KVR Audio

K-Bee · Post by **K-Bee** » Tue Dec 06, 2016 5:26 pm

I bought a bunch of sample libraries and I have to use 'em, I guess.
Cinematic stuff here. and a departure for me. Taking a short break from the 80s disco-funk

Does this sound like a joke?

- I have no idea how to mix stuff like this

https://soundcloud.com/kbeesmusic/cinematic-suite

davidstiles · Post by **davidstiles** » Wed Dec 07, 2016 8:32 am

No, it doesn't sound like a joke.

It does take a while to get going, but by the time you get toward the end, I'd say that it achieves a pretty cool, intense cinematic sort of vibe. I do wonder how it might sound if you went for a little bit more melodic development - perhaps with a violin part playing a separate line on top of the strings that you already have.

K-Bee · Post by **K-Bee** » Wed Dec 07, 2016 10:12 am

Thanks

No doubt there could be a bit more movement in terms of melody and it's something I'll look into. It's just that these single classic instruments sounds pretty crappy for the most part, at least to me, but I'll experiment a bit more. Maybe do a part with some staccato strings?
It's my first try and I'm still fumbling a bit in this style, but it's way fun to do

Just bought the Impact Soundworks orchestral bundle which is perfect for this kind of thing.

Laguna Rising · Post by **Laguna Rising** » Fri Dec 09, 2016 2:48 pm

Does this sound like a joke?

No, it sounds good on my speakers.
I like the way the strings move/modulate from one chord to the other.
Good work with percussion, they give a good boost on the cinematic side.
A simple melody in the 2nd part will help giving sense to the buildup, imho
Well done

Cheers

layzer · Post by **layzer** » Sun Dec 11, 2016 1:10 am

yes, melodic developement...as it is, it was like the jeopardy gameshow theme that never
got over the hump. I did like the production on this, especially the strings.

K-Bee · Post by **K-Bee** » Sun Dec 11, 2016 1:04 pm

layzer wrote:yes, melodic developement...as it is, it was like the jeopardy gameshow theme that never
got over the hump. I did like the production on this, especially the strings.

LMAO @ Jeopardy

Na yes, melodic movement is key. I still got my work cut out for me (This is my first ever try at the style)
Thanks

jancivil · Post by **jancivil** » Tue Dec 13, 2016 7:14 am

K-Bee wrote:It's just that these single classic instruments sounds pretty crappy for the most part,

It's down to you... if you have a flute going (unless it really is a crap sample lib.), what has to happen for it to shine is you think musically like a really happening first flute in the orchestra. You don't, so it's just sitting there sounding crap. It could take some... well, decades. This is what being a consumer of these products is fraught with, I can well imagine the expectation from the shiny marketing and then it's all so flat.

K-Bee · Post by **K-Bee** » Tue Dec 13, 2016 12:11 pm

Agree. You have to work with what's available and make it shine on it's own. If it doesn't work there will always be another way around and that is not necessarily an instrument replacement. It all requires creative flow as well as hard work.

funky lime · Post by **funky lime** » Tue Dec 13, 2016 6:43 pm

I'd say, play around with expression more on those long articulations. I don't know how Impact Soundworks does it, but a some of libraries have dynamics switching mapped to mod wheel, and overall volume mapped to expression (cc 11). Real players rarely maintain the exact same volume throughout the note, mostly because doing so is almost inhuman. Having static volume on long notes makes them sound more mechanical and sample-like. You can add automation after the fact, but I think recording that automation live is crucial to add that human element to the instrumentation. I do this by mapping my expression pedal to cc1, that way I have both my hands free and can still get organic-sounding swells and whatnot while recording the part.

Also, I'll echo some of the sentiment above and say that this seems to be missing melodic stuff to keep it moving.

The percussion is nice, and really helps deliver the message. I could go for a little more high-end sizzle on the "glitchy" bits, but that's really just a matter of personal preference, mix-wise.

As a first foray into this particular style, I think it's a good start. Learning these orchestral types of sample libraries is like learning a whole new instrument, really. Keep it up!

K-Bee · Post by **K-Bee** » Wed Dec 14, 2016 12:00 pm

Very good advice with the articulation parts funky lime! I need to figure out how to manipulate the patches in the Impact Soundworks libraries. It's about one week since I bought them and haven't had much time to play around with them.

davidstiles · Post by **davidstiles** » Thu Dec 15, 2016 5:16 am

K-Bee wrote:Thanks
No doubt there could be a bit more movement in terms of melody and it's something I'll look into. It's just that these single classic instruments sounds pretty crappy for the most part, at least to me, but I'll experiment a bit more. Maybe do a part with some staccato strings?
It's my first try and I'm still fumbling a bit in this style, but it's way fun to do Just bought the Impact Soundworks orchestral bundle which is perfect for this kind of thing.

Hey, it's definitely a great first track in this style. That Impact Soundworks deal (which was an insanely good one) will give you some neat tools to get started with orchestral stuff. Sure, definitely give the staccato strings a try and see if you like the results! I feel like I spend more time just playing around with orchestral libraries than I actually spend writing anything.

Synapse2k · Post by **Synapse2k** » Thu Dec 15, 2016 6:56 am

Want hash browns or potatoes with that, hon?

K-Bee · Post by **K-Bee** » Thu Dec 15, 2016 10:49 am

davidstiles wrote:
K-Bee wrote:Thanks
No doubt there could be a bit more movement in terms of melody and it's something I'll look into. It's just that these single classic instruments sounds pretty crappy for the most part, at least to me, but I'll experiment a bit more. Maybe do a part with some staccato strings?
It's my first try and I'm still fumbling a bit in this style, but it's way fun to do Just bought the Impact Soundworks orchestral bundle which is perfect for this kind of thing.
Hey, it's definitely a great first track in this style. That Impact Soundworks deal (which was an insanely good one) will give you some neat tools to get started with orchestral stuff. Sure, definitely give the staccato strings a try and see if you like the results! I feel like I spend more time just playing around with orchestral libraries than I actually spend writing anything.

Thanks

I wasn't actually going to venture into this style at all (I'm an 80s/90s funky cheese man

) but I had to jump on the Impact Soundworks deal. Just to inexpensive to pass. Apart from me lacking a lot of spare time, I'm having tremendous fun with those libraries, and plan to incorporate them into my "normal" style of music if possible.

Music from an imaginary Hollywood blockbuster