CURRENT CHALLENGE - GENERAL INFORMATION
Time Frame: Friday, 01st November 2019 to Sunday, 24th November 2019 (24 days)
Challenge submission will end on 24-11-2019, 11:59pm CET/GMT+1 (Germany) - until further notice.
Want to find out if you're still within the deadline, please consult the following options:
The
Global Countdown on it's dedicated page or the countdown on the
home page. You can also consult the World Clock at the top of the forum or alternatively the following tool - in this case please select "Berlin (Germany)" as location 1, and your location as location 2:
Time and Date - World Clock Meeting Planner. We do post reminders via our
Twitter account and
Facebook page.
SONGWRITING THEME: Symphony of Guitars
GENRE: Symphonic Metal
Image Source: Pixabay, photo by StockSnap, released under Creative Commons CC0
A few word about this month's theme:
Staff (Mister Fox) wrote:It is #MetalNovember !
We've had "Heavy Metal" songwriting games before, but we've never really locked in a specific genre. So why not dip a toe into "Symphonic Metal"? Which, IMO, is a great blend of either Power or Speed Metal, but with Folk/Orchestra/Opera elements. Which route you go, is up to you.
Your task for this Songwriting Competition:
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This month, you can create a production in the "Symphonic Metal" genre.
What I'd like to see here, is a focus on the "Symphonic" side of metal. That means, more melody and harmony lines, strings (either real ones or from a synthesizer), maybe even powerful vocals on top of everything (yes, those vocals can be growls/screams, or regular singing).
What I do not want to see here, is going experimental. Like "Avant-garde Metal" or "Industrial" metal. Like with every musical genre, certain lines are super thin. Some "Symphonic" content could be interpreted as "Progressive", while Power Metal with Speed Metal elements could just be considered "Speed Metal". Find your own rhythm... either let it sound like a big opera, but with guitars, or more upbeat in general.
I highly suggest taking a closer look at the cheat sheet - like usual.
Please have fun - I'm looking forward to your entries.
IMPORTANT BONUS INFORMATION:
With this SWC, I'd like to introduce
a new game mechanic - "additional bonus points". If you meet specific tasks at the end of the game, you get additional points to your overall score. These points can (in some cases) decide a certain position at the end of the global score sheet.
The main idea behind these bonus points, is to raise the quality of the game a bit, push the interaction. As of this moment, there are only two (number: 2) extra points to be made. One for proper documentation of your production (1 pts), meaning: listing what instruments you used, what your idea behind the production was and even vocals. And an additional one for giving more detailed feedback (1 pts), think: I like this section, however you could maybe try this/that or focus on this/that instrument, etc.
In the future, there might be more bonus points to collect - depending on how well this new mechanic is received. However, two points are already a good start, which can already drastically influence the final score.
Songwriting Add-On Rules:
- Create a production in the "Symphonic Metal" genre
- you can use any tool that is at your disposal (samples, virtual instruments and/or real instruments)
- IMPORTANT: if you use non-licensed material (no material from sample CDs, etc), give full credit to the source material
- It is recommended to not go higher than -14LUFS SLk (avg) or K-12v1 (avg) in terms of perceived loudness. Music doesn't have to be squashed to bits in order to be impactful
- for newcomers: no cover versions or remixes
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Please
take note of the official rules - they can be found at the following thread:
Songwriting Competition - Official Rules and Guidelines
Please address any OT question in the official Gossip thread:
Songwriting Competition - Gossip and Discussion
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SPONSORS (Prizes):
Prizes for Songwriting Challenge participants:
Note: All licenses are NFR (Not-For-Resale), except where noted.
Changes to available prices on short notice may be possible and will be announced separately.
RECURRING LICENSE SPONSORSHIP:
IK Multimedia is kind enough give away one license of MODO BASS to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on IK Multimedia:
https://www.ikmultimedia.com
Tone2 is kind enough to donate a license of
Saurus2 to the winner (until further notice)
License will turn into NFR
More info on Tone2:
https://tone2.com
kv331 audio is kind enough give away a bundle of either SynthMaster 1+2 Bundle, or a freely selectable set of 3 SynthMaster Expansions
License will not turn into NFR, you need to have a kv311 audio user account in order to pick up Expansions
More info on kv331 audio:
https://www.kv331audio.com
JRR Sounds is kind enough give away any-1 sound sets or sample set of winner's choice (
exception: Bundles)
More info on JRR Sounds:
https://www.jrrshop.com/jrr-sounds
Luftrum is kind enough give away either a license of Lunaris, or any 2 sound sets of winner's choice (
exception: Bundles and Nano Electronics)
License will turn into NFR
More info on Luftrum:
http://www.luftrum.com
Rekkerd Sounds is kind enough give away 1 sound set of winners choice (
exception: Krezie EDM and Neurofunk Vol. 1)
License will turn into NFR
More info on Rekkerd Sounds:
http://sounds.rekkerd.org/
Ghostwave Audio (Vincent Bastiat) is kind enough to donate any 2 sound sets to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on Ghostwave Audio:
http://ghostwaveaudio.com
Hollow Sun is kind to donate one license of "Music Laboratory Machines - The Suite I" to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on Hollow Sun:
http://www.hollowsun.com
Hornet Plugins is kind enough give away one license from the depicted tools (see image) to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on Hornet Plugins:
http://www.hornetplugins.com
Sound / Graphic Designer, and honorary Mix Challenge staff
satYatunes is donating one commercial product of winner's choice (until further notice)
More info on satYatune's page:
http://www.satyatunes.com/
THANKS FOR THE DONATIONS!
And also a thank you to all former contributors as well.
If you want to sponsor content (please have a focus on instruments, samples and sound sets), please get in touch with the Mix Challenge staff.
Please spread the word of the challenge on social media.
For example with our dedicated
Twitter Account or
Facebook Page
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Good luck to all participants.
And most importantly, have fun!