"To Go That Extra Mile" - music by alfstone, lyrics & vocals by orh

[bruno]

Excellent tune chaps. Can you give some details on how this was recorded? Was that a real miked up cello, it sure sounded like it!
B

[alfstone]

Excellent tune chaps. Can you give some details on how this was recorded? Was that a real miked up cello, it sure sounded like it!
B

Bruno, as I wrote before, I've composed the tune using (except for the guitar) Band-in-a-box WITH its innovative RealTracks. In few words, this means NO MIDI, but micro-phragments of real instruments played by real musician, that I put together in order to have the final tune.

So, I really don't know *how* the cello was recorded, but I can imagine it was miked up. Then, I have to add that, since the audio quality of these RealTracks is *average good* but not VERY VERY good (if you want a higher quality of these instruments, the cost is much higher), I use to edit these tracks with a specialized software as Izotope Alloy.

Thanks,
Alfredo

[alfstone]

Lovely stuff here guys,another perfect songcrafters Collaberations ,this really is an excellent site with so many friends and musical arrangements made.
This is what this sites about,I really do feel more excited about a Collaberation I have done on here more than I do about putting out an original recording.
It means more,does that make sense?

Advise: long and boring answer. Keep away...  

Dear Kenny Mac, how many considerations come to my mind reading your comment...  

Yes, it makes sense, but I realized this in time, not at the beginning of my presence here. My first recordings here (2010) were solo arrangements, and I think that most of us, at the beginning, had/have the same approach.

This approach has a big limit: we tend to *get in love* with our *artistic product*, as if we look at it using glasses making everything nice and splendid...but in most cases, unfortunately, it isn't so, unless the author is anyway a great composer, or a great musician, or a great arranger and so on.

I had the confirmation of this when I asked a real pro musician a *honest* opinion about some of my solo music. His answer was, more or less: "You play not bad, but you should be aware of your technical limits, and play trying NOT TO GO beyond you limits, as you tend to do, because then I can feel some problems in your music".

Now, going back to SC collaborations, a first important aspect is that in collaborations, when they are open and sincere, we feel the right to suggest each other some changes, some edits that are necessary, but that we (...as authors...) are not aware of, for the reason I wrote above: for instance, in this ballad, when James listened to my backing track, he suggested me to cut away something I have added, and NOW I can say he was absolutely right!

Apart from that, there's of course also the joy to compose, or re-arrange, a tune in order to the collaboration itself:
in this case, for instance, I composed the tune and it was OK, I was glad about the chord progression, but...something was lacking. A voice was lacking, lyrics were lacking...
So I realized that, even if I wasn't aware, I was composing IN ORDER TO MAKE A COLLABORATION.

In this sense now I can say that SC has changed - IN BETTER - my way to think when I make music. Because, at the end, I'm more and more convinced that music is a *social* art. We (mostly solo players) are here from all parts of the world, and thanks to this great site we can someway play *together*.

And this is wonderful.

Alfredo

P.S. please, excuse my English  

[Greeny]

Holy sh*t... this is too good. Way too good! Absolutely stunning. The music is wondrous and that's my favourite vocal from you EVER Mr Higgins. Totally spellbound by how amazing this song is.

[kenny mac]

Well said Alfredo,I totally get it

[Oldrottenhead]

i love collabing with alfredo,

i love getting a pm from him saying i have  mail.

i very rarely have any idea what to expect from him.

 what was great about this one is , it is as far as i recall, the first original solo composition alfredo has sent me.

it was a joy to receive, and one of the easiest pieces of music to write a lyric too. it conjured up so many thoughts and ideas, that i had to drop a few verses.

and tim, i think i followed your advice on the vox, i usually record my vocal in stereo, but after reading a thread here about stereo recording, i decided to try a mono recording , cant for the life of me recall the patch i used.

 anyway i'm rambling, but thank you alfredo, i love the finished article bravo.

[Oldrottenhead]

oh and thanks to my friends that keep me grounded.

[Hilary]

Oh this is absolutely delightful and I totally agree, I think this is the best vocal I've heard from you James.

Nice one boys