Hi Jeanette, I stumbled about the "Theme for Cariad" in Youtube even before
reading your mail ;-)
I find it to be a really beautiful arrangement!
However, there was one thing I noticed while listening. Many of the longer held notes in
the strings swell quite noticeably. I find this a littlebit annoying but maybe this is one
of the drawbacks from VPO.
Holger
"Jeanette C." julien(a)mail.upb.de – 18. Dezember 2022 12:32
Hey hey,
today I release two pieces which are closely connected:
Theme for Cariad:
https://youtu.be/niUZMYIfWEI
OGG version:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/o4awk2vd8va1v9t/theme_for_cariad.ogg
And a four part organ fugue: Fugue for Cariad:
https://youtu.be/Qmp7owQzteM
OGG version:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/86mnd1v6jtnjrgj/fugue_for_cariad.ogg
In case anyone is wondering: cariad is Welsh for beloved.
The theme for Cariad is a kind of soundtrack, a string quintet. I used the VPO (virtual
player orchestra). It is a good collection and the best free orchestra in SFZ format I
know, yet in this instance it falls short, being so very exposed. I suppose an even better
volume automation might still get it closer. Still, I tried to really work on my string
arrangement skills and none course worthier than love.
The fugue for Cariad uses Aeolus, which eliminates any questions of sound. Great organ!
It is a four part fugue, reminiscent of the baroque style. Only, I cheated and it would
take two players, since the piece makes heavy use of all three manuals at the same time,
which is certainly not historic. Still, it is the first four part fugue that I have
written and again I'm very happy that I was inspired to juggle the voices by her.
For the theme I used jconvolver/fconvolver with an impulse response of the Concertgebouw,
very little else in the way of production. A touch of EQ and compression on the final
master to glue the instruments together.
If nothing else both pieces radiiate a bit of festive spirit or something to relax into
with a cup of something hot in your favourite comfy spot. :)
Best wishes,
Jeanette