Missing good intense music?

[RaustBD]

It's been my experience playing Battle for Wesnoth that the soundtrack is rather mellow. Really, by far the most epic and exciting song on the entire soundtrack is "Over the Northern Mountains" (which is coincidentally my absolute favorite song in the entire game and I think it's just criminally underused), and the rest don't come close. This isn't to denigrate the music's quality, the music is awesome and very well-done, it's just that... well, let me explain.

So I've been playing "Fate of a Princess", a user-made campaign that I think is awesome, and I just recently reached the final level. This is it. Gulder, a man with the power to enslave thousands of people at once and who has taken command of the humans and orcs, a man built up as an impossibly powerful wizard with no discernible sanity in his motives who for all we know may be planning on obliterating all independent thought and/or sentient life on the planet and actually may have the power to do so... such a man waits at the end of this map, and he must be stopped. The beginning-scenario prompt makes it clear: this is it. This is the last battle.

And what music do we get for this epic confrontation?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZu-DPq0kNQ

This and three other similarly mellow and vaguely ominous tracks. Know what I was expecting?

Oh, something along the lines of this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvRRwGgNC9s

And here I arrive at my point: As far as I can tell, the reason said campaign didn't use music like that is because Battle for Wesnoth doesn't have music like that. Nothing like it. Nothing that would get a player suitably pumped for an epic final confrontation. And I have to ask: Why not? I feel that creating even just one intense "ballad of the final confrontation" would be an extremely welcome addition to the game's soundtrack. Heck, I'm very very nearly tempted to dust off the old music software and create one of my own, but I'm not sure I can make the music with a sound that sounds quite vanilla for Wesnoth. Is there any particular reason why none of the music in the game has touched this particular niche?

[iceiceice]

It is possible for the scenario designer to change the track in response to an event, e.g. switch to some very dramatic track when the final boss approaches or something like this.

There is also like ten different UMC music pack add-ons that said designer could add as dependencies to his add-on if he found music he thought was appropriate for the moment. (I haven't listened to any of this music though, not sure if you will find what you are hoping for.)

It's totally possible, the guy just didn't do it.

[RaustBD]

It is possible for the scenario designer to change the track in response to an event, e.g. switch to some very dramatic track when the final boss approaches or something like this.

There is also like ten different UMC music pack add-ons that said designer could add as dependencies to his add-on if he found music he thought was appropriate for the moment. (I haven't listened to any of this music though, not sure if you will find what you are hoping for.)

It's totally possible, the guy just didn't do it.

Oh make no mistake, this is NOT a criticism of the campaign or its creator, it's just an example of my point about missing music styles. I don't blame the campaign maker at all.

[Pentarctagon]

It is possible for the scenario designer to change the track in response to an event, e.g. switch to some very dramatic track when the final boss approaches or something like this.

There is also like ten different UMC music pack add-ons that said designer could add as dependencies to his add-on if he found music he thought was appropriate for the moment. (I haven't listened to any of this music though, not sure if you will find what you are hoping for.)

It's totally possible, the guy just didn't do it.

12, if you count West's Chronicles I and II.

[revansurik]

I've already noticed that as well (that is, the lack of good, intense music). However, as I heard the user-made tracks, I stumbled upon March of the Divine by greatsaiamanz and Final by Charly Jouglet; I use both of them for final duels in my campaigns, and they're very final showdown-like

[West]

I think the main reason Wesnoth doesn't have a whole lot of music in that vein is that virtual orchestral music is rather difficult and time consuming. Even a seemingly straightforward, mellow tune actually requires a lot of work in order to make everything sound convincing and "right". If you're going to compose an intense movie score type action cue with all the required fast staccato parts and runs and tons of polyrhythmic percussion... well that adds several new layers of complexity. Sometimes the technology behind it all doesn't even allow it, as not all orchestral sample libraries are up to the task of fast playing etc.

So IOW, contributors are more likely to create slower and/or more basic pieces of music.

Edit: the music choices of campaign creators/maintainers and the availability of music are of course two completely different matters.

[libervurto]

I am working on some pretty epic music. Can't find the cable to transfer the recording of what I have so far.

[West]

I am working on some pretty epic music. Can't find the cable to transfer the recording of what I have so far.

Transfer? Exactly what are you using to compose this music?

[libervurto]

Transfer? Exactly what are you using to compose this music?

A keyboard and a cable plugged into my mic socket. I found the cable.

It's still rough, the recording quality is bad, my playing is bad and I think it could do with an extra layer on top something more melodic than what I have so far, but here it is WIP: https://soundcloud.com/libervurto/trials-of-battle

It needs a lot more fleshing, some percussion and brass or wind instruments would be good. Problem is my brass/wind sounds are pretty bad on my keyboard.

[West]

Problem is my brass/wind sounds are pretty bad on my keyboard.

And the strings aren't?

I hate to break it to you, but this kind of sample quality will simply not do if you're aiming to get a track in mainline Wesnoth. There is no hardware in existance that will provide the quality we're looking for, you need to use a DAW, a software sampler and hi quality instrument samples.

If you want to make UMC music, no problem. Use whatever stuff you want. But in case you have your sights set on mainline, I just wanted to let you know so you're not wasting your time.

[libervurto]

Yes it is true, the piano is the only nice sample on my keyboard.

I would like to use a DAW, do you know of any good software? How expensive is it? I don't have much money.
I have searched for something like that in the past but I didn't know they were called Digital Audio Workstations so I probably got useless results.

I will work on the music and try to find some good software to make a clean version in with nice samples.

I am installing ardour, will let you know if it's any good.

Thanks

[PPH]

Take a look at West's signature. It contains a link to the "Sonatina Symphonic Orchestra". This is a collection of samples that he gathered and edited to make an orchestral library. It's quite good.

[libervurto]

Ah, thanks PPH and West. I feel like I can improve now.

[Temuchin Khan]

...by far the most epic and exciting song on the entire soundtrack is "Over the Northern Mountains" (which is coincidentally my absolute favorite song in the entire game and I think it's just criminally underused)...

Hear! Hear! It seems like I never hear it, unless I specifically select it. Is there any chance of getting "Over the Northern Mountains" used more often, especially in multiplayer?

[West]

Yes it is true, the piano is the only nice sample on my keyboard.

I would like to use a DAW, do you know of any good software? How expensive is it? I don't have much money.
I have searched for something like that in the past but I didn't know they were called Digital Audio Workstations so I probably got useless results.

I will work on the music and try to find some good software to make a clean version in with nice samples.

I am installing ardour, will let you know if it's any good.

Thanks

As you're going for Ardour it means you're on Linux which isn't exactly the hottest audio platform out there and the odds will be against you. But by all means, let us know how it works out for you.

If you're going to try out SSO, LinuxSampler is probably your best bet. For reverb, Freeverb3.