Flower's Galop

Ok thanks, I'll try, but I wouldn't know about increasing the volumes; even like this it exceeds 0 dB in some points, maybe I should use compression. Anyway, maybe I'll do some mastering tests and propose them to you, thanks.

In case you should put a limiter, the compressor tends to limit the dynamic range... Rather, spend a little time managing the dynamics with automations. I feel a lack of Pan; I would also choose a different reverb, and in fact, I would manage the reverb of the audio-out on a bus. What's the situation with stereo spread? I believe there is none at all. Do we have full stereo imaging? You should evaluate these things with a multimeter. I hear everything a bit flat and centered, very unrealistic.

geppino12575 wrote:

Ok thanks, I'll try, but I wouldn't know about turning up the volumes; it already exceeds 0 dB in some points, maybe I should use compression. Anyway, maybe I'll do some mastering tests and propose them to you, thanks.

standard compression isn't useful here.

First of all, with so many instruments, it's obvious that when they all play together it's a mess, so you have to adjust all the volumes.

Secondly, panning more already frees up frequency space, and if that's not enough, you have to use EQ to further free up space for the instruments; a simple example is choosing who should stay lower, the timpani or the bass. If you choose the timpani, then cut all the bass frequencies below 80 Hz roughly. And let Ozone do its thing!

I am simply amazed, it is magnificent to listen to stuff like this produced by someone with whom I can also talk and give my most heartfelt compliments directly.

Thank you for this beautiful composition.

Bye.

myhobbyispiano wrote:

I am simply stunned, it is magnificent to listen to stuff like this produced by someone with whom I can also talk and give my most heartfelt compliments directly.

...you should hear his Jazz sphere, maybe at the end of May he will delight us with one of his gems

Very good Geppino and above all a beautiful piece

Well, what can I say, thank you, but haven't you exaggerated a little bit...?

geppino12575 wrote:

haven't you exaggerated a little bit...?

... but what exaggeration, you know well that if we have to say something we are not ashamed ...

I tried to do a bit of mastering with Ozone, also following your advice: I widened some instruments (especially the brass, but also cellos and double basses further to the right). I didn't use one of the Ozone presets; I did it my own way, by ear...

As usual, comments are welcome; I have a lot to learn on the audio side.

listened to in headphones it seems really excellent to me and the spatialization works great, highlighting the various interventions and colors that previously overlapped too much in the center.

I think you've nailed it.

The doubt I have is that it is a bit too "aggressive"; perhaps I should vary the dynamics a bit more towards mp, p, pp, but I think it is a matter concerning parameters like velocity, expression, modulation, etc.—that is, a matter of editing, not mixing, and even less so mastering. I will try starting with a base CC11 of 80, not 90. Furthermore, the next step, PC permitting, should be being able to mix the microphone positions; here I only used the close mic, the ideal would be at least close and full together, in order to have presence but spatiality at the same time; I will try with the new PC (I bought a new PC with an i7 processor, 8GB of RAM, and a solid-state drive, it should arrive this week) because with the current one it wouldn't hold up...

Very well done, extremely fluid and well calibrated; perhaps it's because I am also a rather gloomy type (but still ironic) and I don't like this type of music (I am talking about the genre, not the piece itself), however, the piece is very well made and usually when recordings are made with samples, one must still imagine the performance with real instruments, which would certainly have a different impact.

A question regarding the beginning of the central part: there is a short passage from the oboe (it seems you used the close mic recording, is that so?), because from the first two notes, how it practically attacks, it sounds like the sound obtained from the oboe trio available with East West; since it is an instrument I am obsessed with (I think you probably already know this anyway), you could use (for some solo instruments, even if the difference would be abysmal) the VSL sounds (the downloadable packages from the website at low prices); especially during the attack phase they are very realistic, and more.

Thanks for the comment Piccinesco, your ear doesn't lie; I used close miking for the 3 oboes (as well as all the other instruments, which are close-miked), I should have used a solo oboe for that phrase instead of the 3, but I had to save on RAM; perhaps with a new PC I will be able to differentiate the woodwinds individually rather than in section. Anyway, the EastWest woodwinds don't satisfy me very much, especially the flutes, but I also think the oboe and English horn could have been sampled better.

I played it for an expert who told me that overall it's not bad, but that he finds the violins a bit too small; they sound more like pop violins than classical ones; in reality, I gave them a little boost in the highs using Kontakt's equalization, specifically on the first and second violins, but he told me to keep everything flat and work either on the string section as a whole or on the raw audio file, respecting the characteristics of the samples, rather than on the single instrument. Do you feel like sharing these tips?

Thank you to you or to anyone else who wishes to weigh in.

It depends, I have never used East West samples with the player (I had purchased them before it was released with this player) nor with the others, but I used and still use them with another software; anyway, since you are using the sections separately, my advice is to work on the detached sections. Usually, what I do is diversify the "timbre" even slightly for each section or instrument; in this way, in the final file, a minimum difference can be heard, even if it's barely perceptible, and obviously it's not worth working on the complete piece, there's not much to be done in that case, others have already given suggestions in this sense.

For example, slightly modifying the characteristics of a violin section already contributes to making it independent; then the greater difficulty lies in assembling everything and not letting weaknesses show when using different articulations.

I am "killing myself" precisely because I recorded the individual articulations and use them with another program, so I have to use different sample players for each articulation and not keyswitches like with the player, for example; I've always done it this way, it uses less memory.

Then I will let you listen to something using the same sounds that you use (I am still talking about East West), to which I sometimes add just a little bit of reverb with Sound Forge, where I acquire the recording of the file.

Regarding the oboe, I understood correctly then, but there was a doubt.