Jerry Gerber

Thanks Starship Krupa. Yeah, the VSL oboe can be very expressive.

Thanks Nigel for listening..

Thanks for listening Tim. The "synth bass" is a patch from the softsynth Dune.

Thanks steve@baselines.com for listening to this music! Jerry

Hey Jimbo88, Thanks for listening again and I am pleased you enjoy the composition. The strings in this piece are the VSL chamber strings. For the most part I am happy with their sound, but I see your point. I think it's probably more my fault than the string library, I can probably get the sound you prefer by orchestrating the attack and release times a bit differently, or move them around the MIR sound stage (MIR is the incredible VSL convolution reverb that allows me to place an instrument anywhere on the soundstage). Another possibility might be to de-tune the 1st and 2nd violins very slightly to increase the perception of the chorus effect. Still another possibility is to use different sample-sets. The chamber strings give me quite a few options in terms of long-bow strings, with and without dynamics, and I probably could explore a little more to see if I am choosing the very best articulation for the phrase I've written. I also have the VSL orchestral, appassionata and solo strings and they all sound different. Have you heard the VSL orchestral or appassionata strings? They are both really beautiful, the appassionata strings have more vibrato but fewer sample choices. In the oboe concerto I wanted a smaller sound so I am using the chamber strings. I have grown reluctant to add more sample libraries to my studio. It takes time to figure out which one to purchase, time to install it, time to learn it well and then of course there's the additional file management that becomes necessary in terms of backing up the presets I make, the configurations, etc. I know if I gave into my equipment and software lust every time I think I should buy something new I would never be as prolific as I have been. I know there are other superb libraries available but I feel I haven't learned VSL as well as I would like. When I listen to demos of other libraries I am sometimes impressed but then I listen to VSL and I think, wow, this is really good enough by any standards. I still think the issues you point out are probably not because of the chamber strings but due to my approach to production. I appreciate that you took the time to offer your perspective. There's always more knowledge to gain when working in this wonderful and exciting medium. Best, Jerry

Thank Jimbo! Yes, the oboe (that's the only woodwind in the 2nd movement) is from the VSL Orchestral Cube. In the first movement, the flutes, English horn, clarinets, bass clarinet and bassoons are also from the VSL Orchestral Cube.

Thanks for listening Jude77..

Thanks Tom!

Happy New Year Tom and thank you for listening! Jerry

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Thank you Larry for listening.

Thanks Gary, may 2022 be a good year for you. Jerry

If you're in the mood for a slow, leisurely, contemplative piece of music, you might want to listen to the 2nd movement of what's to be a three movement work for virtual instruments. PLAY

Thank you very much Larry! And thanks for taking the time to listen.. When I was a boy I wanted to be an astronomer but I realized I didn't have the math and physics talent to move ahead with such an ambition. But I still love astronomy and try to keep up with the latest findings. It will be quite a day when we finally discover that there is intelligent life in the universe--maybe we can one day become intelligent ourselves!!

True, writing a shorter piece for fewer players is different from a long-form piece with lots of players. But I wouldn't underestimate the string quartet because the same capacity for musical development and variation exist in a 4 movement string quartet, except of course there are fewer timbres.

Though I did mention that I originally conceived of this piece for a visual presentation, it's very rare that I have an interest in scoring to picture. I've already scored over 750 cues for film, TV and games and found that musically and artistically it's not what I want to do. Film scoring can pay well and there can be prestige in doing it if that's what you're looking for, but for me composition is most rewarding and challenging when music is not governed by a story, plot or visuals. Before film and TV a composer who collaborated in producing an opera, dance piece, songs or Broadway was entering into a true collaboration where the music determined, or played a large role in the pacing, length, style and general direction of the project. Not so in film scoring. Though I enjoy teamwork, I'd rather write symphonies and produce albums. Film music seriously lacks something I love about music--the abstract nature of musical development and variation that can only be explored in composition-for-its-own-sake or in collaborations that don't inhibit that property of music. Background music for film almost always negates that element of composition. It doesn't have to, but the nature of how films are produced makes it so. The other issue for me, is that most films suck. When I try and watch a film these days on Netflix, about 80% of the time I watch 10 or 20 minutes of it or so and turn it off as I feel like I am wasting time, or worse, putting junk into my brain; sort of like eating junk food that titillates and seems tasty when eating it but has no nutritional value and can damage your health . I could not possibly score a project that I think is crap, and most films are crap. If a composer reaches a stage in their career where they can pick and choose every film they score, well, that's great for them, but in order to do that you'll have to spend all your time scoring films or looking for projects to score. I'd be back to square one again! No thank you!

Thanks for listening Tim!

Thanks Tim! I originally planned this piece for use with visuals but it ended up merely as a piece of music. Yes, the only orchestral library i use is is the VSL Orchestral Cube. I have the orchestral, solo, chamber and appassionata strings although I don't recall offhand which ones I used in The Galaxies.

Thanks Wookiee. And thank you for being so helpful in regards to CW tips and troubleshooting..

Thanks Tim and thanks for listening..I'm actually very lucky, I had hip replacement surgery last April and I'm walking like a healthy 20 year old now. The difference is incredible. Hip replacement surgery has something like a 97% success rate. I also had mitral valve (heart) repair surgery in October and that too has changed my life incredibly for the better. No more getting out of breath or feeling light-headed. The miracles of modern medicine are really amazing. But you're right, aging is challenging no matter what. Even with modern surgical interventions we're merely buying time (which I suppose is nothing to scoff at) before the eventual and inevitable end.

Yes, true. No matter how well life is going--the joys, successes, relationships, happiness, accomplishments--always waiting quietly in the corner is the grief, the knowledge of our mortality and the mortality of everyone we care for. Our existence in this world is impermanent and in the quiet of night we know we all must face loss and grief. Thank God for humor and thank God for grief. For without these things we'd be unbearable, insufferable little twits, thinking we're Gods when we are probably the lowest form of sentient life in the universe. Best to you Bjorn and happy new year...

Hi David! Thanks for listening to The Galaxies. I hadn't thought of this piece as dodecaphonic or Schoenbergian, in fact I gave up trying to write serialized music many years ago, but I guess there is enough chromaticism in the piece to warrant that association. I'm really glad you enjoyed listening! Happy New Year to you, Jerry

In celebration of the launching of the new James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The Galaxies

Thanks Larry. Lovely piece! How was this recorded? Any orchestral samples? Live choir or from a sample library? You did a good job with the orchestration, very nice feeling to the instrumentation and good integration with the choir... You are aware I assume that my choir is virtual, it's the East-West Hollywood choir with word builder.. Best, Jerry p.s. I think you're supposed to create a separate thread for your own work, rather than post it in a thread based on another's composition...

All my string samples are from the Vienna Symphonic Library: Solo strings, orchestral, chamber and Appassionata strings...