JeffHeim's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Toccata]

excellent work!

It's a real pleasure to hear live works on NG for a change. Wonderful! Who were the players? They sounded quite professional! The recording quality sounds great, too. Judging by the natural ambience, this was recorded in a large hall...where in Opole, Poland was this recorded? And are those voices near the end?

As for the piece itself, the thematic material was clearly introduced and developed very well throughout the piece. I liked the temporary switch to 6/8 time in the middle; mixed things up a bit. I listened to its entirety and really enjoyed it. Looking forward to hearing more from you!

robomanus responds:

The players are my friends from Music School, where I'm learning too :) The recording was made in concert hall in Music School in Opole. The voices in the end are my friends, but they are singing, no playing :D That was my idea, because I don't have choir, but I want it, I command my friends to sing. The strings were playing and singing at the same time, so the effect is: choir with strings. But there is no choir :D I will use this trick in my other pieces, 'cause I think it's something new. Thanks for comment and share this to your friends. It will be very helpful. :D

[Ice Tea and Summer Daze]

alright not bad, some things to address:

when I was in 8th grade I remember doing some similar music like this on piano for fun. This piece is very simple and I can hear some motivic material, including dialogue between the left hand and right hand, trills, and a recurrence of that melody. I thought the parallel 5ths were interesting, but I'm not sure what your intentions were in writing this piece. It lacks structure and development. The dynamics are monotonous and the melody/chords imply a piece of music of the baroque or classical period but it doesn't follow any of the rules. I would recommend reading up on some music theory/voice leading textbooks. I enjoyed the piece, but it's very important to be aware of which rhealm of classical music you're entering.

lvl5drummer responds:

okay thank you. i just walked outside on a sunny saturday morning and heard this in my head. i quickly wrote it down and continued to write the piece. i appreciate the reviews!

<lvl5>

[KIRBY cailloups]

Beautiful!

The arpeggiated chords you use are so nice and delicate and fit perfectly with the strings in the background. I must ask- how did you sync up the piano with the fake sounds in the background? It doesn't sound like you used a metronome, there's some rubato here and there. Wonderful performance and composition!

Stalagmite responds:

trial and error matey. i constantly record until it sounds in time... and as it is live it doesnt take time to get right. also, i am sure if you popped a metronome over the top this song would almost instantly go out of beat anyway... i play at the pace that feels right in the moment. and i guess i remembered it with all of the other layers too. I worked had on it. thanks for the awesome ten! :D:D:D you rock Basbalfan55

[[\Spring/]]

This piece is just crying for lyrics!

Sounds a lot like a pop song to me, I love the piano sounds (I can't tell if they're real or not, but I guess that means they're real). The drum sounds are phenominal and you have mastered them, panning and everything. Volume is perfect, the melody is beautiful, the chord choices and their inversions are all appropriate. I have no complaints or suggestions. Everything sounds great at all levels! The rain at the end fits perfectly- is there any way for the rain to fade away? That's actually my one suggestion...oh yeah one more- get a girl to sing over this :D

paradoxphenomena responds:

Yes fading it away is possible, I'll be sure to do that if and when I go back to edit the song. As for the lyrics, it sounds like a great idea if I can find someone. Thanks for the great review.

[The Fate of Jace and Jillian]

Original...

I'd have to see the claymation to understand how this piece works. In my opinion the grindy electronic sounds in the background are too loud and distract from the somewhat limited orchestral experience, but I like the originality- I've never heard anything like this on NG. Well done!

brettamatowski responds:

I appreciate your review and respect your choice of score. Just to justify myself, the "grindy electronic sounds" was what I was going for. The claymation is more along the lines of a morbid story of two siblings being eaten by monsters that live under their home. Tim Burton, as you may know of, is a huge inspiration to me with his animations and Danny Elfman's music is wonderful in all of Burton's films. I'm sorry if it doesn't necessarily fit under the category of classical, but it was the only genre remotely close than the others. I must say thanks though. I generously respect any criticism. Thanks for your review.

[Silent Tears [Orch]]

amazing music!

i've gone through this experience before. girls are tough to understand. if you really want her back, pretend you don't want her back for a while, and she'll come back to you. :)

This is beautiful btw, very heart-driven.

Dj-Flux responds:

Heh, she's not an easy girl. I have to chase her if I want her back, unfortunately.

[Final Voyage I]

EPIC!

NG has no shortage of epic battle music, but this is definitely one of the better ones out there. Nice work!

If I could make one suggestion, it would be to keep in mind where you want the climax to be...I hear two climaxes (volume-wise), and it might help to reduce the volume in the first climactic part, or increase the volume in the final climactic part (or add more drums at the end, either/or). Keep it up!

PGegen responds:

Thanks for the review and the feedback on the structure. It's always nice to hear constructive criticism!

PGegen

[Defiance and Passion]

Congratulations!

Congratulations on getting into Northwestern for composition! I remember when I first heard back from UNH that I got in, it was pretty much the most glorious moment. I also play trombone and piano and study composition...weird huh? I don't sing though lol.

Great piece! 5/5 10/10

pathock3 responds:

Sweet, we have so much in common! Haha, yeah that's great, I love hearing from people on newgrounds that are actually studying composition. I promise I'll check out some of your stuff as soon as I get the chance!

[Concerto forTuba and Orchestra]

Love the brass

This was mastered very well! I can definitely tell you have a lot of experience using your sounds. One thing I would change is the very beginning, and just have it enter on the tuba note (the panned electronic percussion is cool, but unnecessary before the tuba enters). Other than that I love it, very well-done! Keep it up. 5/5, 10/10.

sadlersongs responds:

Yeah I thought about a different beginning but you see the tuba player is supposed to play with an accompaniment CD (which doesn't have the tuba track in it). It's kind of hard to guess when the CD would start so I added a little count off in the beginning. Glad you like it! The live performance is later this month so I'll try to get a recording of it for Newgrounds.

[Walk in the Woods (Halo)]

make sure you credit the composer...

the chorus and drums don't sync up right...the chorus is delayed, which you can avoid by making the attack more sudden in the chorus. I'm a big fan of the halo series and its music and I know for a fact this piece is supposed to modulate up a fourth at some point. Nice job getting the chords down, it sounds pretty, but make sure you give Martin O'Donnell credit for his work.

Sorrow-316 responds:

not his Work, Its my Work Only With his Notes.