Palestrina Agnus Dei

[bloeff]

Hi,
I'm a 57 year old man who loves Palestrina. This is me singing all the parts of Agnus Dei from Missa Papae Marcelli!! Let me know what you think.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-otmlEXT98
Thanks,
Bruce L.

[wljmrbill]

interesting project... sounds quite unusual but I like it. I would think it would be difficuilt to get the timing correct for all the parts before putting them together.

[Krummhorn]

Most interesting ... and a nice sound, too.

How long did this take to put together - that is, laying all the separate tracks down?

[bloeff]

Hi,
Thanks for your feedback. You're quite correct. The most difficult part of the project was the timing. That's why I created midi files for each part and listened to it as I sang the part. I used Cakewalk Music Creator and synchronized all the parts with a master drum track. It was a blast and I'm quite pleased with the sound as it's my first project. As you might imagine the greatest challenge is to make a half-way decent sound for Soprano. I sang that part two to three half steps lower and did a pitch shift to push it the rest of the way. It sounds a bit like Alvin the Chipmunk and I will continue to work on it. I'm thinking about Lauridsen's O Magnum Mysterium as my next project. I'll keep you posted!
Thanks,
bloeff

[Krummhorn]

Well, you could have fooled me on the Soprano part ... there are people I have known who can easily get those high notes in falsetto. Didn't think it was "Alvin" like at all ... it was very clear and sonorous.

[marval]

Hello, welcome to the forum.

That was very good, you must have worked hard to put it all together.


Margaret

[dll927]

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis. Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona nobis pacem.

Benedictus que venit in nomine Domini.

In nomine patri, et filii, et spiriti sancti, Amen.

[bloeff]

Hi everybody,
Thanks for all the encouragement! As far as the time spent on the project, it took a couple of weeks to figure out the timing and pitch issues (i.e. the midi files). Once that was done, it only took a couple of days to record. I suppose one thing I risk in being so mechanical is losing the emotion of the music, but this music is so inherently beautiful that would be hard to do. As far as the amount of work, it was such a blast that I didn't even notice. I just love acapella choral works and the harmonies. Do you think there is enough of a core sound here that can be developed and refined to turn this into more than just a hobby?

Thanks again for all the support, and I look forward to an ongoing dialog with you all!

Thanks
Bruce

[acciaccatura]

Must have been a lot of fun (and a lot of effort). Beautiful as the vocal quality is, I must say I am slightly bothered by a certain synthetic quality in the rhythm, as if there is an unheard metronome relentlessly pounding the beats. I guess that was necessary to achieve the proper timing, but it does deduct from the pure musical experience - which is what one is looking for when listening to music...

Impressive what is now possible using electronica...

[bloeff]

Here is an updated link to the song. The Soprano I track had some distortion in it due to the pitch shift. I cleaned up this track and also uploaded a WAV file instead of MP3. I think it sounds better. Check it out!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIeuLDNxltg
Thanks,
Bruce

[Krummhorn]

Much improved sound, Bruce

Thanks for the update on this.

[wljmrbill]

agreed... thanks again