Bowlerhat

This is really a compositional problem, not a mixing problem. You need to voice your ensemble in such a way that every instrument has a place that doesn't overlap with any other instrument. Don't cross voices, and don't write dense lines below C3 (C an octave below middle C).

And another thing - do your chords need to be as thick as they are? Can you change some of the notes in the chords to different octaves, putting less sound in a particular frequency? Or perhaps you could lower the velocity of certain, less important notes in the chord.
Too much reverb in general can cause muddiness, it's not limited to the lower frequencies, (though that's what the word "muddy" is usually associated with.) For example the reverb of a particular chord could linger and clash with the next one.

Can you provide an example?
Essentially, muddy sounds generally arise from too much frequency clash in the low-midrange (100~500 Hz or so), so you should check the amount of low-mids each instrument has and consider which ones actually need those frequencies. Or, alternatively, check the octaves that each instrument is occupying.
When you "record", are you saying with a microphone, or through MIDI, or? Generally you could work towards fixing muddiness in multiple ways:
Playing in different octaves Cutting the low end out of certain instruments that don't need bass frequencies (e.g. high pass or low shelf could work); sometimes you may have bassy ambient noise that you don't need. Raising the low cut frequency of any reverb you apply to the instruments until you start hearing a difference, and then find that borderline between where you stop hearing a difference and start hearing a difference.

Muddy sounds are caused when too many instruments are taking up the same frequency.  Think of it like you have an empty cup, but you're overflowing it with too much liquids.  Panning the instruments are like having 2 empty cups and splitting the liquid between them, but again the cups can only hold so much.
Attenuating the frequencies on instruments that don't need them as prominent as the instruments that do will help clean the overall sounds of your projects.  In some cases a low shelf filter is good enough, in other a high pass filter does a better job.

Help us "Crowd Create" the Theme from HALO - and Break a Guinness Record.
 
Attention All Musicians and Game Music Fans!   Help Eimear Noone, The Dublin International 
Game Music Festival and Video Games Live Break a Guinness World Record.
As many of you know, on April 4th, 2015, at the 1st Dublin International Game Music Festival, Eimear Noone combined 134 musicians and singers on stage at the Convention Center Dublin, with 128 videos submitted from musicians around the world - all coming together to "Crowd Create" Eimear's"Malach," theme from the original score to "World of Warcraft; Warlords of Draenor."  It was one of the great highlights to the festival and the headlining Video Games Live Show.  You can see the result below.

A big thanks to Malukah for her absolutely brilliant performance as the "high priestess" of the piece.

As we plan for year 2 (April 29-30 at the RDS, and May 1st at the Convention Center Dublin), everyone is asking us the question, "What epic event will the iDIG Music Fest team pull off this year to top 'Malach'?"   After much consideration, we've decided it wouldn't be enough to just create another video, but this time, we need to break a Guinness World Record for the most videos of individual players combined to recreate a single piece of music.     With this goal in mind, we decided that the "Video Games Live" version of the original theme from "HALO," (by Marty O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori, orchestrated by Emmanuel Fratianni, Laurie Robinson, & Benoît Grey) would be the perfect piece to accomplish this task.     So we reached out to both our friend Tommy Tallarico (of Video Games Live) and our friends at Microsoft to see if they would be on board.  They instantly agreed to the idea - but it's taken a bit to work through the details.  We've been waiting for the approvals...   Which just came through -  so we are off and running.  We are thrilled!     Sign Up Now Our auto-responder takes up to a day...    The Process:   Step 1:     Click on this link.   The link will take you to a sign-up page where you will find the download link to all of the parts and the audio guide track for the "Halo Theme."  You must sign up to download the files.   Step 2:     Download the parts as well as the audio guide track from the second link.  The guide track is a click track layered upon a mono mix of the arrangement we are recreating.  The zip has parts for the entire orchestra - find your part.   Step 3:  While listening to the guide track on an earbud or headphone, using a cell phone or video camera, video yourself playing your part/parts.     If you have a way to record with a proper microphone and synchronize your audio to the video, then do so.  If you don't have that capability the audio recorded on the phone will work just fine.   Step 4:     Make sure you identify the video file(s) with your name in the title so we know who to put in the credits!   Step 5:   Using "Wetransfer.com," send your video(s) to craig@idigmusicfest.com.  Do not send the video as an attachment to an email as that will crash our email server.   Format:     TUNING IS A440!   Ideally, your video file should be a 16 X 9, H.2.6.4 QuickTime file with stereo audio.     Audio should be at 48K.   But if what you just read seems like gobbledygook to you, don't worry;  just send us the video.  We can import just about anything.     Synchronization:     Below is a snapshot from the score.  You will notice the first bar is in 4/4 and the notation states "4 clicks to bar 1."     On the audio recording, in bar zero(the very top), you will hear a synth pad.  Then in bar 1 you will hear a gong and gran casa roll into bar 2, where the iconic theme is stated in male voices.  That's how you know where you are.   While listening to the click, if you could clap your hands exactly on the downbeat of bar one, that would be ideal.  This is the equivalent of the old "slate" you would see executed in a movie.  We use that clap to line-up your video with all the others.
If your part does not start until much later in the piece:

Clap your hands exactly on the downbeat 2 bars (or so) before you come in.  We'll know where you are and as long as you are accurate with your clap, we can line you up.
  Try to do your part in one continuous performance.  This way, once we have the clap exactly lined up on the downbeat, as long as you play in sync with the click and guide track, your entire performance will be in sync when your part is lined up with our master session.   If one continuous take is not possible, that's OK too.  Likewise, if you don't include a clap.  These tools just make lining things up easier.

Click Instructions:

1.  The parts we are using come straight from the Video Games Live library and certain elements are originally designed to be specifically conducted and directed.  We've created a new click for this purpose.

Therefore at the top we have constructed a rubato click for the vocal part that follows the subtlety of the performance.  Likewise, for the tag in measure 139, the click goes momentarily into an 8th note click in order to be able to direct you through the ritard.  A listen or two to the click against the track and you will get it. 

We've added these notations in your part (ignore the "Click Out" from the original part in measure 139).

2.  There are two guide tracks uploaded.  The first has the click hard right and the music hard left.  The second version is in mono with the click married to the guide track.

Depending on your method of recording, you might want one or there other, for example, if you record with just one headphone, use the mono version.   Last Performance Note:   As much as you might hate the sound of your voice or instrument without reverb, we ask that you send your tracks dry!  If your track is dry, then it's easier to make it blend with the rest of our tracks by giving all of them a matching reverb!     Two examples follow, excerpts from Malach - just to give you an idea of what is expected of your video:   Mark Scholl, Percussion - we created the montage, you send all the video individually.     Joe Pignato, Guitar
Deadline:

We would like to have all the videos by March 15, 2016 as we know it will take 6 weeks to compile, synchronize and mix everything.

If you can get your tracks in early, that's even better as every moment counts when undertaking such a complicated adventure.

The video will debut at the Video Games Live Show, May 1st at the Convention Center Dublin, Ireland, during the closing act of the Dublin International Game Music Festival.  We'd love to see you there is you can make it!

  INCLUDE YOUR NAME IN THE TITLE OF YOUR VIDEO! DON'T LET YOUR WORK GET LOST!   Sign Up Now Our auto-responder takes up to a day...   Hear a live performance of the VGL HALO Theme   Get your tickets to the 2016 iDIG Music Festival.

An overview of The Dublin International Game Music Festival
April 29 - May 1st, 2016      

The thing about albums is that if you really like a game and its soundtrack, you should commit to doing the album for that game.. not asking if people are interested and posting a few different album ideas, etc etc... because people will start to see a pattern of stuff not happening and they'll question the validity of the project you eventually decide on.. what's to stop you from being like "Undertale is old hat now.. hey this new game just dropped, wow this song is cool! hey you guys wanna do an album for this!?"
I also disagree on choosing something popular to do 'just because'. Even if you choose something that isn't really popular, you can still find people who care about that music as much as you should (if you're doing an album for it).. pick something that really appeals to you on a personal level, and follow it through. That's more important than gauging interest in a bunch of things and deciding to do what other people like the most.  but what do I know, I'm crazy!

The funny thing about music is that everyone approaches it differently. A lot of people in the music industry don't really have the koalafications for writing music, and yet they still make money with it. Other people actually have a lot of knowledge about their field, but they don't manage to make enough money to feed themselves. 
You say you have all the tools to compose, but I personally find that a bit of an odd thing to say. All you need to compose is your mind. And if you also want to pass it along to other people you might need a pencil and some paper as well. In the current time and age that could also mean you've got sibelius, or finale or an account on Noteflight. 
But, in the current time and age it could also mean you've got a recording device and a piano, and you're composing your own piano compositions. 
It could also mean you've downloaded fruity loops, and are making some beats.
Or maybe you bought a guitar and are now singing your own songs at the local pub every Friday night. 
Naturally ,it could also be something entirely else...
Now, to come back to your original question, it greatly depends on the kind of music you want to compose. 
If you want to compose orchestral pieces, and have them played by real orchestra's, then I'd definitely say that grades matter. Because having a teacher who has experience with such things is crucial to such a complicated and time-consuming project. Schools that teach such things also have the connections and facilities to have your yet to be made orchestral pieces played, which is, as mentioned before, a must for starting composers. 
On the other hand, if you make your orchestral pieces yourself, in some kind of Daw and a midi keyboard, then you don't really need to have your pieces played, as you kind of play them yourself. It's the same with self played piano pieces, sing and songwriter love songs and generally everything that doesn't require other people to get the sound you want. But... it's quite complicated to determine if you need to follow some kind of education in order to make such music. Besides music being a very subjective and personal thing, it is still somewhat possible to see if music is 'good' or not. Some people do not have any education in music, and yet produce some very cool stuff. Other people do not have any education in music, and produce some very uncool stuff. It depends on the person. And, as I mentioned earlier, your music doesn't have to be 'good' in order to make money out of it. 
Something however which is kind of certain, is that, if you follow an education in music, it really improves your music. So, if you're not sure if you're a musical genius, and you want to make 'good' music, then I'd say that grades matter. Because that allows you to follow an education in music. Which doesn't immediately mean that you have to compose orchestral pieces. There are lots of music educations focused on electronic music, pop music, rock music and other such things.
If you're already confident that the music you're composing is sure to sell well, and you know how get it to the general public, then you don't really need a teacher or a certificate or anything else school related. But, even then there is a difference between thinking that you're making 'good' music and actually making 'good' music. And the people who can tell the difference between those two things and help you in crossing that bridge are music teachers, working at conservatories and music schools. 

Step 1:  Double what Bowlerhat said below.
Step 2:  There is no step 2.

This is just soooo good!!! I already knew it from their youtube channel, and I was already half expecting it to arrive here as well, but it nevertheless still completely blew my mind. In my humble opinion it's their best piece yet.

This is just soooo good!!! I already knew it from their youtube channel, and I was already half expecting it to arrive here as well, but it nevertheless still completely blew my mind. In my humble opinion it's their best piece yet.

The piano doesn't sound as full as it should, there's a lack of low end to it, or it sounds more distant compared to the woodwind.
The woodwind seems to be way more (4:00~ ouch!) in front compared to the piano a lot of the time, where this piece feels like it should be more of a duet, having both instruments in front or playing leads.  30 seconds of silence at the end can be cut too.
5 minutes seem too long as well.  The parts where you kinda just go off in a random tangent feel unnecessary, like someone is saying goodbye and is about to leave, but then they forget one thing, then they start talking to someone, and they keep saying they're going to go but it's been 20 minutes now.  Simplifying and shortening would make the overall piece stand out better.

50 more reviews and I'll hit the 200 mark!!

We're not disregarding it, we're more or less saying "make a better argument before we join you".
 
Burden of proof falls on the people making the claim; if someone is making a claim, and they can't substantiate it, that doesn't make the claim wrong, no, but just because the claim has the potential to be right doesn't mean we should go ahead and validate it without the proper thought.
 
Is women's portrayal in games a problem? Abso-fucking-lutely. Even if you argue that there's nothing wrong with objectification, there are people who feel attacked by this kind of stuff, and their voices need to be heard. Pretty much anyone besides white males has the potential for having a problem with their representation in media, and that's fine, because it's okay to want a fair equal society.
 
But that's not the issue we're attacking here. Anita is making a claim that we can't validate, which is that the stuff we see in games is translating to sexist thought processes and solidifying the poor treating of women in society. Is this an outlandish claim? Absolutely fucking not, it's absolutely plausible to believe that could be a thing, knowing what we know about human society and how much media can affect us on a deeper level. It's also an incredibly strong claim with profound implications, so it needs to be treated as such and scrutinized as such.
 
So don't spread it around if it hasn't actually been proven and mask it as if it has been proven. That's stupid. Because even if you get the dregs of Tumblr following your shitty logic, you won't get people who know how to think twice to follow you. I'm not a fucking asshole, and if it needs to be said, if there was evidence (that Anita mentions but never shows) for her claims, I would say "yeah, that's kinda messed up. I'm on your side."
 
Instead I don't really take her seriously because while her intentions are good, I can't really have a peace of mind that the specific details of what she's doing are in any way valid or helpful. I don't really right now personally think that fixing game representation is in any way going to have any impact on commonplace social misogyny in real life, so I don't really care about fixing games. Because ultimately, it will do nothing, because my understanding of art/history serves me the idea that art is symptomatic of cultural problems (absolutely the opposite of being one of the roots, if not the root). It could be a feedback loop (between art feeding culture and culture feeding art back) in some circumstances, but again... the claim that big boobed characters somehow connects to passive breeding of real life misogyny seems like something that needs some serious review.
 
She disagrees, but is offering nothing I can latch onto for her to persuade me. The "we don't need you anyway" argument is laughable. If you're trying to do good, and you need to build a cause, you need all you can get.
 
So that's a bad thing if she's right all along. Because damaging her credibility damages her cause.
 
I think she has her causation backwards, and I think she has her cause backwards. I think to fix game representation, we need to focus on methods to fix misogyny in society. Things like improving education for kids and whatnot, both in clinical/health areas and better social conditioning. The art will naturally improve by consequence.

social sciences are not often based on observation of physically objective phenomena - the problem here, even in this thread, is that people keep saying that correlation does not imply causation (which is true) and then implying that it's possible for social sciences to do anything other than point out correlation (which is not)
 
the reason why I, as such, say "arbitrary standards" is because you demand a kind of evidence that isn't actually real, and then denounce any idea that fails to present it
 
like I said, whether or not sexist behavior is, in fact, caused directly by sexist media doesn't matter, because the question demands an answer that is not possible to ascertain

Hmm, it's an interesting approach. I didn't notice that you didn't use an actual baritone, but it is noticeable that the bari sounds less good, and more out of tune, then the other lines. So I wouldn't say it's a bad approach, but learning to play multiple saxes really has its advantages, and is a lot easier and better in the end.
I'm not sure a clarinet would add much in this mix. You don't really need much more at the higher end, imo. But, a clarinet is a really useful instrument, so I'd still advice to get better at it.
As for your bass problem, I think it wouldn't be nessecary to have a bass in it. If you arrange your bari sound better, then you already have a better overall sound. When I arrange, most of the time I give the Bari and bass the same lines. But, if you were to get a bass, then it'd be easier, arranging wise. I'd personally just ask a bassist to help me, as I don't know how VSTi's work, but that's just a matter of personal preference.
I think what's important to remember is that when you choose your instrumentation, it doesn't really matter what's usually used, or is easier to do. In the end it all comes down to what sound you're trying to get. Two weeks ago, I had a workshop from John Clayton, who is a really well known bass player and arranger for big band, and he told me: "There is no good or bad music. In the end, as a composer or arranger, you're trying to mirror the music inside your heart. And you can't judge someone's heart.". So if you imagine your mix to be something with a bass line, or with clarinets or whatever, then you should try to capture that sound. If you do not, then you should do whatever you can to get the sound you do desire.
As for voicing, it really is complicated. The feeling I get when I listen to your mix is that you don't really know what chords you're using and that you're just playing whatever sounds nice. Which isn't really how arranging works. I think that before jumping into voicing things, you first should get some information on music theory, and then especially seventh chords, tensions and all that stuff. And getting some experience with transcribing is nice as well. I don't know if you figured this song out by ear, or by midi/sheets/anything else, but you really should do everything by ear imo. You're a good musician, so I think you'd be able to do that with some practise. (If you didn't already).
Good luck!!

Thanks SO much for providing additional explanation. In terms of your comments on soundscape and voicing, I can see that my problem (and limitation) is a lot worse. I actually only have one instrument (an alto), but I write multiple parts based on to recreate some of the other sounds. For the bari sound, that's really just the alto shifted down an octave in my DAW. (In some of my earliest covers, I would try to do something similar to simulate a soprano sax, but going up in tone in a DAW sounds far worse than going down.) The tenor sound is just an alto part playing lower notes.
 
In general, when I arrange, I try to arrange any bari parts as if it can take the lowest parts from any original (e.g., bass). But that's apparently not working out so well, since as you say, I'm just missing bass tones.
 
Yet, that was originally my plan -- to use sax for as much as possible (excluding drums). Would you say that is just unworkable in the long term, and I should arrange to have bass (even if I have to get a VSTi for that)? I also got a clarinet to maybe add something different to the higher end, but learning how to play clarinet is a lot more difficult than I planned (haha).
 
I can hear the tuning problems now for the bari, so I can work on that.
 
I'm going to think and study really hard on your middle paragraph here for the specifics as to harmonic context, since I know that's stuff I need to know, but it's still all a foreign language to me now.

Hey,
 
I like most of the original work in it, but some of the part sound a bit awkward melodically. Also there are quite some harmonic clashes in your writing. Tensions are nice, but not when you play them on the top of your voicing. Some minor parts are a bit out of tune as well. But overal it sounds nice!!

Yeah, voicing is quite hard. I think what went wrong in your mix is that you tried to include too much things in it. It kind of makes sense that you want to fill the soundscape as much as possible because you only have saxes and drums, but you can't fit so much lines of the same kind of instruments into one phrase. I'll try to analyze some parts a bit, and explain what you could improve. 
 
Something that's really odd about this mix is that you voiced everything for 3 horns. It may seem logical, because you've got three horns. But it's odd because you don't have a bass, or guitar, or any other kind of other instrument other than those three horns. So you're missing all of the bass tones.
I'm not sure, but I'm going to assume you used an alto, tenor and bari. I'm not that familiar with saxes, so I could be wrong. But if my assumption is right, then I'd suggest to change the bari and tenor parts a bit. I think it'd be best to just have the bari play the bass chord tones. You could have a few lines in between, or leading from chord tone to chord tone, but at least give us, as the listeners, some harmonic context. Right now there is a lot of harmonic context missing, and it sounds quite empty. As for the tenor, when you're writing for 2 horns, the bari excluding, and you're using a lineair approach (since that's what you're doing), it's important that the two voices, when played above the chord tone, always imply the harmonic progression. That's also why it's important to have the bari play the chord tones. So, when the lead for example plays the third of the chord, the second voice could play the seventh, or perhaps the fifth. Not something like the sixth, or the tonic. And especially not the second or the fourth, since that clashes with the third. 
 
There are obviously quite some more things about voicing for 2 horns, but this is the thing that is going wrong the most. Your writing has a lot of countermelodies. Which is really nice, I especially like the last high alto line. But the melodies have to fit into the harmonic soundscape that you're creating. If it doesn't, it creates the clashing you've got right now. 
 
Also, for the tuning, it's especially in the baritone sax. For example at 00:59, but not only there. 
 
 
I hope this helped a bit!

Howdy everyone, just wanted to drop the new album here
 

 
About an hour and a half of Chrono Trigger music, which is my follow up project after Metroid Cinematica.
 
It's currently available via PayPal and Loudr, also CD Special Edition albums with fancy digipaks exist as well though I am sorting inventory at the moment to see how many there are left before putting them back up for grabs again.  Same goes for Metroid CDs which is a two-disc set.
 
If you're interested, feel free to stop by my site and pick up your own copy, and thanks for listening.
 
http://www.samostudios.com

Nay! Heretics all of them  ! Reason is the one true DAW!  People love what DAW works for them, but the key is what DAW works for you. And to figure that out, you've got to work with the different DAWs. I enjoy Reason, because it's easy to see exactly where all your routing is going and ,if you're new, it eases you in nicely, but at the same time can be very deep once you know what you're doing. Propellerhead will put you in a headlock with only being able to buy VST through them, but I have yet to run into any VST that I just had to have, but couldn't get through Propellerhead. FL studio seems to be the gold standard, but since you've got a Mac, Image-Line hates you and keeps telling you there will be a Mac release...but...well yeah. If you've got live instruments and you're on a Mac, Logic seems to be the right call, cheap too. But I refer to my earlier statement, to find which DAW works for you, work with each DAW. Don't make any choice in a rush, I thought I'd like Cubase so I tried it for about 1 month then bought it and I'm not a huge fan. Also you're a student so Make sure you checkout those student discounts!!!

What you've described sounds exactly like it's "dying". What else is substantially decreased activity because there are "better" alternatives and a shift in public interest supposed to mean? It's like saying "Sure, people don't really go to video stores anymore, but that doesn't mean they're dying. There are still some left, but with a smaller customer base. Most people just prefer Netflix now, is all."
 
Nothing that's "dead" ever truly goes away most of the time as far as technology is concerned. When I worked for a movie company, brand new movies we'd get were often sent directly from Dreamworks or whatever on VHS. So VHS still around...but it's definitely a dead format.

I personally think that when you make music, especially for a non-profit kind of thing like ocr, it's actually really important to see as much reviews as possible to your remix. Not necessarily to improve, but because it can be really motivational to see people like your music. And then not just some "wow, I really like this", but at least a "wow, I really like this, because..." kind of response. My mum says she likes my music, but she can't give as fine a reason as a fellow vgm lover that actually knows what I'm remixing. Seeing people liking your stuff, and besides that also knowing what you're actually doing, is so much cooler than just hearing some random bloke saying he/she likes your mix. And I think that the review panel is a really good place for that kind of thing. As I'm relatively new to this place I don't know how it was in its days of supposed glory, but I do know that right now it isn't really as nice as it could be.
But, since I've never left a review myself, I don't really have any right to speak... Although, I think that after reading this topic I just might start doing it.

I personally think that when you make music, especially for a non-profit kind of thing like ocr, it's actually really important to see as much reviews as possible to your remix. Not necessarily to improve, but because it can be really motivational to see people like your music. And then not just some "wow, I really like this", but at least a "wow, I really like this, because..." kind of response. My mum says she likes my music, but she can't give as fine a reason as a fellow vgm lover that actually knows what I'm remixing. Seeing people liking your stuff, and besides that also knowing what you're actually doing, is so much cooler than just hearing some random bloke saying he/she likes your mix. And I think that the review panel is a really good place for that kind of thing. As I'm relatively new to this place I don't know how it was in its days of supposed glory, but I do know that right now it isn't really as nice as it could be.
But, since I've never left a review myself, I don't really have any right to speak... Although, I think that after reading this topic I just might start doing it.

I personally think that when you make music, especially for a non-profit kind of thing like ocr, it's actually really important to see as much reviews as possible to your remix. Not necessarily to improve, but because it can be really motivational to see people like your music. And then not just some "wow, I really like this", but at least a "wow, I really like this, because..." kind of response. My mum says she likes my music, but she can't give as fine a reason as a fellow vgm lover that actually knows what I'm remixing. Seeing people liking your stuff, and besides that also knowing what you're actually doing, is so much cooler than just hearing some random bloke saying he/she likes your mix. And I think that the review panel is a really good place for that kind of thing. As I'm relatively new to this place I don't know how it was in its days of supposed glory, but I do know that right now it isn't really as nice as it could be.
But, since I've never left a review myself, I don't really have any right to speak... Although, I think that after reading this topic I just might start doing it.

I personally think that when you make music, especially for a non-profit kind of thing like ocr, it's actually really important to see as much reviews as possible to your remix. Not necessarily to improve, but because it can be really motivational to see people like your music. And then not just some "wow, I really like this", but at least a "wow, I really like this, because..." kind of response. My mum says she likes my music, but she can't give as fine a reason as a fellow vgm lover that actually knows what I'm remixing. Seeing people liking your stuff, and besides that also knowing what you're actually doing, is so much cooler than just hearing some random bloke saying he/she likes your mix. And I think that the review panel is a really good place for that kind of thing. As I'm relatively new to this place I don't know how it was in its days of supposed glory, but I do know that right now it isn't really as nice as it could be.
But, since I've never left a review myself, I don't really have any right to speak... Although, I think that after reading this topic I just might start doing it.