CMC - Conceptual Music Competition 27: Return of the Pharaoh

[Abadoss]

CMC: Conceptual Music Competition

This competition is based on the rules of the classic TOMC (Thematic Original Music Competition).

The CMC (Conceptual Music Competition) is designed so that each participant enters a piece of music based on a set theme. The participants take the theme and interpret it as they will to come up with something that fits. Any style can work, as long as it portrays a sense of what the theme is.

Feel free to be imaginative!

Each successive theme will be chosen by the winner of the previous competition. For example, say the theme of the last competition, CMC 32, was "Malfunction" and the winner, Betty, submitted a piece that knocked the socks off of everyone, so she won. Betty then gets to decide the theme for CMC 33.

This competition is open to registered members of the forums of

OverClocked ReMix, VGMix, VGMusic, Gaming World, Young Composers, and GameDev.

CMC 27: Return of the Pharaoh

"The desert is unforgiving and its inhabitants are spread far and wide. They ache for unity and a chance to reclaim their former glory. Once, the Pharaoh held them together and reigned in power, but that was lost long ago. There is no leader to follow. One day, as if from a mirage, the mighty banner will appear once more on the horizon — signaling the return... the Pharaoh's Return." -Marius Masalar

Results!:

• Text results and critiques

There are 6 entries for this round...

Alpan Aytekin - "Horizon of Hope"

• "The composition is not so melodic; mostly chordal. It's divided into two sections. The desperate section and the Pharaoh section. In the second part, I tried to visualize a horizon as much as can and also used some chromatic flat chords turning the key into a maqam scale."

Josh Taylor - "Through the Sands"

• No description given.

Omri Lahav - "In Search of the Pharaoh"

• "These dunes are the final resting place of many beings foolish enough to brave the ocean of burning sands. A caravan leaves the sanctuary of the village, the proximity to water, the safety of great numbers. To find the buried cities of old, the lost heir to the lost throne and with him- the lost hope of the tribes. Or to waste and die, in search of the Pharaoh."

Wade Friesen - "Pharaoh's Return"

• No description given.

HoboKa - "The Son of Ra Returns"

• "The son of Ra returns after a long campaign against the Greeks. Although neither side won the war, he manages to hold his head high as he his servants take him to his palace. The crowds, happy to see their pharaoh in high spirits, celebrate his return."

Dj Mokram - "Uraeus Kingdom"

• "The basic idea was that each piece represents a time period of the Pharaoh's legend.
  -First part: The Pharaoh is the ruler of the land, marching while fearing no soul, at the peak of his glorious reign. But it shall soon come to an end...
  -Second part: Some time has passed, the glory has shattered. The land & people are left to their fate. But the lonely desert quietly awaits for the sovereign's return.
  -Third part: After a period of incertitude, as if from a dream, the Pharaoh & his army emerge from the vanishing horizon, reborn to reclaim their legacy.
  Brandishing a flag marked with the legendary emblem of the Uraeus, they march toward a future supposedly lost, to make it anew once again, at long last."

Voting Rules!:

• Voters will be allowed to pick one first place (3 points) and any number of honorary mentions (1 point). Only one set of votes from any one voter will be accepted and a person cannot vote for any one piece more than once. Corrections to votes, from the original voter only, will be accepted, but corrections will void the previous votes. Basically, a voter can vote and correct the vote, but only the final form of that vote will be counted. Send all votes to

Abadoss by PM. Please include any and all constructive critiques (not to be confused with bashing) about them with your votes as well, so that there's always a sense of growth in the artform. If you wish to remain anonymous, just state so in your PM.

• To be eligible to vote, you must be a registered member of at least one of the participating forums, prior to the beginning of the voting period. In your PM or e-mail, please indicate which forum you are a member of and your username.

• The voting period will last from the moment the entries are posted in the thread to the Saturday of that week. The voting period for this round ends May 2, so be sure to spend some time really listening to the pieces.

• Any participant in the competition can vote, but not for their own pieces. However, in an effort to encourage voting among participants, any participant who votes will have 2 points added to his/her voting score (unless the participant chooses to be anonymous).

Also, Dj Mokram was kind enough to create this Vote Banner that can be used in your sig, should you want to help out and spread the word:

Official Rules!:

1. Each piece must be originally composed for this competition. Arrangements and remixes will not be accepted. (Pieces composed by the participant prior to the competition will not be accepted.)
   
2. Each piece must be 2:00 or longer and match the competition theme.
   
3. Only one entry per person. Collaborations will be allowed, but each collaborator may not submit any other pieces. (This also means that a person cannot collaborate on two or more different pieces at the same time.)
   
4. A link to the entry piece must be e-mailed or PMed to Abadoss prior to the deadline set for each competition. DO NOT POST THE LINK IN THE THREAD! However, feel free to post in the WIP:Other forum.
   
5. Important: Each file must be labeled accordingly: Composer_Name_-_Composition_Title_CMC#.mp3
   (For example, if Georgia Fenton submits a piece called "Count to Infinity" to CMC 29, then her filename would be: Georgia_Fenton_-_Count_to_Infinity_CMC29.mp3)
   
6. MP3 file format is required. Know that even OGG will need to be converted into MP3. (If someone is unable to do so themselves, Abadoss would be willing and able to do it for them.)
   
7. Entries should be accompanied by a description and/or story to help listeners understand what the piece is about. (Not required, though.)
   
8. All entries must be submitted by Saturday, April 25, 2009 at 11:59 PM - PST, GMT-8.

You can find the competition threads for each forum listed below:

• OverClocked ReMix: http://www.ocremix.org/forums/showthread.php?t=22681
  
• VGMix: http://www.vgmix.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=1858
  
• VGMusic: http://www.vgmusic.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=11922
  
• Gaming World: http://www.gamingw.net/forums/index.php?topic=78488.0
  
• Young Composers: http://www.youngcomposers.com/forum/cmc-27-return-pharaoh-19254.html
  
• GameDev: http://www.gamedev.net/community/forums/topic.asp?topic_id=529465

Good luck and have fun!

Previous CMCs: http://www.abadoss.net/CMC.htm

[Zephyr]

I'm not really a fan of these themes that pretty much limit the songs to one specific genre of song, rather than a feel. Just putting that out there...

[Abadoss]

I'm not really a fan of these themes that pretty much limit the songs to one specific genre of song, rather than a feel. Just putting that out there...

There's no limitation on genre. Some might be a little more difficult to incorporate, but all's fair game.

[Abadoss]

Alrighty, three weeks left...

[Abadoss]

Two weeks left...

[Abadoss]

This is the last week to turn in your pieces. I hope to see many more entries in the next few days...

[Abadoss]

All the entries are in! It's time to vote!

Also, Dj Mokram was kind enough to create this Vote Banner that can be used in your sig, should you want to help out and spread the word:

[HoboKa]

let's get some votes in ppl =p

I voted so

[Dj Mokram]

let's get some votes in ppl =p

I voted so

Since you don't have an image as a sig, you can use the banner I made to advertise.

Vote submitted too.

[HoboKa]

How do I host the image?? Is there a link I can copy or something??

[Abadoss]

Imagebucket tends to be rather popular. I'm not sure how much bandwidth they allow, but it should be enough, I would think. As for just getting the image, right-click, 'save as'... if you have a PC. I'm not sure what the Mac equivalent is...

[Dj Mokram]

How do I host the image?? Is there a link I can copy or something??

Are you talking about the banner?

If so, you don't need to host it. Just do this:

-Right-click on the image, select 'copy image-url'.

-Open your control panel in another tab or window of your browser.

-Go to edit signature, and paste the image url in your sig using 'insert image'.

-Then return to CMC27 thread window or tab, copy the url of the first page.

-Go back in sig-edit, select your image and click on 'insert link'.

-Insert thread url, save your sig, you're done!

[HoboKa]

oh well, close enough, I kinda got it =D

[Abadoss]

Uh, you need a web host. Currently, you're trying to show a picture that's on your harddrive. You'll be able to see it, but none of us will.

[cryora]

Hey guys. I'm curious about this Blue.Nocturne fellow, the most frequent winner of the CMCs. I've listened to his pieces and they sound fantastic, particularly "Dreams of Utopia" and "Land of Solitude." I am wondering what you guys thought of him, since I only learned of CMC, a few competitions back. It seemed that Blue.Nocturne is not competing anymore. Any reason why?

[Abadoss]

He's a little busy, I'd imagine. He'll get back into it when he has time.

[HoboKa]

Uh, you need a web host. Currently, you're trying to show a picture that's on your harddrive. You'll be able to see it, but none of us will.

D'oh. 10 char

[Abadoss]

The results are in! Stay tuned for the next round...

[Abadoss]

The next round has been posted! Here's the link:

http://www.ocremix.org/forums/showthread.php?t=23535