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A Widow's Lament - New Piece Using Spitfire/Emotional Cello

What a fine, throaty cello tone, as to be expected from EC! I like how you blended the other instruments. It maybe could have used a bit more creative (nuanced might be a better word) panning, but I'm probably quibbling. I'm glad I listened!
 
Parsifal666 said:
What a fine, throaty cello tone, as to be expected from EC! I like how you blended the other instruments. It maybe could have used a bit more creative (nuanced might be a better word) panning, but I'm probably quibbling. I'm glad I listened!
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Thank you kindly for the comments.

I agree with the panning. I worked with full ensemble patches - I could have gone for individual sections but this was suppose to be a quick project so I decided not to.
 
I thought this was amazing. Everything just seems to "shimmer" at just the right emotional level without being overwrought. What instruments did you use besides Spitfire's cello?
 
Thanks for the comments arta :). Glad you enjoyed it.

It's actually Harmonic Subtones Emotional Cello & Spitfire's Olafur Arnalds Evo's + Piano & Harp.
 
That may be the best virtual cello I've ever heard. In a blind hearing test, I might have thought it was real!

As for the piece, I can't think of a Soundcloud composition that surprised me as much as this recently. I can think of a few others, and this is now among those other ones.


Bits I really liked:
-That chord transition at 0:25 was, to me, a blinking genius move. It's such a little thing, but the impact it has does volumes for the song. However, I think I would have waited a little bit before the cello came back in, maybe at around 0:27, just to let that transition shine a little longer. :)

-I also liked the near-climax starting at around 0:36. But its after that, when the harp and piano start to appear at 0:46, that I just get goosebumps. It seems so familiar to me, but it's a stunning moment in its own right.

The key transitions staring around 1:10 threw me off initially, but for the condensed duration of the song, and upon several listens, they are all well timed, AND well chosen! I think you jumped from 1 sharp, to 6 sharps, to 3 sharps, to 5 sharps in less than 20 seconds. :2thumbs: Skills.

The last transition at 1:37 took some getting used to, but it starts to grow on you. Not totally sure if it should have happened that soon without something else preparing for it. Or, if it was meant to happen that soon, I think it might have benefitted from transitioning to the same key, or to a key nearing in tonality to it, and THEN finally transitioning to the last key used in the song. But as it stands, its a great quieting moment, and you let it soak in for a really nice amount of time.

Stuff I might have changed:
-There is a moment during the 0:16 mark, where the cello ascends (E, F#, G), that I think could have been slurred, if possible. Not too much, but just a little, as the passage there just seems ever-so-slightly jolted.

-In addition to the above, there are other moments throughout where the cello sounds more like its playing well-timed sustains rather than smooth legato notes, and it may well be a limitation of the library itself (I don't know, I don't have the library). For instance, at 0:32, where the cello descends (C, B, A). It doesn't sound quite convincing, but that might just be me. (I'm guilty of these moments myself, I just don't always know when and where I'm guilty of them :confused: I just know when I hear them elsewhere.)

-At around 1:01, there's a heck of an interesting turn, where the cello goes (B, high F#, C, G, F, lower F#). I have mixed feelings about it: On one hand, I really appreciate strange additions like that, and there's no doubt that they add a rarely heard greatness to music. On the other hand, I'm not sure if it was the best possible strange thing, or the best place for it, or the best possible execution of it. I don't know how this would sound in its stead, but maybe consider (G, lower A#, slur to B)?

Overall

I really enjoyed this. The tonal quality is staggering. :) You put a lot of great sounding stuff together. The composition itself has some ups and downs, and it is certainly not without some beautiful, strange quirks. It kind of wanders aimlessly, but part of that to me adds to its appeal. It kind of tells a story, but kind of not.

I really commend your adventurous style of changing keys frequently, or stepping outside of them briefly, to express something in the right way. Really good job!
 
Werewoof said:
That may be the best virtual cello I've ever heard. In a blind hearing test, I might have thought it was real!

As for the piece, I can't think of a Soundcloud composition that surprised me as much as this recently. I can think of a few others, and this is now among those other ones.


Bits I really liked:
-That chord transition at 0:25 was, to me, a blinking genius move. It's such a little thing, but the impact it has does volumes for the song. However, I think I would have waited a little bit before the cello came back in, maybe at around 0:27, just to let that transition shine a little longer. :)

-I also liked the near-climax starting at around 0:36. But its after that, when the harp and piano start to appear at 0:46, that I just get goosebumps. It seems so familiar to me, but it's a stunning moment in its own right.

The key transitions staring around 1:10 threw me off initially, but for the condensed duration of the song, and upon several listens, they are all well timed, AND well chosen! I think you jumped from 1 sharp, to 6 sharps, to 3 sharps, to 5 sharps in less than 20 seconds. :2thumbs: Skills.

The last transition at 1:37 took some getting used to, but it starts to grow on you. Not totally sure if it should have happened that soon without something else preparing for it. Or, if it was meant to happen that soon, I think it might have benefitted from transitioning to the same key, or to a key nearing in tonality to it, and THEN finally transitioning to the last key used in the song. But as it stands, its a great quieting moment, and you let it soak in for a really nice amount of time.

Stuff I might have changed:
-There is a moment during the 0:16 mark, where the cello ascends (E, F#, G), that I think could have been slurred, if possible. Not too much, but just a little, as the passage there just seems ever-so-slightly jolted.

-In addition to the above, there are other moments throughout where the cello sounds more like its playing well-timed sustains rather than smooth legato notes, and it may well be a limitation of the library itself (I don't know, I don't have the library). For instance, at 0:32, where the cello descends (C, B, A). It doesn't sound quite convincing, but that might just be me. (I'm guilty of these moments myself, I just don't always know when and where I'm guilty of them :confused: I just know when I hear them elsewhere.)

-At around 1:01, there's a heck of an interesting turn, where the cello goes (B, high F#, C, G, F, lower F#). I have mixed feelings about it: On one hand, I really appreciate strange additions like that, and there's no doubt that they add a rarely heard greatness to music. On the other hand, I'm not sure if it was the best possible strange thing, or the best place for it, or the best possible execution of it. I don't know how this would sound in its stead, but maybe consider (G, lower A#, slur to B)?

Overall

I really enjoyed this. The tonal quality is staggering. :) You put a lot of great sounding stuff together. The composition itself has some ups and downs, and it is certainly not without some beautiful, strange quirks. It kind of wanders aimlessly, but part of that to me adds to its appeal. It kind of tells a story, but kind of not.

I really commend your adventurous style of changing keys frequently, or stepping outside of them briefly, to express something in the right way. Really good job!
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Wow - I couldn't pay someone for this kind of in-depth feedback. It is incredibly insightful. Your have a very shrewd, attentive ear. Suffice it to say I agree with your assessment except for the descending cello line (for me at least the atonality represents aspects of grief). I will have a look at your suggestion for sure.
 
SimonCharlesHanna said:
Wow - I couldn't pay someone for this kind of in-depth feedback. It is incredibly insightful. Your have a very shrewd, attentive ear. Suffice it to say I agree with your assessment except for the descending cello line (for me at least the atonality represents aspects of grief). I will have a look at your suggestion for sure.
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I just give the kind of reviews I wish I could get. :confused:

Can't wait to hear what you've got next!
 
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