The Song Of Wandering Aengus (W.B. Yeats)

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atreu73

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« on: December 06, 2019, 03:08:47 PM »
Hi everyone. This is a poem by W.B. Yeats put to music. Your thoughts.


PaulyX

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« Reply #1 on: December 06, 2019, 04:27:49 PM »
Hi, welcome.  Certainly a dramatic treatment of the poem.  I thought it worked well, lots of emotion in your voice and the combo of the rumbling piano and percussion was a good fit.  Enjoyed the subtle ending too.  The backing vocals were strong although it was at times a little hard to discern the words in the lead vocal as there's quite a lot going on and the vocal delivery is quite breathy - maybe for a track like this where the words are really key I would mix the lead vocal a bit more prominently.  Very creative treatment of the poem.  Hope you enjoy the forum - get stuck in and leave a few reviews and you are bound to get more responses in return.
It's all too beautiful.

atreu73

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« Reply #2 on: December 10, 2019, 08:22:59 AM »
Thank you.

PaulAds

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« Reply #3 on: December 10, 2019, 10:15:48 AM »
Very cool sound. Piano is lovely and the vocals are great. It'd be nice to have the lyrics to follow along...as I'm not overly familiar with Mr Yeats, to be honest.

I might have like the drums to be louder as they gave a greater sense of urgency and would sort of anchor the track easier in my ears... It possibly meandered slightly more than I would like...I suspect you know exactly what you're doing though...and created this just as you wanted it.

Anyway...it sounds great and is a very accomplished piece of work.

Well done 😃
heart of stone, feet of clay, knob of butter

Jamie

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« Reply #4 on: December 14, 2019, 04:09:50 PM »
Hi, The breakdown in the middle of the song reminded me of elements of early King Crimson, very nice. You sound like a trained/skilled vocalist but the recording doesn't seem to do you justice. Also after the breakdown the piano theme there was really nice, a bit 'proggy'. Interesting listen.

Cheers
Jamie

pompeyjazz

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« Reply #5 on: December 14, 2019, 09:42:58 PM »
Interesting delivery indeed. I liked your vocal approach and it's a quite ambient and dreamy piece. I liked it when you really let rip with the backing vocals. Liked the individuality of this song

Grubstar

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« Reply #6 on: December 29, 2019, 05:33:26 PM »
Hi
I have to be honest and say that I am not familiar with W B Yeats, of for that matter poetry in general, however I was curious and thought I would give the track a listen and I'm so glad I did as I really enjoyed the piece,

I enjoyed it  both musically and as a poem, which I had to check out online as sometimes the words were not always so clear. Loved the musicianship and the arrangement which perfectly links with the words and thanks for introducing me to a very magical poem of lost love and passion.

bigFishAndTheSmallPondets

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« Reply #7 on: December 29, 2019, 08:51:55 PM »
I think you set yourself a tough challenge, setting this poem to music but I think you’ve done a marvellous job. The music has a slightly haunted feel to it. The piano playing reminds me a bit of Philip Glass which, I hope, you will take as a compliment. There is great operatic drama to the song. I could also imagine something like this in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s repertoire. Brilliant.

Wicked Deeds

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« Reply #8 on: December 30, 2019, 04:05:13 PM »
Great production.  The track has great impact when further instrumentation kicks in after the gentle introduction of piano.  The production is cool with the addition of backing vocals.  Everything weaves together to create a sinister mood of emotion with the occasional reminder of light. 

really enjoyable.

Paul

David Christy Jones

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« Reply #9 on: December 31, 2019, 03:53:52 AM »
I adore WB Yeats, so this was never going to let me down.
I also absolutely love the piano work and the chord choice. Very menacing and incredibly well played. Truly an incredible standard of performance, recording and songwriting. This, honestly, may be one of my favourite things I've ever seen shared here.

As an addendum, the polyrythmic drums are a wonderful touch. The overall mood I find this evoked is somewhat similar to the theme song to 28 Days Later.
Menacing and brooding but dripping with style, substance and dynamic.

Can't fault this at all, well well done.
:D
Information is not knowledge.
Knowledge is not wisdom.
Wisdom is not truth.
Truth is not beauty.
Beauty is not love.
Love is not music.
Music is the best!

atreu73

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« Reply #10 on: December 31, 2019, 04:09:59 PM »
Thanks for listening.

cowparsleyman

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« Reply #11 on: January 01, 2020, 10:25:31 AM »
@atreu73 - Welcome indeed to the forum and as many have said, this is a fine body of work, complex in structure and not easy to get a quick hook from the listener. It must have been quite a job to arrange it.

I've never heard anything like this before, so it's very refreshing, I can't add anything that others have already said.


pnb99

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« Reply #12 on: January 08, 2020, 08:03:36 PM »
I’ve listened to this song about 5-6 times.

The musicianship and production on this track is unquestionably strong.

However, I’ll be honest, I found it difficult to enjoy the initial vocal part. I think this is mostly due to the over modulation (vibrato) in the voice. If it had been delivered “straighter” it would be easier to listen to.

Having said that, I really liked it when the vocal octave came in and added some real drama to the delivery.

Thank you for sharing your music with me.

Hope this helps,

Paul

Neil C

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« Reply #13 on: January 09, 2020, 06:58:30 PM »
hi,
I like your ambition to write to poetry, let alone a famous one.
Great piano and percussion.
I think I'd like your vocals slightly higher in the mix.
:-)
neil
« Last Edit: January 09, 2020, 07:00:21 PM by Neil C »
songwriter of no repute..