Looking for feedback on an instrumental for a kid's TV spaghetti western - fight scene

[MJLeeman]

I would be grateful to receive feedback on this piece, "Two Shots at Freedom", before I finalise for submission. I am thinking that I might thin out the strings accompanying the whistling bit near the beginning and maybe replace with a strummed electric guitar or steel string acoustic.

Not sure if I need to add more percussion.

https://www.taxi.com/members/nwRU7pygQr ... at-freedom

Cheers
Michael Leeman


SPAGHETTI WESTERN INSTRUMENTALS are needed for an (up to) $2,000, Direct-to-Music-Supervisor placement on a Streaming Children's TV show!

This Music Supervisor is looking for Instrumentals in the general stylistic ballpark of the following references:

"The Good, The Bad And The Ugly (Main Title)" by Ennio Morricone

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBixD-rTB_c

"I Giorni Dell'ira" by Riziero Ortolani

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdXwrgtgS1Q

"Per un pugno di dollari (Titoli)" by Ennio Morricone

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iffMMkRzPJ4

Quoting the Music Supervisor: "We're looking for fun and/or menacing Spaghetti Western Instrumentals for a fight scene."

Please send well-composed Instrumentals that capture the vibe and sound of classic Spaghetti Western music. Your submissions should have engaging motifs, driving rhythms, and typical Spaghetti Western instrumentation – think strings, brass, and winds mixed with twangy electric guitar and maybe even some non-lyrical vocal chants. We think you can have a lot of fun with this one! Please be sure that your production and any and all virtual instruments or samples you use are high-quality and sound like the real thing – nothing stiff or obviously MIDI-driven will work, here.

All submissions should be between 2 and 4 minutes, give or take. Do NOT copy the referenced artists or songs in any way, shape, or form. Use the references only as a general guide for tempo, tone, and overall vibe. Broadcast Quality is needed.

This will be a Non-Exclusive, Direct-to-Music Supervisor placement, so you’ll get 100% of the Sync Fee, you’ll keep 100% of your Publishing and Master ownership, and you’ll also get 100% of any applicable performance royalties. No Publisher splits! You must own or control your Master and Copyright to submit for this opportunity. Please submit as many Instrumentals as you’d like, online or per CD. All submissions will be screened and critiqued by TAXI. Submissions must be received no later than 11:59 PM (PST) on Monday, December 6th, 2021. TAXI # S211206SP

TAXI # S211206SP

[DouglasKnight]

Really nice job on this! However, I'd be worried about the gunshots though, since this is for a scene and it could interfere with the action on-screen. Good luck with it! DK

[MJLeeman]

Thank you Douglas. Yes, I will omit the gunshots-not a good idea to include them.

Cheers
Michael

[MJLeeman]

Here's an updated version.

https://www.taxi.com/members/nwRU7pygQr ... version-2-

I'm still learning about orchestration and instrumental cues, and I might say that he free BBC SO library is very good in my view and a welcome improvement on what I used previously. I have submitted an orchestral instrumental for a custom critique and the advice is to go for big endings. This is the same type of feedback which I have received for returned instrumentals and cues, even where the mood of the music from my viewpoint is meant to be subdued. So I have enjoyed trying to go flat out with this one. Comments from TAXI members for me are highly regarded, so if you have any advice, please fire away!

Cheers
Michael Leeman

[teleblaster]

Nice job getting a progression and melody that matches the genre. I think the sections that have a groove work the best (:40sec etc) and like the pillow-ey bass line in those sections.
I'd suggest taking a look at a couple things.
- The whistling patch, particularly at the intro is really stiff sounding. The vibrato is fixed at one rate. Maybe try a sample library, or whistle into a microphone.
- I think the mix is a bit piled up in the high mids, look for ways to give each instrument their own 'space' in the frequency spectrum.

Hope this is helpful and best of luck with this
Erich

[MJLeeman]

Thanks Erich and Tom for your comments and suggestions.

Here's my updated version:-

https://www.taxi.com/my/artist/songs/nU ... version-3-

I thought it best to dispense with the whistling idea.

I've now added some subtractive eq on most of the instruments to try to clear some of the muddiness. I also treated the stereo output with a multiband dynamics plugin which is a native Studio One plugin, and this seemed to make a bit of a difference, though I've only just come across this form of signal processing, so I think that my ears will need some practice at using it.

Regarding Tom's comment on the strings near the beginning sounding very midi, I have removed the strings preset eq setting which I had originally applied to that part. The setting made the sound too trebly/raspy which maybe could work better when the strings are buried in the mix rather than playing solo.

I note the clarity in your posted track, Tom, so I appreciate that there are more tricks of the trade awaiting me.

Cheers
Michael

[MJLeeman]

Updated link:-

https://www.taxi.com/members/nwRU7pygQr ... version-3-

[AlanHall]

Each revision sounds better than the last! You're definitely going in the right direction. Keep up the good work

My concern is Quoting the Music Supervisor: "We're looking for fun and/or menacing Spaghetti Western Instrumentals for a fight scene." and this piece, while really getting to the heart of Spaghetti Western, doesn't feel like fight scene music to me. I'm getting a wistful/remorseful/brooding feel from it. JM2C.

[teleblaster]

Nice job making updates and improvements. Here's a couple more suggestions. Hope you find them useful.
- WRT the guitar. I'd go for big round tones dripping with vibrato and spring reverb.
- I'd also be careful with the diminished chords and trickier harmonic movement, they can work, but they can also sound kind of vaudeville/tin-pan-alley rather than high dessert gun fight.

as always, HTH
Erich

[MJLeeman]

The comments which I have received in this forum regarding this piece have been most instructive and I have tried to incorporate as many of the above suggestions as possible. In the process, I may have fallen into some old traps (muddy high mids, lack of clarity, production issues, etc., etc.), though I certainly appreciate the feedback which I have received and which has helped me to learn and hopefully develop some of the skills required. Very grateful, thanks.

Here's my final version:

https://www.taxi.com/members/nwRU7pygQr ... version-4-

Cheers
Michael