my first vsl composition

[thierry.ecuvillon]

the fisrt Mvt of a quatuor

what do you think about it please ? [:D]

http://thierry.ecuvillon.free.fr/VSL/Quatuor-Janvier2006-1Mvt.mp3

[Mobius]

The link doesn't work for me. Is the server down? [:(]

[Mobius]

Oh it's working now... doh!

Wow, it sounds technically very good. Tell me, did you sketch this out on score paper first, or just do it entirely in Logic?

Great first post. Thanks for sharing. [:)]

[thierry.ecuvillon]

in fact i have worked as paper but not: i try on keyboard what i want to play and i write it track by track but the difference is that i don't write on paper, but on the logic score step by step. So i choose my articulation and i respect the composition rules in the same time before i loose my idea.(some times, i use a piano track to put my main idea (expl 2bars) and immediatly i divise for the quatuor. after i take back the piano track and i continu (expl 2 bars) and this to the end of the part.

I do like this because i can read and ear in same time all the track .

Best regards,

[:D]

[thierry.ecuvillon]

any suggestion to make better ?

[JBacal]

Very nice work. I enjoyed listening.

Best,
Jay

[thierry.ecuvillon]

Thank you very much.

And for a orchestral piece, do you think i can mix with the exs sampler track or should i bounce each trak to mix audio files?

And if i do like this, should i normalise each track or not, on the totality or sentence by sentence?

Thank you

Best regards,

Thierry Ecuvillon [:D]

[PaulR]

@thierry.ecuvillon said:

Thank you very much.

And for a orchestral piece, do you think i can mix with the exs sampler track or should i bounce each trak to mix audio files?
And if i do like this, should i normalise each track or not, on the totality or sentence by sentence?
Thank you
Best regards,
Thierry Ecuvillon [:D]

Hi Thierry

If you are using a lot of articulations for one instrument, which this sounds like you are doing and it's very good btw - you should probably bounce all the articulations of each individual instrument down to one audio track. Much easier than messing around with mixing e.g 6 tracks say, of one instrument. The new VI is meant to change all that.
I'm not sure what people mean by normalize. With VSL, I tend to compress just about every audio track - and generally eq most of them too. I don't know if that's right or not though.

[DG]

@thierry.ecuvillon said:

Thank you very much.

And for a orchestral piece, do you think i can mix with the exs sampler track or should i bounce each trak to mix audio files?

And if i do like this, should i normalise each track or not, on the totality or sentence by sentence?

Thank you

Best regards,

Thierry Ecuvillon [:D]

In the old analogue days one would tend to bounce individual tracks as loud as possible (normalise) simply so that any extra unwanted sounds caused by the equipment would be comparatively as soft as possible.
With everything staying digital for most of the chain these days, I would say that if your MIDI mix is just about OK, then just bounce the tracks as they are, particularly with such a small ensemble line-up.
Once you have mixed the track you are welcome to add a little compression if you like, but for this sort of track it may well be unnecessary.

DG

[thierry.ecuvillon]

thank you for your information [:)]


Best regards

thierry ecuvillon

[hermitage59]

Thierry,

I've listened to this quickly, and offer the following,

firstly, good structure.
You have the lead violin pretty well on the melody for almost the entire part, or at least the same pitch envelope, be it first or second Vl. I would have liked to have heard the tenor instrument (viola?) get just a little more work, and even take the melody in sixths with the cello (for example) freeing up the 1st violin for a counter variation, with the second VL providing a wisp of rhythm with soft offbeats, an effective tool when writing melody in the bass, and giving a sense of motion.

And that tenor line is rather quiet in places, leaving the harmony a little hollow. Nothing wrong with that of course, many people tend to over orchestrate, so you're ok there, but when the 1st and 2 vls play in harmony, the Viola could do with just a little more.

Some variation in tempo could be good too, at the end of notable phrases. For example, early in the piece you have a silent pause. The short phrase, say 1 or 2 bars before could ritard. Then the resumption of tempo after the pause has a little more impact. In about the middle (and i apologise for not timing this as i listened) there's a lovely cello line followed by some wistful harmony as the lead line resumes. Perhaps a slightly reduced tempo and dynamic could heighten the 'wistfulness', and again, when you return to tempo, and brighter dynamic, the variation has a little more emphasis.
Finally, i wonder, more to myself, if the answering rhythm parts, mainly the two inner voices could do with a little more variation. If you've ever played the Merchant of Venice in a theatre setting, you'll understand that page after page of offbeats can be tiresome, not only for the player, but the listener too.

You've written lovely counters in the cello, and apportioning a couple of those phrases to the viola or second violin could make a difference tonally, and lift this even further.

I enjoyed this, and would like to hear it again. I will say my comments are only suggestions, and not a criticism of your work. It's a delightful melody, and that's something missing from so much music today.

A good melody.

Regards,

Alex.

[thierry.ecuvillon]

thank you very much for your tips


Best regards,

Thierry [:D]