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#758651 03/21/23 08:23 AM
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They Were Only

As a long time user of BIAB, I thought I'd post one of my original compositions and hopefully get some feedback and constructive criticism from y'all.

This song was written late 2022 with the Melodist. I decided to refine and rearrange the song this month. It's an instrumental with alto sax playing the melody and an Electric guitar soloist (see below) handling the intro and solo during the middle chorus. AABA 32bars/chorus, with 8 bar intro that is reprised between chorus one and two to reintroduce the guitar and setup the solo.

All tracks but the sax were generated by BIAB. The sax was played by yours truly.

Style is _DEPTHS.STY (The Depths Smooth Jazz). Tempo is 85bpm.
MelodyCustom Synth is Hi-Q 001 01 Piano, Acoustic, Grand Sforzando
RealTracks in style: ~1636:Bass, Electric, JazzFunkBreezy Ev16 075
RealTracks in style: 912:Piano, Electric, Rhythm SmoothPoppy Ev16 090
RealTracks in style: 1236:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm SmoothJazzPoppy Ev16 090
RealTracks in song: 3962:Guitar, Electric, Soloist FusionSlow16thsMike Ev16 080
RealDrums in Song:SmoothJazzPoppy^3-a:Sidestick, HiHat , b:Sidestick Ride

To this I added a Utility track with the Chord Chart and Synthmaster plug-in (preset 137).

Used the drag and drop station to put the tracks into Reaper for mixing and rendering, where the Acoustic Piano (doubling the melody in the last chorus) is actually a Korg M1 VST M1HousePiano instrument I like more than the Grand Sforzando. Reaper was used for volume automation and panning of the melody and solo tracks.

Real Tracks were moved to Reaper with their default pan and reverb settings.
The only added effects are EpicVerb plug-in on the Sax track, and some EQ to add some high end to the guitar solos.


Bruce Hook - Soprano, Alto and Tenor Saxes
BIAB 2023 UltraPak | Intel i7 | Mackie ProFX10v3 Audio Interface | 1TB SSD | Reaper DAW
| Akai EWI 5000 | M-Audio Oxygen Pro 49
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loved that sax vibe/sound.

some lovely sound colours in the backing also.

its not my genre...but I just want to say i enjoyed it.

love those 'drops' fx.

happiness

om


my songs....mixed for good earbuds...(fyi..my vocs on all songs..)
https://soundcloud.com/alfsongs
(90 songs created useing bb/rb)
(lots of tips of mine in pg tips forum.)
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Nice work on the alto sax! smile

When the guitar solo comes in, it's much lower than the sax. You might want to boost the volume a bit. I turned the volume up on my speakers, and then the sax came back in, and I had to turn the volume down again.

I like the M1 piano doubling the sax, but since it sounds a lot like a vibraphone, I wonder if you'd considered that instead. The M1 has some really nice vibes.

Nothing else I could suggest - the mix sounds great on my speakers, with the sax front and center and the rest of the instruments supporting and staying out of the way, but still sounding interesting in the process.

And before I forget - nice composition, too!


-- David Cuny

My virtual singer development blog
Vocal control, you say. Never heard of it. Is that some kind of ProTools thing?

BiaB 2025 | Windows 11 | Reaper | Way too many VSTis.
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You are really good on that sax!
I agree with David that the guitar leads should be the same volume as the sax leads.
Nice unison at the end. IMHO the M1 piano is a little harsh. Maybe a jazz guitar, softer EP, or as David said vibes might be a better match. But that is just my opinion.
Excellent song and mix.
I really liked this one.


I think my wife has started to show the first signs of dementia.
She said she can't remember what she ever saw in me!

64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
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Like om, it's totally not my genre, but I could listen to your sax for hours.
Very good production.
Well done!

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Really fun composition. Synthmaster added whole new layer to this. Excellent sax work!
The only constructive thing... and it is only a personal opinion, sax is a bit loud for my taste, compared to all other parts. I understand, it is leading, but still I would pull it couple db down. Enjoyed it and thank you for sharing.

Misha.

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Thank you all for the listen and the fabulous feedback. Every bit of it is appreciated!


Bruce Hook - Soprano, Alto and Tenor Saxes
BIAB 2023 UltraPak | Intel i7 | Mackie ProFX10v3 Audio Interface | 1TB SSD | Reaper DAW
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Hey there Rocket, I can't write stuff like this, but sure enjoyed listening to yours. Very relaxing and enjoyable. Keep 'em coming.

Brad

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