Epic Orchestral Cue

[KentB]

Hi Guys. I might be out of my depth here but I was thinking about submitting to the listing below. Also, this is an unfinished track, but I was wondering if anyone had some words of wisdom about what I have so far.

Thanks so much

Kent

https://soundcloud.com/kent-brown-10402 ... -cue-11820


EPIC ORCHESTRAL TENSION INSTRUMENTAL CUES are needed QUICKLY by a NON-Exclusive Music Licensing Company for the Music Supervisor of a Prime-Time Network Show!

They’re on the hunt for Mid-to-Up-Tempo Instrumental Cues – pay close attention to the references they gave us to get yourself in the right ballpark:

MasterChef (Starting from 5:13 – 5-45):

MasterChef (Starting from 9:50 – 10-40):

Please submit exciting Orchestral Instrumental Cues that can add an epic sense of energy and tension to a scene! Please be sure that any Orchestral instrumentation you use is well-played and sounds authentic and believable. Sticking with one musical idea/theme/motif from start to finish is strongly recommended, as it could make your pieces easier to use. Think of the type of Instrumental Cues you hear on elimination-style shows when a team is racing against the clock or when they’re waiting on a judge’s decision!

TAXI Tip: Be sure your Instrumental Cues use great-sounding Orchestral instrumentation! Any material that sounds stiff, synthetic, or MIDI-driven will not work for this request.

Your submissions should be 90 seconds to 2 minutes long, give or take. Non-faded, stinger/button endings will work best. Do NOT copy the referenced material in any way, shape, or form. Use it only as a general guide for tempo, tone, and overall vibe. Broadcast Quality is needed.

NOTE: This show is on a Major Network and pays good back-end, so your Cues must be of the highest quality!

[cosmicdolphin]

Well it's a bit short in length so you will need to stretch it out. It's normally advisable to make these in a 3 act structure with and edit point between each, so 3 x 30 seconds or so.

Act 1 - Set the scene. Act 2 - Main theme. Act 3 - Build on Main theme with climax

Sound wise it sounds very weird at my end. Like everything is super wide and there's a hole in the middle of the mix where the instruments should be. I switched it to mono and it sounded better so you may need to look into what's going on there.

The mix sounds rather quiet , I don't quite have anything in Masterchef style but I do have some Hybrid Orchestral tracks that have been licensed and they are quite a bit louder with much punchier drums etc.

I think the actual chord progression and ideas are good but the sounds aren't cutting it really particularly the drums and there is a distinct lack of low end / bass instruments. This combined with the overly wide image is making the whole thing sound weak on a production level.

I would use the first 38s as your Act 1, and then add an edit point ( small pause in the music ) and then go from there bringing in much punchier drums and a proper low end instrument in the bass.

Mark

[KentB]

Hi Mark,

Thanks so much for taking the time to check out! I think the thing that sounded weird might be the stereo spread plug-in I ran everything through. I really don't know what I'm doing as far as mixing and mastering goes.

I was actually planning on making it about twice as long. I just got tired of working on it last night. Thanks for the tip on the three act structure though. That'll help me flesh out the rest of it I think.

I'll pay more attention to the levels. I was also worried about the punchiness of the drums. I was thinking I probably need to upgrade my sample library.

I'd love to check out your hybrid orchestral stuff if you have the time to send a link. I'd love to check out any of your music for that matter

Thanks again!
Kent

[cosmicdolphin]

I think the thing that sounded weird might be the stereo spread plug-in I ran everything through. I really don't know what I'm doing as far as mixing and mastering goes.

Yes I would take it off if you don't really know what you are doing mix-wise as you can do more harm than good. It's actually a good idea to monitor your mix in mono as you will tend to make mix decisions that work in mono and stereo.

I'll pay more attention to the levels. I was also worried about the punchiness of the drums. I was thinking I probably need to upgrade my sample library.

Lots of places you can get high quality sounds from such as Splice ( go for individual drum hits rather than loops )

I'd love to check out your hybrid orchestral stuff if you have the time to send a link. I'd love to check out any of your music for that matter

Here you go https://soundcloud.com/user-45178330/se ... eard-on-tv

Tracks 9 & 10 are more trailer like

[KentB]

Hi Mark,

That's fantastic! Thank you. I really appreciate your help. I'm learning alot here.

I'll check out Spice and I'm excited to hear your tracks.

Have a great day!
Kent

[KentB]

Hey guys. Here's my latest try. It definitely loses some punch when it get to Soundcloud for some reason.

https://soundcloud.com/kent-brown-10402 ... -cue-11920

Thanks!
Kent

[superkons]

It is because SoundCloud downgrades the bitrate of the music, unfortunately

[KentB]

Ah! I figured it was something like that. Thanks!

[cosmicdolphin]

Sounds better with less stereo spread - I don't think that first section is really working..there's no sense of melody or theme or anything - just sounds like a random collection of percussion parts

Much better at 30s once it gets going..maybe in that first section use your mallets to outline what's coming up in the main part of the cue. You can use the same chords just strip everything back and make it more minimal

[KentB]

That's a great idea! Thanks Mark!