BEAKER'S PROFILE

author=Fulminis-ictus

author=Beaker
and they're taking up a lot of memory

Same here. Well, it's not crashing in my case but the sound is lagging a lot due to the memory issue which means that I can't listen to the piece while I'm composing it. That's why I'm always splitting it up into smaller parts. This works since I never use all instruments at once. Maybe you'll be able to make it work this way.

My problems seemed to do with using 32bit FL or 32bit plugins. Once I started using 64bit FL and 64bit kontakt (instead of just a wrapper around the 32bit kontakt from when I started), the crashing stopped. Memory usage is high in my case, around 7gb, but I have 8 and it seems to be using it all now, so I should be able to hopefully finish the compositions tonight and then finish the automations tomorrow.

In the meantime I have some entries I created during a game jam over the weekend:

Puzzle loop
Story

The first one was the main music loop for the game, which was a metroidvania puzzle platformer, while the second was intended for the introduction cutscene, but that never materialized during the jam. The story one is very short, and the loop is just a minute of music, with the same composition played again but with more accompaniment. It was a game jam, so I only had a few hours to devote to making the music, so it's as simple as I could make it.

Edit: I've kept tweaking this one for a while, but I think it's as good as it's going to be. It's a fairly simple string orchestra, and was fun to do after getting Kontakt to finally behave (for the most part at least).

SOS Ending

author=Happy
I compose my tracks with FL Studio's piano roll interface. I find it the most informative and easiest to use UI personally.

I'm also a bit curious what sound libraries others use, and are there some specific ones you recommend?

I use FL Studio as well, and while I have a small midi controller to experiment with, I use the piano roll for input. In terms of libraries, for classical instruments I use Kontakt and for the most part I use the free libraries available (requires the full version of Kontakt, not the player).

For the free libraries, I've been using the Stroh Violin from Impact Soundworks, pocketBlakus cello, and the
Total Composure Orchestra for the other instruments. Getting a good solo Viola, proved difficult since the only one out there for Kontakt seemed to be Solo Viola Lite by Northern Scoring Tools, which could work at times, but I generally had huge problems getting it to sound right. I primarily just used the viola ensemble from total composure until I broke down and bought the Embertone Fischer Viola, which made everything a whole lot easier.

If you have the full version of Kontakt, you can get a lot of good sounding free instruments from google for pretty much anything you need, but usually you'll be limited in how much you can vary the instruments (eg: they'll support legato, but the vibrato will be fixed).

For paid libraries, I'm a huge fan of Impact Soundworks, but they have a limited selection for classical (really good for drums, bass, and guitar though). I've used Furia from them, but only for staccato bass. I also have their brass library, but I haven't used it enough yet since I'm mainly working with strings. I'm also a big fan of Embertone, and I really want to buy the rest of their solo strings, but I'm holding off for now.

So in short, stuff from Impact Soundworks, Embertone, and "X kontakt free" in google.

Dread
Anxiety
Unease

I decided to go with more tense tracks since I figured they would be more atypical, and it's fun to try something a bit different.

I used to side with Exile, but I think Wanderer makes more sense now. I think the vibrato, and melody progression point to a sad feeling, but the note lengths and tempos for the most part point to something a bit more upbeat.

Artist names you are known by:
RPB:::) is what I go by for music.

Link to the best place to follow your work:
http://soundcloud.com/its-rpb/ is where to go. There's a bunch of stuff there like electronic, classical, and metal. It's also the place where I put my old soundtracks I did for game jam games. Only one new soundtrack piece there so far unfortunately (Mythic1b), but I'm looking to upload the rest when the soundtrack and game is done.

Contact information for commissions:
Just message me on soundcloud. I tend to check there fairly frequently.

Music genres and style influences of your work:
I started on Electronic only, but I've also done classical (piano and strings), and lately some rock/metal. If left to my own devices and making music just for listening to, I'd probably default to Electro House.

Your choice of audio software:
FLStudio with heavy emphasis on Massive and Sytrus VSTis (+Guitar Rig for distortion) for electronic, while using Kontakt libraries for non-electro. Huge fan of Impact Soundworks for their Kontakt libraries (eg: Shreddage, Bravura Brass), and Embertone for their viola library.

Instruments you play:
None. Fortunately computers allow one to compose despite that :).

Your proudest accomplishment as a musician:
I started learning how to make music in January 2011, and did a deep drive for 6 months to make as much as I could. I'm still amazed how much progress I made during that time, considering I started from nothing.