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Posted By: LanceJ Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/24/14 10:29 AM
SonusProject


Good morning.
My daughter asked me to write a song for her wedding to be used for the father/daughter dance and this is it. This is my first attempt at creating a song with BiaB. This is also my first song with lyrics and vocals. I am not a singer and primarily write solo piano pieces.

Here is the Setup:
C_SHANIA.STY Shania - Contemporary Country Ballad, set tempo to 100 bpm
RealDrums=NashvillEven16^2-SideStck,HHat
RealDrums=BluesRockFunky16ths^1-HHSnr,HHSB
663:Guitar, Acoustic, Rhythm SouthernRock Ev 085
664:Guitar, Acoustic, Rhythm SouthernRock Ev 085 (A:fpick)
665:Guitar, Acoustic, Rhythm SouthernRock Ev 085 (B:strum)
1827: Bass, Electric, PopModernGrooveA-B Ev16 075
1826: Bass, Electric, PopModernGrooveSync4s Ev16 075 (Left Hand Piano)
Instrument: 6 Electric Piano 2

I use Cakewalk Sonar as my DAW. So, I wrote the solo piano piece first. Took the chords (verse, chorus, bridge) and put them in BiaB separately and saved into different files. I even took these files and created several version so I could get the correct builds in energy and fills that I wanted for specific areas of the song.
As I created these sections, I used the drag and drop feature to put everything into Sonar. I also regenerated the sections multiple times to get different feels. In Sonar I then did a bunch of cut and paste, grabbing just the sections I wanted and spliced them together.
I split the piano from BiaB into Right hand and Left hand. For the left hand I put the 1826 Bass into the Guitar section of BiaB. It created a great syncopation against the Piano that BiaB created. I then combined these with my solo piano playing.
I have posted two versions on my website. The complete song with vocals and the complete song as just an instrumental to really show what I was able to create with BiaB and Sonar along with my solo piano piece.

Best Regards,
Lance
Posted By: Guitarhacker Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/24/14 11:42 AM
Nice work. It's a special thing to write a song for a special occasion such as this. Good job....

I wrote a song for my daughter's wedding too but she refused to let me play it after hearing it. She was in tears, as was I during the writing.... so packed with emotion. She didn't want to break down like she knew she would, on her wedding day.....so we kept the song between ourselves.....

In case you are wondering what the song was.... "Fly" on my website....

again, nice work on the song.
Posted By: Charlie Fogle Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/24/14 12:04 PM
Wow Lance. Very nice piece. So nicely written and relevant lyrics and great melody. You did a super job on the mix, arrangement and performance. Excellent first attempt with BIAB. This is a great inspiration to others to get busy with BIAB.

Congratulations on your daughter's wedding.

Charlie
Posted By: JoanneCooper Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/24/14 12:08 PM
Hi Lance
Very nice first song with BIAB. You need to sing more if that is what you can do with your voice. It is quite wonderful. Especially the lower range.
Good job!
Posted By: boehm Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/24/14 12:23 PM
Hi Lance,

nicely written and great melody. Nice arrangement and mix. Great first attempt with BIAB.
A transposition one or two notes up would do your vocals good.
Enjoyable listen. Kind regards to your daughter. She'll be proud.
Merry Christmas.

Guenter
Posted By: LanceJ Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/24/14 01:21 PM
Thank you everyone for the kinds words.

It is fun to see others writing songs for their child's wedding also.

Being a solo piano piece writer I never considered vocal range. All the music was complete and mixed before I started working on lyrics.

I agree that the vocal line needs to be moved up the scale. On top of the low vocal key signature I had taken Tylenol cold medicine for the previous 7 days. My vocal chords felt tight and I was short on breath. I was also nervous to sing.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.

I also listened to Fly. Very well done.

Regards,
Lance
Posted By: Greg Johnson Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/24/14 01:35 PM
Really pretty song!! You daughter will love it. Your vocal sounds really great. Nice work all around! Take care, and Merry Xmas. Greg
Posted By: big741 Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/24/14 06:54 PM
Nice work, Lance!

Thanks for the music,
Dan
Posted By: RnAM Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/26/14 07:10 PM
Hi Lance,

This is a very nice contribution.
We like the singing line and the arrangement.
We agree with Joanne, that your voice could become really good if you sing a lot more.
We are sure your daughter will love this.

Rob and Anne-Marie
Posted By: Janice & Bud Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/26/14 07:55 PM
Nice tune that was cool to do for
your daughter. Kudos!

J&B
Posted By: Scott C Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/27/14 10:36 AM
Beautiful song. I believe this song will make your daughters special day even more memorable. Well done..
Posted By: LanceJ Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/27/14 11:04 AM
Thank you everyone.

Tonight is the big night.

A bit nervous and excited for both the wedding and the public hearing of the song.

Have a great New Years.

Respectfully,
Lanc
Posted By: floyd jane Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/27/14 11:08 AM
Lance,

Welcome to the Showcase! What a terrific first post!

A nicely written song. Excellent mix and instrumentation. Your piano work is nice - is the sound direct from a keyboard? - it fits in the mix perfectly. This ain't your first rodeo...

The vocal is quite nice - very "comfortable" sounding...

Enjoyable. Looking forward to more...

floyd
Posted By: tommyad Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/27/14 11:21 AM
Originally Posted By: floyd jane
Lance,

Welcome to the Showcase! What a terrific first post!

A nicely written song. Excellent mix and instrumentation. Your piano work is nice - is the sound direct from a keyboard? - it fits in the mix perfectly. This ain't your first rodeo...

The vocal is quite nice - very "comfortable" sounding...

Enjoyable. Looking forward to more...

floyd


A big +1. Congratulations and enjoy your day. Tom
Posted By: gibson Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/28/14 06:20 AM
Lance,

Beautiful.

You have a good voice and I look forward to hearing you without a cold!!


How did it go?! I bet you got a standing ovation and many tears from your lucky daughter.
She must be proud to have a Dad like you on her special day.

Alyn
Posted By: Noel96 Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/28/14 09:09 AM
Hi Lance,

Congratulations to everyone!

I bet there were many proud and smiling people who listened to every single word of this song. It's beautiful; a wonderful gift.

Everything sounded exactly right on my speakers.

Best wishes for 2015,
Noel
Posted By: Pat Marr Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 12/28/14 11:01 AM
Well, by now this song has premiered before a live audience, and I'd guess it went over quite well! I hope there were no disruptively strong emotional responses to your song. Please report back to the forum how it was received at the wedding.

What I heard of the lyrics sounded like good marital advice.. but I would like to have been able to read the lyrics as I listened. My attention tends to focus on the music and I often miss the words unless I can read them.

Your piano playing is awesome! And the way you combined your playing with the BIAB musicians worked out quite well!

This is an excellent first song! Welcome to the forum, and I look forward to hearing more from you in the future!
Posted By: SpaceDog Re: Song for my Daughters wedding - 01/02/15 11:50 AM
Lance,
This is a great song and production. Well done. Best wishes to your daughter as she embarks on her life's journey.
SD
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