SONGWRITING COMPETITION - SWC082 June 2024 - Winners announced

[Mister Fox]

A friendly reminder:
We're in the final 24 hours to submit your production.



Please get your production ready and submitted (through the forum) today.

To make it easier for me to create the collection post, please update your initial post with the appropriate links (final version), or explicitly mark your entry as "final entry". Please also don't forget to make your files accessible. Thank you.

If I didn't miscount, we have 07 amazing entries so far.
We need at least 9 for a full podium, and 15 for a possible expansion.

[Mellow Browne]

Hey there,

The picture looks pretty much like the Black Forest region, from where you can see the borders of Switzerland and France.
I remember the excitement I got as a kid when me and my fam would go to vacation, taking the plane from Basel Airport.
This cloud will take me from the Black Forest directly to Ibiza.
This is some Cafe Del Mar/ House style music and I really enjoyed the process. I hope this can bring some good vibes!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VNG97y ... sp=sharing

► Show Spoiler

Tools I used:

Chords: Arturia cs-80 (I played with the sub oscillator to give it some additional movement/pumping, downside is the setting is fixed in stepped values)

Low synth: pigments

Keys: pigments

Bass: AiR Vacuum

Drums and percussion: Logic Drum synth

Vocals: sample from Cymatics

808 fill: sample from Cymatics

Drum fill: sample I found on my pc

Main thing was to duck/side chain some elements to the kick to give it that pumping groove.

[JeroenZuiderwijk]

For this challenge I chose to go the cheapest way possible (OK, there may be even cheaper ones ...). I engaged UDIO.

► Show Spoiler

I engaged UDIO with this prompt: Happy summer pop tune, female vocalists, choir, jingly guitars, bouncing bass
UDIO (as usual) adds additional tags: Female vocalist, Pop, Dance-pop, Dance, Playful, Love, Summer, Happy, Choir

UDIO was instructed to do four iterations with just one alternative with the outro part. The two MP3 tracks had no significant guitar or bass (shit happens ...); they then got seperated into single tracks using Steinberg's SpectraLayers. The vocals contained an uptempo shriekie part, which I ommitted. So the final mix contains the quieter vocals and the accompanying piano parts. I added drums, percussions and some pads from my loops collection.

The mix stayed pretty simple: The vocals got beefed up with compression, mid range preferences and a little reverb. Oh, and some NuGen Audio Stereoizer. Nothing else.

The resulting cheesiness adds to some carefree summer feeling; at least that is my impression. No highlights of production wizardry, for sure.

I am not sure if i understand this correctly, but did you let AI create your music?

[EsteveCorbera]

A happy tune. It has a good sunny vibe. What i noticed is that the drum is driving this song, i really like the drum part. For that reason i personally would allow the drum sound to shine a bit more...let some of the transients through with compression technique...or just a little extra volume and some high freq boost.

Thanks for your comments.
I've made some changes to give the drum a bit more punch.
I have updated my original post

[JeroenZuiderwijk]

A happy tune. It has a good sunny vibe. What i noticed is that the drum is driving this song, i really like the drum part. For that reason i personally would allow the drum sound to shine a bit more...let some of the transients through with compression technique...or just a little extra volume and some high freq boost.

Thanks for your comments.
I've made some changes to give the drum a bit more punch.
I have updated my original post

Wow, personally I think this is much better. It lifts the whole song.

[VCA-089]

phpBB [media]

WAV: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-pc3ys ... sp=sharing
FLAC: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GYUva4 ... sp=sharing
MP3: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qYZB2B ... sp=sharing

The summer vacation is a very special period when you think you have enough time to make music, but there are so many cool things getting in the way. At least I managed to make a song that fits my current state of mind and body and also fits the month's topic (though I found a more interesting image I think).

Instruments and techniques:

1. The "Dexed" synthesizer is used as a main instrument:
- The bass sound with long sustain and spring reverb;
- The e-piano sound layered with bell-like patch playing in the first half of the song;
- The synth strings with chorus. The plucked stab layer added in the second half is using the same notes;
- The "natural soundscape" made with two instances layered together.
2. The "vocal" sounds made with SampleScience "Vaporwaves" rompler. Two patches used: one for the low harmony and the second for the high arpeggio.
3. The lead guitar is MusicLab's "RealLPC". The effects chain consists of overdrive, chorus, spring reverb, the Marshall amp emulation and a tape echo (Outer Space), a typical 80's sound.
4. The drums are samples from the Oberheim DMX drum machine.
5. The sound of the ocean waves added on top of it (from a free sample library).
6. All tracks processed with cassette tape emulation from Wavesfactory.

Technical details:

► Show Spoiler

Produced in FL Studio 21.2.2

Generators:

x1 FPC
x7 Dexed
x2 SampleScience "Vaporwaves"
x2 MusicLab "RealLPC"

EQ & Saturation:

x6 FL Parametric EQ 2
x16 TDR & VoS "SlickEQ GE"

Dynamics:

x17 AdHd "Leveling Tool"
x1 D16 "Frontier"
x5 FL Balance
x1 FL Stereo Enhancer
x1 TDR "Kotelnikov"
x8 Thomas Mundt "LoudMax"

Delay & Reverb:

x1 Audio Thing "Outer Space"
x3 Audiority "Xenoverb"

x4 FL Delay 3
x4 TAL-Reverb 4
x2 u-He "ColourCopy"

Modulation:

x4 FL Hyper Chorus
x3 FL Frequency Shifter
x3 FL PanOMatic
x6 TAL-Chorus-LX

Processing:

x1 ToneLib GFX
x10 Wavesfactory "Cassette"

Master Chain:

TDR "Nova"
Limiter №6 GE

Total:

x12 Generators
x98 Effects
x18 MIDI Patterns
x26 Mixer Tracks
x11 Audio Clips
x6 Automation Clips

[BenjiRage]

Hi everyone

This one's down to the wire again, simply for lack of time once more this month. I had been working on a "summer-nights" Synthwave-style track but it became apparent over the weekend it was nowhere near going to be finished in time for today's deadline, so I had a re-think.

So, basically this month I've been putting nearly all my time into creating a really lovely garden at the front of my house, turfing and treating the lawn, sculpting the border and planting all sorts of flowers and shrubs. It's been a labour of love but it's all because I've always dreamed of having a beautiful garden to look upon when I open the blinds on a morning and seeing it glow in the sun on an summers evening. It seems to draw parallels with this month's "Summer Dreams" theme, so today I started from scratch on a little piano-based piece inspired by it all. I've called it "Sunset in the Garden".

As a side note, I've also been learning to play the Saxophone recently and decided to have a go recording some simple notes and phrases for the track.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NZ-ouo ... sp=sharing

► Show Spoiler

Instrumentation:
• Piano chords - Reason Radical Piano (Jazz Deluxe Grand, subdued setting)
• Piano Melody - Kurzweil K2000 "Stereo Grand" sample instrument
• Glock bells - Roland D50 "Fantasia" sample instrument
• Pad - u-he zebra2 with Valhalla Shimmer
• Live Alto Saxophone recorded with a Sennheiser MD-441
• Vocal aahs - Synthesizer V "Oscar" voice

Effects and production:
• Valhalla Vintage Verb with AIR flanger as the main reverb effect, with a feedback send to extend the reverb tail just enough without it going out of control (I created this effect for SWC081 but never really got that song off the ground unfortunately)
• PSP Vintage Warmer for a little bit of vocal and saxophone compression
• Fab Filter Pro-Q3 for sax EQ to remove some 2.5kHz harshness
• Waves Kramer Tape, DMG Audio Limitless and SIR Standard Clip on the master buss
• TC Electronic LM2N for loudness metering

Best regards,

Benji

[AuderMarr]

I have mine here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Ry4UMX ... sp=sharing

AuderMarr - "Lucid Sweltering Dreams"

EDIT: Since Mr. Fox has kindly conceded to allow me in, I'll give all the details for my entry!

The main target I had was to make the feelings the contest photo gives me break through: it makes me think of a mysterious, exotic ultra-dimensional place where the sun never sets, where you can fly through infinite carpets of hills and feast your eyes with the beauty of the scenery. And when you want to lay down, you can go back to your bed and let yourself envelope by a sensual drowsiness while a cloud above you give you shelter from the heat.

Like in a dream, I wanted the composition to have some unpredictable and unstable points, both in arrangement and melody. The centerpiece of the track, speaking of sounds, consists in the lead played by the free synth Audible Planets (Greg Recco) and accompanied by violins, cellos and woodwinds from Plogue's Sforzatron which makes for a sort of homage to the psychedelic sound of late 60's records.

I'm not satisfied with the result, alas. I decided to participate in this contest too late, and it shows: it's unfinished, unpolished and lacks of some other depth effects and transitions I wanted to add. Some volume automations are also a bit screwed up. If people see potential in it, though, I will re-work it and release (not professionally, that is) its complete version.

DAW: Reaper v. 7.16

VSTs: Greg Recco's Audible Planets, Plogue's Sforzatron, Garritan's Basic African Percussion, IK's MODO Drums, Matt Tytel's Helm, D10Labo's MSyn1mini, Surge XT, IK's MODO Bass 2, Full Bucket's Tricent mkIII, Martinic's Combo Model F

3rd PARTY EFFECTS: Dead Duck Software's Compressor, Kilohearts' Comb Filter-Filter-Compressor-Distortion-Resonator-Delay-Dual Delay, Voxengo's MSED, Mucoder's Hypercyclic, Polyverse's Wider, Stige T.'s Quadracom, Sanford Reverb, Softube's Tube Delay, TAL Reverb 4, Sonic Anomaly's Unlimited, Valhalla FreqEcho, Valhalla Supermassive

[Mister Fox]

It is the 25th June 2024, 00:15 UTC+2/CEST - this month's Songwriting Competition has official ended


STATISTICS:

• If I didn't miscount, we have 11 submissions this month (6 entries more than last month, and also 0 entry more/less than June 2023)
• We have 0 submission after the deadline (as of 25-JUN-2024 00:15 UTC+2/CEST -- I will consider @AuderMarr's entry to be a server hiccup)
• We have 0 submissions that has been disqualified (production released outside of the game's timeframe)
• We have 0 submissions that has been withdrawn (therefore it can't count to the overall participation)
• The "staff balancing vote" add-on rule does not apply (special game mechanics do apply)
• "Sole Winners Podium" rule (equal or less than eight participants results in a single winner) does not apply (3-position Winners Podium)

How do we go from there?

Over the course of the next (hopefully) 24-48 hours (usually up to 6-12 hours maximum after the game has ended), I'll gather all links into one post and hot-link to that from the first post of the thread. Please, no more changes to your entries, but please do check your links that these entries are accessible and downloadable. We then perform with the final feedback and "public vote" system.


We have 11 official participants. We are adapting the overhauled vote mechanic, as talked about in the following news blog:

Songwriting Competition - game mechanic changes: Voting Process (October 2022 Update)
(Info: I am aware that the Rule Book has not been properly updated yet. Time constraints, apologies for the inconvenience)


Summarized:

!

Bonus Info

Participants can (and must) vote for their Top 5 entries (tiered mechanic). You're furthermore asked to please reflect on your experience this month (2-3 paragraphs max), what you have learned, what you would like to do different in the future, etc. (personal growth) You are also asked to give feedback to at least five (number: 5) entries (tiered mechanic) -- things that stood out to you, providing some final thoughts and constructive feedback for possible improvements. This adds to the learning experience of our community. It is recommended that these entries are outside of your personal "top entry" voting. Have the chance to get additional bonus points if you decide to invest the time to provide more constructive feedback than the requested minimum. It must be more than just "nice production, please keep up the good work" however. This is to boost more interaction and can balance out your overall points on the score sheet. (get 1 point if you give constructive feedback to 1-2 more participant, get 2 points if you give helpful feedback for everyone) The "Voting Process" mechanic is mandatory for all participants, and the only criteria to drop out of the game by not partaking. Please don't just collect feedback, and not give back to the community. The overall "Bonus Point" mechanic still applies. Please update your posts with proper production documentation, most notably regarding whom you have collaborated with (as in: proper credits -- not doing so will result in a 2pt deduction on the score sheet at the end of the game). Please also make your entries downloadable, or provide an additional download link if not existing already. You got until the voting period has ended. Please cast your vote (not the feedback) in collective form through the "spoiler text" bbcode (button on the WYSIWYG editor that features the orange triangle with an exclamation mark in it). Please use the forum username of the participant to make it easier during the score collection to address what vote belongs to whom.

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⚠	Moderation Message from Mister Fox
	For transparency: The staff (Mister Fox) will not give feedback to all entries and/or cast a vote this month. (unless there is a tie that can not be broken otherwise)

Feedback from non-participants and/or collaborators is highly encouraged (voting not needed!). The same goes for entries after the deadline, or those that sadly do not count for the current running game (even if you've exceeded the deadline, why not post your entry regardless?). Musicians and Engineers are always after constructive criticism. This is what this forum is about.





Have some general feedback? Please provide that here:
Songwriting Competition - General Gossip Thread, or on Discord.



Please make sure your files are accessible, and please have an eye on this thread!




EDIT: 25-JUN-2024 0:15 - initial post
EDIT: 25-JUN-2024 6:45 - some stats updated, decided to pull @AuderMarr's entry into the game still

[Mister Fox]

Let us kick off the VOTING PROCESS, which will end on Monday, 01-JUL-2024 23:59 UTC+2/CEST latest


There is a GLOBAL COUNTDOWN to check for deadlines.
Just follow this link: Global Countdown (on homepage)


Here is the collection of productions from all participants (in hope that I didn't forget anyone). As usual, if you click on the small upwards-arrow right beside the quoted name, you can jump to the original post and read up on the documentation for this production.


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"Hands Up"

"Summer Dreams"

"Summer Dreams"



WAV: Google Drive playback and download

"Somni D'Estiu"

"Follow The Sky"

WAV: DropBox playback and download

"PEACE"



WAV: GoogleDrive playback and download

ADMIN INFO: entry on Soundcloud is set to private, "web player" can therefore not be used

"Golden Light"

"Black Forest Tropicana"

WAV: GoogleDrive playback and download

"Flamingo Sunset"

phpBB [media]

WAV: Google Drive playback and download
FLAC: Google Drive playback and download
MP3: Google Drive playback and download

ADMIN INFO: I decided to showcase the "Bonus Video" this month. I might change this again with SWC083.

"Sunset in the Garden"

WAV: GoogleDrive playback and download

"Lucid Sweltering Dreams"

MP3: GoogleDrive playback and download

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WITHDRAWN (not participating - feel free to give feedback, but you sadly can not vote for these entries)


<no withdrawn entries>
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BONUS ENTRIES (submitted after the deadline - feel free to give feedback, but you sadly can not vote for these entries)


<no bonus entries>
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GAME MECHANIC SUMMARY:

► Show Spoiler

Please consult this news blog post regarding an overhaul to the voting mechanic. To make it simple for me for counting the votes - please use the forum usernames in your listing. Thank you!

Please also consult the previous post that features a summary for this month's mechanic (see "Bonus Info" in the red colored box).
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This month's SWC participants giving feedback to each other is mandatory, it is the only criteria to drop out of the game by not partaking. Please also do not just collect feedback, and give nothing in return. The concept of the Songwriting Competition is interaction and "learning by doing". If you have collaborated with somebody, then only the one doing the main entry needs to give feedback and vote. Bonus feedback is always welcome. However, please be open minded, objective and constructive.


INFORMATION: If you have submitted your entry in multiple file formats, the statistic sheet (posted alongside the results) will focus on the uncompressed material first (WAV), then FLAC, then MP3. The higher the quality (e.g. lossless format), the less possible loss on bonus points for "Loudness Specs" due to offsets introduced by a used CODEC.

Good luck to all participants!




If you have an idea for a future Songwriting Competition, please post about this in the theme/genre request page or on Discord.


Post updated: 25-JUN-2024 7:20 UTC+2/CEST -- initial post