Heartfelt Piano Instrumental - Opinions?

[RMarshall]

Hi all

It's been a little while since I've seen a listing I could sink my teeth into and this heartfelt piano brief has been really enjoyable to attempt. I'd really appreciate some feedback on my piece below to see if, in your opinions, it would be worth submitting. Thank you as always! PS I know it says submit more than 1, but I am starting late and prefer to start these projects from scratch and am not sure if I have time to produce another before the deadline...

https://soundcloud.com/rachel-marshall- ... /sincerity


Here are the details;

HEARTFELT, PIANO-Based INSTRUMENTAL NEW AGE ARTISTS or COMPOSERS are needed by an eclectic Independent Record Label that’s eagerly looking for fresh, new talent to sign to its roster.

This Label is searching for Instrumentals in the general stylistic wheelhouse of the following references:

"River Flows in You" by Yiruma
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiBvOKmuWKg

"All That Is Left" by Fiona Joy Hawkins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeGWcUR6XVM

"Starry Night" by Jordan Critz
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSXzw1XiDVw

Please submit well-composed New Age Instrumentals that feature Piano as their principal instrument and evoke a stirring, heartfelt vibe and feel. Your submissions should have entrancing melodies, excellent musicianship, and compelling arrangements that can include some additional instruments (as long as the piano remains the focus). Please be sure your production is polished and any and all virtual instruments or samples you use are high-quality and contemporary – nothing stiff, dated, or synthetic sounding will work for this request.

NOTE: Please do NOT include any sound effects in your music such as animal sounds, waterfalls, wind chimes, raindrops, etc.

We recommend that you submit TWO or THREE Instrumentals per submission so they can see if you’ve got depth in your material. It’s not necessary to land a deal with them, just a suggestion! You’d be wise to highlight any licensing experience, fanbase, or impressive sales/streaming figures you may have in your bio. If you’re a new artist or band and don’t have much of a story or track record yet, but you DO have an amazing sound and the compositions to back it up, this Label is still willing to give you a listen!

Please limit your running time to roughly 3 or 4 minutes in length (give or take). Your recording quality needs to be clean, clear, and well-balanced to represent your music well. Do NOT copy the references in any way, shape, or form. Use them only as a general guide for tone, texture, and overall vibe.

The specific deal points will be negotiated directly with the Record Label on a case-by-case basis. Please submit as many Instrumentals as you’d like, online or per CD, and include a photo and bio. All submissions will be screened and critiqued by TAXI. Submissions must be received no later than 11:59 PM (PDT) on Thursday, March 16th, 2023. TAXI # S230316PF

[Dandillinger]

I thought it was well composed and quite nice. The soft strings blended well. Certainly worth submitting.

[edmondredd]

Hey Rachel,
I won't comment the compositional aspect since it's really nice, however few points I noted, especially after listening to the reference:
Your piano sounds like if it was mic'ed far far away, and I could hear the "room" (reverb), whereby in the first 2 references, the piano was up close and almost personal. In the 3rd reference, the piano was close as well, so close we could hear the key releases. That being said, it might be just a sketch recording you're trying yourself at, but if I were you, I would try to get a better sounding piano or go with some sampled ones.
The other thing I noticed is that around the 1:20 mark, the tempo is a tad sloppy, and then at 1:50 as well. I'm not sure about that.
The last thing, and I hope you don't mind my "sincerity", is that the strings are a bit too stiff (?). I am not sure how to word this, but it is as if the strings are extremely slow to react to the chord changes, they just follow the root note, and then they don't modulate in time. My take on that is either try to have an interesting relationship between the piano and strings (interlocked melodies, q&As, etc..) or maybe look into a different sonority such as reversed piano pads, or reversed synth that would sound a bit like strings but would add some forward motion..
my 2 cents