Film Noir / Jazz

[paults]

That sounds great! Somewhere, Bogie is smiling

[geo]

Very good work Mazz, definately got the vibe, the trumpet is sweet... Geo

[hummingbird]

Quote:Really enjoyed everyone's work on this listing, very good stuff!I finally got around to incorporating some of the suggestions put forth by our esteemed colleagues and thought I'd post the results:http://www.taximusic.com/song.php?song_ ... oy!!MazzPS: Thought I'd post what I did in case anyone's interested:1. Modified bass line in second A section to include more walking notes2. New piano part with more fills/interest3. Narrowed the stereo spread on the drums, thus giving them more of their own space in the mix. Brought the drums up in level overall and pushed them up a bit more in the B section.4. Narrowed the stereo spread on the piano and darkened the EQ. Put the piano in a bit of reverb . Also switched from Player to Audience perspective in Ivory.5. Brought the strings down in the background sections. Pushed them up slightly more in the B section.Very yummy, Mazz... it feels sultry & like I am sitting in a great jazz bar listening to the greats. Thanks for the notes on your tweaks - it's very educational.

[montster]

Wow!! Loved it.I have many questions and comments for you, Mazz, relating to the production and performances on this track. As a jazz pianist and composer/arranger, this piece is very interesting to me. It's also refreshing to know there are folks in the community who can put stuff like this out there.Firstly, the trumpet out front is great, a-la Miles. Very inviting and elegant against the setting with the cool piano and the strings. The production of the backing tracks are what I'm interested to ask about: How much is MIDI/keybord sounds and patches? The piano sounds very real and clear as do the bass, drum and string tracks. Are you performing the piano as live audio mic'ing the piano and using MIDI for the other supporting instruments?Are you bringing other instrumentalist for lay live tracks anywhere?I'm very inexperienced with the MIDI environment and am curious to find out how much I'm missing out on with my lack of production knowledge. How much does using MIDI enhance overall production quality? There is a difference in "live" and "keyboard" sounds and much of the results are in the understanding of production in either element. I have been under a "lazy" assumption, for lack of a better word, that Live is always better than electronic for the organic feel of jazz composing. (I'm beginning to realize my thinking is really off base and I'd better get hip and with the times! )I have some compositions also produced recently, yet much more on the straight ahead sort of thing than Mazz's art work in discussion. check 'em out, Mazz, if you get a chance.http://www.myspace.com/earthtoneproductionsongsClick on the Wonderful Way buttons: the first is a three horn arrangement with piano, bass and drums, the second is a piano trio version of the same tune.Just as comparison, these tracks were all done live.Comments from anyone regarding the Wonderful Way stuff are welcome. I'm certainly interested to continue dialog and discussion on the Jazz Scene here on Taxi forums, maybe I'll start another thread relating to all things jazz.Keep it up Mazz, the quality of your work is inspiring!!Monty

[mazz]

Hi Monty,Thanks for the kind words.Everything except the trumpet was done with MIDI. I played every track except the drums, which were constructed from MIDI loops with some cymbal crashes and swells added in (all MIDI).The success or failure of this type of thing falls down to a few factors: The quality of the sample libraries, the knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of those libraries, the ability to manipulate the samples via MIDI controllers and velocities to extract the best, most realistic sound possible, and last but not least: the knowledge of the genre and how to arrange/compose in it.I've invested in some very nice sample libraries but I've also put in some grunt work in learning how to control them to get what I want. As I said, knowing the strengths and weaknesses of the libraries is key because you're never going to get John Coltrane out of them, no matter what you do. But there's a whole lot of stuff you can do with them and a whole barrel full of tricks that basically amount to fooling the listener in to thinking they're hearing "real" musicians. Duke Ellington wrote to the strengths of his players, not their weaknesses and it worked out for him!If I was going to do an album of jazz music for a library, I'd probably hire in some live players. Of all the genres that can be "simulated" via MIDI, jazz has got to be up there with the most difficult of them all.I'll check out some of your stuff soon!Thanks again,mazz

[mikegoudreau]

Sounds very nice mazz.I get to play with some really fine trumpet players in Montreal so I'm not speaking through my hat when I say I dig your playing, tone and choice of notes ...Well done !The piano fills are a nice compliment and give it that extra " noir " vibe quality...I agree with you that jazz is hard to reproduce (especially drums) with synthetic sounds, but I believe you did very good here. I think you have an excellent chance of being forwarded with this song. Bravo ! P.S. Could you imagine how many more arrangements Duke Ellington would have written in his life, if he had the technology we have today...It's no wonder he had those bags under his eyes...Man that man was a genius and a workaholic. MG

[mazz]

Mike,Thanks for the feedback. I must admit I play trumpet rarely these days but I try to channel a little bit of Miles when I do. I still get chills when I listen to Kind of Blue, even after what must be hundreds of listens by now. He is still my biggest inspiration no matter what music I am doing. His creative fire still lights the way. Even though he was so self destructive, his humanity and creativity shone through in his music.Enough nostalgia.Happy Holidays!!Mazz

[jamesm]

This is just simply class stuff from beginning to end. I'd pay money to buy an album that sounded like this. The trumpet just makes it perfect.On top of everything else, joining this board has given me some of the best music I've listened to in a long time.

[matto]

Excellent improvements to the song John, it really fires on all cylinders now!

[mazz]

Well, I guess you never can tell:Returned for this one. Yes/No only, no critique.I'll keep it in the active file for future submittage!Onward and upward!! Mazz