Re: sharing thoughts and remixes/transcriptions of audio game music
Could never wrap my head around writing out text for midi. Guess it's the same block that prevents me from programming... I can't manually write notes, velocity, length, etc. Makes it so much easier to play the music... I just don't know squat about playing keyboard, which is the most convenient midi source.
Breaking my own rule and about to go on a tangent and derail the thread a bit. But why not?
I also cannot wrap my head around programming, but mml and similar music text composition comes to me with only moderate effort. With enough practice with a particular system I can normally coax some fairly fun stuff from it. By contrast I've struggled for years to grasp programming and have just about given up, even with comparatively simple prospects like BGT. Bas ically, I think what it comes down to is that people think in different ways. The more specifically you can narrow into your strengths and weaknesses, the better. While I can't be sure if a block for programming is the same as a block for music text, in my own case the two are completely unrelated. I think this is because programming is syntactical in the sense that you have to know a language and its structure, while MML is very linear in nature. The only time it isn't is if you explicitly specify as such, i.e. make an instrument or something and then call it up later for use. Different versions of MML do work differently though, and so that can be confusing if you don't have adequate documentation or you're not good at dealing with differing methods.
A lot of what goes into MML writing is just knowing what you're getting into. MML is not a language you will use if you want to sound like a live band. That goal would be counterintuitive really. Often w hat you will find is that timings and velocities and whatnot are pretty grid-like when writing in text, or indeed when writing with anything that isn't live input, simply because there is no easy way to do it otherwise. This is not to say that mml is bad... some tools do have randomizers to try and mitigate this deficiency, and you can still do a lot of advanced tricks to add pollish to even acoustically oriented tracks. So don't think of text composition as that generic cheap-sounding stuff, because while it often starts that way, it doesn't have to stay there. there is no doubt in my mind that having live input is easier on all fronts, and I wouldn't blame somebody for deciding writing music in a text file is too taxing. But all the same I do like it when people give it a shot. All in all, both methods have their strengths and weaknesses. Both open up opportunities. MML is a niche thing mainly for chiptunes but does open doors for midi as well. Using live input like keyboards is almost exclusive to midi and does tend to sound more organic, and opf course if you use keyboards you have a lot of control over the organic nature, if you know how to edit with your sequencer and use things like quantize etc. Still, there is so much overlap between the two and I don't really subscribe to a viewpoint that holds that each method has its own specific purpose.
Now, back to a less geeky topic. I'll be the first to share music here! How about that! But since the thread has some stuff in it, I figured why not?
This is a chiptune remake for the Nes of the Super Liam level 1 music. I made this at the end of 2016. Here's the catch. A friend of mine also did his own chiptune cover while I was doing mine. After we were both done, we sent each other our covers, and we occasionally fight, in a friendly way of course, about whose is better. I've decided to upload both, so you can decide which you like better. They are simply call ed version 1 and version 2, so you don't know who made which. If you do know because I showed you this already, please don't spoil it for everyone else; I will eventually post a message here saying which is mine. Get it here! IN the zip you will find NsF files as well as mp3s for those who can't play NSF music.
Here are some criticisms I have of both... yes I will criticize my own work here:
Version1 drums are a bit overkill for my taste, while you can barely notice them in 2.
Version 1 sounds more accurate but kinda has an overbearing quality if I can put it that way. 2 is easier on the ears but perhaps a bit boring and too floaty.
So, have at it. Fight over the first actual music submission of the thread! Lol
FYI I would be interested in making other versions of this song, mainly because it's challenging but simple. So if I post a bunch more versions for different chips, don't be too surprised. At present none are in the works but thinking about this made me want to go back and do stuff. Lol
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