BPM Music School Rebranding
Rodrigo Dávila
BPM Music School is a platform for the new generation of musical artists in Central America, based in Guatemala City.
For over 10 years, they have been dedicated to educating and promoting talented DJs, music producers, and artists.
Recently, they updated their brand identity due to a change in management and partners. In 2019 and 2020, they aimed to communicate their new vision to their market and business allies through a rebranding effort that aligned with their expectations.
The heart of the school is the relationship between teachers and students.
With more than 500 graduates to date, many of them growing professionally in the local and regional music scene.
The focus of the school is synthesized music, yet they offer more traditional courses such as piano, guitar and music theory.
The Challenge
The brand had excellent acceptance among students and teachers, but it represented the previous management's vision. The challenge was to create something different that did not break the association of the brand with the excitement of the market. To accomplish this, two major stages were prepared:
Create a new logo that would represent the new vision for the future of the local and regional music scene.
Use the previous graphics elements (2015-2019) in the new brand identity, such as color, typography, layout, photographs, and complements, until the new Instrumental and Music Production Classes are launched.
The global reference
Teaming up with the client, we reviewed the most relevant brands in the music education industry, especially the ones focused on synthesized music, to have more solid and realistic input. We found that, in general, the brands and their visual identity were very sober, and the quality of the graphics was not something important in their communication.
At that time, BPM was going through several changes, apart from changing management. It was also happening that the students were younger compared to the older generation of graduates, and they had new tastes and ways of relating to music.
So, we decided to explore a more lively, vibrant, and colorful option for BPM.
Brand evolution
In the past, there were two logos for BPM, both featuring the acronym known in the world of synthesized music as "beats per minute." The first change occurred in 2015, aiming to achieve a fresher, more current, and sober look without too much ornamentation.
The current change of the logo reflects the shift in the school's direction and vision, as well as the change in the mechanics that were used until then.
The logo proposal is based on three main elements:
1) Semantic compatibility | 2) Style | 3) Conciseness
The compatibility with music was not to be descriptive, as having our study of music schools and institutions globally the way was to make an emblem with the iconic "BPM" of the school without going for object shapes or symbols of music theory.
With the style I decided to focus on geometric shapes to achieve something institutional, formal and serious, but not having a high hierarchy, like a bank or financial institution, but more playful, being a school should have a detail of "rebellion", art or freedom of expression.
The conciseness was achieved through the counter-shape of the "P", it is our touch of "freedom" in this graphic, making three block letters, megabold to make the counter-shape of the P stand out, besides giving us space for the description, "music school".
A brand guideline for every DJ in the school.
2019 edition
Color harmony
For the color selection, I took advantage of the trend of inclusivity, in addition to the conclusions we obtained from the background review and industry references with the little use of color in their branding, so I opted for a palette with many colors, selecting a process color with its complement in luminosity, so we would have 8 shades + black and white.
First icon set
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Capturing the Soulful Harmony for BPM
A Portrait Gallery of the BPM Music School Family. Featuring the talented teachers, visionary directors, and cherished students – past and present – who have graced our halls with their passion for music and their unforgettable presence.
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Posted May 2, 2024
Rebranding
