[Music+Art] Making Melody Needs Love! Battle's Palette (OC Theme) (2/22/12)

[Anunsew]

For a change of pace, I decided to take up some drawing practice sketches again

Reimu~

Er...the lighting is bad because I used a cellphone camera. Didn't want to bother finding a rentable scanner service...
And that's just pencil.

[Lloyd Dunamis]

Reimu, to me, seems to give off this expression of happily-satisfied smile, while having a part in her feelings or wherever that she doesn't want to let others (viewer) know... At least, that's what I can read from your fanart.

I say, instead of a negative result, the bad lighting effect complements on its pencil-monochrome-ness and sketchyness, giving your drawing this nice, traditional-art-by-the-light atmosphere :3... Not to mention your drawing style is cute~<3, like I said before >w<

(Anunsew, I miss you, you seem to have gone a long way since my last reply here, especially with EP around discussing you with related things and eeeehh~<3 >////<...)

[Anunsew]

Another try at quick sketching.
Remilia looks...off, but I like putting random stuff in my pictures. I need to learn moar force perspective. For great justice.

I'm not slacking off with composition though. I'm currently working on a rearrange of this theme as per request of the original composer.
So far, here's what I've got.
Serene yet Painful Slumber ~ Haunting Dreams
It's far from perfect. More like a draft of some sort....I think. Rearranging an original composition is hard. >.<

Okay, I admit. I feel lazy when the cold season starts to set in.

Reimu, to me, seems to give off this expression of happily-satisfied smile, while having a part in her feelings or wherever that she doesn't want to let others (viewer) know... At least, that's what I can read from your fanart

I say, instead of a negative result, the bad lighting effect complements on its pencil-monochrome-ness and sketchyness, giving your drawing this nice, traditional-art-by-the-light atmosphere :3... Not to mention your drawing style is cute~<3, like I said before >w<

Maybe somebody donated a reasonable amount of money? d_(^o^)_b
While unintentional, the lighting does look nice...

(Anunsew, I miss you, you seem to have gone a long way since my last reply here, especially with EP around discussing you with related things and eeeehh~<3 >////<...)

Aww~I miss you too. You need to post more compositions in your thread. I really like your style.

[Anunsew]

I've been messing around the settings of my PC's Midi device (which is kind of hard because I can hardly understand anything from the interface...)


...Gah. My Japanese is limited. Any translations would be appreciated.
The tracks above are from SSG, since I have the midi lying inside my drives for ages. I decided to play around my Midi device for a change of pace.

Anyway, I've been messing with sampling rates and stuff  since I was trying to integrate the midi device into FL, but it keeps getting conflicting SynCor errors with ASIO.
So far, the best way to use the sounds is by creating the midi track separately from the DAW tracks, and recording the midi into an audio file before incorporating it into the main track. >.<
It's really a hassle, but I kind of like many of my midi device's sounds. The sawtooth is quite delicious, da ze.

[DX7.EP]

...Gah. My Japanese is limited. Any translations would be appreciated.

Current box - 'Please select your default sound set'
Buttons & checkmarks - 'Setup SPDIF', 'Default settings (D)', and 'Reside SoundMax in taskbar' (last one is a bit of a stretch, but it'll do)
Tabs - current one is MIDI Music Synthesizer, other one is Mic.

It's really a hassle, but I kind of like many of my midi device's sounds. The sawtooth is quite delicious, da ze.

Yeah, they have a way of growing on ya! XD
No idea whether compatibility extends to newer OSes, though....

[Anunsew]

Current box - 'Please select your default sound set'
Buttons & checkmarks - 'Setup SPDIF', 'Default settings (D)', and 'Reside SoundMax in taskbar' (last one is a bit of a stretch, but it'll do)
Tabs - current one is MIDI Music Synthesizer, other one is Mic.

Thanks! That's a great help!

Yeah, they have a way of growing on ya! XD

Yup~ They sound a lot better than some thFont patches and Edirol even. XD

[Doyora]

Make some filthy touhou dubstep

[Anunsew]

Make some filthy touhou dubstep

Er...what?
Please elaborate your request, I'm not sure I understand...

[DX7.EP]

Make some filthy touhou dubstep

Anunsew seems to do more ZUN-style works. For that, well, contact others like Bio who is into more electronic styles.

Myself, I do more rock-style with electronic and classical influence. Actually, put it as game music. :V

...and yeah, I use 'electronic' as a blanket term here, so....

Er...what?
Please elaborate your request, I'm not sure I understand...

Dubstep + Touhou melody = dubstep remix! ...can't assist with this one.

[Anunsew]

Trying hard to improve my drawlng skills, along with my knowledge of DirectX SDK. How they are even related is something I do not know. :3
Unfortunately, my drawing skills are still subpar. :yukkuri:
Either that, or I have to stop lurking in pixiv.

...and yeah, I use 'electronic' as a blanket term here, so....
Dubstep + Touhou melody = dubstep remix! ...can't assist with this one.

Ah. So dubstep is yet another genre in the genre-filled genre of music. >.<

Anunsew seems to do more ZUN-style works.

And still failing at that, IMHO. XD

For that, well, contact others like Bio who is into more electronic styles.
Myself, I do more rock-style with electronic and classical influence. Actually, put it as game music. :V

This board needs moar music threads. There's already an art thread, why doesn't it have a music thread? :smokedcheese:


Hurr.
My on-going musical project is proceeding slowly. I'm trying to incorporate new stuff, but it's hard working with an unfamiliar material.  :ohdear:

[DX7.EP]

There's already an art thread, why doesn't it have a music thread? :smokedcheese:

Made one.

And still failing at that, IMHO. XD

Still quite good considering it's just THFont and a small bit of Hyper Canvas!

[Ex-Nue]

I would like to make a remix of a Touhou track but I don't know what track woud match my style. Any advice?  Also, is it okay to post soundcloud links? 

[DX7.EP]

@Yami: I answered you in the music thread, as it belongs there.

[Anunsew]

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/8508770/rearrange.mp3

Finally, a semi-final Draft

It's a remix of Serene, Yet Painful Slumber ~ Haunting Dreams, but I'm not really accustomed to working on remixing OC themes. It's a bit unfamiliar to work with, so I messed up some parts.

The ending is inspired from a very old trope. I swear, drinking coffee is not always productive to me.

[Cabble]

You really should remake some of your older stuff. You might have sent me the MIDI, but i wont be able to do much with it.

[Anunsew]

You really should remake some of your older stuff. You might have sent me the MIDI, but i wont be able to do much with it.

...er...you are Cablecarento from YT, right? The midi is pretty much the body of Mei's theme. I only added a soundfont to it, since I didn't know much about VSTs back then. I might consider rearranging my old stuff, but my main priority right now is to clean up my request backlog. I'm picking up some new techniques with every request that I do, so I'm viewing them as a training ground before I go around tackling my own arranges.
*Paradise Lost starts playing in the background*
That way, when I'm finally ready, I'll rearrange my Rin and Mei themes with my utmost effort AND MAKE THEIR OWN DANMAKU GAME, BWAHAHAHA.
I still have to go past Danmakufu scripting though. >.<

Speaking of requests, my final version for MarlyFlowerXI's request.

永遠寝ろ ~ Sweet Dreams
Requested and Originally Composed By: MarlyFlowerXI
Original Track: Serene, Yet Painful Slumber ~ Haunting Dreams

Rearrange: Precision
Circle: Infel

It sounds a lot cleaner than my last OC theme, because I picked up a certain technique commonly known as Normalizing.

Seriously though, by dropping Maximus and other Compressors, I had to make do by adjusting volume envelopes with precision *no pun intended*. The easiest way to do this was to invoke multiple instances of the same patch but with differing volume levels for each part of the theme. I also had to finely adjust the note velocities, especially with kicks and hats. I still had to use FL's WaveShaper (a volume envelope shaper)  to designate a brickwall limiter at around -1db to avoid clipping at the Master track.

On the other hand, the fine adjustments gave me the frequency dynamics that I was trying to achieve. It may be just me, but there is an audible absence of the frequency distortion present in my earlier tracks, and this theme uses over thirty channels. I'm still lacking improvisation, especially the notable ZUN piano riffs, so I decided to pick up some tips from jazz compositions. I'm still a beginner at jazz though, so it's still a long way before I do any insane piano rolls. XD

This theme is my first attempt in remixing another OC composition. It's an unfamiliar territory, but I think I learned a lot about composition in this project. XD

[Anunsew]

( 東方 OC Request) 永遠寝ろ ~ Sweet Dreams
Yumeji's Theme

Request / Character Design / Original Composition: MarlyFlowerXI
Original Track: Serene, Yet Painful Slumber ~ Haunting Dreams

Youtube upload, posting the link and description here for posterity. XD

...I'll have to update my first post RSN... >.<

[Anunsew]

Youtube:
(西方 Arrange) 幻想科学～Doll's Phantom
Mp3:


I went with a string arrange, kind of like a pseudo-orchestra. However, this fails horribly when you listen to the analog drumkit...My sense of instrument combination is failing me. :|

Gah, go away demotivation...>.<

[DX7.EP]

I'd contemplate changing to orchestral drumset and adjusting the pattern. Or using a bit more synth over orchestra for the backing areas.

AND GODDAMNIT MSGS PIANO KILL THAT ABOMINATION ~

[Anunsew]

I'd contemplate changing to orchestral drumset and adjusting the pattern. Or using a bit more synth over orchestra for the backing areas.

I have a limited knowledge of using the orchestral drumset properly, but I guess I have some time to study it...
...anything to kill this unbearable demotivation + boredom.

AND GODDAMNIT MSGS PIANO KILL THAT ABOMINATION ~

: (

I'm still trying to find a good piano synth though. While I have HC, I still like MSGS piano better. The artificial sounding piano is moe~

[DX7.EP]

: (

I'm still trying to find a good piano synth though. While I have HC, I still like MSGS piano better. The artificial sounding piano is moe~

Well, that's what electric grands (no they're not the same as electric pianos) are for. And MSGS, SC-55, and MT-32/CM-series don't have a very convincing acoustic grand.

[Anunsew]

Well, that's what electric grands (no they're not the same as electric pianos) are for. And MSGS, SC-55, and MT-32/CM-series don't have a very convincing acoustic grand.

...if it makes you feel better, I'm not treating them as acoustic instruments.  :derp:

EDIT:
I've read somewhere *probably from Master Bigode, but I couldn't be sure* that Super Quartet from Roland has good piano sounds. Any details about the synth would be nice, since I'm getting confused from the different versions that I've seen from Googling...

[DX7.EP]

...if it makes you feel better, I'm not treating them as acoustic instruments.  :derp:

I'd still prefer the SC-55 piano for that purpose, and add a few effects :V

EDIT:
I've read somewhere *probably from Master Bigode, but I couldn't be sure* that Super Quartet from Roland has good piano sounds. Any details about the synth would be nice, since I'm getting confused from the different versions that I've seen from Googling...

Super Quartet is a piano/bass/guitar/drum VSTi. There are a handful of SD-90 samples in it, namely the Jazz and Rock basses, and overall I think it sounds good and has quite a bit of customization.

[Anunsew]

Super Quartet is a piano/bass/guitar/drum VSTi. There are a handful of SD-90 samples in it, namely the Jazz and Rock basses, and overall I think it sounds good and has quite a bit of customization.

*puts this one the checking list*

I'd still prefer the SC-55 piano for that purpose, and add a few effects :V

Ack, my hardware synth problem is becoming apparent again.

[DX7.EP]

Well, the SC-55 piano is also terrible but I feel it blends in with other instruments better than MSGS.

[Anunsew]

I've been reading around about the SQ, looks like I have to map the controllers for FL's Midi Out plugin before I can mess around with it.
Oh well, I guess it's worth a shot. :3

*guu*

[Anunsew]

Youtube!

Twelve Nautical Smiles
As Requested By: Naeten (from YT)

Exclamation points! Are! Fun!
*ahem*

Another OC request, this time I tried applying some new stuff. This track is still mostly thFont and thDrums though. I tried emulating a certain sound using Baritone Sax and Alto Sax, but I guessed it ended up sounding entirely different. Anyway, it was a good brass-ey sound, so I used it for the intro riff.

Dist. Muted Guitar! Decent for rhythm parts...not so good on anything else. I can't believe I've ignored this patch for one year. >.<

This track is mostly string and flute ensembles, my favorite instrument combination besides harpsichord and strings.

It's ironic that the date was leaning more on the eleven instead of twelve...but I guess nobody understands my puns. :/


I've been messing around with danmakufu.
Cooking is one of my talents, bwahaha~~

[DX7.EP]

You were trying to imitate the Reed Romance patch used in UFO and TD, it seems.
Reed Romance, an SD-90 patch, is a layered Alto and Tenor Sax, with extra reverb and the Enhancer MFX.

Crispy muted guitar.

Sounds like a good bit more compression was used.

[Anunsew]

You were trying to imitate the Reed Romance patch used in UFO and TD, it seems.
Reed Romance, an SD-90 patch, is a layered Alto and Tenor Sax, with extra reverb and the Enhancer MFX.

Yup. And as you can see, it was not even remotely successful. ;3

Enhancer MFX? It looks a little bit complicated from what I've read here.  :ohdear:
What is it exactly? I can't seem to understand it. Is it like a humanizer tool? :derp:

Crispy muted guitar.

Sounds like a good bit more compression was used.

I misread it as "creepy",  :getdown:

I forced a compression on it using FL's Blood Overdrive. It's kind of crude compared to other effects, but it gets the job done...for now. It will have to do until I get my hands on better samples, synths, and effect generators. I passed the resulting signal to an equalizer to filter noise and HF sounds.

Is crispy a compliment for a guitar sound?

[DX7.EP]

Yup. And as you can see, it was not even remotely successful. ;3

Enhancer MFX? It looks a little bit complicated from what I've read here.  :ohdear:
What is it exactly? I can't seem to understand it. Is it like a humanizer tool? :derp:

Enhancer is built into the SD-90 as the 6th MFX effect.

I think it's most similar to the Exciter effect in Logic, which is roughly explained here:

The Exciter plugin generates high frequency components that are not part of the original signal by employing a nonlinear distortion process that resembles overdrive and distortion effects.

The SD-90 manual does not say much about it other than adjustable parameters for the MFX.

I misread it as "creepy",  :getdown:

I forced a compression on it using FL's Blood Overdrive. It's kind of crude compared to other effects, but it gets the job done...for now. It will have to do until I get my hands on better samples, synths, and effect generators. I passed the resulting signal to an equalizer to filter noise and HF sounds.

Hehe, gotcha.

Is crispy a compliment for a guitar sound?

I am no guitarist, so I can't really say whether that is a good description. ^^;