Compositions

I have currently been working on the background SFX for the forthcoming production of ‘A Midsummer Nights Dream’ which is being performed in the Mumford Theatre 25th-28th March. On top of this I have also written a solo piano score to accompany certain intervals within the play using influences by Michael Nyman.

I have found that this extra curricular work has help me learn a lot in terms of using and experimenting with themes and ideas. It has also helped me vary my abilities to score music to fit certain moods within a visual sceanrio, not only in terms of musically, but also creating realistic background environments to emphasise the settings of each scene.

I will be performing the music live on the above nights and i feel the play will be very enjoyable and very entertaining.

If anyone is intereted you can buy tickets from the Mumford Theatre Box office £8 Adults £5 Students/Concessions and £4 OAP.

Nick

Hi everyone,

Just thought i’d let you know i found a great site that allows you to download samples for free. This is awesome because they are all 16-bit 44.1Khz too.

here’s the link: http://www.freesfx.co.uk/soundeffects

Hi all,

I was just wondering if you could give me some feedback on my ‘Road Runner & Coyote’ Clip for task 2 of the Music for Digital Media semester 1 tasks. The main concern of mine at the moment is the sliding rock sound about half way through the clip. Although i do quite like the rawness of the sample… im not entirely sure it fits.

Here’s the YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kOvLVdgGs8

I am currently programing the scales of Dmajor and the relative Bminor. I want to create 2 contrasting sections, a nice angelic waltz in Dmajor and a creepy-ish standard 4/4 darker contrasting section.

The only thing is…. How can i create a waltz?….. I would have to emphasise every third beat but im not sure how to do this…. can anyone help????

I have been reviewing my incidental music for the movie clip I engaged in for task 4, ‘The Day After Tomorrow’. I have noticed some faults the various instrumentation and have started to configure these accordingly. I am currently adding a Sforzando emphasis on the Brass section and also working on some tremolo strings too.

I am also considering playing around with variations of the leit motif currently in use and i am also considering some female choir vocals too…. (if anyone knows of anyone… please let me know). This i feel could work as a contrast to the mood and arouse the emotions of the viewer too, in an alternative way. The scene i was considering was during the close up of the wave, near the end of the clip, during the last 30 secs.

Any other ideas are welcome if anyone would like to comment.

Here’s the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuMQ_xboth0

The first time i had heard of Max/MSP/Jitter, as well as the fundamentals of what the programs entailed i was worried about learning a ‘New Language’ in music. 

I was recently browsing through my collection of film soundtracks when I stumbled across the works of Danny Elfman. Elfman’s film scores can be described as dark and brooding, lush and romantic, wild and manic – reflecting the many composers and styles which have influenced him over the years.

As I see the colours in the Kandinsky painting as moody but yet playful I would like to incorporate some of Elfman’s works with Tim Burton (Corpse Bride, 2005) and also his score for Edward Scissor Hands.

I also found the works of Thomas Newman to be influential of the sound I would like to generate. Thomas Newman is famous for his works (American Beauty & The Green Mile). The music in American Beauty is experimental, playful and haunting, truly a masterpiece.

I want to create these emotions and feelings through the different textures available in a orchestra. I feel that the playful aspects will be emphasized by the metallic percussion and Hi-End string pizzicato.

The Constellation of Colours

I borrowed the Edirol R-09 hand held recorder this week from the Creative Music technology department to do some sample recordings for my foley projects etc. I was impressed by the quality of the recorder as it picks up a clear sound . I recorded various amounts of sample with this little contraption which has now taken my S-FX catalog close to 12Gb of high quality sounds.

I tested its abilities with instruments such as bongo’s and acoustic guitar. The sound again was clear and it had an awesome effect of the acoustic guitar.

I used the recordings I had captured and began to compile a song from what I had. I pre-recorded a tempo track and downmixed it onto an I-pod to ensure ease of editing Midi into the track afterwards. This would help ensure the performers played to the same 4/4 time signature and tempo.

I was able to sync the tracks to a tempo track in Cubase SX 3 then add other instrumentation through MIDI triggering.

I would definitely advise borrowing or even buying one of this as they are brilliant for anyone who has an ear for everyday sound possibilities. As also mentioned they work tremendously well with studio projects too.

After learning in my Digital for New Media lecture that sometimes the best way to create an environment is to record in a similar or same environment. To capture the atmospheric qualities of a live vocal recording I decided to experiment with a natural vocal plate effect which my bathroom helped me to achieve.

The walls of the bathroom are tiled as well as the floor and ceiling. This creates nice variations of reverberative qualities which give the vocals character. Many people sing in the bathroom because it acts as an echo chamber, especially with tiles installed. The multiple reflections from walls enriches the sound of one’s voice.

I recorded the vocals for a song featured on my latest album and in all honesty the sound has transformed the richness and quality of the vocals. Obviously depending on the sound you want to capture depends on the different treatments which need to be applied.

I found that a double duvet hanging from the shower curtain rail eliminates some of the lower frequencies and also cuts out more of the reflections which is ideal for maybe a male vocal rather than a female vocal as the male vocal generally produces lower frequencies.

For this task we were asked to choose a painting that would be later represented through music. The piece I have chosen below is by the Russian-born painter and writer Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944).

Kandinsky painted this work while teaching at the Bauhaus, the innovative architecture and art school founded by Walter Gropius. The two metre wide painting mixed forms and coloured masses into a harmonious whole – but what does it all mean?

I am not spending much time trying to figure out what the shapes may be. I tend to marvel at the constellation of colours, the distribution of semi-transparent and opaque shapes and the shapes themselves. It seems as if several very different things are going on at once, somehow combined to a whole. I think this is how I will approach this piece of work.