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The third piece in the "My Computer is a 1950s orchestra" series. A complete re-make of Edward White's famous composition "Puffin' Billy" (1952), realised with virtual instruments.

Sounds used:
Strings: Spitfire Audio Chamber Strings
Brass: Sample Modelling Trombones, Sample Modelling Trumpets, Cinesamples Cinebrass Core, Cinebrass PRO,
Woodwinds: Spitfire Audio Symphonic Woodwinds, Spitfire Albion Woodwinds
Percussion: Spitfire Audio Joby Burgess Percussion
Harps: Orchestral Tools Symphonic Sphere

Sequencer: Cubase 6
FX: Mixed in using Waves Abbey Road Vinyl, V-series compressors and eqs, U-he Satin on the mix bus, T-racks for mastering

Composition © Edward White
Recording © Alex Ball

Score: Hired from the Light Music Society. It was a Piano Conductor score, so had to work out the full orchestration by ear. Hopefully got it right (or close enough).

My day job: www.alexballmusic.com

As I just watched "Alien Covenant" this week, and noticed music from the original Alien interpolated into the soundtrack, I thought I'd have a go at re-recording a cue from Jerry Goldsmith's incredible score to "Alien". This has been created with virtual instruments.

Sounds used:
Strings: Spitfire Audio Chamber Strings & Albion
Brass: Cinesamples Cinebrass Core and Cinebrass PRO
Woodwinds: Spitfire Audio Symphonic Woodwinds & Orchestral Tools Symphonic Sphere
Percussion: Spitfire Audio Joby Burgess Percussion
Harps: Orchestral Tools Symphonic Sphere

FX: Mixed in using Waves Abbey Road Vinyl and Studio Classics, U-he Satin and T-Racks.

Composition © Jerry Goldsmith
Recording © Alex Ball

alexballmusic.com

A complete remake of "Busybody" by Billy Mayerl using entirely virtual instruments.

Sounds used:
Spitfire Audio Chamber Strings
LA Scoring Strings
Cinebrass Core & Pro
Spitfire Audio Albion Brass Mid
Spitfire Audio Symphonic Woodwinds
Abbey Road Vintage Drummer
Spitfire Audio Joby Burgess Percussion
Orchestral Tools Symphonic Sphere Harp

Processing:
Creating a vintage sounding orchestra has been a work in progress for me for a 18 months or so. I think I'm getting a little better with each attempt, but will keep on trying to get closer and closer to the sound.

To my ears (and I could be wrong), the period recordings often have a narrow stereo field or are made of mono sections that are panned around a stereo mix (rather than a stereo recording of each section).

They also have a closer sound on certain sections, rather than ambient.

Therefore, I used a mix of close and tree mics and tweaked the settings within the patches to narrow the stereo image. I processed each section with a little saturation, wow and flutter and EQ from various plugins so that I was slowly building up the "old" sound, rather than smashing the whole mix into a "vintage" emulator.

I also setup a convolution reverb using the impulse from a vintage plate and then processed the reverb channel with saturation, wow and flutter, stereo narrowing and EQ too.

This seems to create a better effect overall, although I'm still experimenting with it.

Plugins used:
Waves Vinyl and EQs
Goodhertz Vulf Compressor
Izotope Vinyl
U-he Satin
Past to future reverb impulses ( https://gumroad.com/pasttofuturesamples#)
T-racks EQ and compression on the master

Thanks for watching.