by

Andrew Shih Tzu
(Shih Tzu)

Calming song, but there is no panning :( Perhaps space out Instrument 4 chords with an X30 on the lower notes and XD0 on the higher ones in the chord. Instrument 1 should have a Pitch-Pan separation (F3-Panning-down the bottom), remembering to set the Pitch-Pan center. This should make it sound much better through headphones. You may want to over-ride this automatic panning occasionally for the louder, more melody type instances on the instrument. The end of the song sounds a bit like it belongs to another song, they are completely different, and the ending is a little too sudden also. This is something to work on also. I wish you luck, just remember to wear headphones to get panning effects right.

Strings sound too dry to be any form of water, too plucked, need more sustain. The melody is nice, and is pretty haunting played by the flute. Need more instrument effects though. Great harp strums! You don't hear this kind of music often, with all the jazz, rock, and dance tracks, but it's great though. The trumpet sample has static, or creates static, be careful. Ending needs more juice for this type of style. I'm sure you can be creative. Great song and good luck.

The first thing that popped into my head when I loaded this song was that it sounded like something that would come out of one of my Final Fantasy games. The samples are weak, and really video game sounding, but for all I know, that may have been the route you were going with this song, because they're pretty much all the same quality level. I like how you worked in the marching snare with the trumpet fanfare at the end. I'm putting this song down as more of a CRPG video game song than a tracked song for a compo, because it would make great game music, but it won't do too well as anything but that. As for how you can improve it, work on that ending. It ends way too quick - maybe have the snare cadence out after the final trumpet statement? Experiment, but make the ending longer than just two beats.

This song's theme is good, but lack technical skill and originality. Sample quality could use a lot of work. Theme needs expansion, and though it's nice while it lasts, this piece definitely needs some sort of ending. It appears to build and build and goes nowhere. Overall, Way to short and sounds like something from the Final Fantasy video game series on the Super Nintendo.

Interesting title. This tune is actually pretty good. The author possesses a good ear for writing harmony, even though in this song he only uses triads. My personal favorite: the Gm / Csus4 / C / Dm progression in pattern 13. I particularly liked the "middle section" at orders 4-11, but the first couple of orders could use some spicing up, what I mean is the beginning, or the intro, whatever, didn't really build up my expectations. Nice tempo changes in between parts, by the way. The samples are pretty generic and GM-like, but not bad.. I've heard some better snares, though. Tracking technique seems ok, using slightly more varied dynamics might just have given the song a bit more professional edge. I wouldn't mind seeing this one in the second round.

Nice, peaceful beginning. The two instruments in the beginning sound just a shade out of tune to each other, however. The strings building up are done very well. After the baritone (tuba, bass, however you want to look at it) the leads become a little erratic. I like the time signature changes that are used. However, the samples don't seem to capture the mood that you are trying to set. Some of them are played well out of their range and that gives them more of the Sound Blaster FM Chip feel, rather than the orchestrated group feel which appears to be what you are trying to accomplish. This is definitely the most unique song I've heard so far this contest. The orchestration was very decent with the exception of the samples. Try to use a little echo and/or vibrato in the beginning with the lead instrument to create a little more realism in the feel. Try using some floating panning as opposed to having everything direct center. It will add some fullness to the sound. Overall a very nice song.