[dariusofwest]

Hey,

I'm dariusofwest and I have some music that I just wrote for my Halo machinima films, Hog Derby 4 (not a actual machinima) and Hog Derby: Duels (an actual full machinima).

I'd like to take time to thank all of the OCR members i contacted to play instruments hog derby 4.

Abadoss for orchestration help.

Lady Wildfire,Cerrax....and many others!

Even though i was only able to finish up stuff with one of em, i still learned alot!



Now here are the songs

2 songs from hog derby 4

http://www.icompositions.com/music/song.php?sid=102738

http://www.icompositions.com/music/song.php?sid=102744

1 song from duels

http://www.icompositions.com/music/song.php?sid=108470

and the films:

hog derby 4

www.vimeo.com/2263359

hog derby duels

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpGmkSYbrL4&fmt=18

And holy crap, that was a lenghty post. Sorry

(P.S I've been lurking on this site since I was 11 and now i'm 17..and it's still awesome !)

[Ghetto Lee Lewis]

I tell everyone the same thing when it comes to orchestral scoring:

DYNAMICS

That solo clarinet in the beginning of the first piece gets buried quickly by the rest of the orchestra (and is kind of a shock to me when wearing headphones). Remember dynamics isn't just difference in loudness; it's a feeling of higher energy and heightened emotion.

Also I hear some noise with the woodwinds in the beginning, like the recording equipment wasn't setup right and it's distorting.

Always try to keep realistic expectations in mind of how different instruments in an orchestra should sound together. I've had my orchestration performed live before. Until then you never really think about just how huge a bass drum sounds. ;p Strings are very dynamic instruments; they can play very softly or loudly, but they aren't nearly as loud as brass. Anyway, I'm sure you have a very good understanding of orchestral dynamics, but I could hear more work that could be done getting the sound a bit more natural.


Second song: For some reason your music reminds me of Final Fantasy Tactics. Of course the orchestral samples are much better. My complaint is the same though; I think your strings are usually overpowering your brass section. It should be the other way around. I like hearing big brass that sounds big and in your face.

Song 3:

I think this may be the best one so far. I'm not hearing so many dynamic issues. I really like the big low trombone section towards the middle. I'm getting a better feel for that big brass section I was looking for. However, I still think the brass could be a touch louder, and I think the xylophone is a bit too loud.

rofl, I know I'm probably nitpicking a bit. I know these are Symphonic Orchestra silver samples (I've used silver and gold edition, also with FL Studio and must say they are very hard to work with), so I really commend you on being able to successfully use them.

My other complaint is that these songs are in 320 kbps. That seems a bit much for a sequenced orchestra. From my experience 192, or even 128 sometimes is sufficient. I don't really like waiting the extra several seconds for the files to download.


As for the videos, the music seems way too good and epic for these kinds of videos. I really think you're wasting your talent on them and should stick to music.

[dariusofwest]

Hey thanks man for actually commeting!

You are probaly right about the videos but i'm supposed to be gettin cash from machinima to make these things so it's sort of helpful.But still thanks for the comments.