Interesting that you would use the term fugue - have you studied Baroque style music? Contrapuntal composition proves to be very difficult to pull off in my experience, I do notice that a lot of times you stray outside traditional counterpoint style. Very interesting composition overall.
Author Comments
In February 2016, I wrote a short fugue based on a 13-note melody (you can hear it at the beginning). For a while, it sat like that on my computer, lazily written in FL Studio's piano roll using a stock keyboard sample. This summer, I replaced that sample with a variety of ambient/trance synths from Nexus and added some chords and effects to make it flow better. The result is that it's basically a super-slow trance piece without drums that doesn't have much distinct structure. The tempo sporadically oscillates between 94 and 104 BPM. The first 2/3 or so is filled with manic dissonance, while the last 1/3 is more tranquil and graceful. It's definitely the sort of piece that people either love or hate, and probably hate if you aren't wearing headphones. :) Total work time: 13 hours in FL Studio 11. Hope you enjoy!
Named after Peaks Island, Maine.
TaintedLogic responds:
Thanks, and indeed I have studied Baroque music! I've played the cello for 10 years, and I'm currently enrolled in my college's classical choir. I love fugues, but as you pointed out, writing them with any intricacy is extremely challenging. Thanks for the review! :)
Yeah, it's super boring/repetitive. I feel like I'm listening to a DJVI song, tbh. It doesn't really sound like it's going anywhere, just kind of the same repetitive notes with different instruments here and and there for three minuets. It's not all bad, tho. Just a little repetitive.
TaintedLogic responds:
Thanks for the review! I find your comparing this to a DJVI song very interesting. It probably means I need to do more to increase the complexity of my fugues, or at the very least emphasize the dynamic contrast and loose tempo parameters I tried to incorporate more. Either way, I appreciate you stopping by! ;)
I have to agree with All-Ears. This song does get a bit boring after a bit, especially with the same or very similar melody playing over and over again. Another thing I think could have been changed are the sounds. I know it can be difficult to layer sounds in a somewhat quiet section of a song, but the Nexus presets were a bit boring to my ear, as I've been using and listening to them for a while now. They sound kind of generic too. I also don't know how well some of them fit the genre. Nexus presets usually have a sort of bite to them, which makes them harder to use in these situations. However, I don't listen to much (or any, really) ambient music, so I don't really know much about the standard conventions. The only other thing I have a complaint with is the melody. It just seems all over the place, and I can't really see it being a memorable melody and overall it just seems thrown down and weak. Otherwise this song is pretty well made. The mixing is good and I can't complain about much else. I liked the tempo changes and all of the subtle instruments layered in.
7/10
TaintedLogic responds:
Thanks a lot for the review, man! I appreciate you explaining why you thought it was boring/repetitive. The main melody is very simple (basically an 8-note pattern with variations), but my goal was to provide enough changes along other parameters of the song to keep it interesting. I've just always admired the way classical composers can layer melodies in so many different keys (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhRa3REdozw). Good to know that I came up short, though. Perhaps my attempt at integrating fugues and electronic elements was a step in the wrong direction too. I agree about the Nexus presets and generic sound design. The piece certainly isn't a conventional ambient piece, but the samples still may not have been appropriate. I'm glad you liked the mixing. I used some stereo widening techniques here that I don't usually delve into, and it seems to have paid off. I'm glad you liked the way I arranged the whole thing, but I agree that the simplicity of the melody detracts from the piece. Next time, I'll try making a fugue with a more intricate melody and see how it goes. Unfortunately, I'm simply not the genius that Bach was. :'D Thanks again for the thorough review! ;)
Credits & Info
- Listens
- 766
- Downloads
- 8
- Votes
- 10
- Score
-
3.85 / 5.00
- Uploaded
- Aug 16, 2016
- 8:58 PM EDT
- Genre
- Ambient
- File Info
- Song
- 3.1 MB
- 2 min 42 sec
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TaintedLogic 
Licensing Terms
Please contact me if you would like to use this in a project. We can discuss the details.
