In 52 Tracks, Ambient, Music on
December 5, 2008 with no comments
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Title: Apollo Lee – Umbriel
Date: December 05, 2008
Software: Logic Pro 8
Genre: Ambient
Timing: 5:06 @ 40 bpm
What I Like About It
- This instrument is very unusual with strange bouncing filter effects, lethargically jumping around. I never thought of using this patch before, but it drives the urgency of the piece and gives it a very unique sound.
- The harmony is in minor Rhythm Changes (Fm7, DbM7, Gm7b5, C7), which I love a lot, because of the delicious tensions it lends.
- Multiple note transitions and a faster harmonic rhythm makes this seem more interesting.
- The low notes contrast the highs beautifully, especially with the filter bounces.
- There are subtle harmonic phases that make almost imperceptible countermelodies right at the periphery.
What I Don’t Like About It
- There are places where the lows are gone entirely for an unreasonably long period of time, which makes the piece feel unanchored.
- I probably could have done more with the aftertouch effects.
Note: These are rough drafts. Constructive criticism is welcomed, of course.
In 52 Tracks, Ambient, Music on
December 2, 2008 with no comments
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Title: Apollo Lee – Tactility
Date: December 02, 2008
Software: Logic Pro 8
Genre: Ambient
Timing: 7:30 @ 40 bpm
What I Like About It
- The harmonic structure is in minor rhythm changes (Am7, FM7, Bm7b5, E7). I’ve used it before, but it’s easy to get some nice tensions with this chord progression.
- It’s very quiet and has a light touch.
- The effects processing and equalization are unnoticeable, but effectively eliminate most of the distortion that’s endemic in a piece such as this.
- Moving multiple notes at a time gave a more singing, evocative feel.
What I Don’t Like About It
- There’s still a touch of phase distortion in a couple of places.
- There isn’t enough on the high end to counterbalance the deep lows — everything is just sort of in the middle.
Note: These are rough drafts. Constructive criticism is welcomed, of course.
In 52 Tracks, Ambient, Music on
November 21, 2008 with no comments
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Title: Apollo Lee – Siskiyou
Date: November 21, 2008
Software: Logic Pro 8
Genre: Ambient
Timing: 7:30 @ 40 bpm
What I Like About It
- The harmonic structure is much different than the set ups I usually use. FM7, Am7, BbM7, C7. This made everything mostly consonant, while allowing for tensions that were easily resolved.
- I used a light ring modulator again, with a number of other effects that flesh out the sound of this pad.
- There are some beautiful lows and sweeping highs.
What I Don’t Like About It
- I could have used more challenging harmony.
- There are long periods with no bass anchor.
Note: These are rough drafts. Constructive criticism is welcomed, of course.
In 52 Tracks, Ambient, Music on
November 13, 2008 with no comments
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Title: Apollo Lee – Rigel
Date: November 13, 2008
Software: Logic Pro 8
Genre: Ambient
Timing: 6:24 @ 40 bpm
What I Like About It
- This is a patch I haven’t used before. I added a number of effects to make it sound mysterious, including a toned-down ring modulator.
- I used minor rhythm changes in A minor (Am7, FM7, Bm7b5, E7), which lends to open consonances and tense dissonances.
- The deeps anchor the piece nicely, without being too loud or overbearing.
What I Don’t Like About It
- The pace of the piece seems to move too fast.
- Sometimes, tonal shifts took us in unexpected directions.
- We could have lingered a little less long on the final cadence.
Note: These are rough drafts. Constructive criticism is welcomed, of course.
In 52 Tracks, Ambient, Music on
November 10, 2008 with no comments
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Title: Apollo Lee – Quetta
Date: November 10, 2008
Software: Logic Pro 8
Genre: Ambient
Timing: 7:30 @ 40 bpm
What I Like About It
- This is a patch I haven’t used before. I like the swirly phaser. This is a pretty sound.
- The harmony is in D major with descending chords (DM7, C#m7b5, Bm7, A7), which has lots of soaring consonance and tense, clustered dissonance in my tight 16-note grid.
- The note diversity is decent with some floating highs and heavy-duty lows.
What I Don’t Like About It
- Some of the dissonant clusters resolve unexpectedly or fail to resolve at all and simply “move on”.
- In a couple of spots, a few notes shift at once and leave a pedal tone hanging in the air, seemingly disembodied.
- I feel like this might be a little too phaser-heavy and I could have toned it down a little bit.
Note: These are rough drafts. Constructive criticism is welcomed, of course.
In 52 Tracks, Ambient, Music on
October 22, 2008 with no comments
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Title: Apollo Lee – Pliancy
Date: October 22, 2008
Software: Logic Pro 8
Genre: Ambient
Timing: 6:30 @ 40 bpm
What I Like About It
- This is an instrument I haven’t used before. It’s different.
- The harmony (Em7, DM7, Cm7b5, B7) is simple, but effective.
What I Don’t Like About It
- There is a whole bunch of phase distortion that is quite evident when the volume is up.
- There are long sections without any lows at all. This makes the piece feel untethered during those sections.
- Some chord changes are abrupt and unexpected and other chords are held too long.
- I should have spent more time in the mix down and adding an effects processor or two. I think Microphaser and a touch of Chorus would have been effective here.
Note: These are rough drafts. Constructive criticism is welcomed, of course.
In 52 Tracks, Ambient, Music on
October 15, 2008 with no comments
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Title: Apollo Lee – Owyhee
Date: October 15, 2008
Software: Logic Pro 8
Genre: Ambient
Timing: 7:06 @ 40 bpm
What I Like About It
- The harmony is minor Rhythm Changes in Bb minor. It’s consonant enough to leave big open chords, but dissonance enough to give us some delicious tension.
- The lows are vast and give a beautiful depth to the piece.
- The mix is very clean and very high resolution (I asked for 160 kbps VBR and ended up with 225 kbps.
- This instrument is mellow and with the touch of added microphaser is very interesting.
What I Don’t Like About It
- All the notes are bunched too close together just below middle C. While there are awe-inspiring depths, nothing soars into treble territory.
- Multi-note clusters much below the top of the bass clef clash and sound badly mixed.
- The ending is unexpectedly abrupt.
Note: These are rough drafts. Constructive criticism is welcomed, of course.
In 52 Tracks, Ambient, Music on
October 8, 2008 with 1 comment
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Title: Apollo Lee – Nunavut
Date: October 08, 2008
Software: Logic Pro 8
Genre: Ambient
Timing: 7:30 @ 40 bpm
What I Like About It
- The harmony is diatonic to some degree, consisting of descending seventh chords in F minor (Fm7, Eb7, DbM7, C7). The combinations of the sixteen tones used is enough to have sections of open harmony, suspended chords, and very tense dissonances.
- The instrument patch I’m using is very unusual with a strange bell-like aftertouch that invokes a feeling of coldness and sparseness.
- The piece flows well from one chord to the next.
- The mix sounds clean, without distortion. Part of that is due to the high quality rip (211 kbps).
What I Don’t Like About It
- The icy ringing aftertouch gets old fast and it’s everywhere on every note.
- The note diversity could have been wider.
Note: These are rough drafts. Constructive criticism is welcomed, of course.
In 52 Tracks, Ambient, Music on
September 29, 2008 with no comments
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Title: Apollo Lee – Monona
Date: September 29, 2008
Software: Logic Pro 8
Genre: Ambient
Timing: 7:54 @ 40 bpm
What I Like About It
- The harmony is interesting, but easy to play around with. It’s descending minor seventh chords starting on A minor (Am7, Gm7, Fm7, Em7). Lots of interesting tonal possibilities here.
- The instrument patch I’m using is unusually and has interesting nuances.
- The individual notes take some time before the fundamental tone is reached.
- It doesn’t feel naked when there are only one or two notes in the chord.
- The mix down sounds good.
What I Don’t Like About It
- The first tone, the ringing bell/organ, is a part of this patch I’m still not totally sure if I love. Especially since it occurs on every attack.
- I didn’t use those lows effectively enough.
Note: These are rough drafts. Constructive criticism is welcomed, of course.
In 52 Tracks, Ambient, Music on
September 24, 2008 with no comments
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Title: Apollo Lee – Luminesque
Date: September 24, 2008
Software: Logic Pro 8
Genre: Ambient
Timing: 7:36 @ 40 bpm
What I Like About It
- The harmony is quite different, chords built on D, F, G, and A in D Melodic Minor (Dm/M7, F+7, Gm7, A7). It feels really open due to the large number of shared notes between chords.
- The lows are really deep and the highs are ethereal and floating.
- The overtone/aftertouch that occurs on max velocity on a note works well in this piece.
- The mix down sounds really clean.
What I Don’t Like About It
- Some of the high notes are too loud.
- I should have used more color tones in the harmonic structure.
Note: These are rough drafts. Constructive criticism is welcomed, of course.