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Inside My World - OST Composing Jam #7's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Creativity | #27 | 4.175 | 4.175 |
| Overall | #100 | 3.860 | 3.860 |
| Composition | #102 | 3.900 | 3.900 |
| Impression | #103 | 3.825 | 3.825 |
| Quality | #156 | 3.775 | 3.775 |
| Correlation to theme | #229 | 3.625 | 3.625 |
Ranked from 40 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Description
Impressionism and Folk. Really, it's a mix of styles I'm developing into its own sort of thing.
Message from the artist
This is music from a world that's been in my mind for the last 17 years. It came to me spontaneously, but also grew over time. It's like this world has its own sort of spirit to it, its own unique flavor.
I am now working on a survival game in UE5. I used a Valheim build for my cover art, because I am going to use the architectural style I developed during the build for the plains people. Likewise, my first track is related to this biome:
1. Heart of the Steppes
I used a Talharpa I built myself just earlier this year. It's a very hard instrument - like a violin, except there is no fingerboard. You have to use your knuckle to fret the string, so your bowing technique has to be on point. It's also harder to play fast. All of the strings in this track are me playing the instrument I built myself in my garage. It is a Norse/Finnish instrument, and I likewise mixed it with a touch of throat singing along the lines of Mongolia/Altai.
In my survival game, I want the opening to be like you're dropped in this world in a sort of exile. As you explore, you quickly find a horse. You follow the horse a bit, and the horse comes up to you, and eventually you ride the horse. Some of the music in this track would be timed to the galloping of the horse as you explore as I expand on the themes in this track.
Please forgive the shoddy technique on the first couple of measures with the Talharpa - I was trying my best! This is a simplified version of a melody that came into my mind after the last competition, in my sleep in the middle of the night.
Picture of the instrument: https://i.imgur.com/PGy390B.jpg
2. Wind and Water
This one is the first of the more impressionistic tracks. The air of this one to me is like the wind blowing in the trees. The trill is actually pentatonic in a different key than the arpeggio.
What is interesting is that when I first came up with this melody, that trill came to me spontaneously when improvising. What I realized afterwards is that it is very much like throat singing for the initial one, like my love of Mongolian music came through and started harmonizing perfectly with this impressionistic style.
3. Gilded Strands
This piece goes with the gas giant plant that is the moon for my survival game's world. Instead of a sci-fi theme, this is definitely a fantasy theme, but where the cosmos fits in this universe like it would in antiquity, where you'd have this system of astrology and the planets.
This track's name comes from the planet itself having strands of gold against marble white clouds. So, this ties together all of the tracks, because no matter where you are in the game's world, if you look up, you can see this planet filling the sky.
This one is a love letter to Rachmaninoff's Etudes Tableaux. What I did here was extract the spirit of my inner world as Rachmaninoff's world touched mine, as well as Ravel's and Shostakovich's. But this inner world I have is still its own thing, and I'm likewise continuing to develop its sound.
All of the tonal colors in this piece are very deliberate in bringing this spirit of my inner world to life - in the couple spots I made some mistakes, I correct to exactly what I was hearing in my mind. I'd say this one is worth a second listen.
The last line of this one is the motif for the gas giant planet that I have yet to give a name.
Closing note-
I want to emphasize as well that I didn't have a ton of time to work on these. A few of the lines in this piece are improvisations where I improvised it in exactly one take.
Thank you so much for listening. This world is truly something I'm pulling out from the depth of my soul. Likewise, all feedback that helps me grow in realizing this world more fully is greatly appreciated!
Proof:
Heart of the Steppes:
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1264600801037258803/1264611901493477497/image.png?ex=669e811c&is=669d2f9c&hm=b6b9f3cf8a58fb5c3acbd36c8ad691eac6be69d5a2500181c82a0f63d0c82f4e&
Wind and Water:
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1264600801037258803/1264601311656280074/image.png?ex=669e773f&is=669d25bf&hm=1725181ceb10f78bade3a4a6ae12b45c95011699f3c9c87ca30369ad47aa7f5e&
Gilded Strands:
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1264600801037258803/1264600822348513424/image.png?ex=669e76cb&is=669d254b&hm=94d5a8229909fdb3099a0ea1086c5ee182d53cf4b477db422d366edbd1e084c5&
Theme
How does it fit the theme?
This is music from a world that's been in my mind for the last 17 years. It came to me spontaneously, but also grew over time. It's like this world has its own sort of spirit to it, its own unique flavor.
Getting this world out of my mind and into the world is one of my core purposes in life. It needs to be born, and it is trying to get out with a fiery intensity.
That is why I chose the "Inside My World" theme. This music is very much the result of going deep inside of myself to dig out this world's spirit.
Link(s) of the submission on streaming services
https://soundcloud.com/alkan23/sets/inside-my-world
Number of tracks3
Genre
Soundtrack use permission
For game jams only
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Comments
Wow I'm super thrilled with this one. The composition skills are fantastic here and also mentioned below. You literally made the instrument??? It doesn't get more creative than that. Great work :D
you MADE the instrument you played in the track! That is super cool and LITERALLY creative!
My favorite one was absolutely Heart Of The Steppes.
I love the sounds in this OST! So unique, so full of life and spirit, it's truly something special. I was about to ask what VSTs you used, but then read the other comments and learned it's mostly all performed, which is even more awesome! Great job!
You really captured something amazing in all of the tracks. But the first is just so raw and primal, I love it! Amazing!
Wow! The first track was cinematic! Really cool!
DUDEEE, Your playing and vocals in "Heart of the Steppes" were breathtaking!
(also letting you know that Discord attachments are no longer permanent and aren't viewable rn big sad.)
Oh, thank you for letting me know. I just updated it!
wind and water is def very evocative of debussy and ravel!! especially that little out of key trill.
on gilded strands, I kept trying to place why that piano section at 1:10 sounded sooo familiar to me?? and then it hit me, it sounds eerily similar to this piano section from regina spektor's field below (link should open at 1:39). haven't thought of that song in years but suddenly your song brought me back to it.
as always, your piece is really unique and fantastic, an absolute joy to listen to, and definitely a top contender in creativity
Thank you!
This is where the pattern I played with came from, as I once played a portion of this piece, but never finished learning it:
i should have known it all comes back to rachmaninoff
Heart Of The Steppes: I can tell you put soul into this. Love the tempo changes. Nice vox! Love the Dorian use!
Wind And Water: That ostinato reminds me of Tales of Phantasia, (an OST I love). Sweet sweet piano.
Gilded Strands: So fluttery and expressive. Beautiful tune! Reminds me of a game like TOTK.
Great work! Love the live recordings. Inspires me to go learn an instrument!
Thank you KaS! I indeed put my soul into it!
"Inspires me to go learn an instrument!"
Haha good to hear! I've been pushing everyone to learn to play something and/or sing if they don't. I think there's this joy and life that comes out of music when you play it in person. It also kind of unblocks you from the midi "place notes and sound it out" effect that goes too slowly, where you lose the moment that it came out. You can record tons of stuff on your phone with voice and an instrument
I'll say it to you too - all I use to record is a pair of SM57s, and you really only need one. The second one just gives more instant, realistic stereo feedback.. It's this oldschool badass microphone that is known for its accuracy and durability. It's a 100 dollar microphone, and all you need is a DAC to plug it into, and you can then do your own vocals, and improvise. It's not a compromise either - it still manages to remain a staple in world class recording studios for specific things.
Now I understand what you told me about recording instruments. It's a really nice way to enhance the sound quality and your music is proof of that!
I love that you went for a minimalist kind of style. but it's still capable to evocate something powerful and deep when you need it
I didn't expect the voices in Heart of the Steppes. That surprised me!
AWESOME WORK!!
Thank you!
very impressive how you recorded the instruments and vocals, you sure did a great job!
the expressiveness, the idea, the melody, it all sounds together really good
im not sure if its me but all the tracks also fit to each other, because when listening to it all i didnt notice that i was done listening to it all, i thought i was still listening to the first track.. and the tracks work great on loop as well!
i cant pick which one is my favorite cuz all of them are great. "heart of the steppes" is the most developed track, it got so much instruments playing in it including vocals, and as for the melody i think my favorite one is gilded strands
the story, the soundtrack and the artwork is very nice, unique, and impressive
The "wind and water" track actually emulates overtone singing with those trills.
So, when you here that whistling in that section sort of towards the end of "heart of the steppe," the trills in "wind and water" are something I unconsciously developed from listening to a lot of Mongolian music with that style of overtone singing.
Hey... I love folk!
I, as a resident of middle Asia, got incredible pleasure from listening to Heart Of The Steppes. That's awesome, man! You can perform with this track on our stage in Kazakhstan, heh).
The other two tracks are good piano tunes, which definitely have their own atmosphere.
Thanks a lot for the quality track!
Central Asia needs more love from a fantasy/worldbuilding perspective. Europe, China, Japan, and the Middle East seem to get all the attention for fantasy inspiration. Central America does too.
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Altai region of Russia, and Mongolia are all so pretty. Turkic and Mongolian cultures are also so unique, but totally awesome, and it's like no one knows.
Absolutely right!
This is very interesting! It somewhat reminds me of *The Witcher* at certain moments (including the TV series). The instruments typical of medieval culture sound really good (may I ask which libraries you used?). I truly love the folkloric sounds! Another strong point is the significant difference between the tracks, while still maintaining a sense of coherence among them. The second track, so ethereal, is unexpected after the folkloric intro. It fits well, describing different moods without making you feel like you're being transported to another world or story. The mix is very balanced, and the orchestrations are excellently executed. Well done!
The only virtual instrument in my composition is the piano.
The first track is entirely real instruments and my voice. All the string sounds are the Talharpa I made by hand, as in I designed and built with wood. It is made of spruce and African mahogany, with gut strings. As Talharpas go, it is also a very unique instrument, where I crossed a viola da gamba and a Trossingen lyre. It is pictured in my post. The crossbar is made out of a piece of ipe that a woodworker at my local ren fair gave me.
The whistling is me throat singing. The drum is a frame drum.
Wow, incredible. I didn't expect that! Truly, congratulations!
I really enjoyed the expressiveness your live playing adds to the music, vs. something "on-the-grid".
I love that you interpreted the theme in a personal way, digested it, and produced an eclectic blend of world-folk-inspired music. This is awesome.
Really cool of you to use real instruments and great quality production, this would definitely work well in a game!
2nd track was really chill.
3rd track got me yoshimatsu vibe, really evocative^^
Your tracks really put me in the space of the game. You did a phenomenal job creating the atmosphere of this world. Nicely done!
I crave for more folk and live playing in video game music ! The first track was AMAZING !
The 2 piano tracks are really shooting too, what an achievement for a one week jam, GG
Thank you!
Custom Instrument and live performance? It's incredibly Folk-y I love the tonal richness and the voice layering, it's incredibly impressive! An artist through and through!
The other 2 tracks on piano are impressive, virtuosic playing it's really incredible what you got done in a week! Following you on Soundcloud immediately!
Nice tracks. To have your own-built instrument is certainly giving the music another dimension! Also liked the Debussy feelings in your piano :D
Building your own instrument for this is so cool! Great composition and a very short and sweet entry that left me wishing there was more! Great work with this, even though you didn't have a lot of time and had to improvise it still comes through that you care a lot about this world, and the music still came out great! This is something to be proud of for sure!
This is a lovely response!
Thank you! :)