simon Ubsdell July 1, 2026
0 Comments
An overview of Autograph's ridiculously powerful tables...
02/07/2026
Boston Conservatory's Soir e Breaks Records to Fund Student Scholarships The event achieved 127 percent of its fundraising goal in an evening celebrating ...
02/07/2026
How Adam Rosenwach Pivoted from Music to Med Tech Without Missing a Beat What do the rehearsal room and the boardroom have in common? More than you might thin...
01/07/2026
Broadcast Management Group (BMG) has announced the appointment of Kathy Samuels ...
01/07/2026
Shade has announced Custom Objects and Automations, a platform expansion releasing June 29, 2026, that adds database and workflow automation capabilities direct...
01/07/2026
FOR-A America has announced the addition of Jaz Wray and Fernando Cruz to its U.S. sales team. Both report to Ernie Leon, Senior VP and Head of Sales and Strate...
01/07/2026
NBC Sports will air all 15 MLB games nationally on Sunday, July 5, across NBC, P...
01/07/2026
Clear-Com has announced a wireless communications upgrade for Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, deploying FreeSpeak II and FreeSpeak Icon systems across both prod...
01/07/2026
England's performance team will use Sony's STATSports APEX GPS tracking system to monitor player physical data in real time during FIFA World Cup 2026 m...
01/07/2026
Adder Technology has announced the appointment of Neil Hillier as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 1, 2026. Hillier succeeds Adrian Dickens, who transiti...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. has announced a strategic transaction creating two separate companies. The Production and Playout business will continue as Bitcentral, now own...
01/07/2026
DAZN has announced results from DAZN48, its creator initiative for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Launched in April 2026, the program received thousands of applicatio...
01/07/2026
Sarah Rose, VP, global services, Daktronics (NASDAQ: DAKT), will be inducted into the Information Display and Entertainment Association (IDEA) Hall of Fame at t...
01/07/2026
Gravity Media and the World Economic Forum's production team provided broadc...
01/07/2026
Insight Productions has announced the launch of Insight Storm, a 53-foot mobile broadcast unit built for esports production. The truck is built around a Ross Vi...
01/07/2026
ESPN has announced several content initiatives marking America's 250th anniversary, as part of The Walt Disney Company's Disney Celebrates America pro...
01/07/2026
Eleven production kits, REMI workflows, and cloud distribution bring 40 World Cu...
01/07/2026
The conference also discussed the opportunities offered an industry that is endu...
01/07/2026
The Mountain West Conference has announced the launch of MW , a direct-to-consumer streaming platform powered by Kiswe. The platform will carry live Mountain We...
01/07/2026
New AI Assistant, Multi-channel Audio, ARA2 improvements & more
Tracktion's DAW software has just received its latest major update, gaining a selection ...
01/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
01/07/2026
Exclusive run of limited-edition modelling pedals
Sweetwater and Andertons M...
01/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Manfrotto Introduces UNCOVER, the new premium camera bag collection for modern h...
01/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Powers Houston Tamil Sangam Literacy Competition
Brie Clayton July 1, 2026
0 Comments
Volunteers use ATEM Mini Pro, Blackmagic Desig...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
PlayBox Technology has published State of Broadcast Infrastructure 2026, an in-depth industry research report examining the technologies, operational challenges...
01/07/2026
LONDON, UK, 1 JULY Jigsaw24 has appointed Alan Henry as Head of Sales for Media and Entertainment, reinforcing its continued investment in helping broadcaster...
01/07/2026
Content Vault, the patent-pending secure content distribution platform protecting high-value media from disclosures, theft and unauthorised access, today announ...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. a leading provider of enterprise software and digital media solutions for news, sports and entertainment broadcasters, as well as streaming pla...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Groundbreaking First Nations Screen Business Accelerator launched through nation...
Composing a Theme: Premier Hockey Federation Sings a New Song Boutique agency Audiobrain crafted the league's anthem for branding and broadcast By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital 
