Despite that I got another two years of music (and blog posts and graphics) out of it and believe it or not, though I have its replacement (I’ll write about it later) and intend to retire it, it still works despite being fragile. I wanted to make sure I got as much out of it before it catastrophically died. I have no complaints.

Leave a comment if you are interested in any particular instrument or software I use, and I’ll write about it- look in the links I keep on the right side of the blog for a list of the software I use most.

Image via Wikipedia

Download courtesy of loopproject.com

For SounDevotion Competition Round 64

Featuring the sounds of the Korg Monotron. It’s amazing that this plastic thing that fits in the palm of my hand and shipped in a manilla envelope is the source of all the warm tones…

Sites like this one cannot publicize themselves fairly under the restrictions suggested by the SOPA and PIPA bills. I’ve had a song removed under YouTube’s take-down-first guilty-until-you-swear-you’re-innocent system, and the notion that a Congressman can think that sort of arrangement is constitutionally acceptable is disturbing. I worry that this kind of protesting will continue to fall on deaf ears, but if this does reach an appropriate politician, understand that every day that a non-violent demonstration is ignored is a day closer to the day when our activists decide that we should resort to other measures.

Ask a soldier, protection of the US Constitution is worth dying for.

See you next time.

Related articles

• SOPA, PIPA: We WILL be heard (piedtype.com)
• Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in Plain English (thetechscoop.net)
• Awesome YouTube Video Explains Why PIPA And SOPA Are Bad For The Internet Users; You Should Be Watching (essayboard.com)
• Wikipedia, MoveOn, Reddit, Mozilla shuts down to protest SOPA/PIPA, how to prepare (cbsnews.com)

For SounDevotion Competition Round 63

Not intended as a religious statement as much as using a familiar melody. Debuts my present to myself (a toy stratocaster clone.)

Image via Wikipedia

Download courtesy of loopproject.com

For SounDevotion Competition Round 62

Lyric cowritten by Momoko Fujimoto, the donor of Momo’s voice! Her blog is http://momolabo2406.blogspot.com/

The primary inspiration for this, besides the tabla samples (a sound I’ve always liked but haven’t used in a long time,) is a sort of poem which, at first reading, I misunderstood: http://twitter.com/#!/momowa_bot/status/131959743072833536

@momowa_bot is a roleplayed account; that tweet is a child amazed as leaves change colors in autumn. After I realized what it meant, I liked it and I asked her if I can try to make it into a song. When I showed her the first draft, Momoko offered to rewrite it; this is the result. I’m greatly honored to collaborate with her.

Momone Momo and Kasane Teto are voicebank modules for the UTAU singing speech synthesizer.

Momo: http://www42.atwiki.jp/momonemomo_en
Teto: http://kasaneteto.jp/
UTAU: http://utau2008.web.fc2.com/

秋になる

紅に（黄金に）
染まる（みどり）
風に（舞い散りゆく）
不思議

きっと、世界が回る
きっと、地球が回る

季節は巡り
織り成す色彩
揺らめく心に
うつろう命よ
—

Aki ni naru,

Aka ni (kin’ni)
Somaru (midori)
Kaze ni (mai chiri yuku)
Fushigi

Kitto, sekai ga mawaru
Kitto, chikyuu ga mawaru

Kisetsu wa meguri
Ori nasu shikisai
Yurameku kokoro ni
Utsurou inochi yo

—

In autumn,

Red to (gold,)
Colored from (green,)
The wind (breaks and dances, dying,)
Mystery…

Certainly, the world turns
Certainly, the Earth turns

Seasons circulate
Weaving colors
Flickering hearts
Moving lives

Related articles

• Kyori no Yume feat. Kasane Teto and Momone Momo (chunter.info)
• I Will Find You feat. Momone Momo (chunter.info)

Image via Wikipedia

Download courtesy of loopproject.com

This won SounDevotion Competition Round 61!

My goal was to make a song for the “rock” genre, but then I recorded the motif and thought that it wasn’t that hard.  Next I thought I could call this a Porcupine Tree pastiche, that’s almost a genre. I briefly considered making it an “instrumental” but it didn’t sound right with the drums taken out.

As for the speech synth vocal, I thought to myself that my grandmother wouldn’t like that I wrote a song in Japanese before I wrote a song in Spanish.

Thanks to nys in battleofthebits.org for help with the melody.

No estoy seguro que puedes oirme,

No sé si ves a me,

pero espero que conoces mi sentimientos y comprendes mi pensamientos.

Pienso a tí, y no estoy preocupado con las palabras ultimas te dijome.

Espero que tú puedes orgulloso de mí.

Hecho de menos a tí.

—

I’m not sure if you can hear me,

I don’t know if you’re watching me,

but I hope you know my thoughts and understand my feelings.

I think about you, and I am not bothered by the last thing you said to me.

I hope you can be proud of me.

I miss you.

Dennis Ritchie, Creator of the “C” language and co-xreator of Unix is dead at age 70…..all programmers owe him a moment of silence.

Download courtesy of loopproject.com

This won SounDevotion Competition Round 60!

This is the first time I attempted to write a song in a language I don’t speak, so thanks again to a new friend on twitter that proofread and corrected what I wrote. I took some phrases that I knew from other pop music and looked up the proper usage of the phrases, and used them wrong anyway. Maybe I’ll expand my vocabulary enough to write more than one verse next time.

Kasane Teto and Momone Momo are voicebank modules for the UTAU singing speech synthesizer.

Teto: http://kasaneteto.jp/
Momo: http://www42.atwiki.jp/momonemomo_en
UTAU: http://utau2008.web.fc2.com/

Kiken o okashite
Monogoto o toppa shitai
Ōkina risuku o torou

Yūutsuna kimochi kara hanarete
Tōku e to kōsoku o doraibu
Akuseru o fumou

Kyori no yume
Tōku hanarete
Machi wa shinai
Anata o sagasou

Koi ni ochiru koto o erabou
Tomodachi wa hinto sa

Chansu o tsukamou
Kon’ya no yume
Kyori no yume

—

危険を冒して
物事を突破したい
大きなリスクを取ろう

憂鬱な気持ちから離れて
遠くへと高速をドライブ
アクセルを踏もう

距離の夢
遠く離れて
待ちはしない
あなたを探そう

恋に落ちることを選ぼう
友達はヒントさ

チャンスをつかもう
今夜の夢
距離の夢

—

I want to be dangerous
I want to break things
I want to take a big risk

Go away from the feeling of gloom
Drive far and fast
Step on the accelerator

Distant dream
Far away
Do not wait
Over you

Choose to fall in love
Friend suggested

Grab the opportunity
Tonight’s dream
Distant dream

Related articles

• I Will Find You feat. Momone Momo (chunter.info)

Download courtesy of loopproject.com

Placed second in SounDevotion Competition Round 59!

I will find you when I want to
And you will be mine forever
And I will be yours forever

Momone Momo is a voice for the UTAU singing speech synthesizer
Momo is intended for Japanese language only and does not have extended phonemes, so she sings with an accent!
Information on Momo can be found at http://www42.atwiki.jp/momonemomo_en

Momo’s most famous utterance is “Nya-nya-nya-nya-nya…”

http://nyan.cat

Related articles

• Springtime Air (chunter.info)

For Battle of the Bits Detroit VII

I was only certain that I wanted to make a tune with a stutter vocal, this finished with a moderate score.

Download courtesy of loopproject.com

For SounDevotion Competition Round 58

Tied for first, with the great keith303, it is probably the last time I will do that well against someone who is that good.

The name comes from a mishap around a guitar I accidentally bought which makes its debut in this track.

How did I accidentally buy it?  It was in an eBay auction, and I bid low, expecting to be outbid quickly, except I wasn’t, and then two days went by and the auction ended…

Download courtesy of loopproject.com

For SounDevotion Competition Round 57, placed second.

Featuring the AquesTone singers http://www.a-quest.com

I saw a lady in the supermarket that seemed way too happy to hear some Motown; that’s the energy I wanted for this.

Aquestone speech synthesizer only has phonemes for Japanese, giving the vocals their strange character and making them admittedly difficult to understand.  I am considering practicing with UTAU for future projects.

Time brings out the sunshine
You’re still soaked from the rain
It won’t wait until you’re ready
Flowers bloom make it uneasy

It will have to do
Moment yours alone
Springtime comes, it makes you nervous
Not the same to anyone else

Greeting with a smile, she calls your name, you can’t resist
Her smile and her sweet stare
In the springtime air

The nights are still cool
Before summer invades
Springtime beckons you
Anticipation makes you nervous