Live Symphonic Brass - NOW AVAILABLE!

I'm not seeing them Mike, not in spam either...

 

60$ (via Paypal, not through Indiegogo)

 

Got the email. Also the scores and mockups ready in a folder.

Good thing I purchased a second monitor recently. Now I can have a look at the stream and see the scores at the same time without having to deal with printing them. Can't wait!

 

Second monitors are rather invaluable for a studio setup, I didn't realize how much so until I got one. Easy enough to get a used 1080p monitor these days for under $50.

 

Holy cow, what a class! Thank you Mike, that was a really profound opportunity. Thank you for your generosity and for arranging this; your genuine care for real music really shines through your work. Insanely excited for future classes.

 

Well done today, Mike. Was a helpful and engaging class.

 

Yes, it was an absolutely wonderful class. It was great to hear all of the tips, different opinions and suggestions on writing for real brass. Thanks!

 

This is gonna be long…

What a class! Simply stunning. Just.. WOW. I was never fortunate enough to be a part of a live session recording, but this class made me feel like I was there in the room. Great job Mike, Laura Beth and all other people, that I don’t know your names, but you were doing miracles behind the scenes to make this class possible. A big “thank you” to all of you.
During those hours I’ve learned a lot more that I could have possibly imagined. From composing through conducting to players interaction.
Before this class I was a little bit ignorant about conductors. However this class made me realize that there is more to conducting than waving a baton to the click. The conductor brings that extra something to the piece. And for that Neal is amazing. A conductor is not only a composers voice on the stage, but also he is the force that brings the best from players. A great conductor spots strengths and weaknesses of a take and immediately gives a feedback to the players. He also pushes the performance that little bit extra. When you think that take was good, Neal gave the players a little feedback, pushing players forward, and then the next take was gold. Also Neal was able no correct any mistakes of the score, on the spot, on the stage. Amazing!
Also a mini takes (I bet there is a better technical term for this) were amazing, when conductors calls out specific groups on specific bar and they do a little, few bars, rehearsal. When you’re doing live recording “time is money”, so you think you don’t have time to do this, but Neal was able to squeeze this between takes. So maybe you lose a 30 seconds of recording time, but the results of the next take are stunning. Also you have to be careful about feedback, because players might overdo your thoughts.
I also loved “ignore all the extra notation” takes. It showed me that the proper guidance in the score makes all the difference in the world. The players are not MIDI Machines. Don’t force them to replicate the MIDI mockup. Show the players what they are supposed to do, and they will deliver even more than what you expected.
The players were amazing and I just want to say a big “thank you” to all of you. You were amazing, Probably because of the setting, the players were comfortable enough to say what was bothering them. When a player says, that in specific bar there should be something different, they are right! You should stop this “you know nothing Horn player” attitude and admit “I know nothing”. Most of those players were able to play their instruments before they were able to spell correctly. It is sad that most of the time, the tight schedule and composers ego stops the piece from being even more amazing. If they could hear what players think about the piece, it would take it to the next level.
And now for me. I had a hard time reading scores. Earlier Mike posted mock-ups and sheets to the pieces that were recorded during the show, but I avoided listening and reading them until the show. And then, during recording, I was amazed that I was actually able to follow the score. Mike prepared scorers that were both sophisticated and yet easy to follow. That improved my sight-reading a lot. And they showed different techniques, some of them were not achievable through MIDI mockup.
To sum it up. Amazing class. I hope everyone else took from the class as much as I did.

 

I only enrolled to get the videos afterwards, since I knew I couldn't attend the stream. Do you know, when it will be up?

 

Mike said it's going to be a few days, he needs to edit everything (audio, video etc.) I'm sure he will email everyone when it's ready to go.

 

Yeah sorry! just saw the mail about that!

 

No worries!

 

Mike, the show was more than awsome, and I really hope you will do the other sections of the orchestra, too.
As far as preparing the video, I'd say take your time. Because for sure this one will be purchased and re-watched a lot, also in the future.
And, if during the editing and mixing you have a chance to pull up the levels of the stage mics when the players were talking, that would be great!!

 

I didn't get your e-mail, mike. Bought from your page Mikeverta.com through paypal. Never had a problem before.

 

Because there were no problems before, I relied too much on that e-mail. I realised too late that something was wrong. Well, I will make an account on VI too just to be on the safe side but of course it’s bitter. Anyway, thank you for responding. Do you already know when you will send out links of the recording?

 

Hi Mike, thanks for putting on the show! Here's some feedback that I hope you appreciate:
It was a minor shame that the opportunity wasn't taken to demonstrate some instrument-specific techniques, e.g. mutes, stopped horns, bells up, growls etc. Would you consider including this in the next shows, e.g. flutter-tonguing for winds or Bartok pizz. and con sord. for strings? It would be interesting to know how the players themselves conceptualise these techniques, and if there are common mistakes that composers make when including them.