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#862141 09/10/25 07:53 AM
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Hi everyone!

It very busy at the forum! And all with great songs. A challenge to hear them all, if you also want to make a song yourself...
But I have done so. It's called: My Secrets; https://on.soundcloud.com/zXtsLutiBwhaVG4Uzy

The song is meant to be lighthearted, but it's about a subject we're all undoubtedly familiar with: secrets you can't, or hardly, share with others.
It suddenly occurred to me that I have quite a few of those, even from the past. Luckily, I can write songs about them.
I used a resonator for the solo. It's an instrument I rarely use, but it fit nicely here.

I hope you like the song (the secrets usually don't...).
The lyrics are on SoundCloud.
================================================
Technical stuff:
Style is _WHERE.STY (Where Soft Erhu Pop Ballad)
The key = E
RealTracks in song: 1174:Bass, Electric, PopCalypso Ev 100
RealTracks in song: 2461:Piano, Acoustic, Rhythm NewAgeAlbertiPretty Ev 100
RealTracks in song: ~508:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm Dire Ev 085
RealTracks in song: 3162:Guitar, Baritone Electric, Rhythm BluesyPopHeldEmbelBrent Ev 100
RealTracks in song: 4818:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm SteadyPushMuted ev 110
RealTracks in song: 3081:Guitar, Resonator, Background AmericanaBluesyPopEddy Ev 100

Beside these instruments I added loops and sound samples from Logic Pro and Native Instruments in it as well, to fill up the spaces.


Hans Berkhout
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https://soundcloud.com/user-296497130
Birchwood #862145 09/10/25 10:57 AM
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Hans, cool concept wrapped into a fun song. That's a wildly eclectic band but all the pieces fit perfectly. LOVE your vocals and overall vocal arrangement. Glad you found time for this one! But I think your secret is out now...

HA!


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Birchwood #862146 09/10/25 11:47 AM
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Hans,

Great topic and great song. Your vocal is excellent - one of your best. Love the production as well.

Bob

Birchwood #862149 09/10/25 12:23 PM
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Originally Posted by Birchwood
secrets you can't, or hardly, share with others. It suddenly occurred to me that I have quite a few of those
Hans, here you can talk openly about your secrets, we won't tell anyone!
You'll feel better afterwards.
smile

You chose a very interesting and unusual topic and turned it into a good song.
Well sung and a really good backing band [Linked Image - Only viewable when logged in]

Birchwood #862162 09/10/25 02:55 PM
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Hi, Hans.

Sounds good. The solo was appropriate for the topic. laugh

Thanks for clarifying it was meant to be lighthearted... Otherwise I'd start to worry! wink


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Vocal control, you say. Never heard of it. Is that some kind of ProTools thing?

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Birchwood #862177 09/10/25 05:34 PM
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Hans, right away this made me think of a Bob Dylan song, "It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding) The line that reminded me of your song was "If my thought dreams could be seen, they'd probably put me in a guillotine." Your song very much had your signature style to it and I enjoyed it a lot. Good job!


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Birchwood #862201 09/11/25 07:18 AM
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Ah, come on, Hans. You're among friends here. You can tell us. Well, at least I can tell you that this is an excellent song. Well written and mixed. I use the resonator often, and you gave it a new stage with this one. There is something from 2:29 to 2:48 ( or thereabots) that rubs my ears the wrong way. I suspect the loops, but it's probably my ears. Such a good write and I really like the vocals.


Enjoy whatever happens!
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Birchwood #862212 09/11/25 02:04 PM
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Hi Hans! This is a good song about secrets while keeping them … secret. I love the style you’ve used for the song - it keeps the beat going and emphasises the lighthearted treatment of the topic. I’m not usually a fan of a resonator, but in your hands, it worked well to create a quirky, fun solo. Like Marty said, the back end of the solo became confusing for me, and on my headphones, I lost the beat.
Overall, a good melodic and fun song that was a pleasure to listen to. Well done.
Andrew

Birchwood #862227 09/11/25 04:51 PM
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Hi Hans, I would really like to write a review for this great song but I can't, its a secret wink
Seriously this is a very clever song. Your voice is spot on and the lyrics are top shelf. A super resonator lead also. Super mix
I really liked it.


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Birchwood #862234 09/11/25 06:27 PM
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Love the rhythm section and production of this lyrically atypical song, but writing as a qualified counsellor I'm torn between offering you my services and making bad jokes! laugh Actually one of them's a good joke, but suffice to say that enjoyed the music!


Some favourite Waoist Adages:
#1: Play on the Way.
#13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you.
#58: Bring consciousness to it.
#63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made.
#92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Birchwood #862272 09/12/25 02:47 AM
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Hi, Hans,

I know what you mean about it being difficult to hear all the new songs on the forum 'cause then you have no time to work on your own songs.

My solution is simple, I only support the people that support me.

This is terrific! You had me right from the intro with the bass and piano, very creative.

To my ears the BGV panned left is a little sloppy, not very tight with the main vocal. Which is great by the way, always been a fan of your voice. But that's a minor quibble.

Enjoyed!

Birchwood #862298 09/12/25 06:39 AM
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Loved it, Hans!

Love the wind chime effect of the erhu. I like it and the Japanese version of it (Koto). There's a lot of variety in the background tracks, but they all work very nicely together.

And yeah, lots of new stuff on the forum lately. I get here when I can and listen to as much as i can, plus answer reviews on my songs. I'm quite a bit behind, but I'll catch up before the year is over!

I'm still dealing with legal issues (not ugly - just complicated) that have taken much of my time. I've driven from Alabama to Denver and back twice - and once to St. Louis and back. But things are falling into place.

Again, I really enjoyed your song!

Alan


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Birchwood #862355 09/13/25 03:10 AM
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Really interesting band, Hans. I enjoyed hearing such a unique, layered sound. Something Bowie-esque about the whole thing.

Birchwood #862434 09/14/25 10:12 AM
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A song full of guaranteed Hans quality. Very cool arrangement with lots of variation, a mix of different styles works very well, from the beautiful intro with "heartbeat" and a classical piano to the pop-rock guitars and intriguing samples. The resonator adds to the excitement. Must have taken quite a lot of time to put all these instruments together seamlessly.

Nice lyrics, glad that you didn't share your secrets in more detail, because I don't want my mind to be blown away wink Enjoyable vocal delivery once again.

Janne


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Birchwood #862448 09/14/25 11:45 AM
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That RT genre mashup seemed a good analogy to all of us different folks having secrets 😉

As always your vocals, the write, the band and the mix are excellent/
The resonator works very nicely … nice little accents.

Keep those secrets to yourself if you like …
but we’re glad you didn’t keep the song to yourself.

Well done and we enjoyed it!

J&B


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Birchwood #862474 09/15/25 03:26 AM
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Hi Hans,
Great song!
Very good songwriting, as always.
The intro turned out really cool.
Great vocals.
The mix sounds excellent.
2:47 is absolutely brilliant!!!
Great work, Hans!
Andi ;-)

Birchwood #862831 09/18/25 01:03 PM
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Hi Ron, Bob, Brain and David,

My secrets were rather intriguing, weren't they? And you're all wondering what they are, but also whether you really want to know them.
The question remains. But I do want to thank you for your compliments on the song. It was lovely to read. I hesitated for quite a while about submitting such a song. Well, you completely dispelled those feelings. And maybe I will use that resonator once more ;-)

Hans


Hans Berkhout
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https://soundcloud.com/user-296497130
MarioD #863039 09/20/25 01:03 PM
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Hi Rob, Marty, Andrew and Mario,
Thanks that you were all so kind on the song. Of course it is because you all want to know these secrets, but I'm sorry. Can't do that, they blow your mind and I don't want this to happen to you, because I don't wish this on you, because you are all too dear to me for that.

Originally Posted by TuneMonger
Hans, right away this made me think of a Bob Dylan song, "It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding) The line that reminded me of your song was "If my thought dreams could be seen, they'd probably put me in a guillotine." Your song very much had your signature style to it and I enjoyed it a lot. Good job!

Hi Rob, I have my doubts on the song if this line you quoted, was the one that made you think of Bob Dylan, a guillotine...
But I do like that you enjoyed the song!

Originally Posted by BabuMusic
Ah, come on, Hans. You're among friends here. You can tell us. Well, at least I can tell you that this is an excellent song. Well written and mixed. I use the resonator often, and you gave it a new stage with this one. There is something from 2:29 to 2:48 ( or thereabots) that rubs my ears the wrong way. I suspect the loops, but it's probably my ears. Such a good write and I really like the vocals.

Well Marty, you're always fishing for secrets ;-) As for what was bothering your ears, I think you were right. I let that resonator play a bit longer than I intended, but forgot to stop it. I fixed that. So, it weren't your ears this time.

Originally Posted by Andrew Dee
Hi Hans! This is a good song about secrets while keeping them … secret. I love the style you’ve used for the song - it keeps the beat going and emphasises the lighthearted treatment of the topic. I’m not usually a fan of a resonator, but in your hands, it worked well to create a quirky, fun solo. Like Marty said, the back end of the solo became confusing for me, and on my headphones, I lost the beat.
Overall, a good melodic and fun song that was a pleasure to listen to. Well done.
Andrew

Hi Andrew, I'm also not a fan of a resonator, but like the citar I have to use it at least one time. And as I said to Marty I solved your confusion. At least, I think I did.

Originally Posted by MarioD
Hi Hans, I would really like to write a review for this great song but I can't, its a secret wink
Seriously this is a very clever song. Your voice is spot on and the lyrics are top shelf. A super resonator lead also. Super mix
I really liked it.

Hi Mario, you weren't confused about the resonator. I'm glad about that. I fixed it anyway, for the others here. I'm glad you enjoyed this song and weren't curious about what secrets might be lurking in my head. Thanks for that!

Have a nice weekend!
Hans


Hans Berkhout
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BYOBand #863073 09/21/25 08:22 AM
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Hi Chay, Dave, Al and Beth,

Thanks for your nice comments on my secrets. With your words I came close sharing them with you...

Originally Posted by WaoBand
Love the rhythm section and production of this lyrically atypical song, but writing as a qualified counsellor I'm torn between offering you my services and making bad jokes! laugh Actually one of them's a good joke, but suffice to say that enjoyed the music!

Chay, I wondered what your bad joke would have been ;-) But I can only guess now... Nevertheless, your comment is very nice!

Originally Posted by BlueAttitude
Hi, Hans,
I know what you mean about it being difficult to hear all the new songs on the forum 'cause then you have no time to work on your own songs.
My solution is simple, I only support the people that support me.
This is terrific! You had me right from the intro with the bass and piano, very creative.
To my ears the BGV panned left is a little sloppy, not very tight with the main vocal. Which is great by the way, always been a fan of your voice. But that's a minor quibble.
Enjoyed!

Hi Dave, your solution is a bit drastic for me. I can also learn from people that don't support me, but I liked those who do!!!
I'm very glad you liked the song from the start.About the BGV: I did it on purpose to let them "escape" from the main vocal. I could have used Vocalign (I have that plugin), but I liked it the way it was. Maybe that happened after hearing the song so many times. Then you start to like or hate everything you hear. That's the danger. I think you know that.

Originally Posted by Al-David
Loved it, Hans!
Love the wind chime effect of the erhu. I like it and the Japanese version of it (Koto). There's a lot of variety in the background tracks, but they all work very nicely together.
And yeah, lots of new stuff on the forum lately. I get here when I can and listen to as much as i can, plus answer reviews on my songs. I'm quite a bit behind, but I'll catch up before the year is over!
I'm still dealing with legal issues (not ugly - just complicated) that have taken much of my time. I've driven from Alabama to Denver and back twice - and once to St. Louis and back. But things are falling into place.

Again, I really enjoyed your song!
Alan

Hi Al, yes, I added a lot to the song to make the rhythm more interesting.
And I'm sure we all want to hear the new songs, because there are so many interesting ones. But time... You've summed it up perfectly. Including the reasons why it's becoming increasingly difficult to listen to them.
By the way, you've travelled a lot of miles!

Originally Posted by BYOBand
Really interesting band, Hans. I enjoyed hearing such a unique, layered sound. Something Bowie-esque about the whole thing.

Hi Beth, well, you made my day! I told it to my wife you heard something from Bowie in my song. I was used to be compared with some musicians, like al Steward and 'John L' by Janice and Bud, but Bowie...? I try to stay modest...

Thanks again and have a nice day!
Hans


Hans Berkhout
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https://soundcloud.com/user-296497130
PROJECT M #863267 09/23/25 04:47 AM
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Hi Jane, Janice, Bud and Andi,

Thanks a lot for your lovely comments!
Like I said, the song is meant to be a bit lighthearted; of course, I don't have any secrets. Otherwise, I would have told you them ;-)

Originally Posted by jannesan
A song full of guaranteed Hans quality. Very cool arrangement with lots of variation, a mix of different styles works very well, from the beautiful intro with "heartbeat" and a classical piano to the pop-rock guitars and intriguing samples. The resonator adds to the excitement. Must have taken quite a lot of time to put all these instruments together seamlessly.
Nice lyrics, glad that you didn't share your secrets in more detail, because I don't want my mind to be blown away wink Enjoyable vocal delivery once again.

Janne

Hi Janne, yes, I used some Logic Pro samples to make the song sound more exciting in some parts. That didn't take me too long, but all I had to do was convince myself I liked them all...
The resonator was a challenge. I'd never used it before. I've only used a steel guitar once (his nephew?). I don't always like the sound of it, but here it was a perfect fit!

Originally Posted by Janice & Bud
That RT genre mashup seemed a good analogy to all of us different folks having secrets 😉
As always your vocals, the write, the band and the mix are excellent/
The resonator works very nicely … nice little accents.
Keep those secrets to yourself if you like …
but we’re glad you didn’t keep the song to yourself.

Well done and we enjoyed it!
J&B

Hi J&B: I have to admit, I don't know what a RT genre is. I think it has something to do with the story (which wasn't that hard to guess...).
We all have secrets, but I also thought I was usually pretty open about them. Until I started thinking more deeply..., and then there was the song!
Thanks for your comments.

Originally Posted by PROJECT M
Hi Hans,
Great song!
Very good songwriting, as always.
The intro turned out really cool.
Great vocals.
The mix sounds excellent.
2:47 is absolutely brilliant!!!
Great work, Hans!
Andi ;-)

Hi Andi, thank you, I'm very flattered!

Hans


Hans Berkhout
(Birchwood)
https://soundcloud.com/user-296497130
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  • FLAC Files (lossless audio files) for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums
  • MIDI Styles Set 93: Look Ma! More MIDI 16: SynthMaster
  • MIDI SuperTracks Set 47: More SynthMaster
  • Instrumental Studies 25 - Soul Jazz Guitar Soloing
  • Artist Performance Set 20: Songs with Vocals 10
  • RealDrums Stems Set 10: Groovin' Sticks
  • SynthMaster Sounds & Styles Set 2 (sounds & styles with audio demos)

Learn more about the Bonus PAK and 49-PAK for Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®!

XPro & Xtra Styles PAK Sets On Sale Now - Until May 15, 2026!

All of our XPro Styles PAKs and Xtra Styles PAKs are on sale until May 15th, 2026!

It's the perfect time to expand your Band-in-a-Box® style library with XPro and Xtra Styles PAKs. These additional styles for Band-in-a-Box® offer a wide range of genres designed to fit seamlessly into your projects. Each style is professionally arranged and mixed, helping enhance your songs while saving you time.

What are XPro Styles and Xtra Styles PAKs?

XPro Styles PAKs are styles that work with any version (Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition) of Band-in-a-Box® 2025 (or higher). XPro Styles PAKS 1-10 includes 1,000 styles!

Xtra Styles PAKs are styles that work with the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box® 2025 (or higher). Xtra Styles PAKs 1-21 includes 3,700 styles (and 35 MIDI styles)!

The XPro & Xtra Styles PAKs are not included in any Band-in-a-Box® package.

The XPro Styles PAKs 1-10 are available for only $29 ea (reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Listen to demos and order now! For Mac or for Windows.

The Xtra Styles PAKs 1-21 are available for only $29 ea (reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the Xtra Styles PAK Bundle for only $199 (reg. $349)! Listen to demos and order now! For Mac or for Windows.

Note: XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2025 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.

The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 19 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version as they require the RealTracks included in the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.

Supercharge your Band-in-a-Box today with XPro Styles PAKs and Xtra Styles PAK Sets!

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