It's a pretty nice, mellow piece, but lacks a bit in execution. First and foremost, I felt the 1-5-8 figure used most of the time in the would-be left hand (lower register) got very tiresome. Instead of jumping your figure around with the chord changes, treat every note in the "arpeggio" as a voice and voice lead the chord changes properly!
Apart from that, the harmony was at bit a tad clumsy - th
Thanks for the criticism, really.
To be honest, I wrote this song a while back for harp and oboe, but one day I was suddenly possessed to turn it into a singular harp piece, thus I switched the oboe VST to harp without remorse or any editing. By that point I was too lazy to change up the harmonic line to fit a little better with the change. But thanks to this piece I've learned my lesson to take a little more care with the actual melody while switching up instruments.
Really epic! You seem to have a knack for brass. And it's way more than acceptable. ;)
Some things I reacted to:
The french horn sounds somewhat unrealistic, either due to overlap in notes or too extreme reverb... not very noticeable at all most of the time, but when it's unaccompanied it stands a bit.
The cellos at 00:34 are just beautiful and great textural variation!
At 01:20, I felt the solo horn-orchestration got a bit old - strings here, as mentioned in an earlier review, would really heighten this part.
Thanks for the advice. I agree with you, as strings at that point would have really increased the dramatic feel of this song.
Nice, definitely conveys that sense of isolation and despair you were going for! I really like the flute at 01:19, very mystical and desoate.
Some things I reacted on:
The mix felt a bit odd, the woodblocks sound very "in your face" while the rest of the intstrument have a lot of reverb on them. The orchestration is very nicely varied, but the more majestic sections I felt called for more middle register, though it's perhaps a mixing problem as well. The track could have really used some humanization of the MIDI - some randomness to the velocity, expression/aftertouch at the very least on wind instruments etc, either through hand-editing or a keyboard.
Thanks for your review. I will keep your comments in mind in future projects.
Nice and mellow! The clarinet really needs some expression (either recorded with a keyboard's expression wheel or hand-written in Cubase/etc) data though, woodwind with a flat, even tone sounds incredibly synthy. The rest of the orchestra also feels a bit unnatural, some randomness in velocity values goes a long way to make it live, though the best thing is recording the parts with a MIDI keyboard if you ask me.
The panning feels a bit odd, especially with regards to the strings, it almost feels like the same sections come from different sections at different times, and the stereo image feels a bit wide and chaotic. I'd recommend trying out a more traditional seating plan (L - R: vln 1, vln 2, vla, vlc, cb) and going from there, perhaps it won't work with your goals but at least you've tried it! Otherwise the mix and production feels quite nice. I like your reverb!
The re-orchestration of the melody with strings provides a really nice variation! Overall though, the track gets highly repetitive, and a lot of the segment goes on for quite a while without something to really keep the listeners attention. At 03:38 for example., one would perhaps expect something like a second theme, related to the first theme. Hearing the same theme, especially with the melody again carried by strings (albeit with some extra "fills" from the rest of the orchestra?), is a bit dull.
At 04:40, the piano, and later the flute, provides some much welcome instrumental variation, but some thematic variation would really lift the track.
Just some thoughts that I hope you think are constructive, still a good job with the track!
Thank you for your detailed insight!
Of course they sound synthy, I don't have a private orchestra in my garage nor Two Steps From Hell doing music for me (and even then it would still sound unnatural). XD I didn't want it to sound realistic, rather dreamy and abstract like the rest of my tracks. The legato strings suffer from velocity and attack jumps I cannot control and I am well aware of it, as well as some other samples being rather flat on their own. I just hope for a future upgrade, and well, I tried to bring the best of what Reason can do. :)
Thanks again
KKS
Pretty nice! Some things I reflected over:
First off, it sounds like the second statement of the theme comes in the dominant rather than the tonic key, which would make this feel like more of a fugue than an invention. Furthermore, at the second statement, there's all of a sudden three parts whereas in a fugue the parts would come in one by one. An invention in the style of Bach would on the other hand only be 2-part through the whole piece, or in the case of keyboard sinfonias (often called 3-part inventions), start out 2-part with a third voice coming in after the statement of the theme.
Formalities aside, there's a very drastic intensification of both rythm and polyphony up to 00:16, where it abruptly ends. A more gradual build-up would be nice, as well as preserving the energy of this section - for example with a straight 16-note line rather than the punctuated rythm. Preserving movement and never really stopping to breathe is something quite characteristic of baroque music. Overall, this piece felt like it halted up a bit too much and too often.
Other than that, the episodic material could have been a bit more connected to the theme. Nonetheless, a very nice first venture into baroque polyphonic music!
Thank you very much for your review and for the absolutely constructive and applicable critics!
Of course everything you said about the formalia is right. I didnt try to bring in a consequent symmetric structure like it would be imperative within this age.
Accordingly to find a suitable apellation was quite hard: Its not a prelude, fuge or invention at all. I decided to call it invention just because of the translation from the latin word :D I also did not consciousely use stylistic devices which would have been integrated in this age.
Until now i have just interpreted many pieces from bach, scarlatti etc., but never tried to create the "sound-feeling" by myself. So this piece should just be understood as some kind of "stylistic-sound-test" or something like that.
The rhythm- and polyphony-breaks are the result of three little theme-tests within the project. First i wanted to create a simple fuge with 2-part, but then could not brace myself together and wanted more action immediately and integrated a third part, that brings better opportunities to get some "drama" in (or i have just played to many 3-lined preludes and fuges from the "well-tempered piano" and wanted the same feeling) :D.
To be honest: The only part i am rather content with is this "third part" of the piece beginning at 0:28. Maybe i will sit down and work over the piece in a seriouse way, but unfortunately i have to learn to much for my exam richt now :/ I think constructing a baroque-piece in a stylistic correct way is one of the most ambitious projects a composer can do, because you have to work really consequent, disciplined and clean and within this acerbity you have to be creative and conclusive. Its not possible to decive the audience with virtuosity or something - it would be noticed immediately :D
I think your review was really constructive and musical mature. Tell me if i am wrong, but after i have listened to your pieces - specially "dark enigma", i am shure to 99.9 percent of you being a professional?
Best wishes
Chris
Nice
Relaxing and soft, but it's very reverby and the playing could really use some tightening up in some parts - did you record using a click track? Even if it might be boring it's good practice.
Liked the writing and melancholic feel to it anyhow! Great for this chilly October day.
tnx)...I used Adobe Audition to record it...and yes, some reverb...maybe alittle much of it)...For october days...yes...you feeling it like I do, man!)
Omnious, dramatic and inspiring all in one!
Very nice build-up throughout the track, but it's got an overall quite tinny quality to it which kinda hinders it from being the epic it ought to be - I'd experiment with reverb settings, perhaps especially early responses and EQ settings.
Would have loved to hear what you had in mind for the ending but a deadline is a deadline!
That's what I get for trying to mix on headphones at 1 in the morning! An astute comment, seeing if I can't fix it up a bit before the deadline here. TY!
Pretty neat stuff
Liked the drastic transition in mood, however, regarding the intro: not a huge fan third chord voicing. Not sure, but sounds almost like 2nd inversion (with a 4th between the lower voices?) which makes it rather uneven and all. Having some trouble making out what happens on the two last beats of the last measure but it's a bit jarring as a first-time listener.
As for the rest, I'm not very knowledgable about techno, but it sounds pretty good to me, except the wub could perhaps use a little less of the lowest low end and more low mids, on the breakdown first and foremost. That, and some parts felt like they could just a tad of support in the lower registers, not neccesarily something bassy as the wub, but just a little something - the 01:43 part for example, was nice in itself, but felt slightly off coming from the 01:31 which wasn't very bassy either.
And on a totally random note, are you stratkat from UG?
Thanks:3
I know what you mean with the spectrum being a little empty during what I'd call the 2nd verse, I might fix that, this is just a loop with the outline for the song it in, though I won't make any drastic changes if I decide to build upon this. But I think I might like that part how it is, idk.
And yea I'm stratkat on pretty much everything, UG, psn, newgrounds, other stuff idr.^^
Quite mechanical
This piece is known as "Adagio in G minor" and is commonly attributed to Albinoni, a baroque composer, but actually written by someone called Giazotto or somesuch, based on a few measures of Albinoni's.
Here's a recording on youtoob:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMbvcp 480Y4
I'll have to admit I didn't fancy the cover that much, it could really use some smoother dynamics. Also, having a 100% rigid tempo and playing doesn't bring out the music well, it feels pretty dead and robotic. Not that baroque (or rather "neo-baroque" in this case) is nearly as extravagant as say romanticism with regards to flowing tempo and such, but still. The cadenza (02:30) is supposed to be lyrical and flowing, not mechanical. Three pianos also feels just a tad overkill, I recall playing a relatively convincing arrangement for one piano.
Kudos on remembering the whole thing though if you didn't have any reference, sounds pretty spot on me, though it's been a year or so since I played it or listened to it in its entirety.
Thanks for the review Descara.
Ill check it out,
It may sound a little robotic since i use a Midi Keyboard and Logic Pro doesnt have a big variety of pianos. Anyways thank you for everything else Ill try to make a smoother version :)
xDSxGabo
Very lux indeed
Love the sweet but mellow feel to it! The use of iv (unless my ears are betraying me) is great and gives it a bit of a flair towards the end. Only particular thing that bothered me was the ending, it kind of jumped at you all of a sudden. A slight ritardando and a bit subtler voice leading would've really made the end shine, I think.
Thanks for the review! Endings are hard sometimes.
Composition student who enjoys Bach, RPGs, wine and cigars.
Age 32, Male
Joined on 7/13/11
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Night in the Forest 1 
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Baroque Invention 
