I play this song and I'm transported to a festival in a coastal town in an mmo/rpg

Oooh this is lovely...
really brings positive vibes over here. Good luck in the second round!

NGADM '19 Review:

Lovely intro! Nice and simple, and 3/4 seems to be a good choice. The instruments hurt a bit in the treble range (maybe around 8-10KHz?), but this is a pleasant start, compositionally. I picture a group of young travelers, or perhaps halflings, trekking along a hilly grassland. Optimistic smiles and expectations of a grand story to tell when they return home.

The bells are also rather sharp in the treble/presence range, doubling my ears' retreat. Sadly, no matter how much I turn it down, this range seems to stick out the most. This makes the fun-loving joy I detect much harder to give in to.

The strings are lovely, and the short sample of birds is a great addition. That said, we're missing warmth to fill out the space. The strings and percussion both seem rather thin and bright.

Sonically, the piano, strings, and horns are a welcome addition. Compositionally, I am met primarily with unison, and the occasional bit of harmony. Chords that better convey the subtext of the scene would be greatly welcomed.

The same melody has been looping for over a minute now.

Dropping into a section with the bells at a lower octave is a great choice. Keeps it soft and gives us some release. But the melody here is a variation of the original melody, and I would really love to depart toward something different. Perhaps something goes wrong, or we've forgotten something and have to run home (justifying a comical return to the original melody later on), or we stop to chat or eat for awhile, or someone new is introduced - really anything to provide a second swath. As things stand, I feel stagnated.

And we launch into the previous melody once more. A voice in the background has been added, but this is otherwise identical to the first time we heard this section. I feel as though the same images as before are transitioning over the screen, like I'm watching a looping slideshow on the Play screen of a DVD. I would love some sort of variation. If we're going to come back to this melody, I'd love more than a 30 second break. It needs to be earned.

I don't mind the section it falls into, but I'm a bit unsure of what's happening. Have we arrived?
The thematic melody returns, implying that the journey never really ends - but then this melody serves as the vehicle for the conclusion. We finally land on the route chord, with nearly everything panned in the left channel.

While I really enjoyed the melody as an introductory element, it was belabored until everything pleasant about it was lost. The piece never really seemed to move, and the majority of added instruments were added as layers for the introductory melody, stuck on loop for most of the piece.

Now that I've viewed the piece of art upon which this is based (to see what inspired you), I reiterate, affirmed, that the melody was a nice way to start things off. But it's as if the image never has the opportunity to move. It seems that the ship is headed somewhere, but I don't feel that it ever even reached the edge of the frame. This could be re-framed in a way that would make that fact comical, but it doesn't sound as though this was intentional.

The chosen sounds were pleasant and fit one another well, but I feel that more could have been done to create the space. If a ship near the port were the setting, for instance, I would have loved to hear some wooden creaks, flapping sails, water, spraying wind, ropes, and perhaps a bit of commotion.

The production did little to aid the thin design. The balance was mostly nice, but high (and even theoretically dulcet) elements were harsh on the ears. The reverb was decently balanced, but did not seem to reflect on a particular setting. Some elements sounded a bit like they were in a concert hall, while others were present and dry. The bells and violin are out of one another's way well enough to hear each, but occupy the more unpleasant frequencies together. The bass is nearly absent, although the bass drum resonates as though we are inside.

This was a bonny little tune! Hopefully my stream-of-consciousness review articulated my points well enough. If not, I am more than happy to continue discussion via PM.

Composition: 6/10
Production: 5/10
Sound Design: 7/10
Creativity: 6/10
Replay Value/Usability: 7/10
Total: 6.2/10

(Stars bolstered, because my Portal scores and Contest scores are different. Portal Jacob is much more agreeable than Judge Jacob.)

Reminds me of those relaxing musics from disneyland .. love it

Sounds Like Someone Is Having An Good Day.

Good Song!