Friday, May 1, 2015

2nd Annual Goldstone Wood Music Contest

Back by popular demand . . . I give you the 2nd Annual Goldstone Wood Music Contest!


This year's contest is going to be a little bit different from last year, and I for one am very excited about the change! Here's the scoop for all of you musicians . . .

1. Competitors are invited to write and perform music inspired by the Tales of Goldstone Wood. You may write original lyrics or use lyrics from some of the songs and poems included in the series. The only requirement is that your submission must be clearly part of the Goldstone Wood universe.

BUT THERE'S A TWIST!

2.  Animator Melanie J. Morgan will be selecting the winner or winners of this year's contest. The song she chooses will be used to create an animatic--which is a storyboard for a scene as it would be illustrated in an animated movie, complete with speaking/singing parts for the characters!

Curious to know more? Well, here is a wonderful animatic which Melanie created last year with the collaboration of singer, Brittany, and accompanist, Camryn.


SO WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOU?

This means you want to be certain your submissions for this contest would translate well into an animated sequence! For instance, if you pick a song from the books, then the sequence may be the scene in which that song is sung. Or you might want to write a completely original piece to be sung by one of the characters (as in the animatic above).


WHAT ABOUT MALE VOICES?

I know most of our competitors are ladies (last year, all of those who submitted music were female). But we do want to allow for our musicians to compose songs and scenes for the male characters in Goldstone Wood! So I have contacted a talented vocal musician, Zachary Friberg, and he has agreed to be a stand-in performer for any of the male characters.

That means you musicians and composers may feel free to write and sing music intended for male voices, knowing that if your piece is selected as the winner, we've got a wonderful male musician on standby to record  the song for the animatic.

Personally, I think he'd make a particularly fine Bard Eanrin . . . .


TEAMWORK

I strongly urge all of you creative types out there to collaborate! If you are a musician but not comfortable with lyrics, find yourself a writer who will work with you! Or likewise, if you are comfortable writing lyrics but can't play an instrument or sing, ask a more musically-inclined Imp to join forces with you.

Feel free to use the comment section below to let folks know if you want to team up with someone.


PRIZES

ALL of those who collaborate on the final animatic (including Melanie herself) will receive an autographed copy of . . . Poison Crown: The Smallman's Heir. Just as soon as it releases, of course.


DEADLINE

You have until June 24 to submit your music for this contest.

All the music submitted will be displayed on this blog from July 1-10. Melanie will then select the piece she wants to animate, and the winner(s) will be announced on July 11.


HOW DO I SUBMIT?

Please record your performance as a video or audio and upload it onto Youtube. Email me (aestengl@gmail.com) the Youtube link, and I will share it here on this page for the "concert."


WHAT DO I INCLUDE?

Please include a short write-up introducing yourself and your collaborators (if applicable), detailing who wrote or performed what part. Also let me know which book in the Goldstone Wood series inspired your piece.


WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE CONTEST?

After Melanie has selected the winning piece, the musician(s) will be put in direct contact with her. From that point on, Melanie and the musician(s) will work together over the course of several months to create the animatic. This may involve a fresh recording of the winning piece or some slight alterations to the music.

Melanie is on a tight schedule these days but hopes to have the final animatic ready to share with the world before the end of the year.


So there you have it! I don't know about you, but I am VERY excited about this year's concert. Have a blast coming up with your compositions and do let me know if you have any questions. I'll be looking forward to receiving your pieces!


27 comments:

Therru Ghibli said...

Oh! This sounds fun!

Anonymous said...

Just so happens that I have a Goldstein Wood related piece I am working on. :) Any female singers out there looking for something to sing?

Meredith said...

This is so very exciting! Last year's contest was phenomenal and such fun. I know this year's contest will be terrific as well. Love the added twist of having the entries be specifically geared toward animation.

Would anyone be interested in collaborating with me? I can write lyrics fairly well but have difficulty with writing music. If anyone might be interested, please feel free to email me at mlb3v@hotmail.com

As always, thanks so much for hosting these wonderful contests.

Meredith said...

To Anynomous: I love to sing and would be interested in hearing about your song. mlb3v@hotmail.com

Therru Ghibli said...

Anyone interested in collaborating? I like to sing and can work with music but have trouble coming up with lyrics.
You can email me at ancashen@gmail.com.
Thanks!
Abby

Becky said...

This is going to be fun! I shouldn't sing in public, and I can't write music or even play much of a tune, BUT I CAN cheer you all on! Have fun! I'm looking forward to hearing your results.

Anonymous said...

Yay! What if I can't upload things onto YouTube? Can I just email you a music file?
Jemma

Anne Elisabeth Stengl said...

@Jemma: You can send me the file directly, but I cannot promise that I will be able to post it. I would do my best and let you know if it doesn't work, but my blog doesn't always support video or audio files . . . it's a bit fickle that way. YouTube is a sure-fire way to make certain all your hard work gets enjoyed by the "concert attenders." :)

Liv Hammonds said...

Question: Can we submit more than one piece?? :)

Anne Elisabeth Stengl said...

@Olivia: Yes! Absolutely! Feel free to submit as many pieces as you like. :)

Therru Ghibli said...

Just wanted to say thanks so much to everyone who was willing to collaborate with me!! This contest is going to be a blast!!
Abby

Anonymous said...

Thanks :)
Jemma

Psalms w guitar said...

Beautiful! We may try this if we can pull it together.

Psalms w guitar said...

May we use old tunes which are in the public domain (the one I'm thinking of is over 200 years old)? Then we would set the words.

Anne Elisabeth Stengl said...

@Psams w Guitar--Absolutely! If an old song is in public domain, feel free to use it and adjust the lyrics to fit Goldstone Wood. :)

Unknown said...

I'm toying with doing a song for multiple voices, but I don't know if there's enough interest. If anyone a. wants to sing, b. can harmonize, c. owns / has access to a metronome, could they email me at aruvidich@gmail.com with their voice type (pretty much high / low)? It would only be an hour or so of work for the vocalists. Very little musical experience required!

Psalms w guitar said...

Okay, Anne Elizabeth, you're on! I'm going to try to be as faithful as I can to your words, while choosing an appropriate tune. I am trying to do the same with the Psalms of the Bible, so this will be good practice. I do not know how to upload a video to YouTube, perhaps you could link instructions for that.

Psalms w guitar said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Psalms w guitar said...

Allison, I am a tenor and my daughter is a soprano. We can sing if there is musical notation and sometimes if there is not. Mercy can plunk out any melody that you can notate, and I can always provide guitar chords. The disconnect here is I do not know how to do this through the Internet. And I do not have a lot of time to figure that out.

But we're certainly willing....

Meredith said...

Oh, my! This is going to be so great! All these people working together! I'm super excited.

Merenwen Inglorion said...

Yay, another music contest! ^.^
The submissions last year were great, and I can't wait to see what this year brings. :D

Hmm, I'd better start looking at my youtube account and see how to upload videos/what video makers I might need. (I am woefully ignorant about stuff like that. :P)

Psalms w guitar said...

this was helpful https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hlxqk0iHp5w

Carrie-Anne Thomas said...

Ooh! I've actually written a Goldstone Wood Themed piece, and I can sing, but I'm terribly with tunes... *shrugs*

Unknown said...

I would be more than willing to lend my voice to anyone who has need. I have a wide range, from first soprano to alto. I also have a friend who can help me with written music and can record my voice if need be (he is a music teacher). Feel free to email me at Keturah.goldsberry@gmail.com

Liv Hammonds said...

I've recently realized that I probably won't be able to participate in this contest (with school wrapping up for the summer, and all), but I cannot wait to see everyone's entries! I'm excited, and so ready to hear them! Blessings to you all! :)

JM Christian said...

My sister can sing beautifully, and she's even good with coming up with lyrics. While she can play the guitar, she is still learning, so if someone is willing to provide the music, she will sing. :) If anyone is interested, e-mail me at infernog7@rocketmail.com and I will put you in touch with her.

Anonymous said...

I want to participate in a contest. I am already a member of the Roblox ids hub website and get the best working Roblox music codes. Can I apply for it as well?