Reviews for King Bosa

[Bosa]

Truly an epic and historical tale that is worthy to be taught in our schools today. I am quite surprised that you are so well versed in Orchestralian and Newgrounds history! Scholastic!

I cannot wait to hear the end of this noble legend. But on a more technical note, I very much enjoyed this piece. You really have developed your own inimitable style, and that is how you succeed in my opinion. I really don't see anything wrong with the structure of the composition, and I can tell you paid close attention to the instruments' detail. However, I feel a lamenting feeling while listening to this -- you portray the realism and truth of the story very well.

samulis responds:

I couldn't resist building around the storyline you presented... I figured my more peaceful style would fit better as a prelude than a continuation... we'll know the results of the war when the round is over!

I find slow sorrowful music is one thing I can do well... violin + signature ridiculous timpani part + something in 7/8 pretty much sums up my style in its distilled form. XD

I guess we got that collaborative project in then... first half here, second half on your page.

Thanks for the review man, can't wait to see what the judges think on these pieces!

[NinjaGuy]

more tuba, otherwise pretty amazing

samulis responds:

lol, glad you find it pretty amazing. I certainly could have done a better job if I had more inspiration and less of a thing for tonal poems back then...

[thenonyXXD]

10 of 10

[descara]

Great stuff. I really like the somewhat desolate mood this track in the more tranquil sections.

The vln - oboe duet at 0:28 (or eng hn or w/e) is very nice in colour, but the writing and voice leading could be slightly better.

01:06 is awesomelly energetic, but the transition up to it should have something maintaining more of the energy. Also, a single violin will never be heard over brass chords in real life at that dynamic.. beef your melody up! Also, the orchestration otherwise is a bit meh, very much lower middle register, and somewhat little space between the brass parts from the sound of it, but it's hard to tell exactly what should be done without a score.

Still, loved the atmosphere of this, good job!

samulis responds:

Because this is program music, much of the standard ideas of spreading and orchestration can be essentially thrown out the window (in my opinion) to accommodation the need for an emotional feel- in this case, provided by small intervals the higher register in contrast to larger intervals in the lower register, with very little in the middle. This creates an exceptional feeling of darkness and loss. If I had the middle filled up with chording or counter-melodies, it would detract from the pure beauty of the upper register. It is also a common belief that close chords make a more chaotic and bolder sound while broad chords make a cleaner and less painful sound... that is why the brass are so tight.

I might try touching up the transition into 1:06, perhaps making the timpani much louder.

Regarding the violin, you are correct. However, this is digital music and for all we know, the violinist could be standing on the stage as a soloist or have a mic hooked up to his instrument... the only purpose of his melody there is to accentuate the motion of the chords.

Thanks for the review and for pointing out some issues, I will consider making some changes to the piece after the contest or such. :)

-Samulis

[BrokenDeck]

It thought this song had a sufficient melodic variance to it, like following different parts of an adventure story. I get the feeling that this was what you were going for. Samples were decent, but I feel that what you lack in sample quality, you make up for in compositional skill. Great job!

samulis responds:

Everyone always says my EWQL samples are decent. Must just be my mixing and selection. >_<

Glad you liked it, thanks man. :)