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The Orchestra Contest - Compose To Win

Thank you so much. My intention is for my sound design efforts to be as “musical“ as possible. I appreciate your kind words and encouragement.
You bet! If you decide to add music you should post it. Or PM me, I'd be interested in hearing it.
 


My first ever music competition. Any feedback is welcome! Made in Cubase with PS Vista, SA CDT, SS Percussion Essentials, Cinebrass Sonore, Sonuscore Action Strings 2, NI Arkhis, ProjectSam Pandora Core, OT Metropolis Ark 4, AV Infinite Woodwinds, SA BBCSO Core, OT Modus, VSL BBO Fornax, Steven Slate Drums 5.


Hi, Tritonely,

I’ve listened through a bunch and Man this is a really cool track! I want to hear the full, unadulterated version because it sounds like it’s really going somewhere.

Some notable highlights for me:
  • The understated orch hit at the beginning (Fornax?). It sounds really full and balanced across the orchestra and the sustains after the hit are a nice touch.
  • The meloncholic line you establish at the beginning is emotionally engaging and leaves plenty of room between the intro and climax to develop your themes.
  • The intro horn theme has an Interesting timbral quality - it kind of sounds like it’s morphed with a woodwind or something. Kind of otherworldly. Is that Sonore? I’m not familiar with that one tbh.
  • Somber, yet colorful chords in the first half
  • Those string runs from :57 to the end. Very Nice. I love your choice of accents on those and it sounds like it was thoughtfully written.
  • I personally like how the rock elements didn’t completely overtake the symphonic vibe.
  • The modulation towards the end sounds like it’s taking the piece in an interesting direction.

Some hopefully constructive ideas that may strengthen the piece:
  • Try bringing out some closer mic positions, particularly in the main themes you establish at the beginning. Clarity is being lost to the ambience.
  • There’s either a delay effect or timbrally similar instrument following/mimicking the intro horn line and I think it’s making it sound less confident. It might be worth exploring an independent harmony line instead
  • The dissonance around :25 sounds shy and uncertain of itself. Try clarifying the chord voicing or dropping it out.
  • The horns between :12 and :25 are lingering a bit. You could try leaving some space there or pass the line around to some timbrally contrasting sections if you want the note held as it is.
  • BRING OUT THOSE STRINGS AT THE END THEY ARE BADASS
  • The very end could sound more intentional and conclusive. One idea would be to leave the modulation out and conclude the main theme, perhaps with a truncated theme repeat or setting it up a few measures earlier. Another idea would be to cut the drums at “The Orchestra 2” logo. After watching that part a bunch I’m pretty sure the drums are contributing to an inconclusive vibe, which is only an issue in the context of the video.

Regarding the VO intelligibility, I have to begrudgingly agree with Pappaus lol. I think it’s possible that this is why your track wasn’t chosen. If that’s the case then I’m guilty of the same cardinal sin lol and tbh I don’t regret it - I had fun and I hope you did too. Obviously for a proper client you wouldn’t want to take that approach. But like… it was in the way of your badass track. Rude!

Anyway, I think you wrote a really compelling track. I hope you find some of these thoughts helpful and I look forward to hearing more :)
 
Wow... amazing entries, as always. Here's mine:


Hi NickThacker,

Really cool track! I’m really digging the electronic accents throughout the piece. They have a really satisfying “rip” to them. What are you using for those elements?

Some additional highlights for me:

  • I like the intensity throughout the piece. It’s emotionally affective and kept my attention from start to finish
  • Nice blend of colors, both in terms of timbre and note choice
  • I particularly like your balance of strings, organ, and choir
  • The video edits you hit worked nicely, particularly at :27 and :37

Some hopefully constructive ideas:
  • Hitting more of the cuts could have strengthened this as a score, but as a composition I don’t think it makes a difference. It sounds cool to me.
  • It sounds a bit over compressed, particularly in the low end of the second half. But I think mine is too haha. It wasn’t overly distracting but addressing it might help the second half have an even stronger emotional impact. It might help distinguish the badassery of the horn lead.

I hope you find some of this helpful. Your track is dope and I think it deserves a title and it’s own release because it’s clear you put a ton of work into it. Keep it up! :)

Douglas
 


Hi Genian,

You have a nice foundation here. The tone feels appropriately haunting and menacing. I like the escalation around :15 in particular.

A few hopefully constructive thoughts:

  • Try breaking the piece down into a few distinct sections that you can use as targets for a logical structure ex A-A-B-A. Then find some creative ways to bridge the gaps and make each section more impactful
  • Try developing a simple theme to help separate the different sections. I like the foundation but it can feel repetitive after a few cycles
  • I feel like the track loses a lot of musical momentum towards the end. I think it is important that this section has a payoff based on the expectations you’ve been building up throughout the track.
  • I think I see what you were going for with the hits at the end. They kind of line up with the quickly flashing instruments behind the main logo. This is pretty cool and most others I’ve seen didn’t hit those, I definitely just noticed them. I think in combination with the previous note this could be made pretty powerful as long as it’s kept really tight with the picture.

I hope you find some of this helpful. Keep up the good work!
 
The finalists are amazing, well deserved all around. My entry didn't make the cut but I'm reasonably proud of it anyway since it's a big leap for me to do anything even slightly "epic" sounding.



Hi tpoots,

First of all great job - there’s a ton of good stuff going on here. You should be proud, especially if this is new territory for you.

I’m loving the variety throughout the piece and I can tell you spent a lot of time meticulously matching the picture. You made good decisions in how you chose to structure the composition. It feels like it’s more than the sum of its parts.

On a constructive note, your piece would benefit from a bit more thematic development, but I really like the overall structure, chords, and even that tasty bit of sound design at :27

It’s pretty clear that you have good intuition. If you like this style and keep at it I have no doubt it’ll become 2nd nature.

I hope some of these thoughts are helpful. I look forward to hearing more in the future :)

Douglas
 
Hi tpoots,

First of all great job - there’s a ton of good stuff going on here. You should be proud, especially if this is new territory for you.

I’m loving the variety throughout the piece and I can tell you spent a lot of time meticulously matching the picture. You made good decisions in how you chose to structure the composition. It feels like it’s more than the sum of its parts.

On a constructive note, your piece would benefit from a bit more thematic development, but I really like the overall structure, chords, and even that tasty bit of sound design at :27

It’s pretty clear that you have good intuition. If you like this style and keep at it I have no doubt it’ll become 2nd nature.

I hope some of these thoughts are helpful. I look forward to hearing more in the future :)

Douglas
Thanks for the analysis and the kind words Douglas! I appreciate you taking the time to listen and offer constructive feedback. I think I see what you mean about thematic development. I don't really do anything with the motif I introduce in the beginning, and there's almost a second piece that starts with the "Horns of Hell" bit.
 
Thanks for the analysis and the kind words Douglas! I appreciate you taking the time to listen and offer constructive feedback. I think I see what you mean about thematic development. I don't really do anything with the motif I introduce in the beginning, and there's almost a second piece that starts with the "Horns of Hell" bit.
oh, and hello from Austin! :cool:
 
Hi, Pappaus

Great effort - I really like what I heard. You’ve structured this piece well. I’m seeing a lot of intention with the edits so great job on that. I’m no authority but I think you handled the structure better than some of the selections.

The transition into the Hell Portal is handled well in your piece. You establish a nice rhythmic 1-2-punch on the “The Orchestra Complete” Logo. I really dig it.

Some possible improvements I thought of after several listens:

  • The very beginning could benefit from a more attention grabbing first couple of seconds. I liked how you followed up the transition into the moon though. The tone is a little ambiguous in the first 1 or 2 seconds but it becomes clear quickly afterwards.
  • I think the build into the “portal swell” could use more intensity and perhaps be a bit more unsettling. Afterwards I think it should hold on to the energy and keep building at least to the clouded sky cut
  • The second half could use a lot more bombast and drive. It sounds a bit polite to me. I know you said this is something you’re working on so just keep at it and you’ll get there

I think you have the right idea about listening to other people's stuff or examples in a similar genre. It won't make you any less creative. I think it’s awesome that you challenged yourself to write something without reference though. That’s great for testing intuition. I think it’s important to balance both of those approaches in whatever way you feel is appropriate and most inspiring.

Just my initial thoughts - I hope you find some of this helpful. Keep up the good work!
Thanks for the kind words and excellent points.
 
Thanks for the analysis and the kind words Douglas! I appreciate you taking the time to listen and offer constructive feedback. I think I see what you mean about thematic development. I don't really do anything with the motif I introduce in the beginning, and there's almost a second piece that starts with the "Horns of Hell" bit.
I think finding a way to bridge the 1st and 2nd half with a strong theme could turn the "2nd piece" feel into a real highlight. You took a more challenging direction but that leaves a lot of room for creative solutions. The hardest part is linking everything in a way that feels intentional and unfragmented. Still, you did a solid job for sure
 
I am gonna be honest here. They all sounded the same to me. Yeah, quality of sound production is great, but that is like praising a movie for its realistic effects but not for the creative vision of the effect. It all sounded like stock music to me. I come from 40 years of exposure to all styles of film and game music and this trend in music styles in film music has not changed much since The Dark Knight.

These cues sounded like Zimmer-esque or overblown action movie trailers. All with similar string lines, similar power hit drums. Only one really attempted to do something with a chorus. The Saint Maud contest had more diverse entries and finalists than this contest did.

Okay, I am done on my soap box. So now here is my entry that was not selected, lol.



Hi Matthew,

The sound design in the first half of your track is so dark and menacing, I really dig it! I was half expecting it to become like a club Berghain terrorcore jam or something haha

Your sfx textures are all done really well at the beginning and use the stereo image nicely without taking up too much energy in the top end. The second half could probably use a few more elements to fill out spectrum a bit more, but that’s just my preference.

I think the pacing could be intensified a bit. One idea that comes to mind would be to consolidate the first half so that there aren’t any repeated elements, more like a step ladder where each time you hear something it grows more intense. For example:

:00 - :07
Leave as is (really nice “thump” btw)

:08 - :15
Use the hit at :14 and pull the bowed cymbal and swell at :26 to the tail end of :15

:15 - :27
Use the horn chattering that starts at the portal shot here and pull the horn rip from the horns of hell logo over to :27 timing the sweep to start at the first flash and hit on “The Orchestra Complete logo”

Since the video is so short I think this might help give your composition more density while leaving room to go full force on the following sections. Of course take these suggestions with a grain of salt, I don’t mean to be too prescriptive.

I hope some of this proves to be helpful. You've got good stuff here, Keep up the good work!

Douglas
 
Can someone tell me what's wrong with my score? I'm completely bewildered!
The Orchestra contest entry by Louis Van Zandt
Hi Louis,

I like a lot of the elements you have here. I think they generally ruled out submissions that didn't contain more traditional music with melody/harmony and all that. You definitely have a strong foundation here for layering with a more traditional score though! I think it would work really well with some epic brass and string parts worked in. Maybe add some rhythmically driving percussion in the second half to push to the end shot.

Btw That hit at :37?
F*cking dope. Startling yet satisfying.

I hope some of this is helpful. If you want an opinion on anything in particular feel free to ask. Keep up the good work!

Douglas
 
Too bad the videos of all the participants are not online.... The styles seem more varied than in the final selection. But still, congratulations to the 10 finalists. Here my entry :


Great work Freecham! I meant to leave feedback on everyone's posts but then I realized not everyone might want feedback.

If you do just let me know and I'll give yours a more in depth look!
 
Hi there, I just prepared a YouTube list with the 10 runners-up, to ease the listening and the voting, in case it helps.





I didnt make it either, but anyway a big thank to the Best Service team for organizing it and for scanning 600 proposals in 3 days... wow.

Here below my own proposal, a bit too magical and classic - so I have gotten feedback about it.

Cheers
Victor


I really like the piece itself. It's a bit lighthearted for a trailer that pumps the edginess to the MAX, but it might still work just by leaning a bit more towards a Danny Elfman/Tim Burton style of dark fantasy. I'm glad you took a chance on something outside the norm though and I hope you keep doing that in the future :)
 
Hello everyone,
first of all congratulations to the organizers of this contest but above all to the 10 finalists, they are all well done compositions and with many interesting harmonies. I hope the best man wins.
This was my composition for the Contest, I hope you like it ...

Hi Gian Luca Zuchelli! I meant to leave feedback on everyone's posts but halfway through I realized not everyone might want feedback. So I'm just wrapping up with the folks who requested it.

I don't want to leave anyone out so if you do just let me know and I'll give yours a more in depth look!
 
Great work Freecham! I meant to leave feedback on everyone's posts but then I realized not everyone might want feedback.

If you do just let me know and I'll give yours a more in depth look!
Thank you Douglas, for taking the time to write these detailed comments. Feel free to leave a comment on mine.
 
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