Monthly MIDI Contest #6 - Results

[dust hill resident]

Monthly MIDI Contest #6 - October 2010

Results
1st: SkeletonTears.mid
2nd: MecakinTheRobotPumpkin.mid
both by Anthony Morgan
3rd: Hell_House_.mid
by Kris Troutman
4th: Sesame_Street_Gives_Nightmares.mid
by BannedMatt
5th: Pain_Train.mid
by Kris Troutman and The Ultimate Chimera
6th: Legend_of_the_Blood.mid
by Kris Troutman
7th: Zombie_Park.mid
by Kris Troutman
8th: Escape_From_the_Haunted_Mansion.mid
by BannedMatt
9th: Still_Halloween_Lives_On.mid
by Wiseman
10th: Pale_Moon.mid
by The Ultimate Chimera
11th: ETSynne-s_Theme.mid
by CBlockDis
12th: abandoned_warehouse.mid
by Genius41
13th: Purple_Power.mid
by The Ultimate Chimera
14th: PumpkinPennis.mid
by dust hill resident
15th: The_Scary_Duel.mid
by BannedMatt
16th: Marble_Blarg_3_.mid
by Wiseman and dust hill resident

The rules are:
Make (a) MIDI file(s) according to the challenge/theme of the contest. The challenge/theme changes each month.
You may make more than one file if you wish.
Send your songs in by the deadline. Then, if you wish, you can rate the songs (except your own). A voting form will be made available at the same time as the songs. Rate each song on a scale from 0 to 100.
You are to make original compositions only.
Your songs must be no shorter than one minute.
The authors of the songs must be kept secret until the scores have been announced.
Extended GM/GS/XG parameters are banned, and you mustn't use them. Here is some detailed information on what controllers are allowed:

You can use:
- Program/patch changes
- All GM2 drum kits
- Volume (CC #7)
- Expression (CC# 11)
- Modulation (CC #1)
- Pan (CC# 10)
- Pitchbend
- Pitchbend sensitivity (CC# 100, 101, 6)
- Sustain pedal controls (CC# 64, 66, 67)

You can use but suggested to avoid:
- Percussion below B0 (it varies significantly between GM, GM2, GS, and XG devices.)
- Poly & Channel aftertouch (heavily relies on the host synthesizer.)

You cannot use:
- Bank changes (CC#0, 32) (in the interests of keeping everything simple.)
- Attack (CC#73) (GM2 but unsupported by Microsoft GS)
- Release (CC#72) (GM2 but unsupported by Microsoft GS)
- Reverb (CC #91) (GM2 but unsupported by Microsoft GS)
- Chorus (CC #93) (GM2 but unsupported by Microsoft GS)
- Filter cutoff or filter resonance (CC #74, 71)
- Portamento (CC #65, 84, 5)
- Variation (CC #94, requires sysex anyway)
- NRPNs (CC #98, 99)
- Any system exclusive (sysex) messages other than GM Reset
- Anything else not listed

Please don't use Quicktime to listen to the MIDI files (unless you have no choice), because it's extremely buggy and many songs mess up horribly in it. Some instruments play completely out of tune.

If you believe that a song breaks the rules in any way, PM or email me with your concerns and any information that would be useful.

This month, the challenge/theme is:
It's October, the month of Halloween. Your song must be based on the theme/feel of Halloween somehow.

Dates and submission times
The contest starts October 1st.
The deadline for submission is October 27.
The songs will be released at 00:00 in the morning of October 28, London time.
The results of the voting will be announced on October 31, 00:00.
(Make sure you send your entries/votes in at least an hour before these times. Try not to leave things too late.)

How to submit your songs
* Email (or if you can't email, PM) your MIDI file(s) to dusthillresident@gmail.com. The subject must be your username's MIDI songs.
* After emailing, post in the thread to let me know that you've sent your email. This is important because gmail has been known to move legitimate emails to the spam folder.

How to vote/rate
* Once the songs are made available, a voting form (text document) will be attached to the main post in the thread.
* Download and fill in the form, and email it to dusthillresident@gmail.com. The subject must be your username's MIDI votes. If you can't use email, you can PM your votes to me, dust hill resident.
* After emailing, post in the thread to let me know that you've sent your email. This is important because gmail has been known to move legitimate emails to the spam folder.

Contest participants Let me know if you want your name added or removed
Anthony Morgan
Spudge
Redmoonrising04
The Ultimate Chimera
blue.nocturne
Genius_41
Kevvviiinnn
Jace
Kris Troutman
BannedMatt
Anonymous
ant1
wiseman
dust hill resident
Blitz Lunar
Dentelle

Bold: entries received
Striked: votes received

[dust hill resident]

Do you have any ideas for this month's theme? I can't think anything at the moment.

[Spudge]

How about trying to evoke a season? Lots of different styles would be equally valid for this one I think

[Redmoonrising04]

I really like Spudge's idea.

Also, I wanna suggest this month we make a halloween theme!! Like a theme made for a halloween town or something like that. It will be fun as well as challenging ;p

[AnthonyMorgan]

I really like Spudge's idea.

Also, I wanna suggest this month we make a halloween theme!! Like a theme made for a halloween town or something like that. It will be fun as well as challenging ;p

Evoking a season would just be too simple, I think. Spring would be lovely, summer exciting, autumn sad and winter slow...
But I'm all for the Halloween town idea.

[Charybdizs]

Monthly MIDI Contest #5 - October 2010

The rules are:

Haha, Copy + Paste really does the trick, huh?

I'm in, whatever, and I like the Halloween idea too.

[dust hill resident]

Yeah, I really like the idea of a halloween theme, although rather than specifically a halloween town, I think just the general idea of halloween would be the theme.

[Redmoonrising04]

Yeah, I really like the idea of a halloween theme, although rather than specifically a halloween town, I think just the general idea of halloween would be the theme.

lol yah I was just giving an example of what "halloween" could mean. Glad everyone likes the idea so far ;p

[Blitz Lunar]

halloween is a good theme with a lot of scope for all sorts of things. i'm lovin it(tm)

however i'm unsure if i will enter this month, personally. depends what happens with other projects. there is no let-up lately.

[Bregalad]

That would be hard for me not to think about the ost from the movie "The Nightmare Before Christmas" - especially since my mom is a hardcore fan of the ost and sing it constantly all year (which is annoying - not that the ost isn't good but well after awhile... - but she'd say the same for me any Final Fantasy OSTs)

[blue.nocturne]

I'm down for a Halloween theme.
Any theme that is a challenge (there are limits though...) or will lead to the creation of something that we will appreciate is good for me.
It would be nice that when I turn 70+ years and years from now, that I can open these files and be able to still like them.
"In my day, we had to actually write music, they weren't automatically generated!"

[Blitz Lunar]

"in my day we listened to music with our ears"

[Genius_41]

I need to get back into writing midis so I'm totally up for this. The Halloween theme sounds cool as well.

[Dr Fruitcake]

I need to get back into writing midis so I'm totally up for this. The Halloween theme sounds cool as well.

WTF YOU ARE ON THESE FORUMS TOO

HELLO

[dust hill resident]

Alright, I set the theme, and now the competition can begin. Let me know if the theme is too vague.