# 'Incantation' (8Dio Contest; feat. Adagio and Claire Clarinet).



## Mihkel Zilmer (Aug 26, 2013)

Hi everyone,

I decided to join the 8Dio composition contest and spent a couple of days writing this little piece. I've used the full Adagio strings and also had a first go at using their clarinet. If anyone's interested, I can also list all the other instruments used.

Here's the piece itself:
[flash width=450 height=110 loop=false]http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F107138914&secret_url=false[/flash]
https://soundcloud.com/mihkelz/8dio-incantation

Thank you for listening! Comments are most welcome, and good luck to all the other entries!

Cheers,
Mihkel


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## apessino (Aug 26, 2013)

Damn... you wrote that "in a couple of days?" :shock: 

Fantastic writing and orchestration - you are totally going to win! :mrgreen:


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## Mike Marino (Aug 26, 2013)

Nicely done; really enjoyed the writing and the dynamic feel you've used. The mix sounds great as well....and for a new instrument you really made quick work of the clarinet. Thanks for sharing and good luck!

- Mike


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## Mihkel Zilmer (Aug 27, 2013)

apessino @ Mon Aug 26 said:


> Damn... you wrote that "in a couple of days?" :shock:
> 
> Fantastic writing and orchestration - you are totally going to win! :mrgreen:



Thank you! I wouldn't say no to more exciting instruments to write with - some of the tools we have available these days are truly inspiring 



Mike Marino @ Mon Aug 26 said:


> Nicely done; really enjoyed the writing and the dynamic feel you've used. The mix sounds great as well....and for a new instrument you really made quick work of the clarinet. Thanks for sharing and good luck!
> 
> - Mike



Thank you Mike!



SilentBob @ Mon Aug 26 said:


> Holy [email protected]#t, I should spend a LOT more time with the Members Compositions, so much great music from gifted composers. Thumbs up to the top.
> 
> I like this kind of music and the somber atmosphere. The beginning reminds me a little of James Horner in a positive way. Interesting writing for the clarinet and woodwinds figure. Cool the outburst at 1:40. Nice end with resumption of mood and motives of the beginning. And everything in between :D
> 
> ...



Thank you very much, glad you liked it! Here's a full list of instruments:

Woodwinds: 8Dio Claire Clarinet, Berlin Woodwinds
Brass: Spitfire BML Horns, Hollywood Brass Gold, SampleModeling
Percussion: Spitfire Percussion, CinePerc, Orchestral Tools Timps & Glock
Strings: 8Dio Adagio Strings, a dash of Spitfire Sable


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## ghostnote (Aug 28, 2013)

Very nice writing. You said you wrote it in a couple of days, how about mixing? 

The best of luck for the contest Mihkel!


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## Rob (Aug 28, 2013)

I like it very much, both the writing and performance... I have a soft spot for magic/fantasy orchestral music, so this was my cup of tea...


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## Mihkel Zilmer (Aug 28, 2013)

Michael Chrostek @ Wed Aug 28 said:


> Very nice writing. You said you wrote it in a couple of days, how about mixing?
> 
> The best of luck for the contest Mihkel!



Thank you Michael!

I tend to do a rough sketch first, perhaps write down some of the most important instrumental parts and then start orchestrating and mixing simultaneously. That helps me focus on the connection between played dynamics and loudness, which in turn leads to specific choices in orchestration. 

I've got a template that's a decent starting point, although I'm always adjusting the settings based on the material itself, including ensemble size, tempo and orchestration.

Once every note's been written I will go back and, again, simultaneously fix orchestration and mixing issues. For this piece, for example, that took me about 3-4 hours. 



Rob @ Wed Aug 28 said:


> I like it very much, both the writing and performance... I have a soft spot for magic/fantasy orchestral music, so this was my cup of tea...



Thank you Rob! Me too, I'm always excited to get to write some fantasy music. Sci-fi and horror are almost as exciting though


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## Mihkel Zilmer (Oct 2, 2013)

Well, the winners have been announced:

https://www.facebook.com/8dio.productions

Congratulations to Mike, Ran and Kyle!


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## zacnelson (Oct 2, 2013)

I always enjoy your compositions Mihkel, and this is no exception! Great writing, and amazing mixing/midi skills also! I think your entry to the competition is as good as the 1st place winner


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## Mihkel Zilmer (Oct 4, 2013)

zacnelson @ Thu Oct 03 said:


> I always enjoy your compositions Mihkel, and this is no exception! Great writing, and amazing mixing/midi skills also! I think your entry to the competition is as good as the 1st place winner



Thank you Zac, much appreciated.

To tell you the truth, as I was submitting this to 8Dio, I had a bit of a gut feeling my writing might not be quite their cup of tea. Regardless, it was great fun! And having listened to many of the entries - there are some really inspiring pieces there.


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## zacnelson (Oct 4, 2013)

I have listened to the top 3 winners in the contest, I thought the 3rd place winner was the best out of those three, did you happen to enjoy that one?

I think know what you mean about your writing not being the `8Dio Style'! Never mind, you still have some fans! I have certainly enjoyed listening to `Temple Guardians Awaken' many times over the last year


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## SymphonicSamples (Oct 5, 2013)

Hey Mihkel , wonderful piece on all levels . It covered much ground within the time limit . Surely should have been a mention as a top entry . Either way thanks for sharing


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## Rob (Oct 5, 2013)

I think the reason why you didn't win might be that your piece tells more about you and your talent as a composer and musician than of the libraries involved... they probably want their libraries to be more prominent... just a thought


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## fustrun (Oct 5, 2013)

Wow great entry feels very realistic and dynamic, awesome!
And i have the same approach with mixing, seems alot of composers do that.


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## Mihkel Zilmer (Oct 14, 2013)

zacnelson @ Sat Oct 05 said:


> I have listened to the top 3 winners in the contest, I thought the 3rd place winner was the best out of those three, did you happen to enjoy that one?
> 
> I think know what you mean about your writing not being the `8Dio Style'! Never mind, you still have some fans! I have certainly enjoyed listening to `Temple Guardians Awaken' many times over the last year



Thank you very much Zac! Yes, the third place piece was my favourite too. 



SymphonicSamples @ Sat Oct 05 said:


> Hey Mihkel , wonderful piece on all levels . It covered much ground within the time limit . Surely should have been a mention as a top entry . Either way thanks for sharing



Thank you Matthew, much appreciated. The contest text clearly read: "How much creativity can YOU pack into 4 minutes?", so I went for it. However, I was a little surprised to see the winner had done pretty much the opposite.



Rob @ Sat Oct 05 said:


> I think the reason why you didn't win might be that your piece tells more about you and your talent as a composer and musician than of the libraries involved... they probably want their libraries to be more prominent... just a thought



Thank you Rob, you're probably completely right. Although, I did keep in mind while writing this piece that I should give both the strings and the clarinet decidedly prominent parts, but I suppose they aren't exactly the center of attention all the way through...



fustrun @ Sat Oct 05 said:


> Wow great entry feels very realistic and dynamic, awesome!
> And i have the same approach with mixing, seems alot of composers do that.



Thank you Nir!


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