Mental Suicide

I composed this in the Sonar 8.5 piano roll using some older sample libraries that I've had for many years.

Composing music is just therapy for me and if others like my tunes that's just icing on the cake... mmm.. cake yum, yum.

Don't be put off by the title "Mental Suicide" it was just a working title that sort of stuck. What can I say? Other than I have Asperger's and a stinking case of OCD.

This piece started with a virtual acoustic guitar. I actually play guitar but was challenging myself to compose a piece without actually picking up my guitar.

I laid out the guitar part while wrestling with a few melodies all the while trying to determine whether the guitar fingering was even possible. My conclusion? I have no idea if it's possible to play this guitar part.

Then I added all the other stuff and hoped for the best.

I just let the piano roll guide me along chord by chord, note by note. Sounds tedious huh? Yep, it was. But I love micro-managing every note. I always tense up when recording an actual mic-ed up performance.

Having Asperger's has it's advantages like the laser-like focus on stuff one is interested in. In my case, music and art. With all the music rattling around in my skull I prefer working alone rather than butting heads with other musicians. Been there, done that, don't enjoy it a bit. But that's just me.

If anyone wants to comment on this piece, feel free. I'm of course always interested in whether people like my stuff. But at the same time I'm always wondering if the mix sounds alright on other peoples' systems.. stuff like EQ, and especially the bottom end. I'm no audio engineer and that's for sure.

Enjoy,

Rick

Hello @epii,

1 hour ago, epii said:

Don't be put off by the title "Mental Suicide" it was just a working title that sort of stuck. What can I say? Other than I have Asperger's and a stinking case of OCD.

For me this music is way too soothing to be named Mental Suicide. If euthanasia has this kind of soothing power I guess it will be dangerously attractive. Having those conditions must be difficult, but luckily you have found a way to at least express yourself! I hope YC is a place that can act as your tree hole to express your unexpressed thoughts if you don't mind!

1 hour ago, epii said:

Composing music is just therapy for me and if others like my tunes that's just icing on the cake... mmm.. cake yum, yum.

This is for sure a great way of therapy. For me your music is very therapeutic since it helps relaxing others! Thank you for that. I compose music with self-therapeutic reason as well through expressing thoughts cannot be expressed in words.

1 hour ago, epii said:

This piece started with a virtual acoustic guitar. I actually play guitar but was challenging myself to compose a piece without actually picking up my guitar.

I laid out the guitar part while wrestling with a few melodies all the while trying to determine whether the guitar fingering was even possible. My conclusion? I have no idea if it's possible to play this guitar part.

Then I added all the other stuff and hoped for the best.

For me it's very soothing music. You seem to like featuring guitar with strings accompaniment and maraca, and this combination is very comfortable to listen to. I enjoy the sound in 1:34! Even though you say you don't know music in theoretical terms, your harmonic progression is great as it does achieve great effect!

1 hour ago, epii said:

But at the same time I'm always wondering if the mix sounds alright on other peoples' systems

I think the mix sounds can be clearer for each part as I find the acoustic guitar before 1:34 a little bit unclear for me!

1 hour ago, epii said:

I just let the piano roll guide me along chord by chord, note by note. Sounds tedious huh? Yep, it was. But I love micro-managing every note. I always tense up when recording an actual mic-ed up performance.

I don't find it sound tedious anyway for this kind of soothing and therapeutic music. Not everyone has to compose like Bach and Beethoven or Mahler to have all those monumental works full of contrasts! Music is so great that it can have so many functions on it not limited to fine arts.

Thanks for sharing and hopefully you will present more works to us as both your and our therapeutic usage!

Henry

It was very easy to listen to and hints at your obvious instinct for interesting tonal harmony. And yes, you need a different title!

I'm not commenting on mix or production as they sounded entirely ok to me (on headphones that have a flat frequency response).

Very nice.

This has a Swinging Sixties vibe about it for me, with some interesting harmonic twists.

Made me think of The Monkees or The Beach Boys, and I could easily see it being used in a movie set in the 1960s.

Alex,

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it.

Long live '60's music!!!

-Rick