I’ve recently come out of a bit of a rough patch – sky-high anxiety levels, low energy, all that fun stuff. This put me behind on my writing, so I thought I’d quickly share what I learned from the experience.
So, I’m a big fan of fantasy – was raised on the Dragonlance series growing up – and a big D&D enthusiast. So I figured, hey, I can make some fantasy music, and combine it with the dance-y tracks I’ve been making!
And since I’ve been adverse to using samples or presets, I thought I could learn to create the orchestral sounds from scratch, and learn more about sound design in the bargain.
Well, that may have been biting off a teensy bit more than I could chew.
Turns out, orchestral sounds are a LOT more complex, and harder to imitate, than electronic ones. Or at least, most people know what a kettle drum or a French horn is “supposed” to sound like, so if you don’t hit the mark, it kinda stands out, y’know?
There was so much I was trying to learn and accomplish, the whole process just stopped being fun. Which led to crashing motivation and all the rest that comes with it.
In the end, I almost decided to shelve it and start something new, but fortunately I managed to get out of my own way and resort to something many of y’all have been doing from day one: Using samples.
I know, I know.. My original plan was to learn how to create as many sounds completely from scratch as possible.
In my defence however, I had no idea how completely insane that was. I mean, whole BOOKS have been published, just on learning how to make a better-sounding cymbal!
Maybe I’ll nerd out on that stuff someday. But right now, as a certain no-nonsense lady once said:
Thankfully things are moving along much more quickly now, so I’ll hopefully have the latest song finished in a month or so. It’s called Steam-Powered Knight, and it’s kicking serious butt right now.
Keep your ears glued to the inter-webs!
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