# Fanfare using Cinebrass



## Alex Temple (Jun 17, 2011)

Hi everyone,

Though I'm supposed to be working on some concert pieces right now I couldn't stand letting Cinebrass sit there without using it for something fun. Anyway, I wanted to do a fun little swashbuckling fanfare. I got a little bit lazy at the end, so I might come back to this later. You'll have to excuse the cheesy title. 

The brass is about 90% Cinebrass except for one important part: on the octave horns starting at 0:50 I found putting SAM on the lower part and Cinebrass on the higher part sounded almost perfect in getting that characteristic sound. There is also other SAM here and there, mostly to full out chords in the trombones.

http://www.box.net/shared/sxqcc5al9j64t94kjvul


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## dcoscina (Jun 17, 2011)

I'm at work now Alex but I'll check this badboy out when I get home. Looking forward to it!

Edit- Could't wait so I listened to it through the little speaker on my ipod touch. EPIC! Great sound but most importantly nice music. Has a Williams flair to it but with your own sound too. So how long did this take you to compose? What was your process? Sibelius then Sonar? Or did you play in each line into Sonar? 

Gotta say that your pieces are Thomas J level of musicianship/mock up skills to my ears.


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## sevaels (Jun 17, 2011)

As usual Alex this is really nice writing and the mock-up skills are great.

Great job!

:D


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## sevaels (Jun 17, 2011)

Doh!


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## sevaels (Jun 17, 2011)

:wink:


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## Alex Temple (Jun 17, 2011)

Thanks guys. David, I did this one straight into the sequencer. This took about 4-5 hours, which is very, very fast compared to the speed at which I usually compose. I was going for a Silvestri flair but by the end my Williams addiction got the best of me and I decided to embrace it all the way.

I noticed some excessive boominess in the bass when I took it around to some other speakers, if anyone else hears this let me know.


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## Hannes_F (Jun 17, 2011)

Very well done Alex!

(end was a little undecided)


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## Ryan Scully (Jun 17, 2011)

WOW - Fantastic Alex!

Your pieces are just so rich and full of great thematic material and your sense of dynamic is hard to beat. Excellent use of Cinebrass!





Ryan :D


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## Justus (Jun 17, 2011)

Very well done!
In 4-5 hours? Wow!


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## sevaels (Jun 17, 2011)

Sorry about the triple post - no idea what went wrong :cry:


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## Casey Edwards (Jun 17, 2011)

I can agree and say the ending was kinda lazy, but other than that, this is some really great music I think. Not as melodically strong as your other pieces, but as you said it's only a few hours of work, so kudos!


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## germancomponist (Jun 17, 2011)

This is the best brass demo to what I have listend in the last weeks.

Very good work, great composition, arranging and sound!

Very cool, Alex!

One question: Have you used another reverb for CineBrass (not the included one) , mybe the same what u have used for the strings? I think so...?


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## Alex Temple (Jun 17, 2011)

Casey: when I get time I'll redo the ending. I noticed that each time I listen to this I actually stop the playback after the triumphant outburst subsides, which is a pretty good indication that I can throw out everything after that.  

Gunther: I used the full mix settings + the included reverb. I also gave the brass a light touch of the same reverb that the other sections get. Also, my template setup is intended for more of a scoring stage sound so on top of that I put the entire mix through a concerrt hall IR for a little extra tail.


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## whinecellar (Jun 17, 2011)

Great stuff Alex - this is the kind of thing that makes me want to buy the library


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## mikebarry (Jun 17, 2011)

a pleasure Alex.

you have channeled you inner Michael Kamen.


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## Tanuj Tiku (Jun 17, 2011)

Great stuff Alex!

Cinebrass definitely has a very Hollywood - soothing tone. Nicely done!

Do I hear Hollywood strings? Despite all the problems going on with East West, they have a great natural tone!


Looking forward to your next piece of music!


Best,

Tanuj.


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## jamwerks (Jun 17, 2011)

Hi, Excellent work! Can you detail what different libraries you used also for ww & strings? o-[][]-o


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## Rob (Jun 18, 2011)

beautiful, Alex!


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## musicpete (Jun 18, 2011)

Thank you for posting this demo! As usual, excellent writing!

May I please remark at two things that stood out for me (I'd love to hear others opinions on this):

1) The mix sounded a bit "dull" and not as "lively" as you'd expect from hearing so many brass instruments. The composers you are aiming for usually produce records which have that "sparkle" in the brass which is missing here.

2) There is way too much reverb on the piece, making it sound very muddy and undefined (especially in the more busy parts). Some parts have that hollow "bath tub" feeling, which is a shame. Many other of your pieces do NOT have that sound. Also Mr. Silvestris music often has that trademark "dry, punchy" sound: reducing the reverb and aiming for a more upfront stage placement would improve the piece tremendously IMHO - To me right now it sounds a bit as if it was recorded from outside the scoring stage.

I'd love to hear some comments on my observations. Am I deaf or imagining things? 

Thanks again for posting these amazing pieces of music! I always enjoy them a lot!


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## Patrick de Caumette (Jun 18, 2011)

Very nice!

+1 on the excessive reverb amount...


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## germancomponist (Jun 18, 2011)

musicpete @ Sat Jun 18 said:


> Thank you for posting this demo! As usual, excellent writing!
> 
> May I please remark at two things that stood out for me (I'd love to hear others opinions on this):
> 
> ...



I get your point, the reason why I asked about the reverb. But, at least, I like this (+reverb added) sound.


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## Jimbo 88 (Jun 18, 2011)

Sounds REALLy good...

Great writing and you are inspiring me to go get that Library....


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## Guy Bacos (Jun 18, 2011)

Fantastic work Alex!


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## PMortise (Jun 18, 2011)

Awesome as usual, Alex. Thanks for posting this.


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## Alex Temple (Jun 18, 2011)

Thanks for the comments everyone! I've posted a newer version which doesn't have the additional reverb. I like it both ways but I think it's more punchy this way. I've also changed some minor phrases that were bothering me here and there as well as adding a new ending. The end itself is short enough but I don't think a fanfare this short needs its own drawn out conclusion.

Peter, your points are well taken - see how you like the newer mix. The lack of "brilliance" from the brass comes from having to use the ensemble trumpets and trombones to make chords, which instead of sounding bigger and more amplified sounds more muffled when you do that. This isn't anything against Cinebrass, the exact same thing happens when I use the ensemble patches from VSL or SAM. I'll be getting probably the pro expansion, and HB, and I have high hopes for the solo trumpets doing the best Maurice Murphy impression they can. Either in chords or in unisons, layering a solo usually adds the extra bite needed. I don't think this is something that a little more push from the treble will fix.

The winds are HWW and VSL, the percussion is VSL, and the strings are HS.


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## Colin O'Malley (Jun 19, 2011)

This is excellent Alex. Thanks for sharing. 

Colin


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## Frederick Russ (Jun 19, 2011)

Nice writing and orchestration Alex. Thanks for taking time to share.


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## Pietro (Jun 19, 2011)

Great stuff!

- Piotr


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## Ian Dorsch (Jun 19, 2011)

Beautiful job, Alex. I enjoyed it a lot.


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## Vision (Jun 19, 2011)

Nice.. especially liked the French Horn Octave Doubling. Great job. :D


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## Lex (Jun 19, 2011)

Good stuff!

alex


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## Casey Edwards (Jun 19, 2011)

I really enjoy your music Alex. This version has much more clarity in melodic content and form. The ending worked just fine this time too. Also, I find that I always have to EQ my brass. My Horns and Trumpets especially go through extensive testing. My mixes still aren't nearly as clear as yours though, so whatevs... haha


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## musicpete (Jun 20, 2011)

Alex Temple @ 19.6.2011 said:


> Peter, your points are well taken - see how you like the newer mix.



Thank you for uploading this new version! I liked it even more than the 1st one. Especially the Copland-esque downwards moving figure at the very end. Very nice, clear lines, love it!

IMHO the reverb and overall sound are now MUCH, MUCH better, however for my PERSONAL taste it is still way too wet. I really like to sit between the conductor and the orchestra, so to speak. 

Also thank you for your insightful explanations, I find myself learning new things with every thread you create.


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## tumeninote (Jun 22, 2011)

Just heard this now. I love it!


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## SergeD (Jun 23, 2011)

Very well done, the brass have a lot of majesty.


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## Craig Sharmat (Jun 24, 2011)

This is terrific on all levels.


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## toddkreuz (Jun 24, 2011)

Fantastic writing and midi skills.

But these horns sound way too crispy for my taste. 
I couldnt turn this mix up without squinting and turning away. Not as buzzy as EW brass, but the amount of 3k is too much for me.

I do like the idea of using velocity for articulations and CC for volume though.


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## Nathan Allen Pinard (Jun 24, 2011)

This sounds better than anything Cinebrass has done. I scoffed at that lib when I first heard some demos on their site.


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## JBacal (Jun 24, 2011)

Always a pleasure listening to your work!

Best,
Jay


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## Mr. Anxiety (Jun 24, 2011)

Hey Alex,

Great stuff....... very rousing!

How was it working with CineBrass, especially the release lengths that accompany the samples? Curious if you figured a way to sort some of that out.

Nice work.....

Mr A


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## Alex Temple (Jun 24, 2011)

Thanks everyone! Todd, I know brass sounds are a matter of preference and some prefer the really buzzy tone of close-mic'd recordings over warmer ones. My tastes are somewhere in the middle. However I do want to point out that there is some layering going on with the horn parts here and that it isn't all CineBrass. By itself and without the SAM layering, the horn parts sound rounder and a little less forceful. 

Mr. A - not being able to control the releases can be frustrating and often forces me to use the short marcatos where the longer ones would fit better. Other than that, it is very rewarding to work with, and nice to have a library where the staccato and marcato samples fit so naturally within each phrase together. For the time being it's still nice to keep my older brass samples in my template for the things Cinebrass can't do.


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