YAY! My favorite thread has been revived!

This man is probably my favorite amateur (forgive me if the term offends!) composer. Simplistic melodies are always complimented by the perfect accompaniment, making these compositions really great. I highly recommend listening to all of Al's compositions; they're the equivalent to euphoria-inducing drugs for the ears.

EDIT ~ Hey, this thread just celebrated is first birthday! :birthday: One year of Alphonse's Greatness! WHOO :worshippy:

He is in the forums, haha..

Alphonse, your fans are here, ahhahahaha... :P

Originally posted by Ureshii Gaki@Jul 4 2004, 06:02 AM
I am very fond of the compositions on the site made by Alphonse Nguyen
Been there... I still hum his "NoNameYet" piano solo. ^.^ '

Anyway, Alph were are you hiding? ^_^

:o omg, can you imagine my heart attack when I saw the title "Alphonse Nguyen Compositions", one which I did not create?!? Hahahahaha . . . what a morning wake up call, haha . . .

Ureshii Gaki, you've made my day, haha, thanks. I don't know why you like them so much. I personally think they're bad :heh: but can you please PM me for your e-mail and furthur details? For sure I can provide the first movement. I'll have to scan in the second one and Chan Troi Moi some time soon.

Hmm . . . I've been on a break from composing, but since I finally have my own thread *still laughs at the thought that someone else created it for him* I'll upload my old songs (some of you have already heard it, nothing new yet). ^_^ The question is, should it be in horrible midi, or should it be in my poor mp3 performance with a loud hum which I thought I could remove with goldwave but couldn't. :think:

couldn't you get someone to convert your midis to MP3s

by the way, I never got to hear your one song, I forget what it was called, but it was the one about "inevitably cutting off your fingers"... (sounds weird if you think about it :think: :D )

You only sent me the sheet music

This was a long time ago, so you might not even remember sending it to me (sadly, I remember :/ )

I've finally decided that my songs are just not worth converting into mp3, haha . . . anyways, comment if you want, but no ratings please. I hate giving and receiving them, hehe. Sorry if the links are broken or if my bandwidth is exceeded. And for those of you who are interested, my next song(s) will hopefully be completed before the end of summer.

Edit: Removed =P

woo~

*starts Alphonse Nguyen fanclub*

Who is this guy.... is he majoring in Music or something (I'm going to be majoring in the fall of `04 myself) and whats with him saying he didn't fully compose it himself? Some clarification please?

Who am I? I'm just me ^_^

I&#39;m not majoring in music, although that was one of my options . . . I should have gone into music ><

Er, I composed all my pieces, fully, haha, so I&#39;m just as confused.

Oh, ok ... :whistle:

Alphonse-san :: Remember me?? :D I listened to all the songs you posted here and I like all of them, except for Listening To The Rain ~ All of them are very nice, just as I expected&#33;&#33;&#33;

Do you still remember the scores that I requested from you?? The piano sonata which comprises of 4 movements. I printed a few pages of the 1st movements and it&#39;s not clear. I&#39;m wondering if you could make it clearer?? ^_^ I know I&#39;m requesting too much but .... Just wondering if you could. If you can&#39;t it&#39;s okay.

Originally posted by Gand@Jul 6 2004, 07:34 AM
woo~

*starts Alphonse Nguyen fanclub*
Make sure to register alphonsenguyen.com before he does so himself =P

Originally posted by saiyuki_gaiden@Jul 11 2004, 05:03 AM
Alphonse-san :: Remember me?? :D I listened to all the songs you posted here and I like all of them, except for Listening To The Rain ~ All of them are very nice, just as I expected&#33;&#33;&#33;

Do you still remember the scores that I requested from you?? The piano sonata which comprises of 4 movements. I printed a few pages of the 1st movements and it&#39;s not clear. I&#39;m wondering if you could make it clearer?? ^_^ I know I&#39;m requesting too much but .... Just wondering if you could. If you can&#39;t it&#39;s okay.
Yes, I remember you. ^_^ If you PM me your e-mail, I&#39;ll be happy to send you a new and clearer version (at least, I hope it&#39;s clearer).

And Angelic, :P

I think the idea of starting the fan club or a web page of Alphonse-san is not a bad idea though. I&#39;ll be sure to join there if there is such events. :D

Originally posted by Alphonse@Jul 11 2004, 02:47 PM
I&#39;ll be happy to send you a new and clearer version (at least, I hope it&#39;s clearer).
That&#39;s good; I&#39;ve been looking to attempt the 4th movement (becaue, when you think about it, do you really need any but the last movement? :think: )

:lol:

Meh, I just wanted you to know Alphie, that I still have "NoNameYet" on my playlist, and listen to it almost every day ^_^. I&#39;ve never done that with a composition made by non-professional composers. (Not saying you&#39;re not professional, but you know what I mean)

^^

Noir: :wub: wow, thanks&#33; Perhaps one day I&#39;ll take out the original score (piano, flute, violin) and try to figure out how I made that piano version. Then I&#39;ll make it sound clearer without the damn hum, haha.

servbot: Let me know if you want the score, haha. ^_^

Alphonse i love your music man ^_^&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33;
I sent u an email so go on and check it ok?

hey alphonso&#33;
Can please you send me the "no name yet" sheet music for the piano?
haha, i became a member of this site juz because i wanted to get that sheet music :heh:

Here&#39;s the score to "No Name Yet&#39;: http://members.rogers.com/alphonsenguyen/a...n_nonameyet.zip (http://members.rogers.com/alphonsenguyen/alphonsenguyen_nonameyet.zip)

It&#39;s not the piano version, but if you look at it, maybe you can figure out how I played it . . . :heh:

like omg, can i have your autograph?&#33;?&#33; >O (and no dont misunderstand, i&#39;m not mocking you)

lol al&#39;s now a celebrity on ichigos forums. congrads >3 *muahzzzz*

aiyaaa toi da yeu anh roi >3&#33;&#33;

Okay so I finally downloaded this "No Name Yet", and I love it&#33; I simply love it...it&#39;s so beautiful. Not more than two days ago, I printed out the sheet music, and played it (to the best of my ability), and well the first page was enough...cause the song was stuck in my head all day long, but a very good one to be stuck in my head...:heh: And yes to the people of ichigo&#39;s you are a celebrity, Alphonse&#33;&#33; *signs up to join his fan club*

Heh, my thread has disappeared to the second page. Time to resurrect it&#33; ^_^

Basically, this piece sums up my thoughts. I will always cling onto my feelings, this “Memory of Hope”. It’s all I have left to keep me going, and it gives me the strength to deal with whatever comes my way. That’s I had to write this song. It doesn’t matter how good or bad it is, or whatever people may think. I just had to write it down. Besides, I can come up with a million more criticisms of my work than all of you can put together. XD

Please forgive the recording’s poor quality. I haven’t been playing much lately, and the microphone seems weak. And the piano is out of tune&#33; At least I got rid of the background hiss, heh. Thanks to my friend for inspiration, and to Spoony for motivation, allowing me to complete it&#33;

It&#39;s a very calm and relaxing song&#33; nice&#33; o(^__^)-b
post more of your stuff :P

Hmm, 5 days later and I only get 1 comment . . . whatever *shrugs*

Thanks Matt for your kind thought ^_^

memory of hope.. *smiles slightly*

Everybody has a memory of hope. I like this song because everybody can relate to it, but at the same time, it&#39;s personal.

If anybody cares, here&#39;s the score to the song. Bare minimum, I was too lazy to add dynamics and other markings, heh: http://members.rogers.com/alphonsenguyen/A...emoryOfHope.zip (http://members.rogers.com/alphonsenguyen/AlphonseNguyenMemoryOfHope.zip)

*gigglez*....

i love it =]

hmm. great potential

I really like your use of dissonance in 0:55~1:06. It has a magical effect on me --- can&#39;t really use word to describe.
also good job on the key change, it&#39;s so smooth that I didn&#39;t even notice it until I see your score :P

other than relaxing, I found that the emotion in this piece is subtle yet powerful.
if this month&#39;s CMA theme had not changed to "to a person", it&#39;ll be definitely a strong entry.

Originally posted by Alphonse@Sep 8 2004, 03:06 PM
Hmm, 5 days later and I only get 1 comment . . . whatever *shrugs*
I&#39;m going to be completely honest with you on this one. I don&#39;t like this as much as I like your other compositions. Although, this song played twice in my WinAmp list. Not many songs do. =P The thing I like it the introduction, and the way you broke down the chords. After listening to it twice I found a melody which was actually very clear to me, but was hard to find if just listening with one ear, so to say. I also liked the mood you set off. It&#39;s hard to explain, but I know when I hear this, that it took time to structure. Am I right? I mean, it just sounds right. Tell me if you don&#39;t understand, because I suck at explaining things. =_=

I would prefer a climax part in this song, and also another ending, maybe fading out the arpeggios in the intro? That was what I was expecting. Anyhow, don&#39;t take my suggestions and comments too serious, because you know you&#39;re better than me here, but this is what I think about it.

I won&#39;t rate it, since I know you don&#39;t want your compositions rated. :)

@ Darren:

Heh, the key change . . . and the subtleness? Yes, I believe in the philosophy of deceptive simplicity ;)

@ Noir:

No offense taken at all =P I was a bit bitter and in a bad mood when I wrote that comment which you quoted, because no comment is worse than a bad comment to me. But oh well, it&#39;s all good. I appreciate the honesty, really I don&#39;t mind. Like I said earlier, I am my own toughest critic. It&#39;s strange, but I both love and hate my song at the same time. *shrugs* Anyways, thanks for the comment and the no rating =)

Originally posted by Alphonse@Sep 14 2004, 10:36 PM
I am my own toughest critic. It&#39;s strange, but I both love and hate my song at the same time.
That&#39;s what I admire. That&#39;s also what I&#39;m trying to tell others. If only my explanations were as easy as your. Oh well ~

Expressing feelings inside can be so difficult sometimes&#33; No matter how hard I try, those feelings always seem to come out less than I had intended..

Anyway, Alphonse, &#39;A Memory of Hope&#39; has been growing in my conscience. Flowing softly from one little anticipation to fulfillment, on and on. Some how the music is very .. soothing - like being rocked in a mother&#39;s caring arms. Takes me right back to that lonely, longing mood I&#39;ve been in of late. Thanks for sharing this, friend. ^_^

Oh wow . . that&#39;s the most personal comment I&#39;ve received yet . . thanks so much. Makes me happy to know that I&#39;ve touched someone&#39;s life . . . =)

Have you been working on any new comps lately?

Sorry no . . I put everything I had into that last song . . now I need to be replenished and reinspired&#33;

ha ha, and it was well given. That&#39;s fine, Alphonse.. ^_^

*bumps*

I didn&#39;t think I&#39;d write a new song so soon, but here&#39;s the song I wrote for this month&#39;s CMA . . it kinda sucks though :sweatdrop: but I haven&#39;t been in this good of a mood for a long time now . . .

Background info: My housemate wanted me to write a silly song, so he started to create funny lyrics. Then I forget why, but he soon left that project and instead attempted to write some serious lyrics (in French). I didn&#39;t like them (I think he never wrote a poem before), and I thought I could do better XD So ignoring what he had written, I started all over (in English), and once I had an idea of what I wanted, I composed the music . . the whole process took me about 3 - 4 days . . anyways, now that I&#39;m done, he&#39;s going to translate my lyrics into French, plus he&#39;s still trying to get me to work on that first silly song *shrugs*

@Noir: in case you were wondering, this is a different song than the one I came up with in the washroom, heh *reminds himself to work on that sometime*

~~

"Alone" by Alphonse Nguyen

-Score: click click (http://members.rogers.com/alphonsenguyen/AlphonseNguyen_Alone.zip) so the lyrics are cheesy, but meh
-Music: criticize all you want&#33; (no ratings please, I&#39;m too scared, but then again I can&#39;t stop you)
-Sound Quality: please forgive the equipment and the static hum/hiss, I am but a poor university student
-Piano Performance: *can&#39;t remember how many times he had to record it to get it somewhat right*
-Piano Itself: one of the better ones at the building I was in, but the pedal and bench are squeeky
-Singing: don&#39;t laugh, please please please don&#39;t laugh at me ;_; I already know I go off-key often (and I stopped taking lessons when my voice cracked at puberty v.v)

N.B. if you can sing better than me or if you can&#39;t stand my voice =P the karaoke version (just the piano track) is available upon request, and I can send it by e-mail when you PM me

*Has Al&#39;s autograph*

Sorry for the late reply -- I was still at the LAN when I heard your song, so I thought I&#39;d save it until I got home, and here I am.

I like this song. The piano playing matches perfectly with the singing, and the lyrics aren&#39;t cheesy at all&#33; They&#39;re creative and sets the mood perfectly. In fact, without the lyrics this song wouldn&#39;t have been all that good. The melody in this song is also very good, and it has parts that I remember after just hearing it once, and that was a day ago. Good job&#33; The things that didn&#39;t get to me was a) A love theme? Neh, at least I didn&#39;t think of it as one. b ) Solo parts? I was anxiously waiting for a superb piano solo, so that kind of disappointed me a little. X_X Other than those two things, I cannot find more flaws. It&#39;s in my nature to try and seek out as many bad things as possible, heh. Are you aiming for a professional music/composing career? I honestly think you should try to do this as a living, I really do. I hope agents will find and listen to this song, along with some of the others, and contact you. I&#39;m dead serious about this, you&#39;re one of the most, if not the most talanted, composer on the net I&#39;ve ever met. I wish you the best of luck. you didn&#39;t want a rating eh? Okay. =]

I entirely agree with Noir7 on this one; the melody is absolutely captivating, perhaps on of your best yet. As for the "superb piano solo" that Noir was waiting for, I&#39;m personally glad you left such a thing out. The lyrics and even the title seem very very melancholy, therefore the extravagance of a solo really, in my opinion, is not needed.
As for your singing, i believe that it is very good; you should be glad that you can hit c2 still (I can&#39;t even go to Bb1 anymore...). The only thing that I can ask for is maybe a little less childish sound, unless if you were purposely emulating a child&#39;s voice.
I was actually surprised that you added a lyric to the song, but don&#39;t get me wrong; it goes really well with the mood. I didn&#39;t know you had talent in writing and music. We are more alike than I had ever anticipated.
Overall, I can safly say that this is up there with your best compositions, if not the best song you ever composed. Very, very well done.

Wow&#33;&#33; Excellent song&#33; Great job&#33; ^_^

Thank you guys so much =) . .

@Noir:

1) Love theme? Hmm, I didn&#39;t realize that I was actually leaning more towards a love song than a love theme, heh =&#092; but then again, what&#39;s the difference? *shrugs . . unless that affects his CMA submission . . mellow in which case* 2) A superb piano solo? Haha, maybe next time&#33; 3) You think I can make a career out of this? Wow, thanks . . but I honestly don&#39;t think I&#39;m good enough . . and I know you&#39;re going to argue with me over that, but meh&#33; =P

@Ureshii:

1) Yeah, I feel the same way about you concerning the piano solo, but I still wish I could have done more with it, I remember having a hard time coming up with something for that part . . oh well&#33; 2) Hahaha . . yeah, my voice sounds a bit childish, but I can&#39;t change how it sounds =P 3) I didn&#39;t know you write stuff too . . anyways, I find it&#39;s easier to write the lyrics myself than to use somebody else&#39;s work, because then I have greater freedom.

@Gand

Thanks&#33; ^^

Alphonse... Would it be ok if were to sing "Alone" in a choir performace coming up? I promise to give you every ounce of credit. I can&#39;t really hit the notes tht are one the music, but i can just sing them an octave down.

Would that be OK?

Yeah, that&#39;d be fine =) I have some friends who would also like to perform my piece, some in English, some in French . .

Please try to get me a recording though, if you can =P I like hearing other people sing

Great song&#33; The lyric fits the song very well and especially in the end your singing had a lots of emotions ^_^ Seems like I have a new favorite together with "NoNameYet" ;)

Heh, my thoughts exactly.

so... alphonse... do you have any other ideas? I absolutely love your compositions, so I am really anxious to hear another.

^^ . . I&#39;m fresh out again . . inspiration comes and goes, and my productivity is highly irregular (check out my timeline at the thread that concerns when people start composing). Plus I&#39;ve been really really busy lately . . don&#39;t think I&#39;ll be able to participate for the Christmas CMA *sniff* . . and it&#39;s really hard to be original, to come up with something new to say *thinks about resurrecting that old thread*

@Matt: Thanks =)

I hope you&#39;ll find time for the Christmas Competition Al.. :/

Anyway, I converted "NoNameYet" to Mp3. The soundfonts are a bit crappy, since my old ones crashed with my Harddrive. Ah well, beats MIDI :bleh:

You&#39;re developing your own musical voice Al&#33; Cool&#33;&#33; :lol:

hi.. im kinda slow.. sorry.. but this is first time i ever started joining ne type of forums...
hi alphonse.. i really like the no name song.. is it possible for me to get the sheet music for it?? is it already up on a site??? if so.. can u tell me.. coz i cant seem to find it... if it already on this site... then i musnt hav looked hard enuf.. probz jus missed it...

but ur a great compser.. seriously i think u should do this for a living...
i had a friend as talented like u.. but he left to another country... so i wonder how he is goin..
but that not the point.. my point is.. for som reason i feel privieldged to even talk rite now.. n havin u readin it... how kewl....&#33;&#33;&#33;

hay qua&#33;&#33;&#33;

@Noir: thanks again =) I think I may have actually found a violinist and flautist to record for me&#33; *waits a few more weeks to confirm*

@Jujemu: ^^ hehe

@shui_hu: http://members.rogers.com/alphonsenguyen/a...n_nonameyet.zip (http://members.rogers.com/alphonsenguyen/alphonsenguyen_nonameyet.zip)
Enjoy&#33; =P Sorry though, it&#39;s not the piano version, because I haven&#39;t written that up yet . . maybe in a few more weeks.

I&#39;ll have you know Dissonance is currently stuck in my head. XD

jus to let u kno.. i cant stop listnin to &#39;alone&#39;.. stuk in me head.. i try listnin to me other songs.. but for som reason i jus keep goin bak to ur song.. LoL...

i not obsesd i dun think... i jus really like the song...
probz one of me fav songs rite now....

I know what you mean, having a bad song stuck in your head, looping over and over again, can&#39;t get it out . . . =P hehe, I&#39;m just kidding XD

Thanks you two ^^

jus a qstn.. how old r u al??? n wot country u in??

Just turned 21 . . and I&#39;m in Canada ^^

(Let&#39;s continue over PM, I think I know where you&#39;re going with this, hehe)

sorry i kinda slow.. wots &#39;PM&#39;??
n so wot am i gettin to then??? coz if u kno wot i gettin to then plz tell me.. :heh:

PM = Personal Message

OMGOMGOMG OMG OMG OMG... OMG&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33; I JUST REALIZED THAT AL and ALPHONSE are the SAME PERSON&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33; (man, am I slow or what?) Yay&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33; I am so happy&#33; THIS IS A MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33; I AM MUCH STUPIDER THAN EVERYONE THOUGHT&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33; <lifts up #1 stupid person award> See?

LoL... kewl ya?? such a small world... knowing that the prsn behind the music u luv n luv listn to is jus a msg away.. n that u can talk to him wenever u want.. so kewl&#33;&#33;

to me.. its kinda like.. erhh.. kinda like.. hmm.. kinda like a prsn that knows nothin meetin his all time fav&#33;&#33;
its kinda like.... being poor, a prsn wit no munni n then finding &#036;100 on the ground wher u wer jus sittin...
finding somtin so valuable that u thought was outa reach.. but really ur rite next to it... LoL

newayz.. my point was.. HOW KEWL IS IT??? being able to talk to him&#33;&#33; LoL
btw... HI AL&#33;&#33;
LoL.. jus wanted to say hi.... :D

OÔ; Eh?

I didn&#39;t understand any of that either. :unsure:

Anyways, Al great compositions.
Can&#39;t wait to hear more. :)

@ TrumpetPLaya42: =P easy mistake, no worries&#33;
@ shui_hu: =P see you on msn
@ Noir: =P meh
@ Sarkurah: =P sorry, but I probably won&#39;t be composing for a long time . . I&#39;m stuck in a huge mental block

Anyways, two somewhat good news&#33;

1) I finally wrote out the score to my piano arrangement of "No Name Yet" <-- by the way, I think this name has stuck for good, so there&#39;s no point in me finding a name :heh:

Piano Score for "No Name Yet" (http://members.rogers.com/alphonsenguyen/alphonsenguyen_nonameyet_piano.zip)

2) Two years after I finished writing my song, I finally made an effort to re-record it. :heh: Thanks to Noir for motivating me by his midi to mp3 conversion&#33; Anyways, it&#39;s taken me three weeks to find a violinist and a flautist, but only two hours for us to rehearse and record the proper version. Funny eh? Oh, apologies to Gand for wasting his server space yet again, but since I won&#39;t be posting anything new for a very long time, my thread will die out soon, so then he won&#39;t have to worry anymore =)

Originally posted by Al@Jul 4 2004, 01:36 PM
:o omg, can you imagine my heart attack when I saw the title "Alphonse Nguyen Compositions", one which I did not create?&#33;? Hahahahaha . . . what a morning wake up call, haha . . .

Ureshii Gaki, you&#39;ve made my day, haha, thanks. I don&#39;t know why you like them so much. I personally think they&#39;re bad :heh: but can you please PM me for your e-mail and furthur details? For sure I can provide the first movement. I&#39;ll have to scan in the second one and Chan Troi Moi some time soon.

Hmm . . . I&#39;ve been on a break from composing, but since I finally have my own thread *still laughs at the thought that someone else created it for him* I&#39;ll upload my old songs (some of you have already heard it, nothing new yet). ^_^ The question is, should it be in horrible midi, or should it be in my poor mp3 performance with a loud hum which I thought I could remove with goldwave but couldn&#39;t. :think:
don&#39;t go so hard on yourself. I personally love your work too.

Geezaroo, Alphonse - 50 downloads in 24 hours&#33; Y&#39;know we all love you XD

*melts* That duet... ohhh myyyy God :wub: The midi totally didn&#39;t do it justice but this bloody does&#33; *worships your violinist and flautist*

And of course the piano accompaniment is just right - dynamics are fab&#33;

Alphonse:

NoNameYet_TrioVersion is outstanding&#33; I very much like how the instruments switch from melody to harmony and back again throughout it. :) The introduction is very good as well, and I do like the chord progression. However, until the flute part came in, it reminded me a lot of a theme song from an old movie (in the 80s I think) called "The First Mission" starring Jackie Chan. But this could just be a misperception on my part. :)

The instruments mesh together very well, and sometimes they&#39;re so harmonious it&#39;s hard telling which part is the violin and which is the flute, which is good&#33; :) The ending is very pleasant, and the piano just seems to kinda melt away softly, although I think it might make it sound a bit more complete at the end if you were to play that RH chord one more time, rather than letting the LH stop at that last broken chord. Just an idea&#33; :-p

I&#39;m very impressed, as I am with all of your works, Alphonse. I hope that you keep it up, because with that skill, you&#39;re going to go so far&#33; And you&#39;re already so good for someone who isn&#39;t very old. I can really picture that song being an anime theme or a movie opening title song. :)

Well done, sensei.

hehehe.. alphonse.. u the MAN&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33; hehehe... erh.. anywayz.. so are you composing another piece rite now?? or having a short break??
if your makin a new song.. then wot is your motiv of it... wot is it about??
hehe.. ull b in the hall of fames one day.. if your not in one already... hehhehe...

shui hu, I&#39;ll kick your AOL language&#39;s ass really soon if you don&#39;t stop using it. If you&#39;re too lazy to post somewhat properly, then don&#39;t post at all. k?

@ Aeila: thanks . .
@ madmazda: =) . .
@ Gnomish: thanks, and I haven&#39;t seen that movie =P
@ shui hu: I&#39;m taking a very long break =T

~~

I&#39;d like to place a request for my thread to be locked. Please and thank you.

Questions and comments can still be sent to me by pm/e-mail, but I need for this thread to disappear from the first page. I have my reasons. Besides, there&#39;s no point in having people post when I&#39;m gone from ichigos (as it will inevitably happen one day with all this work I have). Perhaps in the future this thread will be re-opened, but in the meantime, I hope you guys can understand . .

Okay..

=&#092; why did I ask for my thread to be reopened? *thanks Zero again* . . I&#39;m still too insecure about my compositions . . heh *shrugs* . . well, I already know everything that&#39;s wrong with my pieces, but I know I&#39;m incapable of improving on it, so . . meh, I&#39;ll live with it =P . . enjoy&#33;

Quick recap/timeline:

No Name Yet (trio version)
Memory of Hope
Alone
Searching for Happiness
Did You Really Love Me Then?
Life Sure Feels Really Swell Having Slept With Michelle :heh:

~~

1) Searching For Happiness: Took me about five months to write, because I had such a big mental block . . I&#39;m still not satisfied with it though, haha. Oh well . . omg, I have like three different recordings of this piece&#33; x.x I kept on thinking that the more times I try to record it, the better it&#39;ll sound, but no&#33; Each version has something that makes me cringe. But this latest version makes me cringe the least, so, I guess it&#39;ll do for now =P

2) Did You Really Love Me Then?: This was written next, and surprisingly took me only 6 hours to complete. I did this with my brother though *groans* and it was for my mother&#39;s day gift, so . . this piece won&#39;t be posted at all here =P

3) Life Sure Feels Really Swell Having Slept with Michelle: Er . . please don&#39;t let the title shock you too much ^^;; *sweatdrop* it’s not as bad as you think, it’s just the title that’s questionable, but the music itself is clean . . you see, dying1004 (Michelle) offered to record her viola-playing, so I decided to come up with a duet . . seeing as how we&#39;re dirty people (she prefers to think of us as "highly advanced-minded" =P) I wanted to come up with something . . bouncy xPP . . hope I didn&#39;t offend anybody, if so then I&#39;m sorry . . so anyways, the piano part has been recorded, but you&#39;ll need to harass her to finish the viola part =) so that I can combine the two parts together, for your listening pleasure.

So for now . . I hope you enjoy . . searching for happiness . .

lameee haha i can&#39;t procrastinate on the viola part now..

Searching for Happiness <--- I love it, I love it, I love it

+1 to your fanlist.

Dude, you&#39;re amazing. After listening to one of your pieces, I didn&#39;t think twice about d/l the rest. You should consider a profession in this-- or at least make a little cash on the side&#33; :heh:

But yeah. Keep up the awesome work&#33;

I don&#39;t normally download mp3&#39;s, but since you&#39;ve been so helpful in my thread, I was very curious about your music.

First off: I&#39;m really glad they&#39;re recordings. Acoustic instruments simply sound better; and I like your piano playing a lot. You also manage to find delicious musicians...

Second: These are the mp3&#39;s I&#39;ve listened to:

Dissonance: Ooh, I liked that one. I kept thinking, wow, what you could do with this with a proper studio or something. But, then, part of the charm comes from the echo/hall effect of the recording. I can imagine this being played in a 60ies bar somewhere...

NoNameYet (Trio-version): (Isn&#39;t it time to re-name that one to StillNoName? ;) ) I&#39;m listening to it again, as I type this up, which says it all, doesn&#39;t it? Piano, Flute and Violin are such a beautiful combo, and their so well employed.

Searching For Happiness: It&#39;s the first one I listened to, and I&#39;ve been interrupted with a request to push furniture around the house, so the memory has kind of faded behind the other pieces and the exertion. But I remember liking that too, and thinking I wish I could play like that.

Oh, and as for the title which includes Michelle... Hah&#33; It&#39;s a statement about the meaning of life... ^_^


well, I already know everything that&#39;s wrong with my pieces, but I know I&#39;m incapable of improving on it, so . .

On a writer forum, somebody has referred to that attitude as "the inner weasel". Listen to it too much and nothing gets done. It&#39;s about life, and life isn&#39;t perfect.

So, this is my philosophy about Perfection: The result of perfection is boredom; if there would be any danger of ever finding perfection, one should stop looking for it. But as perfection is chronically elusive, always look for it. That way you&#39;ve got something fun to do. Just don&#39;t get all depressed and call it failure... looking for and failing to find perfection, that&#39;s the point.

You see, by trying you&#39;ve produced these three gorgeous recordings, I would never have been able to listen to, if you had succumbed to your inner weasel*.

***

* I actually like weasels. I refer to the cultural stereo type; sneaky, mischievous bugger. I don&#39;t refer to the animal. If I insulted any weasels among you by abusive use of metaphor, I apologise. Weasel&#39;s rock&#33;

:nosebleed: The Great One, Sensei Al, returns&#33;

Searching for Happiness

First off, wonderful-sounding piano composition&#33; I love the inner harmonies provided by the countless broken chords and the occasional chord resolution to die for. ;) Terribly creative LH part. Nice variations from the typical broken chord used by many modern composers. Your supporting parts in the RH are very well-suited to accompanying and enriching an already-memorable theme. This song for me is reminiscent of an innocent quest for love, just as the title hints at. Near the last few measures of the song, where the piano part softens, the once-moving melody settles down and warns the ear that the end (sadly enough&#33;) is coming. Like the final cadence. iMe gusta mucho&#33; :lol: This is a wonderful piece indeed, full of all sorts of nuances which unknowingly wrap the ear in a euphoric, emotive piano solo from the first beat. Kudos, Al. :)

@ dying: *pokes* I don’t see you practicing =P *coughs*

@ Archangel: thank you =)

@ nagai: my fan club? :heh: thanks&#33;

@ Dawnstorm: I feel that midi just doesn’t do justice to music, so when I compose, I try to make sure it’s performable by me and/or my friends, haha . . you liked my strange-sounding Dissonance and you weren’t freaked out by its disturbing nature? haha, cool =P . . yes, the Michelle song is indeed a statement about the meaning of life XD . . wow, thank you for taking the time to write out your philosophy, I will certainly think it over ^^

@ Gnomish: thanks, but I’m no sensei, far from it =P . . ah, your analyses are always insightful and heartfelt, it’s much appreciated&#33; (by the way, you’re right about the quest for love, hehe, that was the reason why I wrote the song)

Al~~~~~~~ nice job again&#33; This song really sounds like a search for happiness, I can imagine the young fellow setting out for his journey to happiness :)
Your variantions in the LH and the gentle RH... it all fits the mood of this song perfectly.

I&#39;m still not satisfied with it though, haha.
You shouldn&#39;t doubt your skills like this dude&#33; :o

*pokes* i don&#39;t see YOU practicing XD

haha i&#39;m working on ittttt.. stupid triplets..

ooh.. this thread is open once again =D

and nice song Al&#33;&#33;&#33; see... lots of people are fans of yours.. seriously, you are quite the talented young little fella..

anywayz... yeah, the song.. i really like it&#33;&#33;&#33; and after listening to it a few times.. for some reason i couldn help my self.. and i ended up having a quik listen of &#39;no name yet&#39;... that song is really cool&#33;&#33;&#33; lol..

anywayz.. keep up the GREAT work ^^ v

@ Matt: But I do doubt myself . . hey, how come nobody’s said anything bad about this piece yet? *suspicious* Am I the only one who hears the flaws? ._.

@ Michelle: Work faster&#33; =P You’re holding up the world premiere&#33; xP

@ Toki: Thank you . . and stop listening to it so much =P

@Searching for Happiness: The Alphonse sound. I&#39;d recognize it anywhere. :D


But I do doubt myself . . hey, how come nobody’s said anything bad about this piece yet? *suspicious* Am I the only one who hears the flaws?

Whoah. If you could tell us what you don&#39;t like about it... :P

But if I&#39;m really going to be looking for something bad, I don&#39;t like the title. The people who go "searching for happiness" are usually the nuts who eventually realize "zOMG&#33; Happiness was here all along&#33;", but not before they&#39;ve wasted 200 years already. So yeah, happiness is a result of a well-lived life, not a hidden treasure somewhere in outer space.

But that really doesn&#39;t have to do with anything. :heh:

Great piece of music&#33; [still listening to it] :D

Hi Al. ^^ Hahah .. glad that yuu re-open yur thread. I am downloading yur song, Searching for Happiness right now .. Can&#39;t wait to hear it&#33; I&#39;m looking forward for more of yur compositions&#33;

By the way, I failed playing yur sonata. ^^|l It was too hard for me ...

@ Stefan: I wouldn&#39;t know where to begin :heh: . . and as for the title, Gnomish got it right, about how it was about the search for love. I&#39;m not one of those nuts who eventually realize that happiness was here all along =P

@ saiyuki: It&#39;s too hard for me too, yes, I must openly confess that I can&#39;t play it as well :heh:

your sonata is too high-level for most people (me included) XD
did you ever heard someone play it on a real piano? I&#39;m sure it would be pretty impressive :P

I&#39;m feeling helpless right now because I can&#39;t help out a friend . . I didn&#39;t expect a song to come from it, but meh. So yeah, it&#39;s one of my shortest and simplest pieces, definitely not my best. It&#39;s too non-conventional, too many modulations, argh, don&#39;t know what I was thinking&#33; But meh, at least you&#39;ll get a glimpse of my current mood. Enjoy if possible.

I like this song its very sad. I can really tell how your feeling.
I hope things start looking up. :D

What a sad piece. But a soothing sadness, if that makes sense. I like it. :)

Thanks everyone =)

I was curious to hear these compositions that you have marked in the first page of the topic, their links doesnt seem to work anymore. Would you post some more compositions? And a question for you, what is your muse?

Yeah I&#39;m sorry about that, my server got taken down. I don&#39;t think I&#39;ll post them again, since they&#39;re much worse than my recent compositions, haha. But if you&#39;re still interested in listening to them, just PM me your e-mail address.

My muse? I&#39;m not really sure *thinks* well . . I write based on my feelings. And I suppose my feelings are influenced by my friends, the events in my life, or how I see life in general, etc.

*apologizes for the mini-bump*

Okay, since I may not have (immediate) internet access when I move tomorrow, I&#39;m gonna post a song now (probably my last one for a while, hehe). Also, I&#39;ve asked Michelle *not* to record her viola part, because even if I do have the internet, I may not have the time to mess around with the sound files to create a decent mp3. So . . you guys are stuck with the midi =P Please bear in mind that I should have fixed up the tempo and dynamics, etc . . but I got lazy&#33; But it doesn&#39;t matter, because I wrote the song for Michelle, and she liked it, so :bleh:

Life Sure Feels Really Swell Having Slept With Michelle

-> simple A-B-A-C-A rondo, sorta classical but not really (how would you describe that? o.0)
-> part A is the section where &#39;life sure feels really swell having slept with Michelle&#39; :heh: I&#39;m sure you can pick out the &#39;bounciness&#39; and the justifiably happy mood *coughs*
-> part B was the hardest part for me to write . . she wanted something &#39;rough and fast&#39; but I like it gentle and slow, so I couldn&#39;t relate T_T
-> part C is the seduction section . . I had fun writing this ^^;

Please enjoy if you&#39;re not offended ._.

The piano and violin work very well together in this one, having a *conversation* in parts...

The thing could be the a soundtack for a black and white movie set in Paris...

(Wonders what would be the result if a piano and a violin get together... a Ukelele? ;) )

***

Listening to it again, and hearing things I didn&#39;t hear the first time round... Great job. The thing really brings a smile to my face. :neko:

Though an excellent piece, It is definately not my favorite. I say this because I really like simplistic melodies and complex harmonies. Though you have an excellent harmonic progression, the Viola seems as if it&#39;s doing a trifle bit too much (perhaps a subliminal message? :think: ). However when you entered a sort of call and response phase at around 1:24, It became much more likeable. The Melody after that brief section became much more simplistic, which made it great for me.

The "seduction section" was absolutely terrific. I love the way the piano implements the use of grace notes, and the dissonace as well. I am a complete sucker for dissonance; I&#39;m the rare breed that thinks that it is more audibly pleasing than consanance (guess who loves "One-Winged Angel" from FFVII&#33;).

I was slightly dissapointed when you went back to the original melody, but it somehow works here... maybe it&#39;s because endings demand more power.
Overall this is an excellent piece. Your "Violin Waltz" and "No Name Yet" (did you ever name it?) are still my top two though.

If you want a rating, click the spoiler. If not, steer clear.

Show spoiler (javascript:void(0);)<span style="display: none;" id="QUOTE">

Melody ~ 3/5
Harmony ~ 5/5
Orchestration ~ 4/5

OVERALL ~ 4/5 Excellent

</span>

Neat piece - I like how seemless the transitions are, making the rag/parlor music section fit curiously well with the more glitzy/tango section. This sort of reminds me of "student" concerto music, particularly with the syncopated chord accomp and whatnot. Excellent job.

*stunned*

Life Sure Feels Really Swell Having Slept With Michelle

Sure is a happy-go-lucky song&#33; I really admire the chord progression you&#39;ve taken, and the outline you picked is very good for reinforcing the melody in the listener&#39;s mind. :) It&#39;s nice to hear that you kept the piano part so varied in a lot of parts to avoid a feeling of monotony. Some of the piano part sounds rather reminiscent of your Allegro Maestoso piano movement of another composition. The "C" section is perhaps my favorite. The transition is so well-orchestrated that it functions as the golden stitching between two quilt squares, so to speak. :P (Cheesy analogy, yeah.) I have no suggestions whatsoever, and I commend you on another job well done&#33; :D

Thanks for your comments everybody ^^ and sorry I've been terribly busy lately, so I haven't been listening to members' pieces as much =T

Hmm . . I'm too lazy to reupload my previous songs xD *shrugs*

Dreams of a Kiss

Anyways, here's my submission to the CMA, and because it's an entry, you don't have to comment if you don't want to . . so yeah! It's a very simple song this time around, but it's still from the heart (urgh, I sound lame, haha). Oh, and following in Gnomish's tradition, I wrote some imagery to go along with it. It's . . kinda bad, haha, but oh well . . *thinks it through* actually, come to think of it, maybe it's better if I didn't show you the story :heh:

Well, I finished another song. This one is very silly and simple, probably not as funny as I originally envisioned, and it was very rushed, so the quality is subpar =P And I tried to insert some finger-snapping, but it didn't work ><

(As usual please excuse the horrible singing, especially the bass, since I couldn't sing as low as I would have liked)

Lyrics in case you can't make out what I'm saying:


THAT CHEESE SONG
Alphonse Nguyen

Boy: Sir, watcha doin'?
Man: Why Timmy, I'm eating some cheese.
Boy: Cheese?
Man: Cheese!
Boy: Cheese?
Man: Cheese!
Boy: Ewwww!!
Man: Don't be ridiculous! Cheese is great! In all of my life, I've never come across anything more awesome than cheese. *clears throat* mimimimimiiiii . . .

~~

VERSE 1

I pity those intolerant of lactose
For they are missing out the most
Oh the wonders of curd and whey
I could eat cheese each and every day

CHORUS 1

Now if I say to you pretty pretty please
Oh will you give me some much-needed cheese
It descends my esophagus with ease
So that my appetite at last will be appeased

VERSE 2

You may think I'm overly obssessed
With something that's mechanically processed
But my love must be professed
Just listen to this song, that's my request

CHORUS 2

Now if I say to you pretty pretty please
Oh will you give me some much-needed cheese
It descends my esophagus with ease
So that my appetite at last will be appeased

*And the reprise*

Now if I say to you pretty pretty please
Oh will you give me some much-needed cheese
It descends my esophagus with ease
So that my appetite at last will be appeased

~~

Boy:
Sir, your song is cheesy
Writing music seems so easy
I bet I could do no worse
Let me try my very own verse

I am no dummy
I know cheese is yummy
It feels good in my tummy
So I'll get some from my mommy

Man: Yes Timmy, yes . . . . .

That, Al, just made my week. O_O There wasn't a moment during my listening that didn't include laughter. XD There's just something about cheese that amuses me so....

OMG... I have this spectacular urge to take a crack at this song, but only if you let me. The thing is when I read the lyrics beforehand, I was envisioning something much more playful and bouncy. Perhaps I could get a recording of my rendition with Choir vocals! XD

6.27/5!!!! BEST. COMPOSITION. EV4R.

OMG Alphonse!!!!

I love your piano sonatas!!! (The ones on the Ichigos compositions page)
It took me a really long time haha but I learned the 4th movement ^__^ That's so cool.

You're amazing to be abe to write stuff like that

:lol: I LOVE silly songs. I wish I could write silly songs like that. :cry:

I was half-expecting something more outlandish, but I guess that kinda works too. Did you sing all those parts yourself? o.0

Loved that last part! XD

XD XD XD When you said your new composition was cheesy, I didn't think it would actually BE 'cheesy'

This is a great song, truly good. Your acapella recording is awesome, and your singing isn't bad, as you often tell us. Although when I first read the lyrics (as Ureshii) I thought the song would include a lot of bouncy chords and a fast melody, but this is as good as it gets.

Three thumbs up!

That was hilarious! I gotta do something like that sometime!

Thanks everyone =) And to those of you who expected something more upbeat and bouncy, that was part of the joke, to make it more mellow and such =P because my love of cheese is serious and passionate xD

@Ureshii: Yes, cheese amuses me too!
@Darksage: I still haven’t learned how to play it myself o.0 congrats for pulling through the movement!
@Stefan: Yup, I sang everything =X
@Noir: Yes, the ‘cheesy’ thing was my only hint ^.~
@Silver: You should, everybody should!

You have to make a music video from that.

It's not an option. :p

@Darksage: I still haven’t learned how to play it myself o.0 congrats for pulling through the movement!
haha really? it took me like... 3 weeks lol. But I really loved it. I can;t play it at the intended speed, but pretty close.

And as for your cheese song... I almost died. My face was beet red, I couldn't breathe I was laughing so hard. That was awesome, and yes, it deserves a music video!

Okay, so I finished another song . . I originally intended for it to have lyrics, but since I couldn't think of a theme, meh. Now this song has lots of flaws, and I'm not used to this style of composing (I'm definitely not a drummer! ._.), so yeah, it's kinda bad =X . . and the recording doesn't do it justice (though it sounds decent on my keyboard *shrugs*) . . anyways, this is dedicated to my close friends. The title is vague, because you can interpret friendship in lots of ways =P

Edit: I made the file a bit louder. And I forgot to mention that the accompanying instrument is the cello (since I've written for violin and viola a few times now).

For some reason it kinda sounded like a english horn in the beginning. weird. Anyways.... yeah you're drum wasn't that impressive. I was thinking more like a like a light sound like a triangle or maybe a woodblock.... and it get's a little repetitive. But you're piano was amazing. My chord progession is definitely limited compare to yours. Fantastic job on keyboard. Recording wasn't all that bad. I don't know if you like people giving you rating but... I say 9.4/10. Your melody, theme, chords, instrument selection, harmony, etc was all great. Just try to fix that drum.... then I think it's gonna be one of the masterpiece. Heh.

I agree with Yellowmonkey. Fix the drums. Actually, you could lose the drums all together and add more instruments. That might work too.

try to find more than one "melody" it seemed to be the sam thing over and over. unlike gershwin's rhapsodies for piano & orchestra, he has the same main melody, but he mixes it up. also put another part, a bit different. i know my composistions on here suck, but in real life, they sound hell much better..

try to find more than one "melody" it seemed to be the sam thing over and over. unlike gershwin's rhapsodies for piano & orchestra, he has the same main melody, but he mixes it up. also put another part, a bit different. i know my composistions on here suck, but in real life, they sound hell much better..

Why compare Al's music to someone else's, especially if they're of different genres? I think it would be much easier to just realize that maybe us composers are not trying to sound like "The Next Chopin" or "The Next Gershwin," but are actually trying to make something original.

Friendship ~

On topic, I agree with most everyone else here. Your piano progression was fantastic, and the other background instruments carried it along well, but those drums.... X_X I seriously think the composition would be better off if you just edited the drum sequence out; besides, when I first heard it go into the drums, I thought it sounded a little cheesy, but it doesn't have to be. >_>; I mean that in the best possible way! ^^;

Anyway... Nice work! Can't give you a rating, but, rest assured, it would be a high number. ^___^

@ Maestro: Your comment confused me . . I had an intro, verse, chorus, bridge, ending, etc . . sounds like more than one melody to me o.0

@ yellowmonkey, Silver Wyvern, and Ureshii: Didn't I warn you guys that I was not a drummer? xD Seriously, I know NOTHING about percussion =P But hey, I did it anyways because I've wanted drums in one of my pieces for the longest time now, and it makes *me* feel good inside when I hear it (even though I know it could be much better). Also, I have in fact considered hiring a professional to redo my drums, but I don't have the money =(

Hahaha, I only listen to classical, but this had my feet subconciously tapping. Though the drumming could use a work (I won't continue to beat that dead horse =p), I really enjoyed the peice as a whole. Try getting a real cello too, or something more realistic. It's an extremely apt instrument choice for that part, but what's in there had me wishing for the real thing. Just one thing that could enhance the overall experience.

I'm excited that a composer of your talent is broadening his experience by experimentation. This song wasn't exactly in my favoured style, but that didn't stop me from enjoying it.

@ Al: Yeah you said you weren't much of a drummer but isn't it safe to say all we're trying to do is trying to help you become a better drummer? I already told you what you should do with the drum part. I like the fact that you put the drum in the song but only problem I have with it is the tone of the drum. The song is very light and so should the drum part. Oh and... I'm not the greatest drummer in the world but I can help you with the drum part if you let me. Just PM me if you are interested.

Yes, well i usually listen to classical, as in my introduction to myself, i came here to try and study a new style for composing. so my comments may seem odd at times lol. not saying that the piece sucked, just very different from what im suusally listening to.

dont take it the wrong way please !:heh:

Music
Alphonse Nguyen

If the heart is the only broken instrument that works
Then let me try to sing a song about my emptiness
My heart skips a beat when it recalls your pleasant voice
For only when I’m with you do I feel complete

So I will wait until we bridge the gap between our two souls

And each sweet note that my violin plays for you
Is a kiss I have plucked from a string
Lingering on your soft ears in pure resonance
That caresses those wonderful, musical lips

If music is simply love that’s searching for a word
Then let me modulate my feelings to a tune

So I can wait until we bridge
So I can wait until we bridge
The gap between our two souls

And each sweet note that my violin plays for you
Is a kiss I have plucked from a string
Lingering on your soft ears in pure resonance
That caresses those wonderful, musical lips

[for string quartet and voice]

~~

I tried hard to get my singing recorded properly, but my stupid computer hates me or something. So here are the lyrics. Just follow the melody with the flute =)

waaah! yet another great song!!! superb harmony, great lyrics! <3
I like especially the part after 2:05, keep it up. :) I'd love to hear this song perfomed.

PS: Some parts reminded me of Melodies of Life :P

friendship - hmm i didnt mind the drums so much. and i liek the melody =]

music - eh honestly. i didnt like it so much. heh.. i dunno why. it just didnt capture my attention as much.

Thanks Matt! And thanks Michelle, I appreciate the honesty ^^


This song is not very good. I don't know why. Dad

xD doesn't get more honest than that! Go dad! =D

Edit: Somehow, I got the microphone to work properly (but not my voice, hehe), but I don't know why I'm posting it here . . meh.

In other news, my wifey (Ellesig) and I are nearly done composing "The Last Leaf to Fall", and it sounds lovely ^^ But we're not posting it here =P

Edit: It's done! If anybody cares, Ureshii Gaki wrote a lovely poem about it:

How could such commonplace things
Dare to conjure these wings
And fly to the fervent unknown?

What sorrow ev'ry autumn brings,
To see these delicate things
Err from the safety they've known.

Ummm... The song almost lulled me too sleep... I didn't like it... Ummm... :heh:

This is a recent dream I had. As dreams go, it's just as strange as the next one. However, I had been trying to compose a new song for a few weeks now, but I couldn't figure out what to do for the lyrics, that is, until I had this dream.

"Jellybean Tale"
Once upon a time, there lived a husband and wife. Nine months after their wedding, she was ready to give birth. However, she didn't have time to go to the hospital, so she had to deliver her baby right in the kitchen. As the doctor encouraged her to push, nobody noticed that a little red jellybean camouflaged in blood was the first to come out.

"Ouch!" said the jellybean, as he fell to the ground with a thud. Of course, nobody heard him, because his voice was so soft and also because everybody was too caught up with more important matters. In fact, due to all the commotion, he was actually kicked. This sent him flying towards the air vent, and since he was small enough, he went right through it. Unfortunately, jellybeans don't have the feet to walk back out to the kitchen. So he sat there behind his prison bars, watching the birth of his twin sister (who turned out to be a normal human being, rather than an adorable jellybean).

"Oh, woe is me!" sang* the jellybean. For many years have gone by, and still he sat behind the vent. He'd watch his sister grow up, and how he longed to be a part of the family!

As luck would have it, shortly after his sister turned 9 years old, his family had decided to renovate the house. Part of this involved cleaning out the airways. Now Uncle Harold had come by to help, and when he removed the vent in the kitchen, he was pleasantly surprised to find a jellybean. He picked it up, brushed off the dust, and was just about to eat the jellybean when the little girl yelled, "Uncle Harold, no! That's disgusting, you mustn't eat that! It has probably been there for years now."

"5 second rule, Alicia, 5 second rule!" said Uncle Harold defensively. But he left the jellybean on the table before going home for the evening.

Now Alicia (yes, that was the name of the jellybean's sister) was just about to throw away her brother into the trash can, when he began yelling with all his might! Now was his chance!

"Alicia! It's Barry, your brother! Don't throw me away!"

Alicia's eyes widened when she heard that, and she stared at the jellybean. She strained her ears to listen closely, but sure enough, she heard the voice. "Mom, dad! Come here! Quickly now!"

So the parents came, and were also amazed to hear the jellybean talk. They were even more amazed to hear his story, and to learn that he was in fact their son.

"I've always wanted a boy!" cried the mom with delight.

"He will become the next Einstein!" declared the dad with pride.

And Barry beamed as red as he could, for he was finally accepted into the family. Next, he surprised them by saying, "I have something really neat to show you. If you give me some water, I'll be hydrated enough for me to transform into a real person!"

Excited by the possibility, they dumped him into a glass of water. Within seconds, he started expanding, shattering the glass cup into pieces, transforming into . . a boy!

Later that evening, Barry slept on the sofa, since his parents didn't have a spare bedroom (but he didn't mind, since the sofa was heaven compared to the ground). However, it appeared that while sleeping, Barry became dehydrated. Sure enough, by morning, he became a jellybean once more.

"Ah darn . . oh well, my family can simply give me some more water when they wake up."

However, Uncle Harold dropped by at that moment to continue the renovations. Letting himself in the house and finding that everybody was still asleep, he decided to see what was on tv. Sitting down on the sofa, he noticed the jellybean that had escaped him the other day. So with nobody to witness his gluttony, he did the unthinkable: he ate his nephew!

"Mmm, tastes like strawberry." Then he looked out the window and noticed that he had left the lights running on his car. So he went out to shut it off. But at that moment, Alicia and her parents had woken up and they went down to the living room where they had left Barry.

"Oh no! Barry's missing!" screamed Alicia when she noticed that her brother had disappeared.

"Who's Barry?" asked Uncle Harold when he walked back in.

"My brother!" sobbed the poor girl as she wrapped herself in the comfort of her mother's arms. "He must have converted back into a jellybean somehow, and then . ."

Her dad tried to explain the situation to Uncle Harold, but of course, he found the news a bit hard to swallow. A talking jellybean? Alicia's twin brother? But obviously, he'd never dare confess that he was the one who ate Barry.

So the four of them held a short funeral in the backyard before going back to work on the renovations. What more could they do?

Moral of the story: Don't give out spare keys! In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the song that Barry sang* while he was all alone as a jellybean.

Another way to stop plagiarism is to sing the song yourself xD Who would dare claim my horrible voice? =P

Lyrics:

Beneath my tough exterior I'm really frail inside
A lifetime of defeat is grueling for me to take in stride
Now you'll assume I'm average, no different from the rest
But you have simply been deceived since I know I am blessed

Although the odds are not with me I'll stand above the crowd
For if I never stop I'll make myself feel proud

And I don't care if life's unfair
I'll make it on my own
'Cause I don't care if life's unfair
I'll win it all alone
As long as I keep the doubts away
My name will be heard one day

You think the present matters most but that is why you're wrong
Just watch me carve my future path, a home where I belong
Persistence and good attitude are all I really need
Then add a bit of patience too and surely I'll succeed

Although the odds are not with me I'll stand above the crowd
For if I never stop I'll make myself feel proud

And I don't care if life's unfair
I'll make it on my own
'Cause I don't care if life's unfair
As long as I keep the doubts away
My name will be heard one day
As long as I keep the doubts away
My name will be heard one day

I don't know if you'd want to take this as a compliment or an insult... but you sound like Michael Jackson. >.>

Great stuff.. I love the lyrics!

The vocals... Umm... I think you should've maybe put some more reverb or something. And there's lots of room for improvement when it comes to your vocals; I think maybe there's something wrong with your breathing, 'cause your voice wavers - a lot. And... Umm... Just practice your singing for now; it's very nasaly.

Sing from your diaphragm, not through your nose. I'm no expert, but your vocals don't really appeal to me. :heh:

Hey, I clearly warned everybody of my singing 'quality' (or lack thereof) ^^ Your choice to listen xD

But I love singing too much to stop =(

hahaha.. what a .. very descriptive dream

This song was great. Very strange, indeed, but the lyrics appealed to me and though your singing voice could be better as Marlson mentioned - I'm impressed by how well you took the high notes. And yes, you do sound a little like Michael Jackson! ^^ Well written verses, and the good structure of the song made it feel very complete. You should continue writing these kind of compositions, they feel very "alphonse nguyen" to me now, and I'll always admire your skill in writing lyrics that match with the sense and mood of the actual composition.

So overall, I enjoyed this one. Not your best composition - but certainly one of the best :) Certainly high over the standard of this forum.

This was awesome--absolutely bizarre, but awesome. And who cares if you don't have the best vocals? Last time I checked, this was a composition forum.

Em remake song for Fummy. Redo the vocals. Em has place for Fummy to sing without causing harm to housemate's ears. When Fummy comes home, Em will do it.

Fummy needs one with voice of a little boy, to sing it. Fortunately, Em knows many little boys.

hey alphonse im completely new^.^ but ive listened to a lot of ur music you good composer you should make your own site:lol:
now, ive been playing for 9 years and i would like some of your stuff. if i pm u my email adress, could you send me your scores (in either .mus or .pdf format please)?

Hey, I clearly warned everybody of my singing 'quality' (or lack thereof) ^^ Your choice to listen xD

But I love singing too much to stop =(

I wasn't trying to make you quit. Just trying to encourage you to practice harder! :)

EDIT: I suck at singing, yet I'm lead vocalist for rock band. We just need to practice... and get better as we move along! ^_^

@Sepharite: I noticed the Michael Jackson thing long before any of you =P
@Dying: Let's see you come up with a better dream you loser! (Don't worry guys that I'm insulting her, because she loves it! =D)
@Noir7: Thank you ^^ I know it's not one of my best, and not one of my favourites . . but I'd like to think it's one of my most important, in terms of its message.
@Alfonso: Thanks! Someone who understands me!
@Em: Fummy fears coming home to see em . .
@evafreek576: Sorry, I don't believe in .mus =P and I'm too lazy and too stupid to make .pdf files. If you want .gif, pm me.
@Marlon: My voice is the last thing that'll ever appeal to me =) No amount of practice will make me improve, but you know what? I DON'T CARE xD!!!!!

Masterful. I don't find this song strange at all, it's so beautiful, makes me feel great sometimes, even if it's only ben a night of listening to it. The voice isn't horrible neither, it fits the song. Just a few high notes, but very good considering you didn't take singing lessons. Love it, and thanks for always encouraging everyone to keep composing.

This song is truly my favourite :D !

@Sepharite: I noticed the Michael Jackson thing long before any of you =P

Haha. As long as you don't have children near you, there wouldnt' be a problem.

Just a few high notes, but very good considering you didn't take singing lessons.

Actually, once upon a time, before the Alphonse that you know of today, had undergone a ritual that every young boy goes through known as puberty, little Alphonse underwent musical training, under the watchful eye of Judy Harmsworth. A delightful elderly lady, who would enter the young lad in many competitions, some of which he won.

Ah, young Fummy had an angelic voice, one in which his parents praised very often. Unfortunately, he came of age, and was forced to give up the singing lessons, his voice having grown too different, to further compete with other angels. A tragedy yes.

Ah! Good song, Al. Overall, it was preety nice through the whole time, just a little parts where you got off key for a half a second or so throught the thing. And also, all thourhg the high notes was... out of tune as well mainly, relatively sharp. Now, this is just critisizm on the performance, not the song remember. :P
PS : Yea the Michal Jackson voice was a little odd, but I got through it. :sweat:

No singing this time :heh:

EDIT

@deathraider: I think the lack of dynamic contrasts is due to my preference for softer sounds!
@Sepharite: Never heard of it! Don't think I can enter the competition since there are no lyrics, and since I don't plan on writing any.
@Noir7: Haven't heard that song either. But you shouldn't think too highly of my crap =P
@evafreek576: Thank you, but I don't think I can provide you with the sheet music. First off, I haven't even written it down properly yet. Second, too many people have said my composition sounds familiar. One person will say it sounds like this song, another person will say it sounds like that song, etc. It's scaring me, so I'm taking it down xD

Thank you all for listening in any case =)

Very pretty. And simple. I think it would have been better with stronger dynamic contrasts, but I can understand that you want it to be simple.

Sounds like that song with "Birds suddenly appearing" in the lyrics.

Very pretty. I very much enjoyed it. You could enter the competition with that, I think. Good stuff.

Good stuff, and I do agree with the pie man above that you should enter this in the competition! I can't help but think how wonderful this must be with a piano intro and then introducing a light, soft orchestration accompanied with female lyrics. Just a thought :) Oh, and the small part at 00:54 - 00:58 (had a great effect on me somehow, and how you then left the F minor chord out at 01:10 was a nice touch. Actually, your main melody reminds me slightly of the "Days of our Lives" theme.

Best composition on this forum since "NoNameYet", which was, what, two years ago? :P

that was, in essence, simplicity^_^
beautiful:)
now if only i could compose like that:(

>.< >.< >.<

Put it back up.

Okay, it'll stay up for a while!

*Skill in persuasion has increased by 1 point*

I LOVE Simplicity! ^.^

You seem to really have captured the feel perfectly in the simple melody and nice, flowing harmonies throughout the song. I also really like how you threw in little variations and chords now and then, like the chord at 1:10 of course and even the more suddle (sp?) chord at 1:25-1:32ish and 1:51. They really added color and helped transitions.

Over all, awesome job! Your melody is simple and memorable, which seems to be something a lot of composers here have problems with. (Including myself) Anyway, I really enjoyed this piece.

Years ago, I started work on a string quartet (this was done before my infamous piano sonata). I completed the second movement, but it was excruciatingly painful to listen to. However, the third movement turned out not so bad. And I never started the first movement! Anyways, here's the third movement, with many many thanks to Noir7 for converting it from midi to mp3, and for telling me how to condense the file so it can be uploaded here! *grovels at his feet*

Best.song.ever

(after NoNameYet)

Is there a chance you could post the original MIDI? I'm absolutely terrible at writing for strings and I could learn by studying this piece I'm sure.:heh:

It is incredibly awesome by the way! I love some of the sections you threw in there like the one that begins around 1:21. The main melody was very good and I enjoyed some of the harmonies a lot. I am in awe at your ability to write music.:lol:

Ps: I got a kick out the, er...Important note attached. XD

EDIT: By the way, I keep hearing about this "No Name Yet" piece. Could you repost it, I'm really wanting to hear it. >.<

llol

happy birthday thread!

Shame on you for turning the page over! =P To everyone: Check out Al's composition at the very end of the last page.

@BlazingDragon: Sorry, but I can't post the midi. First off, the original midi uses the piano instead of strings (poor Noir7 had to differentiate between the four voices!). Second, I don't know much about writing for strings. I do know that I broke tonnns of rules, e.g. all the double-stops are impossible to perform! By the way, I didn't 'throw' in any sections, I just followed sonata format =P Anyway, I've uploaded "No Name Yet" for you.

@Jhnboyman: No, this is not the happy birthday thread. Who are you? o.0

When I said throw in, I simply meant include. :P Sorry, bad, err...English.

I know nothing of form though, which is likely why my music is so, um...Not good.:heh:

Oh, just listened to No Name Yet. It was incredible.:cry: I absolutely loved the piano at around 1:21...I'm almost in tears. And at 1:55, wow, the flute (?) and stringed instrument go so well together. I could name off a million other places in there, but it would be pointless. It is all great.:cry:

This is by far one of the best pieces I have heard from a Non-Professional Composer (Not to say your music sounds non-professional, but your profession is not in music...Is it?) Again, amazing job!!!:lol: ^_^ ...:cry:

If you want to learn sonata form, there's a thread about it in this forum.

Here, I have too much free time XDXD!!

"Superb!" "Perfect!" "Bravo!"

(@ AL)

=P Thanks Noir for that nice and interesting interpretation of the articulation.

Um . . can anybody tell me how to download it? =X I'd like to save it onto my computer (same with some other pieces on the forum), but my browser will only play it in a different window.

Edit1: Right-clicking will only save this weird 'attachment.php' file.

Edit2: Oh, it never occured to me that I could save that weird file xD . . Thanks Darksage!

Edit3: Woah, I hadn't realized that Marty-chan had also written a piece entitled 'Simplicity' o.0

I think you can right click on it and save it... or if you play it in windows media player you can go to file > save media as

Tss... Al is technically handicapped for sure :P

LoL !

Very good! ^_^

Thanks =)

*uses his technically-handicapped abilities to create a video of himself performing on the keyboard* It's in my sig =P

Thats good! But I prefer Noir's "interpretation" :P

You look at the music too much-concentrate on the expression =D

Though, on a keyboard-HOW?

What if I told you that the music was pre-recorded, and that I was merely playing along, so I could look at the music as much as I want without concentrating on the expression? :whistle:

Then I'd say that you were lying. AHDAHD

could you scan the sheets you were playing off of and post them please? i love that song:)

If I were able to zoom into the sheet music, you would have seen that it was filled with messy scribbles, making it difficult to distinguish one note from the other :heh:

Wow, that simplicity solo is really good! I feel like wanting to play it :)

By the way, the links to your scores and midi's do not work. Please fix them :)

^ Yeah, I would also like to hear them again. Also, I made another "NoNameYet" version, this time I used a cello/flute combination,

I just love bumping Al's "NoNameYet", I don't want anyone to miss out on this great composition of his.

stillnoname is a really funny name for a song.

The funnier, the better! Who says composing has to be all serious?

Edit: This must be your 3rd arrangement of my piece =P

Ah... If only this piece had a version for oboe and English horn... ;) XD No matter how many times I listen to it, it still gives me the same 'feel' to it when I first heard it, which was like 2 years ago... Magical, as always... ;)

....wow....
i have never heard that piece before.....so beautiful.......

omg I love that piece... Noir can you post the original one since the link on page 1 doesn't work

Ask Al, it's his composition ~

I guess I have no choice =P

Edit: Piano sheets added.

Thank you very much but I would also like the piano sheets if its not too much to ask sorry i didnt' mention it in the pm

Al, as I listen to your trio again, I keep thinking that this is my favorite composition to listen to. Not only on Ichigo's, but in real life.

It is a real releaser of emotion and brings a faint strand a happiness that appears to bloom after you think about these melodies you have created.

I really think that these melodies and harmonies were, somehow, blessed and have it's own Musical Magic in them. I am completely serious, I do beleve that there are certain melodies and harmonies that are lusted and weathered through so much, and seem to be 'blessed' by God (I don't care if you guys beleve in or not) with a touch of an angel that plays music-forever.

That is my 'Music Theory.'

~~

I just think if you composed like that, that you could be known someday and actually go down in history.

Few people like that have so much dedication for one song, or just a few, and are not known for it. It would be a shame if you aren't at least mentioned as a composer in furure historic books.

This inspires me, now, to work hard on my compositions and really pay attention to detail-no matter the deadlines. My goal of composing (actually) a song or two a week doesn't cut it. I am not always happy with them, and I might not have the interest to compose Classical now-since I am way to leanent with my styles of improvising. I can't define my style, neither can I yours. I think if you have your own style that cannot be classified other than 'Alfonse Nyugens' Style' than I think you are gifted to change or to just 'keep it real' :heh:

Anyway, kind of put down whatever was on my mind for all to read-again. So sorry if this was really off topic.

~Seth

You totally spelled his name wrong. Alphonse Nguyen!

Maestro, thank you for your kind words! But I doubt I'll ever be in the history books =P Though I am happy to hear that I have inspired you.

Yes, I've also noticed that in some chords/harmonies (not necessarily from my pieces), there is a special feeling about them that makes me feel connected. Strange . .

Edit: Sorry, I don't want to upload any of my songs at this moment. So it's time to shut down my thread (for at least a year), but then I'll revive the thread =)

Sometimes the theme kinda got a little repetitive (But hey! Maybe that's what left it ringing in my head for the next few hours), but other than that, like Maestro said, it's quite magickal. ^_^ Very good piece. It's a wonderful work of art.

Alright. I've searched and searched, but I just can't find the links to any of your (Al's) songs, and I really want to hear them!!! Could someone please tell me where I can find them?