Play soundtrack
The Course of the Empire's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Composing Quality | #7 | 4.080 | 4.080 |
| Overall | #9 | 3.888 | 3.888 |
| Listenability | #13 | 4.000 | 4.000 |
| Execution | #16 | 3.800 | 3.800 |
| Correlation to Theme | #16 | 4.040 | 4.040 |
| Overall Uniqeuness | #26 | 3.520 | 3.520 |
Ranked from 25 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Link to Streaming Service, such as Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Youtube, etc
https://on.soundcloud.com/ibZh7PzM3Lzmaebg9
Description
I chose to make one track per painting, linking them together using the same musical theme and elements, using variations of tempo, keys, and orchestration to get differents atmospheres.
1. Ouverture
This first theme was made to evoke the greatness of an untouched nature. Very dark and melancolic mood, to announce the tragedy that will later occur.
2. Peacefull Life
This one depicts the peacefull life in the coutryside, where a small village grows in harmony with the nature.
3. A Busy Town !
The small little village has become a much larger town, very crowded and busy. The theme is more serious.
4. Warmongers
The city is on fire, war has come to the civilization. The theme depicts the population fleeing for their lives
5. Desolation
Calm after the storm. The city is sacked and in ruins. I used solo piano on this one to evoke the lonelyness of the few that remains after the tragedy.
Youtube Playlist : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwTIcBPKI_sMOr1x26moQNYXRS8skVWCV
Screenshot of DAW
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ddVtqrIhu1O-bo_gta8-Q3TgQ3fPs6ya/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tGJ1JP2JPsrJN8_pjGxAzLCchbnF1ePa/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/12odsG_Z6_DWDDa9DZ3_FijkP8Wgx_Ytn/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rY1K9dfXlrph5K6rZfAODZoVC6ZId4jC/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/18xy6ATy7upxrAxxJp_qw3t1p44bNcpdf/view?usp=sharing
Pick your mode!
Leave a comment
Log in with itch.io to leave a comment.


Comments
Cool compositions and mix! I really enjoyed listening to them you nailed the theme also!
I liked it, it sounded like JRPG music. The woodwind shorts are a bit too loud, and I think you could've gone in a different direction is track 3 as it sounded a bit similar to the previous track. Overall it was decent composition, good job
Oh my! I am speechless to how good this submission is! Well done! Loved every track, but the last two the most. Each one has such a good feel and vibe to it. I love your style. It is like other but has its own style. Really well done!
Thank you so much for your kind words !
I'm really glad you liked it so much :D
Your welcome! I really enjoyed it!
Take Care!
Hey thre, really cool submission, my favorite song was Desolation, its just a beautiful peace.
I think the execution and composition are pretty pretty good, I have a thing though, I don't know if you noticed the Dynamics you gave to Ouverture, pretty awesome and not easy to achieve, but on the other hand, it made Busy Town and Warmonger feel kinda small in a way, and not dissing on the songs, actually Warmonger is my runner up for fav, loved the song, but I think they needed more dynamism due to the first songs one, unlike Peacefull life and Desolation which should (thematically) have more controlled dynamics. ( i hope I could pass the correct idea)
Pretty awesome, take care :)
Hey, thanks for your feedback !
You're totally right, that's one thing I've learn with this jam, I need to really work on the dynamics changes and "human" feeling. Ouverture and Desolation are the most "worked", as I lacked time for the others they sound kinda flat.
Thanks a lot for taking the time anyway, I really appreciate it !
Take care as well ! :D
Nice thumbnail. was that painted? or digital art? i think, i can see the texture of the canvas.
Well done with the classical music. reminds me of the nutcracker "A busy town" reminds me of the nutcracker and warmonger reminds me of final fantasy fight theme from playstation 1 days with cloud. Great job overall, I'd say these 5 songs would work great as a package for game devs to use in their game demos, which you could offer in exchange for emails via gumroad. Very well rounded and everything seems to loop really well.
Thanks a lot for the feedback !
Warmonger is indeed very inspired by old FF combat music :D
As for the thumbnail, this is indeed a painting made by a friend of mine. As I'm really bad for drawing or get ideas of visual, she does that part for me when she can :D
Thanks again, have a good day !
Hey I really liked all the tracks! I think the second one is my favorite. Really like the waltz feel for it. All your tracks are mixed great too. Really like what you came up with!
Thanks a lot ! :D
Metko - Music is lovely, well written and really fitting for the theme!
Overture - Lovely colour through the harmony - sets the stage nicely.
Peaceful Life - Fun! Enjoying the Regency feel to the music.
A Busy Town - This was my favourite of the collection until I heard Desolation! Really dynamic - I really wanted it to continue which is always a good thing
Warmonger - Instantly think of battle music! Takes me back to battles in Shining Force on the Sega - super nostalgic and really well produced!
Desolation - Ooooo, its reminiscent of a Chopin Nocturne - absolutely beautiful! As a pianist, can I have this music please? Gorgeous!
A real variation across the 5 and lovely journey here - brilliant stuff!
Thanks a lot for your nice feedback, it's really appreciated !
I'm very glad that you liked Desolation so much, that was the first piece I wrote, and there's indeed some Chopin's color here, I love romantic music. It's also very inspired by Mendelsshon's "Songs without words", I was working on the Venitian Boat Song op 30 n°6 at the moment, the left hand pattern comes directly from it, I recommend you check this one out, it's so beautiful !
As for my own composition, here's the sheet music if you want to mess with it :D (Score is not perfect) :
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AhSfhO9No5gATQYPMNfVzXsRPHjRiw7i/view?usp=shari...
Again, thanks for taking the time to listen and give feedback, hope you have a great day !
Mekto, I really appreciated the contrast in listening to the songs in their natural sequence.
It feels like you’ve enclosed the most vibrant part of the concept within two parentheses (Ouverture and Desolation). These two tracks are actually my favorites because their contrast enhances the central pieces, which carry a much more "alive" feel.
Overall, great execution, and the mix seems very well balanced . perhaps even too much at times. While listening, I found myself looking for a bit more dynamics in the sound, maybe a stronger protagonist here and there.
Thanks a lot for your feedback !
I totaly agree with you, listening back to the sound I really feel I can improve on the dynamics, all the mix sounds a bit "flat"
Nice of you bringing that to my attention, thanks again mate !
Great songs! Solo piano on Desolation was tasteful, the contrast there is neat. Foreshadowing on Ouverture is clever as well.
Thanks a lot, I'm glad you liked it !
Super cool arrangement, I liked that every track is very distinctive we can really tell them apart. I like that the overture and end are mostly tied together in terms of vibe it creates a nice story telling making it into a big circle back to the beginning. Well done !
Thanks for the nice feedback :D
a very melancholy submission. You captured the emotions of the paintings very well.
Thanks !
These ones grew on me while I was listening to them. Although I found Peaceful Life and A Busy Town! the most enjoyable (they're so jaunty!), I liked Desolation a lot as well. I actually think keeping it simple with just a piano was a good choice for that theme, and provides a nice contrast to the "fuller" sounds of the previous pieces. Like in Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata or Satie's Gymnopedie No. 1, sometimes a solo piano provides all the melancholy you need, and adding any more layers could actually detract from that feeling.
Thanks you so much ! I'm glad you had a good time listenning to my tracks :D And thanks for the nice feedback, really appreciated <3
This was a nice entry Mekto! I preferred Peaceful Life and Warmongers the most, I feel they best evoked the vibe you were going for. I found some of the others potentially a bit lacking but it definitely makes sense for desolation to be so isolating. Nice pieces!
Thanks a lot for the feedback !
I agree with you, some tracks are "unfinished", and as for Desolation I think the piano solo might be a bit of an odd choice, as everything else is orchestral. I hesitated to orchestrate it as well, but I didn't had the time to do so.
Anyway, glad you liked some of it, and again thanks for taking the time to listen and comment, means a lot !