Kara-Moon Forum

I was so deeply touched by Julie Fowlis's music,that I wrote a song in honor of her wonderful artistry.
It's a contemporary piece,with a merging of ska,celtic & waltz style beat thrown in intermittenly.
Her music changed me forever,as I'll never be the same....I am smitten with a depth you cannot measure and I am haunted by dreams of lush green pastures & alabaster women. :D

This is an interesting mixture of different elements, and still, it hangs together well.
Very creative  8)

k

Sounds like a lot of thought went into this one!

There are three distinct component parts which work together remarkably well.
To further integrate these segments, consider re-working the bass and percussion in the part that introduces the song. It tends to come off a bit "high octane :D". Half the number of "hits" would provide a less busy rhythm line, and help the song flow more naturally...

A great crossover of different styles and genres, very cohesive and meaningful transitions make it good for me
good melodies (catchy)
Very original composition  :;

Cheers

The beginning bit lasts too long for my taste..unchanging and doesn't
pique my interest..

..then @ :57 the piece explodes with incredible soaring beauty.

8)

Wyatt

Kara,

Since the Capitol City Pipes & Drums project was a complete bust,I decided to take some of my material from that project and weave it into my own song-hence the different elements. :)
The whole premis behind Julie Fowlis's work,is to take ancient celtic music & make it more upbeat-something you could dance to,as she says.
I wanted to take it a step further,by increasing the dance factor. >:D

Thanks for your compliments. 8)

Thom

Oren,

I will probably add more time to the song,by introducing a entire new intro,in addition to what currently exists,but I'm not going to change what's there now,because I like the energy of it. >:D

Thanks for the feedback. 8)

Thom

L.R.,

Thanks for the interesting & nice review. 8)

Thom

Wyatt,

As I mentioned to Oren,I probably insert a new intro just behind the existing material & maybe it will be hold your interest. :)

Glad you like the rest of it as much as you do....thanks! 8)

Thom

The intro is good material, but it doesn't change at all for nearly a minute.

Whatever you do will nail it..it's not like it needs much.


Thom..the song is absolutely phenomenal.

That is the only reason I made mention of the intro in the first place.

Julie would love this one.

8)

Wyatt

Huge potential in this piece. But, I'm with kara ... too many notes :)

I  think you may be trying to echo Julie's rapid-fire lyrics in the intro of the song. But, remember that when she is doing these fast lyrics:

 - she is soft in voice and tone,
 - there is calming set of instruments doing the background.

So, I think that if you tone down the number of hits for the drum parts, or even cut the volume, and put some kind of a sustained harmony in the background the piece would tie together better.

Mind you, this is just for my ears. And they are not very contemporary ears!

Best,

I think I more or less agree with the others here. To me everything fits except the very fast stuff. Halve the hit rate and I think it will be much better.

 :-\
A few comments here, Thom.
As a fan of celtic/scottish music I'm finding this piece a little worrying.
I can see where you are trying to go with this but have some reservations about what is actually being achieved.
Positives are the beautiful theme which introduces at 00.23 til 00.33 then again at 00.57 and 1.55. This should be the stronghold of the piece. The other development of the theme at 1.07 is also a well constructed part but needs a less strident instrument sound. The final high spot is the outgoing piano section at 2.15.
Negatives....I have to agree with the others that the *ska* influence actually detracts from the composition. If you do have to include this part I would, again, suggest less hits and a more *legato* style.
I'm sorry if my criticism seems negative overall, but I do hold your talent in high esteem and truly feel that this piece does not do you justice, my friend.
I do love the bass and plucked harp sounds.

 8) All just my personal opinion, of course.  :D
 ;)
James

Wyatt,

I very flattered that you regard this song as phenominal-appreciate that. 8)

I think altering the intro is a good idea,but I'm not decided on exactly what I'll do with it as of yet.
I don't know if Julie would like this one,but it's a nice thought. :D

Thanks,

Thom

bvdp,

I appreciate the feedback & I welcome your input,but your misreading my reasons for why I did this song the way I did.
In fact,I don't know why you are reading into things the way you are,as I am not trying to emulate Julie Fowlis's music,nor am I writing music for her to sing to. ??? ;D
Introducing ska into the mix is against the rules,but sometimes breaking rules are fun & I want people to shake thier bootay to this groove-ya dig? >:D ;D

Thanks for listening,

Thom

Will,

Sorry to offend you pallet,but I'm perversely drawn to the ska element in this song!
 >:D :o ;D

Thom

James,

I hold you in high regard as well,so any & all of your opinions are of course,welcomed.
I know & respect your love for celtic music & you being a completely organic musician,I can completely understand your distaste for the direction I've taken this piece into.
However though,the ska theme was deliberate & pre-meditated and I enjoy the contrasts between the infusion of the different genres.
The type of ska I used is known as "Third Wave Ska",which is an infusion of Jamaican Ska,American & British 2-Tone(which is a medley of punk rock & pop),so that being said,I am not willing to change the notation of the percussion track.

From a technical standpoint,the bpm's have never changed,because the entire song remains at 170 bpm's,so if you were to dance to this song,you really don't have to break your stride and that's the underlying theme to this song.

As Issac Hayes once said,"I broke the laws of music by introducing a unconventional element,but I figured that if I could hear it in my head,then I must be able to play it".
Musicians have been deviating from traditional genres for at least 50 years and on one side of the fence,I may be irritating to some ears,but on the other side,I just might be able to grab the attention of some of this generation,that would otherwise never have a interest in celtic music.

Understand though,that I would never want to see Julie Fowlis go in this direction,because she has done such a wonderful job at ressurecting an ancient style of Scottish music & making it her own.

When I see a band live,I much prefer a full piece band with little or no electronic instruments.

Who knows,I just may at some point,come up with an entirely new version of this song-in the style you suggested....in fact,if you would like to do a collab in making a more organic version of this,I am certainly up for that friend. 8)

Also,I'd give you free reign in taking this song in whatever direction you see fit-two versions are better than one. :D

Thanks for listening,

Thom

Thom, you have done a fantastic job of perfectly blending three totally different genres of music into one extremely good piece of music. Great job on the continuity and flow of this!

I do agree with the intro.  I think you should just cut the length of it in half.  But that is just me.

A very intricate piece of music expertly played!

Mario,

I'll definately reconstruct the beginning somehow,but I won't shorten,as I think the song may become too brief.

Thanks very much for your compliments. 8)

Thom