My song for Hans Zimmer masterclass. Axe-Fx2/ML-cab packs/orchestral

nexus

Inspired
Hi guys.
This is my new mix of the song and project that I do for the Hans Zimmer masterclass.
There is no class tips and tricks yet, since class is opening in 9 hours from now. But this gives an idea where my journey will go when the class goes on and I can see if I get any better on this. So what is the better starting point than track number one for the project?
Time will tell if there is guitars and other band instruments in every song or how this will go...everything is still open. Any comments will be much appreciated,
thank you.

So, no one can avoid Encounters! It´s time to face them!
Enjoy!
 
Well, my wife thought it was pretty.

I liked alot of the piece.

On a personal level, i liked the intro repeatatuve violin riff, but absolutely did not like the oboe melody on top. I'd ditch that. Once the rest of the orchestral came in, it was beautiful. If this piece was for filmmwork, it definitely would work.

Hated when the TSO style drumming came in - I would prefer more orchestral percussion than death metal drums. The drums made the piece lose its beauty as an orchestral instrumental and made it, like I said, a TSO style piece. Nothing wrong with that if that was your intend, I'd just go in the other direction.

Loved the piece until the 3:30 mark. Between that and about 4:10, I felt those two sections didn't fit with the rest of the piece. First i thought you should have ended the piece at 3:30, but the last section before the end was a nice coda. Try connecting it.

Again, my opinion. Not being critical in a negative sense, but if you are attending. HZ class, expect them to be brutal with critique.
 
I just now discovered this thread. It's wonderfully played, and it blends a lot of different textures into something that fits together well.

Oh, and...always practice more. :)
 
Hated when the TSO style drumming came in - I would prefer more orchestral percussion than death metal drums. The drums made the piece lose its beauty as an orchestral instrumental and made it, like I said, a TSO style piece. Nothing wrong with that if that was your intend, I'd just go in the other direction.
I think abrupt changes of flavor kind of go with the territory in film scoring. You pretty much have to serve the visuals, rather than complete creative freedom.
 
I have no problem with percussion coming in, just prog metal drums, IMHO, didn't fit. Especially when they are EZDrummer type drums.
 
Sounds awesome man. I just wish the intro opened up more dynamically. But the melodies were cool and once the main rhythm kicks in you sit back and go "damn son"
 
i would say the drums are too loud in the mix and everything needs to be a bit wetter - more reverb - to make it sound bigger and more epic. from a compositional standpoint, i think it might be referencing too many genres to sound cohesive (the oboe makes it sound a bit like heavy metal klezmer to me). lots of terrific ideas, though
 
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Thanks for the comments guys!
This is just something that came out when a proghead is trying to get some movie soundtrack influences :)
And when you change instruments back to "band mode" from orchestral stuff... it´s very different, as we can hear now at 3:20.
This was something I wanted to experiment as a big contrast. I had this picture in my head where some insects attack and it needed fast mood change :) You can imagine what ever you like there...
Mixing this all was a bit too much for me.. but I learned a lot.

Then we get into question. Can you enjoy this kind of stuff without the visuals? Could it be your own minds journey with the music?
This is something that I want to learn more. Storytelling with the music. And it is one of the biggest topics in the HZ class.
 
Then we get into question. Can you enjoy this kind of stuff without the visuals? Could it be your own minds journey with the music?
This is something that I want to learn more. Storytelling with the music. And it is one of the biggest topics in the HZ class.
Everyone is different. For me, I don't usually fantasize a story behind the music. When the music is good, I just imagine the feel of playing it myself, and dancing along with the other instruments.
 
Then we get into question. Can you enjoy this kind of stuff without the visuals? Could it be your own minds journey with the music?
This is something that I want to learn more. Storytelling with the music. And it is one of the biggest topics in the HZ class.

of course you can. it's why soundtrack albums are made. i have many of them. i enjoy them. for films i have seen and ones i haven't. some of my own music could be described as "filmic" and some people (maybe 8 or 9) seem to like it. i sometimes make the titles very ambiguous, so that the listener is free to make their own associations.
i would say listen to as much soundtrack music as you can, especially those in the same genre that you want to work in (soundtracks for games are good for this) and absorb as much as you can.
 
I have some favorites, John Williams as the biggest. HZ, Elfman stuff is great too.
Sure then there is these Potter and LOTR soundtracks that I love.
It´s just something that people are waiting if you put band in there, then you need to have verses and all that boring stuff :)
This is very strange, but maybe band has so deep roots in peoples minds when thinking about song structure...
But I hope I will learn something from HZ class. At least I´m doing song without guitar now first time in my life, lets see if it´s my last :)
 
Everyone is different. For me, I don't usually fantasize a story behind the music. When the music is good, I just imagine the feel of playing it myself, and dancing along with the other instruments.
Me too, thats why I like prog music the most. Where they play a lot!
But don´t dance with bassist :)
 
it's all about the story. whether it's for film or even just trailer music. if using a rock band + classical instruments helps you tell the story, then use it. and i don't think you need to worry about people's expectations, just because there's guitar, bass and drums in there.
 
Well thats the right attitude there. We are trying to do some kind of art here... this is hobby for me, not forced to please anyone.
Sure it would be very nice if someone could listen to your music without referring to Chinese torture :)
But have to ask opinions because there is no other way to learn. Just get your stuff out there and get exposed. This is something I have to work on too. Have been such a perfectionist so long and it takes you nowhere. Nothing gets done 100% because you just keep spinning it. It is so stupid when you realise how long you have been doing this.
Thats why I´m happy I got this out and now I don´t look back, I listen advices and try to learn and take it into another song.
 
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Have been such a perfectionist so long and it takes you nowhere. Nothing gets done 100% because you just keep spinning it. It is so stupid when you realise how long you have been doing this.
So true.

Sometimes "good enough" is the enemy of "better." But sometimes "better " is the enemy of "good enough."
 
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