I feel like I need to jump back in on this...

Once again, thanks to all of you for your generous comments.

And again, I want to point out that Noel's writing on this is some of his best I have heard! The melody really got stuck in my head when he sent it to me (and not because it sounded like The First Noel!) smile (I guess we could call this The First Noel Adams.)

Honestly, there are enough diversions to the melody line for there to be no conflict with the Public Domain song, The First Noel. And I think this one has a very compelling, haunting melody line to it.

I have never really thought of what I do as midi production. I always just thought of it as orchestration and arrangement, even though it was using midi. It just occurred to me after reading some of your comments that this is a lot of midi sounds! (I know that seems silly, but true.) Anyway, I am always striving to find a way to keep my arrangements sounding as "real" as possible, and maybe that's why I don't think in terms of midi, as much as in terms of orchestration/arrangements. I am flattered to read your kind comments.

Also, I think Noel did a superb job on the vocals. Don't let the fact that there are 14 plugins on his vocals lead you to think there were any problems with the vocals. All of the plugins are there (each one used sparingly) to bring out the true natural sound of his voice, which digital recording processes can tend to make slightly more sterile and harsh. I only look at the cumulative result, not how many plugins it takes to get there. There was nothing wrong with Noel's voice, or his recording that required a massive amount of plugins to fix. He did a fine job of singing, on pitch, etc. These plugins are designed to help an already good recording fit into the mix, not artificially make him sound better than he did.

This was a lot of fun to work on, because of the good quality of material I had to work with. And Noel, I am honored to work with you any time!

Thanks again to all!

Steve

Steve Young
Music
"In order to compose, all you need to do is remember a tune that nobody else has thought of." - Robert Schumann