To create my short soundtrack I was inspired by the image that Mikael posted, imagining a story in which aliens approaching the earth discovering a fantastic world but which are fought by the men and women in order not to be invaded.
The first part is just a vision from space, then when the woodwinds come in we are on earth and finally the battle takes place.
I wanted to develop it more to continue post battle, but I realized that I would not be able to finish it in time.
Mainly I used the Spitfire audio library EPIC String and INTIMATE Strings, EPIC Woodwinds and Brass, I tried to make a layer with the horns of the Free Orchestra Project, from which I also took the percussions, adding them to a Taiko free library … I hope in black friday and Santa Claus to be able to buy better sound libraries!!!
I know I still have a lot to learn and therefore any constructive comments are appreciated.
Thanks you all
I love it! I could really see the scenes you described unfolding. It has a really nice build to it. To me, it sounds like a piece out of a Final Fantasy game. Great job!
Roberto - I like the build up of the introduction. Nice mood and happy tone overall. Like the rhythmic cellos about 2/3s in to keep things driving as well as the splashy piano arpeggios near the end.
For consideration:
The upper string are a bit anemic and synthy sounding. You might consider upgrading whatever string library you are using in that regard. Also, some inner-part movement might help with the synth aspect and create some more interest for bg parts. (vs playing in string chords)
Mix: Track could use a bit of reverb to help set in the space. Also, don’t be afraid to go “big” at times on some the instruments in the mix to make more dynamic and 3 dimensional. The mix feels a bit held back.
Thanks Brandon !!!
the strings are SpitfireAudio EPIC Strings, I was probably wrong to equalize them, I try to check better in the mix, but I agree with you on the upgrade, I’m waiting for black friday to buy BBCSO Core.
About the arrangement in the middle part, I will try to think of something that gives movement as you suggest, thanks !!
About the reverb I will try to balance in a bettere way.
I know the brass section is weakly (it cam from Spitfire EPIC Brass), I tried to layer with another brass library (the free orchestra ProjectSAM), but it is not enoug.
I thinking to add synth brass to be more scratching and full.
Thanks for the great advice and I happy you like the piano arpeggios,
I was born a pianist and obviously the temptation to insert it is strong since I create the music starting right from the piano.
Glad my comments are helpful. The Brass worked well enough I thought, but yeah, BBCSO will be a good upgrade for sure! It has a nice analog feel to me which sounds “real”. It’s not perfect and I wished they developed it a bit more with RRs. I bought the library end of last year and used only once before making the change to StaffPad. I was pretty happy with the results (mixed with a real violin on parts): https://youtu.be/dfxjyX5l_yM. I want to try using it again one day. You won’t need to do much “mixing” or eq’ing with that library.
Roberto - much improved! Wow, congrats! The mix feels more dynamic and 3-dimensional. The instruments sit well in the mix/space. I like the low end tone at the beginning that sets up the piece in its majestic state. I’ve been wanting to start using that kind of thing as well in the future with synths, etc
The violin melody at 1:25-ish… you might try layering a few libraries or patches for this type of line to make as warm as possible. Also, not sure if you used just violins there, but I find using each Violin I, V2, Violas, (and sometimes even cellos) on big melodic lines like this work well. You might need to cheat the realistic orchestration in this regard using the samples - but heck, they do overdubs in Hollywood too!
lol - every time I here those piano arpeggios I think my iPhone alarm is going off!
Great track Roberto! It was definitely “maestoso” but it had a nice inspirational touch to it as well. I think the mix could have used some more room–a bit more reverb too make the space wider. I did like the piano arpeggios in the background as it added some nice movement!
I like it very much, Roberto. Perfect for the topic. Grandious melody, good instrumentation, dynamic for the emotion flow. Congratulations, really good entry.
