Jillian Aversa

Ouch! Hehehe, no, I understand. (And aren't we just the king of typos?) I loooove the site. I do agree that the watch pic is a little lame compared to the clocks and sundials. But yes, very simple and clean design. Guess that's how he got the name? EDIT: P.S. Claado? You might wanna note that I changed the lyrics in the last English verse from "mountains" to "hills" because it fit better.

Sweet! I especially like what you have going on at the end. I almost wish those layers came in sooner, for optimal toe-tapping.

Has anybody noticed that Star directly quotes Leonard Bernstein's "Chichester Psalms" in this mix? It happens with the Hebrew text "Lamah rag’shu goyim" and "Ul’umim yeh’gu rik." But it's not just the words- the melody, rhythm, and repetitions are also the same. The quote happens just before halfway through the mix. And here's the excerpt from Chichester Psalms: http://www.fayhaven.com/CS%20Excerpt.mp3 I know that there are many melodies commonly sung for different Hebrew prayers, but I'm pretty sure Bernstein composed this one himself. Very clever usage! But is it...legal? Anyway, I love the mix! Magnificently done. EDIT: Apparently Chichester Psalms isn't the only thing Star quotes without due credit. According to Sir Harmony...

This is a really great arrangement! The beginning actually sounds a lot like the famous Russian Dance movement from the Nutcracker. Like djp said, you can easily imagine a conductor actually conducting this. The sounds samples aren't fantastic, but that actually doesn't bother me so much. I just think the "hall" sounds muddy, overall. The parts aren't clear, and there is very little dynamic contrast. Even the lighter parts sound about the same as the middle and ending sections, which should probably reach fortissimo. What I especially like about your arrangement, though, is its sensitivity. I feel like I get a great sense of what you, the composer, had in mind.

Oh my gosh... This is so. damn. good. Smooth jazz is all they listen to here in Baltimore, so when I heard this track, I actually laughed out loud. The solos are excellent, and that slurred "dyahhhh da da da da da dowww" right before the bosa nova section was so perfect. The mix reminds me a lot of Andreas Vollenwieder, swiss harpist, for some reason. Especially his album "Caverna Magica." Have a listen. http://www.towerrecords.com/product.aspx?pfid=1058242 (Maybe I'm just losing it?) A+

I dig it! It makes you wanna rock in your seat a bit, doesn't it? My only complaint is that the background synth pad gets to be a little overwhelming. Stays on the same chord the whole time, which *could* work quite well if it were softer, maybe? That would also help bring out more of that deep, grainy synth. The drop-out and subsequent build-in section was a great touch. I likes.

Two names, one being. And thank you! -Jill (a.k.a. pixietricks)

This arrangement is going straight to my playlist. I just spent spring break in San Diego- hiking the seaside cliffs, watching a pod of wild dolphins in the distance, eating at Mexican restaurants with live music... This remix was released just in time to remind me of my vacation, and to look forward to summer! I really love the European influences you used in your instrumentation: castanettes, mandolin, and...is that accordian? Very nice! It feels just right. Relaxing, but not a dull moment. LOVE

So, so gorgeous... This is, by far, one of my top favorites on the site. Makes me wanna play the game!

Hey, no problem! Like Andrew said, I just sort of threw that thing together with the templates that freewebs already had. I'm sure you can come up with something way cooler. -Jill

A banner would be an excellent idea. The only problem is that the layout I used in freewebs is one of the predesigned templates. It lets you add a logo (I used that treble clef above the navigation bar), but it won't let you change the title. The only way you could get the banner in there would be to put it at the top of the template, like where I inserted that Chrono pic. :/ -Jill

Oy. I think it's time to make peace, everybody! Thanks, almondray and Raza Bloodfire, for rushing to my defense. I do appreciate your intentions. But don't worry, I can take a little criticism. It's all part of the business, as Dhsu and arias said. This is how I improve for next time! The constant comments about the "out-of-tune" dissonances were starting to bog me down, yes, which is why I wanted to explain how they were intentional. I'd just rather be receiving new comments and suggestions instead of hearing the same old thing about something people seemed to be misunderstanding. The only thing that irked me a bit was when I was branded "egotistical" for trying to explain those notes. But I think I got that response mostly because of the joke I made at the very end, which was taken literally. I should have been more clear that I was really trying to poke fun at myself. In any case! For all you critics out there... I *am* taking your comments to heart. I thoroughly appreciate the suggestions. Here are some things I'm keeping in mind for next time: - Pay attention to synths and other choices of instrumentation. Stuff that maybe fits the style a little better? Perhaps that lead one was a little *too* 80's. - Less "swelling" in the vocal lines. I definitely see how I went a little overboard there, hehe. - Mixing the main melody a bit louder so it "rides on top of the arrangement" - A better sense of climax. Though I don't feel that was as necessary in a piece like this, it is something I should keep in mind for the future. - Soundscaping. This was my first attempt at remixing, so I still have a lot to learn! - More attention to detail in foreign languages. I stand by my choice to sing in Japanese, but I could have made more effort in the pronunciation. The only person I asked for help there was Evilhead. He approved, so I assumed perhaps too quickly that it was fine. Next time, I will also find someone locally to give me a little language coaching. Yep yep. Good stuff, guys. I'm really getting a lot out of this experience. -Jill

I'm not looking for flames, but talk about ego. Aw, c'mon. You left out the ":wink:" that immediately followed that statement. I was actually trying to poke fun at *myself* for having made such a long spiel. I meant it like, "This is what you get when you diss a singer. Hahaha...oh, singers..." because of the reputation we get for being divas. I didn't actually mean it seriously...I'm sorry! Anyway, perhaps it does sound a little different in the acoustic setting. I just assumed that Artificial_Al and the others who commented on that part thought it was off because those E-flats were supposed to be E-naturals. -Jill

Those are the parts I am talking about, too. http://www.fayhaven.com/Forest%20Temple%20Original.mp3 Above is a link to the source material. For any of you out there who still think I'm singing out of tune, please download it and then listen from 1:16 to 1:30. That is the spot that corresponds to 3:26-3:40 in my version. I assume that those are the funky pitches you are referring to. If after listening you're still not convinced, here's a little theory lesson. The piece was written in E Major, which has four sharps: F#, C#, G#, D#. So the notes that "belong" in the key if you were to go up the scale are E, F#, G#, A, B, C#, D#. The "oh-eh" voice in the weird section sings a pattern like this: B, Eb, A, C# -- B, Eb, A, C# -- Eb, Eb, C#, C# -- Eb, Eb, C#, C# -- B, B, A, A etc. The repeated E-flats are not part of the key of E Major; one would expect E-naturals instead. That's why it sounds like I'm out of tune to you. You think I'm under pitch....that I'm not quite reaching those E-naturals. Well yes, I'm not! Because the E-flats were actually *intentionally* written in the original. They create a feeling of tension and instability because the usual tonic triad of EG#B is now EbG#B, making it an augmented chord. This is one of the tonal devices that makes the Forest Temple so creepy. Quite smart on Koji Kondo's part. Now do you believe me? Hehe. Never accuse a classical singer of being out-of-tune unless you are absolutely sure. (But hey- the fact that you noticed that it sounds strange means you have a good ear!) -Jilly

That's certainly a valid question. But I think my decision not to change it is justifiable. I wanted to contrast the more spooky, ethereal parts with an uplifting melody...a prayer arising from darkness. Hence the scary breath stuff and thumping in the beginning. If I had changed the source material for the mix, I don't think it would have been as powerful.

Thanks for the comments, everybody! I just wanted to take a moment to clear up the whole "out of tune" oh-eh thing. I hate to sound like a diva , but those are the correct pitches. If you listen to the source material (where the climax is) and compare my recording, you'll see. Admittedly it's not a pretty sound. I thought about that when I was recording, but decided to stick to the source; such piercing dissonance must have been written for a reason. As you guys have noticed, it's a pretty laid back track. I caught the New Age wave when I was growing up, so many of those artists (Ayman, Enya, Solas, Yanni, Vollenwieder) have influenced my style. It's not for everyone, but I really dig the mystical, soaring quality of New Age, and I always thought the Forest Temple theme embodied that. So yeah, I wouldn't describe it as "nature sounds," to quote Artificial_Al, but I can definitely see where you get that impression. They tend to group all the World Music, nature sounds, and New Age in one big "hippie" section! P.S. Hahaha, yessss! -Jill