Contest: November "Gossip" + Result

[skipscada]

Here's a quick translation that rhymes and scans like the original. I can do the rest if anyone's interested.

[...] means choose your own rhyme. Alternatives below.

cuckoo, cuckoo, sounds through the woods
It's time for singing, dancing and [grinning]
springtime, springtime, will soon be here

[mingling, spinning, dringing]

[harvon]

I haven't listened the OSC competition submits until today; programming synth patches is not my thing. I found there is very good stuff out there. It could well be that the majority of people out there have proper music education and we here are mainly uneducated hobby producers.

[silverpants]

I haven't listened the OSC competition submits until today; programming synth patches is not my thing. I found there is very good stuff out there. It could well be that the majority of people out there have proper music education and we here are mainly uneducated hobby producers.

I do the OSC every month. There is a wide spectrum of talent! It's not all hot. I think because so many people enter - you'll notice the best ones are really impressive. But some are just beginners or having a laugh.

You should have a go. You are allowed to use the preset patches that come with the synth (and most of the Synths come with 100s). Some people don't do any programming at all.

[silverpants]

I'm very relieved that people are now entering this month's Music Cafe. I was worried it was going to be just me and Harvon!

There are some really fun entries. I'm enjoying them

[folderol]

There is a twofold problem for me with OSC. The first is that a lot of the synths don't have a Linux version, and the other is that I'm heavily committed to not only using Yoshimi, but also am one of the developers, which makes a complete mental "reset" a bit of a problem

[harvon]

There is a twofold problem for me with OSC. The first is that a lot of the synths don't have a Linux version, and the other is that I'm heavily committed to not only using Yoshimi, but also am one of the developers, which makes a complete mental "reset" a bit of a problem

As a developer you probably know about resynthesis. The resynthesized patch is a single sample I believe and therefore it is not very editable.

But there is an another way to do it. The resynthesized patch could be a normal synth patch, meaning that the resynthesiser would calculate the proper parameters for frequencies, oscillators, filters, waveforms etc. The resynthesiser would also do automatically the same thing that a skilled patch programmer does manually.

Would that be possible in theory?

[skipscada]

REVIEWS

Honest (slightly sugared) reviews here. Take it or leave it.

One thing that struck me... For me the musically most interesting aspect of the original song is the contrast between opposite stress distribution in the first words in the first and last lines: cucKOO vs FRÜHling. The result is that it doesn't fit neatly into standard beats. I think I hear many of you stressing first syllable in the "cuckoo" bit. Was it to make it easier to make it fit in, or do you actually interpret the sounds that actual, flying, nest-invading cuckoos make as CUCKoo insteads of cuckOO? Is this a bit like the blue dress / gold dress? I digress. Let's get to it.

Harvon - Kuckuck rufts zur ... - Nice twist on the musical theme and well developed. Uses the whole register, increasingly contrasting the highest and lowest notes for a subtle sense of increasing intensity towards the end. The only thing lacking for that rousing organ feeling is a church, I suppose.

Harvon - Cuckoo upside down - Kudos for the composition, which is complex but flows well. Sadly I have to say that for me, the robotic execution kind of misses the point of the guitar, which has a lot of potential for dynamics and different articulations. With these uniform dynamics/articulations, a harpsichord would be a more realistic sounding choice of instrument.

Silverpants - Kuckuck - You're really selling that metalheads-love-springtime-too vibe. I kept waiting for an element to break off from the constant groove, like a guitar (or drum!) solo or some alternative riffing, but alas. Love the vocals, though.

Folderol - CuckooLoco - That's quite collection of sounds you've got there. I suspect you are cynically using an innocent German childrens' song as a vehicle to show off your synth's versatility. *wink* I really like how it could plausibly be a track on a sort of modernised children's song album, but introduces quirky sounds here and there to give it a tinge of subversion.

Laguna Rising - Forest Dub - Definitely the wildest and most exuberant of all the forests on display in this month's competition. The guitar tones alone are enough to convince me, but pulling off that thing where it sounds like you're playing two songs or tempos at the same time in the first part, and then sort of pulling it inside out and switching to a reggae vibe towards the end... you've earned a chef's kiss from me.

3lu5iv3 - Kuckuck - Neat conversion to minor and merciless four to the floor kick are big plusses here. I was anticipating some sort of drop or modulation, but I guess we will file it under "minimal techno".

3lu5iv3 - Kuckuck2 - Smooth sounds, practically the opposite of your other submission. I hear potential in the soft bed of neo-soul keys, but the straight-from-midi piano line lacks the human touch. It makes me picture a child learning piano in the corner of a rooftop bar. Which is a funny image, so thanks for that.

Beanpole - Cuckoo - No-nonsense fun and well-executed in every way. Straight light punk rock, nothing more, nothing less. Wig out with some guitar soloing or riffing towards the end and repeat the hook ad infinitum, and I can easily imagine a whole pub chanting along.

[folderol]

@skipscada
Thanks for the review (I've tried to do these in the past but can never put anything sensible together).

I certainly did not try to use this as a demo of Yoshimi. However my intention was to create interest in a song that could quickly get boring as an instrumental. The 'Yiee' sound is just a joke I've used in various tracks over the years. As for the rest, these are simply 'go to' sounds I'm most familiar with. In the past I would have used a selection from a Sound Canvas and an SY22 in the same way.

[Laguna Rising]

Laguna Rising - Forest Dub - Definitely the wildest and most exuberant of all the forests on display in this month's competition. The guitar tones alone are enough to convince me, but pulling off that thing where it sounds like you're playing two songs or tempos at the same time in the first part, and then sort of pulling it inside out and switching to a reggae vibe towards the end... you've earned a chef's kiss from me.

Thanks so much, Skipscada.
I appreciate your kind words

[Hellfog]

Next month's theme: Schizophrenia

[Saffran]

Next month's theme: Schizophrenia

Ohhh. I hate to repeat myself.


(Same melody in my head repeating itself and throwing different instruments at it.)

[harvon]

Next month's theme: Schizophrenia

Very delicate theme.

[3lu5iv3]

REVIEWS

Honest (slightly sugared) reviews here. Take it or leave it.

One thing that struck me... For me the musically most interesting aspect of the original song is the contrast between opposite stress distribution in the first words in the first and last lines: cucKOO vs FRÜHling. The result is that it doesn't fit neatly into standard beats. I think I hear many of you stressing first syllable in the "cuckoo" bit. Was it to make it easier to make it fit in, or do you actually interpret the sounds that actual, flying, nest-invading cuckoos make as CUCKoo insteads of cuckOO? Is this a bit like the blue dress / gold dress? I digress. Let's get to it.

Harvon - Kuckuck rufts zur ... - Nice twist on the musical theme and well developed. Uses the whole register, increasingly contrasting the highest and lowest notes for a subtle sense of increasing intensity towards the end. The only thing lacking for that rousing organ feeling is a church, I suppose.

Harvon - Cuckoo upside down - Kudos for the composition, which is complex but flows well. Sadly I have to say that for me, the robotic execution kind of misses the point of the guitar, which has a lot of potential for dynamics and different articulations. With these uniform dynamics/articulations, a harpsichord would be a more realistic sounding choice of instrument.

Silverpants - Kuckuck - You're really selling that metalheads-love-springtime-too vibe. I kept waiting for an element to break off from the constant groove, like a guitar (or drum!) solo or some alternative riffing, but alas. Love the vocals, though.

Folderol - CuckooLoco - That's quite collection of sounds you've got there. I suspect you are cynically using an innocent German childrens' song as a vehicle to show off your synth's versatility. *wink* I really like how it could plausibly be a track on a sort of modernised children's song album, but introduces quirky sounds here and there to give it a tinge of subversion.

Laguna Rising - Forest Dub - Definitely the wildest and most exuberant of all the forests on display in this month's competition. The guitar tones alone are enough to convince me, but pulling off that thing where it sounds like you're playing two songs or tempos at the same time in the first part, and then sort of pulling it inside out and switching to a reggae vibe towards the end... you've earned a chef's kiss from me.

3lu5iv3 - Kuckuck - Neat conversion to minor and merciless four to the floor kick are big plusses here. I was anticipating some sort of drop or modulation, but I guess we will file it under "minimal techno".

3lu5iv3 - Kuckuck2 - Smooth sounds, practically the opposite of your other submission. I hear potential in the soft bed of neo-soul keys, but the straight-from-midi piano line lacks the human touch. It makes me picture a child learning piano in the corner of a rooftop bar. Which is a funny image, so thanks for that.

Beanpole - Cuckoo - No-nonsense fun and well-executed in every way. Straight light punk rock, nothing more, nothing less. Wig out with some guitar soloing or riffing towards the end and repeat the hook ad infinitum, and I can easily imagine a whole pub chanting along.

Thanks.

[folderol]

Hmmm, does that mean two (or more) completely different melodies at the same time?

[Saffran]

It was hard to decide between Silverpants and skipscada.
But i do like metal.