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www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CvvKQMC9zE Hello If you have time check out my new recording. New songs coming out next week. Feel free to share or leave a comment. Have a good day!
Wow Mark, Invisible, SO good. Congrats on another beautiful piece.
Thanks Mal! I didn't know anyone could see it yet - I was waiting to finish the rest of the album. :)
I was able to play it because it got selected! Don't worry not playable from your profile though :)
Thank you for you 5 star rating of Angel of light
Should Have Known has a great high-energy and really catchy chorus, Mark. Well done once again!
Thank you! I added it to enter into the IMSTA Festa contest.
Best of luck with 'Should Have Known' in the contest!!
Thank you for all of the five stars Jeff!
My pleasure Mark! You've got serious composition/arrangement skill, and I would t think your work's going to find its way into film.
Hi Jeff thanks for the review of the instrumental of my song Big Money Blues, I do have the version with lyrics and a singer that being me, if you want to hear the lyrics you can go to my page and check it out thanks again for the review I appreciate it hope you have a great day.
Those Who Stand is brilliant! What an exciting soundtrack, initially loaded with tension, really made me hold my breath....softening at 2 mins in before action returns to end on a note of suspense! Who needs to watch the big screen with Mark Horton doing soundtrack? Just close your eyes and listen!! Your imagination will do the rest.....
Thank you Rachel! It's encouraging to hear.
Thanks for the stars and playlist adds! How's your music coming along? Are you still reworking that song?
Very welcome Mark, you know I am a big fan! My stuff is coming along ok thanks, getting there slowly. I actually gave up on that one for now, working on other stuff at the moment. No major news, a few selections but nothing has come from them yet. Please tell me you have found a home for one of my favourite ever piano instrumentals, Cant Let Go?! Mal
Hopefully something will come out of those. Thanks. No home yet, so if you ever get into publishing... :) I don't submit to much here though because, in my experience, being selected just seems to put you into another "opportunity" where you have to get selected again for your music to actually be used.
Yeah you are right, being selected doesn't mean much it seems. It just gets you through to the finals! :) Are you submitting elsewhere or trying other means?
Not really, I feel like my productions aren't quite good enough to submit to a lot. I've been concentrating more on writing and making a new piano album (without any other instruments to have to mix!).
I hear you, I find the production side of things VERY difficult as well, just dont have the ear for it. Look forward to hearing your new stuff :)
Thank you for the 5-star and playlist adds for Expanses!
You talented Young man you deserve it! Abram Band Dean & Jacalyn~ Sail Mark! xx
Congratulations on your semi-finalist position for Two Guitars. Beautiful playing
Thank you. I see you had a semi-finalist placement for lyrics, so congratulations to you as well.
Yes, I did! Thanks. I am still working on the music side of my song Your Breath Is a Lullaby.....
To be lulled in your Waves is such a soothing experience......The masterful ebb and flow after 3:42 is perfection itself!!
Thank you for the kind words, Rachel. I'm happy to hear you enjoyed it so much!
I certainly did and I look forward to hearing more of your work...All the best. May inspiration never desert you Mark!
Great writing ,great arranging, great talent
Thank you for your review of "Rolling Thunder."
Thank you, Rachel, for all of the five star ratings! I'm glad you found so many to be enjoyable.
Thank you for the stars and playlist adds for Reflections!
Mark you are a very talent young man , most welcome. And congrats on that selection! Sail to the Top and much good always be in your pathways. Dean & Jacalyn Abram Band
I really like "Lift." The beginning has a lovely, clear, treble interlude that is a kind of modern version of point/counterpoint. I'm a big fan of the baroque era, Bach especially. Whenever something evokes anything reminiscent of that, it quickly gets my attention. Very nice work, Mark.
Thank you Loren! I'm glad you enjoyed it. I know a little about counterpoint, but I didn't consciously apply it here. I usually just go with my ear, so it's nice to hear that a little theory is coming out!
I love the almost tangible elation in Lift! True joy beautifully expressed. Well done Mark.
Thank you!
Thanks for the 5 star rating on A Hero's Welcome.
If anyone has a second First Track up Stronghold, has been reworked. All comments welcome. Dean thanks everyone
Very nice remix of "Stronghold"; while already a great track, with it's rhythmic groove and melodic trance, it sounds even better! Great work Dean!
Going on memory - I think this sounds a "cleaner" mix. Sounds good. ;-)
I agree, very nice remix, of an already great track, as Cyndi said. Awesome job you two! hugs
I can't remember well enough to compare it to the original, but this mix does sound pretty clean to me (I'm listening on headphones).
sounds great, great production i already added etc before,, dark deep mystic spooky industrial , nice mix too
Thank you all we all are ever learning ! Picking apart the mix! You all have taken the time thank you so much on some feedback Dean. Feedback is always important..................
Hi Mark, thank you for the five stars for 'A Song for Nicola' it it very much appreciated
You're welcome, Dave. Also, thank you for the rating on Waves.
Hi Malcom, I finally got around to giving your songs a good listen! Waking Dream is my favorite of your vocal songs, but every one of them has a good hook, melody, and structure. I don't pay as much attention to lyrics, but they seem to be good, too. The electric guitar backings on "Everything I Wanted" and "Waking Dream" are really cool and effective. It's impressive that you did everything yourself! Have you had any luck with any of these songs? -Mark
Hey Mark, thanks a lot for checking out my stuff. The only I have had any luck with so far is my instrumental piece "Flashback To Stranger Days" but that was from a different site (MG). I've only gotten back into songwriting in the last year so still working on these songs, currently trying to rework the two you mentioned above as I don't think they are there yet. It's funny, I'm much more into the melodies than the lyrics also. By the way, Can't Let Go has been a favourite of mine for a good while now, absolutely excellent instrumental, I listen to it all the time, even have started trying to play it. If you had the sheet music that would be great (and didn't mind me learning to play it of course!). How are things going with you, I see you have an album on iTunes? That's awesome
That's great with the instrumental! I did notice the production was a bit rough on the others - is that the main aspect you're reworking, or are you also rewriting? Thanks, I'd be happy to send you the sheet music once I have your email! I'm still trying to find some success with music - I thought I might license my first song when Takeoff was selected by an OP through this site, but it's been several months and I've yet to be contacted. Yes, I have a few albums on iTunes and other places, but it's really easy to do (through CD Baby, Routenote, etc.). I kind of regret it because the production is sub-par, but it is pretty cool to be able to say you have music on iTunes!
Also, thank you for the 5-star!
Yeah the production is still a work in progress on those two, so difficult to get it right though! I'm working on getting the production right but also editing them down so they are shorter too (well Waking Dream is way too long anyway). Any comments/feedback would be much appreciated! Will send you a mail here with my email address...
FYI Happy lover was sequenced Midi I don't know anybody here that doesn't use it. I use sampled Librarys and synths.Maybe I mis understood you?
Sorry Suite Sauce, I didn't mean that I thought it was bad to use midi or samples (I use them too). The comment was simply an explanation for my ratings on recording/production quality and marketability. For a sequenced production, I would consider a 5 to sound convincingly realistic. I'm still relatively new to the review process, so I apologize if this isn't the norm. -Mark
Hi Mark, some incredible stuff you have here. I'll be back to listen to more :) All the best, Mal
Thanks Mal! I'll have to listen to some of your music.
I did a wonderful show last night for a Church Coffee shop. What was cool is I constructed the set in such a way that I played several of my faith songs, not necessarily suitable for Church service, as well as story songs about` very human trouble and strife. The audience really reacted well to the whole set. Faith and secular songs have always been exclusive. I have secular songs that bring in spiritual/religious elements and I have faith songs that utilize very hard secular elements. I'm wondering if there isn't a market for a blending of the two rather than keeping them exclusive. Any one have any thoughts. Ken
Hi, Ken. I'll share my thoughts. I think what makes religious and secular music appear exclusive are the artists, not the music. If Nicki Minaj came out with a pop-style song about rebirth and forgiveness, no one would call it a faith song, but if the same song was done by Steven Curtis Chapman, everyone would call it a faith song. I have heard many country songs mention God and prayer without being specifically about faith, and I know I've heard "secular" pop/rap songs mention religious things. -Mark
Great point. I wonder if it is a regional/demographic issue. Country stars do well in most all markets that you wouldn't think would be a fit. Thanks for the response Mark
Blending both faith music and secular is cool to me and I have written some Christian songs and secular .. both can touch anyone's life at any point in time:)!.. Esp. If they can relate to someone's experiences in life faith- based or not:)
It's all in the artist's interpretation (as Mark mentioned ) and how one can relate to what we try to convey!:)
Thank you Julia my take exactly.
Great, passionate vocal!
Hi Mark, Congratulations on recently being selected for "Modern Background Instrumentals" listing. Had a listen to some of your work and you are doing a great job! My only advice would be to process your vocals a bit more but the instrumentals are great! Wish I was a s good as you when I was your age lol. All the best to you and keep up the good work. David
Thank you, David! I was a bit surprised, and I'm hoping this could be my first time to license a track. Do you have any specific advice about vocal processing? I'm still getting the hang of production and don't work with vocals too much (I usually leave them quite dry). I'll have to check out some of your music.
Yes I keep away from vocals as much as I can! Far too much work! (unless the vocal is a bit special). I don't have much vocal on my tracks these days. You could have a listen to "Shining" the singer is Louise that I worked with for a few years. The vocal (from what I remember) just had touch of compression and some EQ to make it sit in the mix (and reverb/delay/limiter). Youtube is a good place to get recording tips and watch them at the same time. So this is your first signing! If it is with Perpetual Music Group then the uploading and metadata instructions will make you a tad dizzy to say the least! They probably have the most comprehensive and complicated uploading instructions I've come across (and I'm with over 8 libraries). But being young you will probably handle the technology better than an older guy like me LOL. Feel free to ask for help though! All the best to you. David
I did use what you mention on the vocal, but comparing it to your song the volume of the delay/reverb is a lot lower. The biggest problem is I'm not a great vocalist to begin with! No final selection has been made, but this would be my first. There is some other good stuff under consideration, so I don't have my hopes up too high.
Wise words Mark. If you're not a great singer perhaps you should just use your vocal as a demo, a guide for other artists to sing? You've probably got that as a plan anyway and I think that would work well for you! I've got a couple of tracks that I wrote many years ago with bad vocals but when I find the right artist to perform it I'm hoping they will see beyond the bad vocal to the magic. I need to find another Kate Bush or a Male operatic (deep) vocalist and there aren't many of them around! In the mean time I just keep writing Instrumentals and it is starting to pay off. And about time too! Regards. David
Thanks for all the playlist adds of Takeoff!
You are really something, all the best in your journey with success. Well deserved playlist adds. Dean & Jacalyn
Congrats on selection! Also much deserved. friend Dean & Jacalyn
Thanks for the 5-stars!
Mark thanks so much for the 5-star rating on my song Attic Treasures. I listened to some of your songs and you're creating some great stuff. Best of luck with your music!
You're welcome. I came across it browsing Top 10's. Thanks for taking some time to listen! I hope you continue to have success with your music - it's good.
Thank you for the two reviews, Ricardo.
Wow Mark "That's Right" is superb!!
Thank you, and thanks for the review/playlist add! I wrote it several years ago but redid it now that I've recently started to focus on recording and mixing - that stuff can be challenging!
Thank you for the review of "Can't Let Go." I'm not put-off by the criticism. The song has otherwise received very positive reviews, so I appreciate hearing a different take - no song is going to please everyone. Did you perform everything on "What You Do?"
Hi Mark I hope the positive notes came through as strong as they were intended. --yeah I did everything except drums, which are EZ drummer but of course I had to arrange the parts and choose the sounds. And thank you for listening to it!!
Yep, they did. Nice job on everything, the drums sound very realistic. I really like the guitar riff and tone.
Thanks so much Mark (and for the ***** too!). Yeah I love that saturated Beatlesque sound--distorted but sweet, eg Paperback Writer, Rain.