Quote: Original post by Drakkcon
Well, thanks for the advice. I agree with you about the fact that good instruments aren't every thing. When I code, I listen to old 16-bit era music (specifically Final Fantasy, mario, the game which my avatar is taken from, and others) and I actually prefer those old sounds :) I know that not many people feel as I do though so I'm interested in better samples.I am sure that reason is a particularly great piece of software, but it's a bit too much for me (I'm fifteen and I get an allowance:). Thanks for all of the replies so far.

Yeah, there is a certain charm about those SNES sounds. You don't have to constantly be thinking, "Wellll that orchestration sounds PRETTY realistic, but not COMPLETELY"... the sounds are so obviously fake that you can just enjoy the music. :D

Quote: Original post by Arglebargle
Yeah, there is a certain charm about those SNES sounds. You don't have to constantly be thinking, "Wellll that orchestration sounds PRETTY realistic, but not COMPLETELY"... the sounds are so obviously fake that you can just enjoy the music. :D

Bingo!

On the note of semi-real orchestras nowadays..I guess I see it two ways. First, one must realise that with all the graphics, control elements and dolby sound coming at us, unless there is a big thematic moment, even big orchestral pieces still have to stay out of the way, so you very often end up with reduced forms, without headroom for contrpuntal writing and complex structures. "Get the point across and get out of the way", the producers basically say. Its a decision of economy vs impact.

Also, I like to think of things this way: music has taken a lot of forms over the years, from polychoral performance houses to impressionism and 20th century noodling, every change was meant to fill a concept, a purpose, or a need. I think people are becoming agitated a bit(Especially educated composers) about the "simplicity" of game orchestral tracks, because on the surface, we are taking advantage of your basic modern tonality, and borrowing bits and pieces from various disciplines, but its, on the whole, being kept very simplistic.

Well, what if instead of thinking of it as a "cheap knockoff" of sorts from "better" composition...what if Video Game orchestral is sort of emerging as its own style? Think of what Rap did to popular music: stripped out the need for melody and harmony and whittled down music to just rhythm+message.
This is what I see video game orchestral as: whittling down traditional orchestrated music to a balance of impact and simplicity. Couple that with the fact that sometimes people are just doing things that are nigh on impossible for a real player to do sometimes, and the fusion of electronic in many aspects, and I say we're touching on a new school of musical thought, in a small way.
Its classical on a diet, we're drinking Diet Tonality. :)

Thoughts?

It's an interesting idea, krikkit--I think you'd be pretty hard pressed to prove it considering the current state of affairs--with Chris Lennertz doing the Medal Of Honor scores and Jack Wall on the Myst series, I think that some game soundtracks contain much more thematic development than most movie scores. I hear what you're saying about stripping it down though--game music has become, in many ways, its own "quotation school" of composing. Rather than writing something entirely new, we quote (or very nearly quote) a John Williams theme or a Wagner motive because it creates the affect we're looking for, and gives the player a sense for where his/her emotions should be going. Sort of like Ives' music, in a way.

Sil wrote: music theory can help you to develop your sense of contrapuntal writing, but only so far as the classical tradition.

I would tend to slightly disagree--the counterpoint and theory that I've learned has all been very applicable to my music creation, even in techno and rock genres. Music theory is not "the practice of classical music," it's the rules behind all the music that can be written--I can (and did, for my music history class) analyze songs from Usher's "Confessions" with as much precision and intelligence as a Schubert lied, not because I'm a nerd (I am) but because music theory applies even to such venues as hip-hop.

All this to say, I still maintain that it's all about writing good music first and worrying later about the sounds.

Finally, for Drakkcon, sorry for hijacking your thread :) If you're looking for a good MIDI sequencing-type software, there is a free version of Finale called Notepad that I would recommend downloading. For synthesis and such, follow all the soundfont recommendations--I am not so knowledgable about them (Mac user, with Reason) but it seems to be the most viable option for someone of your experience and resources. The other very simple way to create music is to download Pro Tools Free (a multitrack recording software), plug a keyboard into it, and dub over yourself playing different instruments. That's what I did at your age, and I feel it's taken me pretty far to my ripe old 20. Save your pennies, and you'll be able to afford something better soon.

If you'd like to hear some of my music (and decide for yourself if the theory nerd is right), go to:
http://www.download.com/blaisedouros

or

http://www.stolaf.edu/people/douros