Symphonic Poem "Saint Vladimir" comments appreciated

[Paul McGraw]

This symphonic poem tells the story of Saint Vladimir and his wife Princess Anna who brought Christianity to Russia in the 10th century. It is a very dramatic and epic story. It would make a great movie. A condensed version of the tale is on page 2 of the score, which is linked below.

I used VSL for the 8 woodwinds, VSL and Berlin Brass half and half for the brass, VSL Percussion, and VSL Orchestral Strings doubled with Cinematic Studio Strings. I used MIR Pro Teldex to match with Berlin Brass. I used VSL brass for two of the horns, one trumpet, and the star 1st trombone which represents the voice of Vladimir. Berlin Brass was used for the other two horns, one of the trumpets, 2nd trombone, bass trombone, and tuba.

I finished this piece in October and spent the following two months trying to improve the mix. I learned a lot in the process, I hope it sounds OK to everyone.

Comments good or bad are appreciated.

"Saint Vladimir" on Orfium

I can't attach a PDF of the score, so here is a link to the score.

"Saint Vladimir" score

[Jos Wylin]

Hi Paul,

Quite impressive, music and the underlying story. You've achieved an enormous task with this piece in orchestration, thematic material and midi performance. The music really tells a story, clearly noticeable, even without the accompanying text. It's far more than just descriptive music, it displays heart and soul of the composer and the characters in the story. The hymn is so endearing and yet solemn, it's the crown jewel of your composition. 

Paul, I guess I will have to listen a number of times to catch all the deepness and the drama in the epic tale. Weird that Russian history appeals to the imagination of so many people. I'm a first row fan!

Very well rendered with a clear and transparent orchestra. No need to have any doubts about your midi skills anymore. And mixing different libraries isn't easy at all.
My sincere congratulations!

Jos

[William]

A lot of work went into that - it sounds excellent.  The trombone solo is a good establishing mood at the beginning.  Congratulations!  

[Paul McGraw]

Jos Wylin thanks for listening and for the comments. I enjoyed the process of using different libraries along with VSL. But to be honest, I'm not sure it was worth the extra effort. Berlin Brass instruments sound wonderful, but in a full orchestra, I'm not sure they can be heard clearly enough to make a difference. And enough difference to be worth the hassle? They are much more difficult to control and not at all consistent between articulations. It is nice that there are 11 separate Berlin Brass instruments. But VSL has Dimension Brass which also allows for separate instruments for each player. I have also been experimenting with using a 65/35 mix of VSL Orchestral Strings with the Appassionata full strings patch instead of doubling with Cinematic Studio Strings. The Appassionata strings are easier to use, and the combined effect with VSL Orchestral Strings is great in my opinion.

William thank you so much for listening and commenting. As an expert brass player, I hope the brass sounded convincing to you. Of course, samples can never be as good as the real thing, but we have fun getting as close as we can.