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Old 07-24-2020, 02:29 PM   #161
Galadriel55
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Originally Posted by Huinesoron View Post
Any preferences? I lean towards 'honour', because 'gratitude' sounds a bit too much like Beren saved him.
Sure! I like both. So honour it is.

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Originally Posted by Hui
Phone microphones are pretty good nowadays; until work saddled me with a headset my phone was far and away my best recording device. If you wear headphones and just record the vocals, then as long as there's not too much background (computer fans are literally the worst for this), I can probably splice the vocals and music together nicely.
The other 2 times I did this was manh years ago, and I recorded it playing from my laptop on my laptop, and the sound quality really went down. I am hoping the phone will be better.

The other part of it is that I can record myself sing simultaneously with the music. However, that does mean I need to sing all the parts myself (and I was writing Melian's lines with that in mind, putting them without overlap on Thingol's). But if you volunteer to do Thingol, I an try to record music and voice separately, and if you prefer can even change the notes to make them like they sing in V2 with Melian starting on the same beat as Thingol finishes. That would probanly be another day of work though, the shoft would be a slow process.

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Originally Posted by Hui
Because, y'know, 'what if we made this more elaborate?' has kind of been the theme of this project...
^.^
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Old 07-24-2020, 03:34 PM   #162
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The other 2 times I did this was manh years ago, and I recorded it playing from my laptop on my laptop, and the sound quality really went down. I am hoping the phone will be better.
There are a couple of options for recording direct from your computer, without needing to run it through the speakers. But I was assuming any music software would let you output an audio file of some description?

(Alternately, if you can export the sheet music as a MusicXML (xml / mxl), MIDI, or .mscz file, I've got a website that should be able to play it back for me to re-record.)

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The other part of it is that I can record myself sing simultaneously with the music. However, that does mean I need to sing all the parts myself (and I was writing Melian's lines with that in mind, putting them without overlap on Thingol's). But if you volunteer to do Thingol, I an try to record music and voice separately, and if you prefer can even change the notes to make them like they sing in V2 with Melian starting on the same beat as Thingol finishes. That would probanly be another day of work though, the shoft would be a slow process.
I volunteer as Thingol. But no need to muck about with the overlap, unless you think it sounds spectacularly better. And in fact, the website in question should let me/you shift things around relatively painlessly (ie, cut/paste)... I'm looking at Flat.io, if you're interested.

So yeah, the ideal situation from my perspective would be two files:

-Audio of the music, output by the software without running through a microphone.
-Recording of you singing, probably into a phone.

Then I can add some suitably comedic Thingolling and splice it all together.

(I realise I'm probably teaching grandmother to suck eggses, but I'm tired and a bit vague on what you have available, so.)

hS
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Old 07-24-2020, 04:54 PM   #163
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Oh, that site looks pretty good. I might give it a try for the next one (yes, I just said that... ^.^) Sadly I can't work on this from my phone at all, and need to wait to get home and at the computer to do anything. But I don't have that much left to do, and I am hoping to try the recording tomorrow.

PS: grandmothers might know how to suck eggses, but they don't know how to press computer buttons! The only techy thing I mastered without anyone teaching me step by step is how to do cool animation combos on powerpoint. I need to be spoonfed pretty much everything else.
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Old 07-25-2020, 11:56 AM   #164
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Update: I finished the music in Finale (which is the program I use). I have failed to figure out any workable method of recording it from the device. However, I figured out how to import it into Flat.io - which I believe means that we can share the document via Google accounts. The bad news is that 1) Flat uses very different instrument timbres than Finale, 2) all the "volume" instructions somehow failed to translate and the whole song just plays at maximum volume the entire time, and 3) the programs both play robotically but in different ways and therefore need different "instructions" to compensate for it. In combination, this means that the notes are there but I will need to redo most of the articulation before it's presentable again.

Overall I think Flat is more advanced than Finale. It has some features that Finale doesn't. But it also doesn't have some things, like the ability to just put a line of text where you need to without making it into lyrics or annotation.

I'll send you the link by PM which I believe will enable you to edit/play/do whatever.



Edit: Here is what's happening right now.

G55: so you play quietly here.
Flat: fortissimo? (=ear-splittingly loud)
G55: no, very quietly.
Flat: so, fortissimo.
G55: and you get quieter and quieter until you fade out.
Flat: so basically keep playing as loudly as you can?


Yeah, this is not working out very well. I am downloading Audacity (what your link suggested) to see if I can record what I had on Finale from there.



Edit 2: Hurray! It is now in mp3 form. Now gotta figure out how to pass that onto you...



Edit 3: hopefully final update for the time being. I can now record audio from my computer, which is very good, and means that the process will be much easier for the future, and it's not too much work to make adjustments and re-record. Unfortunately it doesn't look like I can record Melian's part today, because indoors my housemates are doing some renovations and outdoors there's a pool party next door. I will wait for a quieter time to record, and once I have that I will probably send it to you by the same means - unless you have a better suggestion.

With regards to the music, do let me know which places should be adjusted. For anything. Too loud, too quiet, too pointy, too calm, too dull, too sad, etc. It will be a much faster fix than the slow process to this point. I struggled a bit with getting Thingol's part to sound alive, because a program is a program and will play all notes flat and steady to the exact duration as is specified, and I ended up having to give a LOT of instructions for him. He used to sound like a dying swan at first, but I think now there's a bit more character to the music. Tell me what you think - especially for his quest to Angband lines, because I had a hard time choosing which mood to go for with that stanza.
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Old 07-25-2020, 01:37 PM   #165
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Edit 3: hopefully final update for the time being. I can now record audio from my computer, which is very good, and means that the process will be much easier for the future, and it's not too much work to make adjustments and re-record. Unfortunately it doesn't look like I can record Melian's part today, because indoors my housemates are doing some renovations and outdoors there's a pool party next door. I will wait for a quieter time to record, and once I have that I will probably send it to you by the same means - unless you have a better suggestion.

With regards to the music, do let me know which places should be adjusted. For anything. Too loud, too quiet, too pointy, too calm, too dull, too sad, etc. It will be a much faster fix than the slow process to this point. I struggled a bit with getting Thingol's part to sound alive, because a program is a program and will play all notes flat and steady to the exact duration as is specified, and I ended up having to give a LOT of instructions for him. He used to sound like a dying swan at first, but I think now there's a bit more character to the music. Tell me what you think - especially for his quest to Angband lines, because I had a hard time choosing which mood to go for with that stanza.
Wahoo! That was really good. Bombastic trumpets may not work in many places in the musical, but they are so Thingol. I'm really genuinely impressed!

I've rushed a recording of me singing along over via PM; Audacity was very accomodating, and unlike previous microphones this one doesn't hate high or loud noises. Since I'm about halfway through my Cunning Plan for the visuals, if you send me just your vocals I can splice it all together and muck around with left-right balance and whatever else springs to mind.

hS
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Old 07-25-2020, 02:07 PM   #166
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Wahoo! That was really good. Bombastic trumpets may not work in many places in the musical, but they are so Thingol. I'm really genuinely impressed!

I've rushed a recording of me singing along over via PM; Audacity was very accomodating, and unlike previous microphones this one doesn't hate high or loud noises. Since I'm about halfway through my Cunning Plan for the visuals, if you send me just your vocals I can splice it all together and muck around with left-right balance and whatever else springs to mind.

hS
Ha! That's fabulous! And very quick too. I am not as fast on my end of things.

I realized too that we're again singing certain parts completely differently, but it seems to still work. I hope I didn't mess what you had with "beloved daughter" though with my rhythm suggestions, as that sounded different when I was singing in my head. I'm happy if you're happy - I'm sorry if I've caused confusion though.

Am still hoping to do Melian today, will shoot you a PM once I have it done.
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Old 07-25-2020, 02:10 PM   #167
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Ha! That's fabulous! And very quick too. I am not as fast on my end of things.

I realized too that we're again singing certain parts completely differently, but it seems to still work. I hope I didn't mess what you had with "beloved daughter" though with my rhythm suggestions, as that sounded different when I was singing in my head. I'm happy if you're happy - I'm sorry if I've caused confusion though.
That line's always been a tricky one. I don't think I've actually shifted that bit, just put a few extra syllables in after it. (I think I may have fumbled it on the recording, so I may rerecord that verse anyway.)

hS
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Old 07-25-2020, 02:59 PM   #168
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Two versions of Melian sent, and PM box cleared. I am so excited to see what visuals you came up with...

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Originally Posted by Huinesoron View Post
That line's always been a tricky one. I don't think I've actually shifted that bit, just put a few extra syllables in after it. (I think I may have fumbled it on the recording, so I may rerecord that verse anyway.)

hS
Yeah... I was reading it as "WITH my BElov'd DAUGHter (slower) AND with MY dear WIFE". But you read the E in beloved, which means that all my comments about how the rhythm and whatnot go are again misplaced, though well-meant. Do whatever feels more comfortable when you sing it, and maybe stop listening to me when I tell you the scansion is wrong.

But on a different note (pun totally intended) - is there any piece that you would like to do next?



PS: I doubt I'll be using Flat.io, but just in case I still shared the file with you (properly this time).

PPS: Listening to recording again... "hero absurd" and "what a nerve!" are perfect, very Thingol!
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Old 07-25-2020, 07:27 PM   #169
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I finally figured out (most of) the Duel! Still can't hear what Sauron's opening lines are, and having a surprising amount of trouble with the start of Finrod's final ABAB (what I have right now is not quite right). But I have the bulk of it down, and matching the chords in the Russian Libretto! It was a matter of trial and error and a bunch of brute force, stamping out sharps and flats left and right to make the melody fit. I have no idea anymore in what key Sauron is singing. But it fits! I am just impressed at the level of musical complexity they have in this piece, they were really knowing what they were doing composing this song. Fortunately no one has to see my score which is full of "grammatical errors" from a musical theory perspective. Now I just have to make a nice-sounding accompaniment out of it.

There is a rhythmical oopsy-daisy just before Finrod's final ABAB, it will be fixed in the good draft. What do you think of the tempo? Finale is limited in how much it can slow down/speed up during the song, so I need a good base tempo for this. I think a tad quicker than what it is right now will be good. Also, I'm thinking I'll keep the piano and trumpet ("Strength to counter you" can do well with a trumpet backup), but should I add any other instruments? This will need a brief ponder. [Edit: the pros of adding other instruments is cooler music, but the cons are I won't be able to play it even theoretically. But since I don't need to play it in person for the instrumental to work... After re-watching Pierrot!Finrod's Duel, I am thinking either a flute or clarinet, and maybe a baritone to serve as a lower brass. This can be really nice, I hope I don't screw this up...]


I will keep working on the Duel in the background, but you get to pick the next piece!
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Old 07-26-2020, 04:09 PM   #170
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Sadly I haven't had a chance to listen to the Duel, but I'll try to tomorrow. Don't expect much useful out of me, though! I played the keyboard until age 16 or so, and that's about it.

By the same token, I'll abstain from picking the next song, because I have no idea which ones are going to be easy to score and which will be nightmares. You score it, I'll sing it.

Speaking of singing:

1/ I've managed to persuade my wife to sing Amarie for us (she's got about the right range). We're not sure when she'll have a chance to actually record, so there's no rush on the score for those songs.

2/ Who do you want to voice? With the discussion of the Duel I had in my head that you wanted to sing Finrod, but I think I made that up. Not that you even need to pick now, but I'm an inveterate planner.

~

In other news... I took your vocals, spliced them into the song, spent an evening finishing up the visuals, and, well...

The Duet of Thingol and Melian

With a visual concept which is relatively simple to work with, and allows me to reuse a lot of the work for later songs. Comments and tweaks are absolutely welcome - it's an Unlisted video for now, specifically because it may need tweaking.

hS

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Old 07-26-2020, 05:35 PM   #171
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I shamelessly snuck into the changeroom at work to look at the video, I couldn't wait a couple hours till I got home. I love the visuals!!! Melian looks like a portrait. Did you do all that by hand (well, computer, but yourself)? It is very impressive.

I could only listen to the video very quietly, I was barely catching the sound. I thought there were a couple moments when the singing lagged behind the music, but with the volume I can't be sure, I need to relisten at home. But holy bananas, we have a whole song!

... I feel though that unless I sing my voice into shape or something, I am doing very poor justice to Melian. You know who we need? We need Greenie and Nogrod. They are fabulous singers. We need to get them on the case too. *shouts* Greeeeniiiieee! Nooooogrooood!

Btw, do you think putting subtitles would be helpful?


A quick response to the rest:

0/ don't bother listening to it yet, it's just the backbone I will use as the template. I was just super excited about cracking the code.

0.1/ Anything can be scored, with enough persistance - or creativity. So don't let that stop you. If I am stuck, I will let you know.

1/ Any preference for Wind vs Heart? If it is not a rush, I will do it after the Duel, but that may mean it will only be ready by end of next week. I will bump it up if that is more convenient.

2/ TBH, I wanna do both for funsies, cause they are both so fun to sing. ^.^ But for the real thing, I would be down with whatever - it probably makes more sense for me to do Finrod, eh? Neither of us will be able to pull off Sauron's deep voice, but hey, we can pull off a Sauron.
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Old 07-27-2020, 04:03 AM   #172
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I shamelessly snuck into the changeroom at work to look at the video, I couldn't wait a couple hours till I got home. I love the visuals!!! Melian looks like a portrait. Did you do all that by hand (well, computer, but yourself)? It is very impressive.
Thank you! The portraits and Doriath were sketched by hand and gone over/coloured by computer; the emblems were done straight on the computer (based, obviously, on Tolkien's, though I've allowed the Finrod-Zong logo to colour his a little). I'm pleased it worked! The good part is that I can now use Beren and Luthien for any of their songs, without having to draw them again. (Their Meeting, in fact, wouldn't need any more art done at all!)

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I could only listen to the video very quietly, I was barely catching the sound. I thought there were a couple moments when the singing lagged behind the music, but with the volume I can't be sure, I need to relisten at home. But holy bananas, we have a whole song!
Ehm. Probably. This is a combination of me missing my cue at least once, and one of the tracks I used for you being shifted slightly (sorry!). I can tweak those later, I think.

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You know who we need? We need Greenie and Nogrod. They are fabulous singers. We need to get them on the case too. *shouts* Greeeeniiiieee! Nooooogrooood!
More singers?! Then you don't want me to try and do a duet with myself as Celegorm and Curufin? :O And then interrupt myself as Thingol, come to think of it...

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Originally Posted by Galadriel55 View Post
Btw, do you think putting subtitles would be helpful?
Oh yeah, those... ^_^ Done them now.

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0/ don't bother listening to it yet, it's just the backbone I will use as the template. I was just super excited about cracking the code.
Youcan'ttellmewhattodo. Goodness, Sauron's Dirge is really quite creepy. I think I agree that we need a change of instrument for Finrod; woodwinds would work quite well, I think?

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0.1/ Anything can be scored, with enough persistance - or creativity. So don't let that stop you. If I am stuck, I will let you know.
Well... if you're playing Finrod, the Prison Duet would be singable? I'm wary of doing anything with Cel'n'Cur, because if any other singers show up separating them is priority 1.

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1/ Any preference for Wind vs Heart? If it is not a rush, I will do it after the Duel, but that may mean it will only be ready by end of next week. I will bump it up if that is more convenient.
No preferences! Are we doing Heart as a solo, or as a duet per the Russian Libretto? (Or do I get her to record the whole thing and see whether it works that way?)

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2/ TBH, I wanna do both for funsies, cause they are both so fun to sing. ^.^ But for the real thing, I would be down with whatever - it probably makes more sense for me to do Finrod, eh? Neither of us will be able to pull off Sauron's deep voice, but hey, we can pull off a Sauron.
There's nothing preventing us doing Appendix C versions of the recordings as well. ^_^ Sauron shouldn't actually be a problem - I can use Audacity to just drop my voice an octave. Of course, before we do anything with Sauron, I need to decide how to draw him: Rock God, or Bat Crown? (The single-use Normal Crown and Bare Head versions from V1 can probably be skipped.)

(Finrod, meanwhile, is just going to be Blond V1 Finrod. That may have been obvious. ^_^)

hS
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Old 07-27-2020, 05:04 AM   #173
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Thank you! The portraits and Doriath were sketched by hand and gone over/coloured by computer; the emblems were done straight on the computer (based, obviously, on Tolkien's, though I've allowed the Finrod-Zong logo to colour his a little). I'm pleased it worked! The good part is that I can now use Beren and Luthien for any of their songs, without having to draw them again. (Their Meeting, in fact, wouldn't need any more art done at all!)
Is that a hint?

But yeah, very very cool art!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hui
Ehm. Probably. This is a combination of me missing my cue at least once, and one of the tracks I used for you being shifted slightly (sorry!). I can tweak those later, I think.
I listened to it at home again - it's Melian's lines. They are coming in slightly late. Your lines sound fine.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hui
More singers?! Then you don't want me to try and do a duet with myself as Celegorm and Curufin? :O And then interrupt myself as Thingol, come to think of it...
Well... A little split personality never hurt anyone...

But in all seriousness, what do you think about getting more people involved?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hui
Youcan'ttellmewhattodo. Goodness, Sauron's Dirge is really quite creepy. I think I agree that we need a change of instrument for Finrod; woodwinds would work quite well, I think?
Progress Report. Sorry, not much to report, I only did one stanza so far. Maybe I am just trigger happy about my newfound techy recording skills.

I started out channeling Bat-Sauron, and even did his intro (which, btw, if you don't like can be easily changed to a non-V1 intro). But then shifted to Rock God. Then to some screaming-souls-in-the-dungeon Sauron. I think it works.

Only point of significance is that I shifted the ending a bit to make if "FEanor!" rather than "FeaNOR" (unless I am actually not pronouncing my Elvish correctly in English, in which case I will shift it back). The only consequence of this will be a more dramatic pause between that and Finrod's opening, which I think works well anyways.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hui
Well... if you're playing Finrod, the Prison Duet would be singable? I'm wary of doing anything with Cel'n'Cur, because if any other singers show up separating them is priority 1.
Alright, I got Amarie, and Prison Duet. Mind you, at the pace I am currently going, it will probably take me weeks to get through this. Therefore, whatever song you want done sooner will get prioritized from that list.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hui
No preferences! Are we doing Heart as a solo, or as a duet per the Russian Libretto? (Or do I get her to record the whole thing and see whether it works that way?)
Would my judgement be biased if my reasoning is based on wanting to hear you duet with Mrs. Hui? :P Logistically, they are both viable options. I am not sure.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hui
There's nothing preventing us doing Appendix C versions of the recordings as well. ^_^ Sauron shouldn't actually be a problem - I can use Audacity to just drop my voice an octave.
...

You can do that? o.o

Well, of course you can do that. I know people do it all the time on Youtube. It just never occurred to me that we could do it. (And not sound like Darth Vader).

In that case, would you be able to drop my voice an octave for CelNCur?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hui
Of course, before we do anything with Sauron, I need to decide how to draw him: Rock God, or Bat Crown? (The single-use Normal Crown and Bare Head versions from V1 can probably be skipped.)
For myself, my heart was forever conquered by V1's Fallen Angel appearance. I can see the appeal of Rock God as Sauron, but maybe not the face part of him. :P

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hui
(Finrod, meanwhile, is just going to be Blond V1 Finrod. That may have been obvious. ^_^)
You're the boss! ;-) To be honest, I think the perfect Finrod look would be taking Pierrot's costume (and mannerisms - I'm sorry, I still can't love Jareth), but do something about his hair. But as I said, you're the boss! Besides, you're just taking his face, right? So it makes sense to do a blond Finrod.
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Old 07-27-2020, 06:15 AM   #174
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I listened to it at home again - it's Melian's lines. They are coming in slightly late. Your lines sound fine.
I'll take a look tonight and try and synch it up a bit better. Shouldn't be too tricky.

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But in all seriousness, what do you think about getting more people involved?
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Would my judgement be biased if my reasoning is based on wanting to hear you duet with Mrs. Hui? :P Logistically, they are both viable options. I am not sure.
It sounds good to me! In a hypothetical perfect world I would love to sing Finrod, but there are probably better voices for the job than me. If anyone else wants to join up, I'd be delighted.

... it occurs to me that if you sang Sauron and I pushed your voice down just right, we could wind up with a really otherworldly effect. I'll have to check that; I've mostly shifted voices just a little, not by full octaves.

EDIT: Hypothetical male vocals list:

-Thingol: me being bombastic.
-Sauron: you, downshifted a couple of octaves.
-Finrod: me, normal voice.
-Celegorm: you, down one octave.
-Curufin: Third party.
-Beren: Third party.
-Chorus: Anyone who wants to sing it.

I think we need Beren to be a different vocalist to Finrod, for certain (all those duets!); everything else is subject to juggling around. If we don't have someone else:

-Thingol, Sauron, Curufin, Beren: me.
-Finrod, Celegorm: you (shifted for Celegorm).

(Basically I'm trying to avoid clashes in the duets: Finrod-Beren and Beren-Luthien need to be kept distinct.)

EDIT EDIT: Of course, if we're looking for a third-party Beren, then doing the Prison Duet would maybe not be the best plan, because we don't have both vocalists... :-/ See, this is one of the reasons I said I didn't know what you should work on next!

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Progress Report. Sorry, not much to report, I only did one stanza so far. Maybe I am just trigger happy about my newfound techy recording skills.
It's creepy! In a good way.

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Only point of significance is that I shifted the ending a bit to make if "FEanor!" rather than "FeaNOR" (unless I am actually not pronouncing my Elvish correctly in English, in which case I will shift it back). The only consequence of this will be a more dramatic pause between that and Finrod's opening, which I think works well anyways.
Um. That's a bit of a question. In Quenya, his name would be 'fe-a-NAR-o', so would the Sindarised form be 'fe-a-NOR' to match, or would the emphasis move? I don't really know. I say 'FAY-a-nor', I think. ('ay' for E I'm almost sure is correct; the 'ee' sound is I, as in 'GaladrEE-el'.

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Alright, I got Amarie, and Prison Duet. Mind you, at the pace I am currently going, it will probably take me weeks to get through this. Therefore, whatever song you want done sooner will get prioritized from that list.
You and I are both more likely to find recording time than my wife is.

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In that case, would you be able to drop my voice an octave for CelNCur?
Should be!

hS

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Old 07-27-2020, 11:15 AM   #175
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Um. That's a bit of a question. In Quenya, his name would be 'fe-a-NAR-o', so would the Sindarised form be 'fe-a-NOR' to match, or would the emphasis move? I don't really know. I say 'FAY-a-nor', I think. ('ay' for E I'm almost sure is correct; the 'ee' sound is I, as in 'GaladrEE-el'.
I say FAY-a-nor as well, and I feel like that just falls more naturally. So I'll keep the emphasis that way for now, and can always move it back to fay-a-NOR if there is good reason to do so.


With regards to planning and voices and stuff... Ugh. How about I will reach out to our musical Downers and see if I can convert them. For the time being, I will keep working on the Duel, and we can record it any which way we like, because who cares if our voices don't always match up, this is not a full musical yet. And if other people join and we desire more consistency among the singers, we can do a take 2. That should give us enough time to figure out what song to start next.
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Old 07-27-2020, 11:30 AM   #176
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With regards to planning and voices and stuff... Ugh. How about I will reach out to our musical Downers and see if I can convert them. For the time being, I will keep working on the Duel, and we can record it any which way we like, because who cares if our voices don't always match up, this is not a full musical yet. And if other people join and we desire more consistency among the singers, we can do a take 2. That should give us enough time to figure out what song to start next.
Please do! But you're absolutely right, this doesn't have to be perfect. Even if Take 2 never happens, that's no reason to put off Take 1 indefinitely. Switching to different vocals is pretty easy - just record them, line the timing up, and swap the audio track on the video. (I was going to look at the vocal synching, wasn't I? On that next...)

~

For the graphics, I've run into literally the minorest moral qualm. My thought process when using Tolkien's heraldic devices was that pretty much everyone in the musical has one, so I wouldn't have to invent any. There was Galadriel, but she could just use Finarfin's.

Well... a) Galadriel, as a woman, needs a round device, and b) oh yeah, Amarie.

So I've had to design a couple of add-ons to the heraldic collection. At top we have the canonical Finarfin and Melian; below are my Galadriel and Amarie.



I don't feel any qualms about Galadriel - given that we know Finrod used his father's device, this is essentially what she would have used once she was head of House Finarfin in Middle-earth (which, given the absence of Orodreth in the musical, she is for both her songs). For Amarie, I've tried to draw from Finarfin's emblem (to symbolise the relationship), but also to evoke a Flower of Laurelin. Melian's device is theorised to be a Flower of Telperion, so I've taken a lot of hints from it. (Since the Sun is a Fruit of Laurelin, this means Amarie's device is a totally lost incarnation of the Light; it seemed appropriate.)

The question is, then: is this okay? I mean, yes, obviously, but should I feel bad about doing it? And also: does it actually look good, or should I work on it some more?

EDIT: Video with adjusted timing (& a rerecorded first stanza by me).

hS

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Old 07-27-2020, 12:02 PM   #177
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I don't feel any qualms about Galadriel - given that we know Finrod used his father's device, this is essentially what she would have used once she was head of House Finarfin in Middle-earth (which, given the absence of Orodreth in the musical, she is for both her songs).
In the Russian lyrics she even calls Finrod her "only brother" - like the other 3 didn't exist. But you're right, even if they do exist, she is the last one standing, and the only one standing for the LOTR departure (seriously... everyone else in the musical and in fact almost everyone in The Sil doesn't make it to LOTR). So she has full right to use Finarfin's device, both by "leadership" and just by kinship alone.


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Originally Posted by Hui
The question is, then: is this okay? I mean, yes, obviously, but should I feel bad about doing it? And also: does it actually look good, or should I work on it some more?
1. Yes, it is ok - much more than just ok!
2. No, you should absolutely not feel bad doing it.
3. It looks fantastic! I glanced at it before I read the explanation, and I had an association with, I don't know what exactly, but I think "radiant" is the closest word. It's very Vanyar, and very Laurelin. After reading the explanation I can see the parallel to Melian's Telperion. It's a very fitting symbolism, and it looks exactly how it's supposed to!



An edit for an edit: That sounds a lot better! I feel like it's still a touch off, especially on "oh my husband dear", but it is much better aligned.

Now, time for me to do some composing, or I will never get started on Finrod's stanza.
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Old 07-27-2020, 06:47 PM   #178
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I made some progress today but got stuck on the ABAB. I couldn't get it to sound quite right on the sketch, but I was hoping that I will be enlightened in the process of composing. Vain hope.

But in the meantime, I have a question. Progress Report #2 (minus the ABAB, still under construction): do you think Finrod's part is too mellow? Does he need a bit more hardness? I wanna figure out this stanza before I move on to the next bit, in case I need to scrap some of the melody lines and redo them more boldly or something. I had this vision of Finrod intertwining different melodies into his tune and eventually converting the trumpet to his cause, but I think behind the musical symbolism I forgot what the end result is supposed to sound like. Is it too soft? Any other suggestions for the mood/style?


EDIT: what I could also do instead of scraping completely is transfer this whole piece over to the second stanza, where Finrod is less confrontational and has more blissful reminiscence, which can take a mellower and gentler approach. What do you think?

EDIT 2: Also, this is still a touch slower than they have in the musicals. Do you wanna leave it this way, or make it faster to match?
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Old 07-28-2020, 02:15 AM   #179
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I made some progress today but got stuck on the ABAB. I couldn't get it to sound quite right on the sketch, but I was hoping that I will be enlightened in the process of composing. Vain hope.
Well, it's perfectly singable over what you have in the Progress Report, if that helps.

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But in the meantime, I have a question. Progress Report #2 (minus the ABAB, still under construction): do you think Finrod's part is too mellow? Does he need a bit more hardness? I wanna figure out this stanza before I move on to the next bit, in case I need to scrap some of the melody lines and redo them more boldly or something. I had this vision of Finrod intertwining different melodies into his tune and eventually converting the trumpet to his cause, but I think behind the musical symbolism I forgot what the end result is supposed to sound like. Is it too soft? Any other suggestions for the mood/style?

EDIT: what I could also do instead of scraping completely is transfer this whole piece over to the second stanza, where Finrod is less confrontational and has more blissful reminiscence, which can take a mellower and gentler approach. What do you think?
I like the trumpet-conversion concept, particularly since it's followed immediately by Sauron reclaiming it to grind Finrod down. ^_^

As to the rest... well, I don't know! I've sung it a couple of times, and I like the way it builds in strength as Finrod's part goes on. There's nothing that makes me think it needs changing; isn't that pretty much how he sings it? So I'd say pick what you prefer. I've also sung it as verse 2, which also works.

Two specific lines that catch me out: I feel like the last chord on 'prophesying' is pitched wrong, though now that I've noticed it's a chord I guess that's their fault. I also think 'death-defying peaks' could do with a slightly longer first note, and a slightly shorter second & third (at the moment it sounds fairly regular, whereas I'm singing 'defying' quite quickly to allow a fractional pause after 'death').

But really, it's good! I might try and record it at lunchtime just for fun. ^_^

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EDIT 2: Also, this is still a touch slower than they have in the musicals. Do you wanna leave it this way, or make it faster to match?
Leave it unless it bothers you. I always slow songs down when I sing them anyway, so I hadn't even noticed. ^_^

hS
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Old 07-28-2020, 05:18 AM   #180
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Well, it's perfectly singable over what you have in the Progress Report, if that helps.
That's cause I conveniently skipped the parts that don't quite match up in my head.

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Originally Posted by Hui
As to the rest... well, I don't know! I've sung it a couple of times, and I like the way it builds in strength as Finrod's part goes on. There's nothing that makes me think it needs changing; isn't that pretty much how he sings it? So I'd say pick what you prefer. I've also sung it as verse 2, which also works.
Sounds good. I think I'm gonna keep it.

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Originally Posted by Hui
Two specific lines that catch me out: I feel like the last chord on 'prophesying' is pitched wrong, though now that I've noticed it's a chord I guess that's their fault. I also think 'death-defying peaks' could do with a slightly longer first note, and a slightly shorter second & third (at the moment it sounds fairly regular, whereas I'm singing 'defying' quite quickly to allow a fractional pause after 'death').
1. If it's the chord that falls on "sy" - that's cause the melody resolves into it only on "ing". That's how Finrod sings most of his melody, with a slight lag/overhand. But I agree this one is a bit jarring. I will play around with the chord to make it less noticeable.

2. "Death" is an easy fix. Done.

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But really, it's good! I might try and record it at lunchtime just for fun. ^_^
Please do! I would love to hear it!

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Originally Posted by Hui
Leave it unless it bothers you. I always slow songs down when I sing them anyway, so I hadn't even noticed. ^_^
I am the same, for this piece in particular. I feel more comfortable with this slower pace when I follow the English lyrics.
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Old 07-28-2020, 05:42 AM   #181
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A quick recording of Progress Two. In which can be seen:

-My attempt at differentiating the voices. (Sauron has a slight echo effect, but that's the only post-processing other than for volume.)

-That I'm unable to stick to a single pitch while singing Finrod.

I would prefer to use the pitch I had for the middle part, but I always drift high if I don't watch out. Actually, I think I'd rather use high - except that then I can't hit the higher notes.

(All of this will be rerecorded whatever happens; this was just a quick demo.)

hS
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Old 07-28-2020, 11:16 AM   #182
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Lovely!

I think the tempo works very well, it gives Sauron a chance to give full measure to his contempt.

Finrod - I know exactly what you mean! I also can't sing him as written, if I sing high I don't hit the high notes, and if I sing low I don't hit the low notes. I wqs thinking of shifting the piece down a few notes, that way the high notes won't be so high. I believe there is a button for that, but if not I will figure something out to make it realistically singable.
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Old 07-28-2020, 11:36 AM   #183
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Lovely!

I think the tempo works very well, it gives Sauron a chance to give full measure to his contempt.

Finrod - I know exactly what you mean! I also can't sing him as written, if I sing high I don't hit the high notes, and if I sing low I don't hit the low notes. I wqs thinking of shifting the piece down a few notes, that way the high notes won't be so high. I believe there is a button for that, but if not I will figure something out to make it realistically singable.
I think I can probably do it if I stick to the middle pitch, it's just a matter of keeping there. I'll give it another shot.

Meanwhile, here's a preview of what Finrod is singing about:



I have some sneaky graphical effects in mind to make full use of the layout; we shall see when we get there.

(This is of course Valinor in the 'present'; I wouldn't trust myself to draw the Trees, so I take license from the present tense of his song.)

EDIT: A rerecorded version of Progress Two.

I think I've gotten Finrod to stay on-pitch. Sauron too, though that was much easier. I've also done some fiddling with Sauron - I boosted the bass a little over the treble, added a mild echo, and then dropped the whole thing by one tone. I think it works okay? (An octave drop doesn't work on anything; all the details get smudged out.)

EDIT2: Finrod? Hopefully Finrod?



hS

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Old 07-28-2020, 03:34 PM   #184
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Meanwhile, here's a preview of what Finrod is singing about:
Hey! The land of mem'ry!

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Originally Posted by Hui
EDIT: A rerecorded version of Progress Two.

I think I've gotten Finrod to stay on-pitch. Sauron too, though that was much easier. I've also done some fiddling with Sauron - I boosted the bass a little over the treble, added a mild echo, and then dropped the whole thing by one tone. I think it works okay? (An octave drop doesn't work on anything; all the details get smudged out.)
Sauron sounds creepy. Nice and evil. Very Sauron. A question about dropping by one pitch - is that just the voice or the instrumental too?

Finrod I think wanders high a little bit in the beginning but found the melody on "no excuses now". I think you have a good range to sing him.

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EDIT2: Finrod? Hopefully Finrod?
Yay! Finrod!

Have you decided which image to go with for Sauron?
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Old 07-28-2020, 03:45 PM   #185
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Sauron sounds creepy. Nice and evil. Very Sauron. A question about dropping by one pitch - is that just the voice or the instrumental too?
Just the vocals. I figure I'm probably not singing on pitch anyway.

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Finrod I think wanders high a little bit in the beginning but found the melody on "no excuses now". I think you have a good range to sing him.
I'll get it right eventually, I swear...

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Yay! Finrod!

Have you decided which image to go with for Sauron?
Oh, it has to be Fallen Angel. It's just a matter of how well I can capture the image.

hS
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Old 07-28-2020, 04:13 PM   #186
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Just the vocals. I figure I'm probably not singing on pitch anyway.
Ah, that explains the "not sure if off-pitch or special effects" smudginess. But he sounds downright creepy! Whatever you did to the vocals, it really changed how they sound. Your voice seems to have lowered by more than just a pitch.

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Oh, it has to be Fallen Angel. It's just a matter of how well I can capture the image.
Happy Maia, sad Maia, little Maia bat...

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Old 07-29-2020, 08:54 PM   #187
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Daily update: I am in the middle of Finrod's second stanza. Remember the time I was complaining that translations were getting harder instead of easier? I think I reached that point of exhaustion with the music, which delayed me further, but I think I'm past the nadir now. Sauron's second stanza was hard! And still needs work. Ironically, musical inspiration failed me completely on Sauron's "How can such as you hope to restore a single line". It is currently bare of accompaniment, to be filled in later. I swear Sauron is mocking me. Finrod, on the contrary, is easier to imagine music for, but the music itself is more complex and takes more fiddling with. You can tell I do his part one instrument line at a time because you can hear them fall off one by one at the end. As usual, suggestions and comments are most welcome.

I was hoping to be done before the weekend, but I am afraid I won't make it at my current pace. I will be away from the computer on the weekend but will continue to work on it the moment I'm back! I am sorry for being so slow. Unfortunately the score is the rate-limiting step in the process, and I write music a lot slower than I wrote lyrics!

The next song should be something less complex. Something with fewer instruments involved. Or something where I wouldn't feel guilty breaking my "no exact repetitions" rule and just using the same accompaniment for multiple stanzas. I wouldn't quite say I bit off more than I can chew with the Duel, but it's more than I can chew without a break.


PS: making the music made me see certain things in the lyrics I didn't notice previously. For instance, I only realized a couple days ago that Sauron's first stanza is longer by an extra couplet. But some things are about the actual content:

1. The music lends itself very well to an extra syllable in Finrod's repeated final lines. They could become "The curses become songs!" and "A strength to counter you!". What do you think?

2. "Heeding the song of memory" - when I hum this to myself, half the time I change "song" to "call" unconsciously. My brain is still in translation mode, replacing the lyrics with the most literal translation it can find that fits into the line. o.o


PPS: listening to it without seeing the notes in front of me gave a couple of ideas. I changed "left with bitter memories" to make "memories" go faster and have a pause afterwards, and a couple other minor changes. But I won't re-record for now.
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Old 07-30-2020, 02:02 PM   #188
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Daily update: I am in the middle of Finrod's second stanza. Remember the time I was complaining that translations were getting harder instead of easier? I think I reached that point of exhaustion with the music, which delayed me further, but I think I'm past the nadir now. Sauron's second stanza was hard! And still needs work. Ironically, musical inspiration failed me completely on Sauron's "How can such as you hope to restore a single line". It is currently bare of accompaniment, to be filled in later. I swear Sauron is mocking me. Finrod, on the contrary, is easier to imagine music for, but the music itself is more complex and takes more fiddling with. You can tell I do his part one instrument line at a time because you can hear them fall off one by one at the end. As usual, suggestions and comments are most welcome.
I like it! It was tricky to get the start of Sauron's second verse at first, but I think I've hit it in this.

Oh, in what? In this, naturally. ^_^ A complete re-recording, with no processing on Sauron at all. If there are specific Finrod lines that worked better in the previous version, I can splice them in no problem.

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I was hoping to be done before the weekend, but I am afraid I won't make it at my current pace. I will be away from the computer on the weekend but will continue to work on it the moment I'm back! I am sorry for being so slow. Unfortunately the score is the rate-limiting step in the process, and I write music a lot slower than I wrote lyrics!
Noooo worries. I haven't done any more art since Finrod, so, y'know, same boat. I'll get there, I promise!

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The next song should be something less complex. Something with fewer instruments involved. Or something where I wouldn't feel guilty breaking my "no exact repetitions" rule and just using the same accompaniment for multiple stanzas. I wouldn't quite say I bit off more than I can chew with the Duel, but it's more than I can chew without a break.
Yeah, it's not the simplest. I'm not sure what is... the Coming to Nargothrond is at least short, right?

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1. The music lends itself very well to an extra syllable in Finrod's repeated final lines. They could become "The curses become songs!" and "A strength to counter you!". What do you think?
I've sung 'the', but I wonder about 'Your'. It gives a stronger opening to the line, and foreshadows Luthien's twisting of Sauron's lines back on him ("One... who can wield power in this world").

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2. "Heeding the song of memory" - when I hum this to myself, half the time I change "song" to "call" unconsciously. My brain is still in translation mode, replacing the lyrics with the most literal translation it can find that fits into the line. o.o
Hah, I still try to read the line in V1 as 'Unto the Hither Shore', because that was how I first wrote it. And there's lines in other songs that I want to sing as the subtitles, even though they don't scan at all.

hS
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Old 07-30-2020, 04:59 PM   #189
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I like it! It was tricky to get the start of Sauron's second verse at first, but I think I've hit it in this.

Oh, in what? In this, naturally. ^_^ A complete re-recording, with no processing on Sauron at all. If there are specific Finrod lines that worked better in the previous version, I can splice them in no problem.
!!! That's amazing! I love it! I love the contrast between Sauron and Finrod. Sauron's first lines are tricky. I can't hear them (hence I don't really have a background melody for either of them, just chords). I feel like he can just half-"talk" rather than sing the first lines. But yours sounded just right. In fact, I think this take is very much in tune, with both Sauron and Finrod!


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Originally Posted by Hui
Yeah, it's not the simplest. I'm not sure what is... the Coming to Nargothrond is at least short, right?
In my mind it's linked with Beren and Finrod's following duet though, I don't know if it's better to record them separately or as a single piece. Another shorter piece is the Minions, but I don't think it's wise for me to do too much Sauron at once.

I feel like Heart could be super simple or super complex and everything in between, depending on the style and whether it's a duet or solo. It could be anything from piano+clarinet to an entire wind orchestra and no piano. It's a bit, hmm, Caribbean or something in V2. I would not be able to replicate that to the same extent, but I could keep some of the jazziness/danciness or I could make it more classical. Then, if Finrod and Amarie both sing, unless it's a simple variety of a classical accompaniment, they would probably need different stuff for their lines, which means fewer shortcuts with shameless copy/pasting and therefore not a quick piece, though a more interesting one. I am just not used to thinking of this song as a duet musically, it will need some experimentation.

Renunciation of Nargothrond can be decent. I can hear it with just piano+trumpet, and it would probably tolerate a fair amount of copy/pasting without making each stanza unique.

Prison Duet would also be simple instrument-wise. So would anything, really, if I don't go too crazy with it. Camp. Ballad to Amarie. Dream. Melian's aria is simple if I keep it in one key and don't do the key changes, but the changes only complicate it as far as having to manually correct each pitch (the program doesn't allow key changes mid-piece) - and singing it afterwards. Then there are pieces like Meeting of B&L, which sound complex but may actually be easy to score if I don't go too crazy. Or the Oath. Or Galadriel's Intro.

So basically I just listed half the musical and would probably list the other half if I went on. The trick is to not let my imagination get the better of my common sense.

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I've sung 'the', but I wonder about 'Your'. It gives a stronger opening to the line, and foreshadows Luthien's twisting of Sauron's lines back on him ("One... who can wield power in this world").
I haven't even thought of that. I was only imagining the various Noldor-related curses and Feanor's words about glorious deeds living on in dear-bought songs. This is a more direct angle.
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Old 07-30-2020, 09:33 PM   #190
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Finished Finrod's part, and this will likely be as far as I get until Monday, because I have a whole bunch of postponed normal life tasks needing to be done as well. If I postpone groceries any further, I will soon be having air gulps for dinner.

Tried to sing the song so far. I like how it sounds, I just don't like my voice sounds in its current state. Maybe over the weekend I will whack it up in shape and won't sound so hoarse. I find that when I try to sing Finrod's part low I can't quite land on the melody at first and end up sliding high, then have to consciously drop down an octave. And then the times when I know I am totally missing the pitch but don't know how to fix it. :/ Basically, when I sing it, it's no wonder that Finrod falls before the throne.
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Old 07-31-2020, 01:24 AM   #191
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Finished Finrod's part, and this will likely be as far as I get until Monday, because I have a whole bunch of postponed normal life tasks needing to be done as well. If I postpone groceries any further, I will soon be having air gulps for dinner.
Yes, please don't stop eating for the sake of Finrod! It'll still be here when you get back.

(Unfortunately this link is throwing a 'you need access' error. Not sure why.)

There may be something interesting from the visual side over the weekend... we'll see.

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Old 07-31-2020, 04:36 AM   #192
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Gah! Did I screw up link sharing again?

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JTS...w?usp=drivesdk

...and now when I click the link it's just silence. Oh geez. Lemme fix it. ---> Ah no, the silence is just on my phone, computer is playing it fine. This one should work.

Just saw that it's already longer on the time stamp than Thingol and Melian's Duet was. No wonder it's taking me a while.
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Old 07-31-2020, 04:28 PM   #193
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It's long! They sing, and they just don't stop...

Okay, so I tried really hard to do something interesting with Sauron. I wanted to layer multiple voices - at one point I had me, you in the background, and octave-shifted me as an echo. But... it didn't work. It just sounded like multiple singers. So I've gone back to just straight vocals.

But! I have managed to achieve very nearly my vision of the, uh, visuals. I've had to redraw Finrod for it, and Sauron's Scar has shifted sides (I'll sort it if I need to redo the tricky bits), but the main effect I was after works really nicely.

The Duel (to end of Finrod v2)

The jerkiness, sadly, isn't deliberate. If it was, I'd have made it actually match the beat. I'm trying to find a way to do it smoothly.

(Sauron's first verse is just static; don't worry, you're not missing anything!)

hS
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Old 07-31-2020, 08:36 PM   #194
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Holy wow!

The first time the picture started fading to Valinor and the sheen around Taniquetil (presumably? Or just a tall mountain?) started lighting up around Sauron, it looked super cool and phantasmagorical. The background transitions look fantastic!

But my first thought upon return to a more rational state of mind was that I'm glad I'm not the only one testing the limits of how elaborate this can get.

Sauron gets an Eye! :-D And his bat crown looks fabulous. I can see why you redid Finrod, but I feel like this picture is a bit less like him. If I saw it without any context, I would probably start guessing female characters first. Though I think that as I am looking more at him he's starting to grow on me.
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Old 08-03-2020, 12:01 PM   #195
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The news

I re-recorded Melian, I think this sounds clearer, but there are a couple thumps during the breaks in singing. How difficult is it to cut those parts out?

Also did a full Duet just for the fun of it. ^.^

Tried to do Duel again, including the new half-finished Sauron stanza. It's getting better. It's a good thing you're doing Finrod though cause it still takes me about half a verse to find his melody. I am estimating that I will be done the music before the end of the week. Stay tuned.
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Old 08-03-2020, 02:45 PM   #196
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I was really pleased with how well the transitions lined up - Taniquetil and Tirion showed up at exactly the right points. Ideally I'd like the frames changes to keep to the beat, but that may be beyond me.

Finrod looks less Finrod partly because I had to take his crown away. I'm not sure about that decision - I might need to give it back, despite the continuity issues. Or at least do something about his hair... also, I think his face might have wound up too curvy, if that makes sense. I'll keep poking it.

(At some point, I should also post the full versions of these portraits; Finrod in particular loses a lot of details below the edge of the frame.)

I've put your new Melian into the video, and taken the opportunity to clean up the titles as well. Thingol and Melian just staring at each other over a static screen is starting to feel kind of uninspired...

Your Thingol and Sauron were gleefully bombastic, they really were. ^_^ I think I may also steal the way you flowed 'I sing the ancient melody / Raising my strength to counter you' together; that worked really nicely.

hS
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Old 08-03-2020, 05:19 PM   #197
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I was really pleased with how well the transitions lined up - Taniquetil and Tirion showed up at exactly the right points. Ideally I'd like the frames changes to keep to the beat, but that may be beyond me.
Taniquetil is perfect! Personally I didn't mind the step-wise progression. I love how it works out.

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Originally Posted by Hui
(At some point, I should also post the full versions of these portraits; Finrod in particular loses a lot of details below the edge of the frame.)
Ooooh! What if they stand up to "full height" either before or after the Duel - or, hypothetically, at the end of any of their songs? Like Sauron can have the Duel, cause he wins that, but Finrod can have Captivity, because he has the final say? But oh lord that's a long way away musically...

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Originally Posted by Hui
I've put your new Melian into the video, and taken the opportunity to clean up the titles as well. Thingol and Melian just staring at each other over a static screen is starting to feel kind of uninspired...
I don't get how your Thingol parts line up so perfectly, I always hear Melian's slide a bit off. Maybe I just keep missing the beat when I record or something. I feel like her first stanza is a touch delayed, and the last "Oh my husband dear" sounds really off. Seriously, I don't get how your part fits so perfectly. Next time I will make sure to sing to a metronome and land the beats neatly to avoid this mess.

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Your Thingol and Sauron were gleefully bombastic, they really were. ^_^
I love singing Sauron's part, even if I'm not very good at landing the notes, for that precise reason. He's just like "I am evil and there's nothing you can do about that. The world is horrible, and I love it. Bwahahaha!" It's incredibly fun to sing. ^.^
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Old 08-04-2020, 01:47 AM   #198
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Ooooh! What if they stand up to "full height" either before or after the Duel - or, hypothetically, at the end of any of their songs? Like Sauron can have the Duel, cause he wins that, but Finrod can have Captivity, because he has the final say? But oh lord that's a long way away musically...
Hmm... this could work. I'd probably have to draw a bit more of them (they're mostly not much taller than their frames, just wider), but it could work. I'll have to look at it.

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I don't get how your Thingol parts line up so perfectly, I always hear Melian's slide a bit off. Maybe I just keep missing the beat when I record or something. I feel like her first stanza is a touch delayed, and the last "Oh my husband dear" sounds really off. Seriously, I don't get how your part fits so perfectly.
Oh, I cheat. ^_^ No, I record directly in Audacity, so the recording synchs up exactly where I sang it; the only off-beat sections are where I miss a cue. With your parts, I have to work out by ear where they should go. I thought I had this one pretty good, but... yeah.

hS
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Old 08-04-2020, 07:14 PM   #199
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Oh, I cheat. ^_^ No, I record directly in Audacity, so the recording synchs up exactly where I sang it; the only off-beat sections are where I miss a cue. With your parts, I have to work out by ear where they should go. I thought I had this one pretty good, but... yeah.
Would it help if I made the recordings equal to the time of the music (ie start recording on the first note)? Because for Melian I haven't been doing that, as she only starts singing 2 stanzas in.

Meanwhile, as I am on the final stretch of exchanges between Finrod and Sauron, where they stop following their patterns - the Russian Libretto site with all the chords stops working on both my phone and computer. I really hope it is a local wifi issue, because otherwise there is serious trouble to come for the rest of the musical. There is absolutely no way I can do the chords by ear for most of the songs. Can you get it to open on your end? After multiple tries my computer finally loaded another Duel with chords, linked for future reference. I have been trying to piece together the F&S exchange on the premise that they repeat their previous chords - but they don't repeat the chords I thought they did, so I have to redo whatever I had there. I fixed it up to "Taught pride to Elven hearts", now onto Sauron's "That gift etc". Almost there! Just a day or two to finish up and polish!
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Old 08-05-2020, 02:05 AM   #200
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Hmm... this could work. I'd probably have to draw a bit more of them (they're mostly not much taller than their frames, just wider), but it could work. I'll have to look at it.
I've tried this and it doesn't work. The portraits are in agressively neutral poses, so if I try to extend them downwards I just get limply-hanging arms all over the place.

What I might do is add a credits slide to each song, which could include the portraits as originally drawn.

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Would it help if I made the recordings equal to the time of the music (ie start recording on the first note)? Because for Melian I haven't been doing that, as she only starts singing 2 stanzas in.
That... would probably help, yes. Depending on how you did it. I mean, it certainly can't hurt, right? ^_^

I've archived the libretto with chords; it's an ugly page, because all the pictures have been stripped out, but at least it's reliable.

Speaking of which... I could probably put together a copy of the English libretto with the chords in place. Would that be any help in writing the accompaniment?

EDIT: 'I could probably' == 'Now I'm two songs in'. It's at the bottom of the English Libretto. I've put it in a monospaced font, so the chords will line up perfectly; all I'm doing is hitting space until they're in the right place.

(It is possible some of them in the Oath are not in the right place, but I did my best.)

I don't know whether it'll be any help to you, but it's nice to have.

Since I don't read guitar music, the only change I've made is H > B to accord with the international standard.

hS

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