So over at the Minecraft Combat Music Thread, I saw that all the combat music included in the packs was actually stolen from other games such as Zelda and Final Fantasy. This seemed sad to me. Minecraft has its own great soundtrack, rich with unique and interesting themes. I thought combat music would be better if it was based upon real minecraft music, using familiar themes and chord progressions.
So, despite my inexperience at arranging music, I fired up the FL studio 9 demo and put together an "Orchestral Combat Arrangement" of Hal2 (AKA "Living Mice") I tried to donate the song to them, but after posting it in the thread, nobody has responded (or, according to mediafire and youtube, nobody has even listened to/downloaded the music!)
I tried to find the forum into which to post my music, and this seemed the most likely spot. (It says this is where you post "songs" :/ ) So here it is: "Rebellion of the Mice," My first released attempt at Orchestral Remixes.
I release it under a creative commons attribution licence. This means you can do pretty much whatever you want with it, including using it in monetized mods, machinima or Let's Plays, so long as you attribute me. I am interested in feedback, especially feedback from composers.
Feedback is specifically requested, especially from those who have skill, training, or practice in music composition or arrangement!
Download link for the MP3 is in the description of the video.
First of all, may I just say, this orchestral arrangement is quite good. Don't take it personally that nobody has looked at your music before you posted it here, as the internet is a huge place.
There are a few suggestions I want to make. Note that I am not a "trained musician;" I am just somebody who makes electronic music for fun, but that shouldn't matter to you, since the opinions of non-experts and outsiders are also important in any creative medium. First of all, the attack time (note fade-in time) on some of the instruments seems a bit slow, making it seem as if they're lagging behind the rest of the orchestra, so I'm wondering if shortening their attack time or playing them sooner would make them seem more in-sync with the other instruments. Also, the use of drums feels a bit overdone, which also make me wonder if having a quieter part without drums, as a buildup to the climax, might give the piece a bit more depth. I also suspect that the reverb may be a bit heavy or not filtered effectively, since the instruments sound tinny at times.
Thanks for starting with the compliment; it helps to hear an encouraging word when tentatively putting your music out for the first time.
The rest of your feedback is specific, direct, and welcome. I was told the drums were too quiet, so I made them louder. I probably over-corrected. I used the default reverb in the music composition, which I figured was probably the best, but if you say it is too much, I will of course believe you and tone it down a level or two. Finally, I hadn't stopped to consider the attack time of various instruments. (Midi note-on events probably don't take the attack time of the instruments into account.) I'll look into it. If you come back and see this thread again, could you perhaps indicate which instruments might be lagging, as a starting point for me to look into?
No problem. I listened to the song again. It seems that the string instruments are the cause of the lag.
Also, it's not really so much that the drums are too loud; the level on them is good but they are simply used too often in my opinion.
The level on the reverb is also fine as it is; I just feel it could be processed better, as certain frequencies seem to be resonating too much. Either playing around with the parameters or try layering the reverb with a filter or effects could get a better sound. If you're adventurous, you could even try a different reverb to see if you like one better (I'm feeling generous tonight, so here is a list and //www.kvraudio.com/q.php?search=1&q=reverb&os[" target="" data-ensure-absolute>=win32&ty[]=e&pr[]=f&av[]=re"]here is another, to explore at your own risk if you desire.).
So, despite my inexperience at arranging music, I fired up the FL studio 9 demo and put together an "Orchestral Combat Arrangement" of Hal2 (AKA "Living Mice") I tried to donate the song to them, but after posting it in the thread, nobody has responded (or, according to mediafire and youtube, nobody has even listened to/downloaded the music!)
I tried to find the forum into which to post my music, and this seemed the most likely spot. (It says this is where you post "songs" :/ ) So here it is: "Rebellion of the Mice," My first released attempt at Orchestral Remixes.
I release it under a creative commons attribution licence. This means you can do pretty much whatever you want with it, including using it in monetized mods, machinima or Let's Plays, so long as you attribute me. I am interested in feedback, especially feedback from composers.
Feedback is specifically requested, especially from those who have skill, training, or practice in music composition or arrangement!
Download link for the MP3 is in the description of the video.
There are a few suggestions I want to make. Note that I am not a "trained musician;" I am just somebody who makes electronic music for fun, but that shouldn't matter to you, since the opinions of non-experts and outsiders are also important in any creative medium. First of all, the attack time (note fade-in time) on some of the instruments seems a bit slow, making it seem as if they're lagging behind the rest of the orchestra, so I'm wondering if shortening their attack time or playing them sooner would make them seem more in-sync with the other instruments. Also, the use of drums feels a bit overdone, which also make me wonder if having a quieter part without drums, as a buildup to the climax, might give the piece a bit more depth. I also suspect that the reverb may be a bit heavy or not filtered effectively, since the instruments sound tinny at times.
Thanks for starting with the compliment; it helps to hear an encouraging word when tentatively putting your music out for the first time.
The rest of your feedback is specific, direct, and welcome. I was told the drums were too quiet, so I made them louder. I probably over-corrected. I used the default reverb in the music composition, which I figured was probably the best, but if you say it is too much, I will of course believe you and tone it down a level or two. Finally, I hadn't stopped to consider the attack time of various instruments. (Midi note-on events probably don't take the attack time of the instruments into account.) I'll look into it. If you come back and see this thread again, could you perhaps indicate which instruments might be lagging, as a starting point for me to look into?
Also, it's not really so much that the drums are too loud; the level on them is good but they are simply used too often in my opinion.
The level on the reverb is also fine as it is; I just feel it could be processed better, as certain frequencies seem to be resonating too much. Either playing around with the parameters or try layering the reverb with a filter or effects could get a better sound. If you're adventurous, you could even try a different reverb to see if you like one better (I'm feeling generous tonight, so here is a list and //www.kvraudio.com/q.php?search=1&q=reverb&os[" target="" data-ensure-absolute>=win32&ty[]=e&pr[]=f&av[]=re"]here is another, to explore at your own risk if you desire.).