Harold Strickland, a former producer with New York's Russo/Grantham Productions has opened Miami Music and Sound Design in Miami Beach, FL.

With the goal of producing original music and voice work for TV, film and the Internet, Strickland opened the company in Miami because he sees the Latin market as a major growth area. After securing funding from private backers, Strickland began establishing a network of composers from the US and Latin America. "Right now, many Americans think of Latin music as just salsa," says Strickland who favors Afro-Cuban and Brazilian fusion sounds in terms of Latin tunes.

"Some of the people who have studios set up in their garages have the most authentic, outstanding sounds," says Strickland. "I am trying to get away from the typical music house, putting a huge price tag on a 30-second spot, with the person who owns the house getting all the credit. I want to have the artist be the one that shines."

To that effect, the Miami Music network includes composers, producers, writers and artists from areas as diverse as Miami, New York, Buenos Aires and Nashville.