Touhou 18.5 - The Collector's Melancholy Afternoon - [MIDI]

♪ Image Source:
By : www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/999...
By : www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/997...
♪ Link to Midi display (Midifall): gawehold.weebly.com/midifall....
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Hello everybody!
Yesterday TH18.5 came out and I started to transcribe the menu theme. I'm still thinking whether to transcribe the whole new OST or just do a few tracks...
Personally I quite like how ZUN used the piano here. I love that he is using different pianos than usual.
I couldn't (as almost always) find the right instruments and since it's about trying to transcribe I can't afford to spend hours and hours searching through so many instruments, so I chose several that sound similar. It seems to be a joke how much I had a hard time with the bass piano making chords, in several sections it is very difficult to hear and you have to play a lot with the expressions.
I was listening a bit to the whole OST and I like the style that ZUN is approaching in his compositions.
One thing that keeps bothering me is the mix he is opting for. It's simply a personal opinion, as such, ZUN's mix is good.
I mention this in case you hear various instruments edited differently (like the trumpet in this transcription).
Anyway, enjoy!
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Instruments:
- RealGuitar Steel String (Steel String)
- Retrologue [Dark Mass] (Dream Sequence)
- Retrologue (Superbrass)
- Sforzando (BRASS)
- Zenology (TravInFlutes)
- Zenology (Romantic Tp)
- Trilian (Retro 60's Mute - Full Range)
- HALion [4Knob PopD] (Sunrise Strings)
- HALion [4Knob PopD] (Sunrise Strings)
- HALion [Triebwerk] (Drum Kit 6)
- GA5 (Elementics)
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MIDI link I do: mega.nz/file/5bZkmRBA#TVHhnGF...
(Please, if you are going to use it, give me the corresponding credits, since it takes me several hours to make the MIDI)
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🎺 Original composer: ZUN
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[@mimicyn]

Yay 18.5 MIDI! This sounds really good! :D

[@theskoomacat7849]

I'm amazed, I'm literally binge-watching your channel right now. You deserve so much more appreciation!

[@KarlZuniga]

Glad you like the content!
Sorry for taking so long to respond, I took a slight break

[@junthamaulido4747]

AS always, fasttt

[@XziledBlog]

Esta muy bueno Karl, también me encantó el original

[@Fishnberg]

Yay Karl has came here to help again!!

[@KarlZuniga]

[@ElAvionDePapel188]

Excelente Karl, 10/10

[@CrazyChan]

Godspeed

[@denistorres6628]

Me encanta demasiado esta versión, sigue así

[@Ikaros---]

thanks so much for this, now I can learn another "Theme of Eastern Story" on my electric piano

[@flatpancakesss]

this is awesome, subscribed ❤

[@KarlZuniga]

Thaaanks!!!

[@flatpancakesss]

@@KarlZuniga I showed this to a friend who's unfamiliar with Touhou and told him to try and compare the MIDI version with the official version
He couldn't tell the difference 😂 well done

[@KarlZuniga]

@@flatpancakesss Hahaha. At first glance they must sound similar if you don't use headphones. Maybe by differentiating some instruments it is easier to realize how different it is

[@hascchi2421]

Good

[@TouhouMusicFan]

Good transcription. The theme is pleasant, has a relaxing feeling, with a melancholy feeling at the beginning and then comes what seems to be a feeling of overcoming, of courage, with a melancholy still present. The bass is not only relaxing, it also sounds a little sneaky, suitable for the black market.
I don't know if you intend to make any arrangements in the style of this game. If so, here's a suggested theme, in case it interests you: Magician's Melancholy (from The Grimoire of Marisa (CD)). Ever since I hear the theme of this new game, I felt the melancholy, it reminded me of this theme, and now we have a title with the word "Melancholy". Also, both themes are associated with Marisa.
If there is no problem for you, could you explain to me what you said in the description, about the mix that is bothering you? If you can give an example, even better. I admit that my main interest with this is to understand a little better in practice what mixing is haha.

[@KarlZuniga]

I agree with you, the truth is that the song does sound relaxing and the bass goes a long way to transmit that feeling.
I will certainly try to implement this style in future arrangements, I will take your suggestion into account in case I ever think of doing it.
As for the mix. Personally I feel it's similar to Th18 in which the mix tends to give more presence to the bass by focusing the low frequencies and the "acoustic" instruments like the trumpet have little reverb (I guess to make it sound somewhat acoustic).
That's what doesn't convince me at all because to give it prominence ZUN raises the volume, this dulls some instruments (For example, in track 2 which in most of the theme has trumpet, you can't hear the piano in the background because it is overshadowed by it).
However, the piano is well edited and mixed, I love the work he did with this one.
Of course, when it comes to mixes there are exceptions (I love track 4 The Black Market Can Happen Anywhere, Anytime and it's very well mixed, I love the mix in fact)

[@KarlZuniga]

Sorry if it took me a while to reply. I had internet problems as soon as th18.5 was released

[@TouhouMusicFan]

@@KarlZuniga Oh, now I understand better what you say about the mix. There's a piano playing in the background along with that trumpet and other acoustic instruments?! I didn't really notice, so it must really be stuffy. I just notice something playing a few notes at a low volume in the second part of the first section with trumpet, but it doesn't exactly sound like a piano, I don't know if that's what you're talking about.
I also don't like background instruments with low volume. But as I particularly love bass, I loved the way these tracks sounded. It brought me the feeling of music from video games where the audio was compressed, because of the low emphasis given in bass, which is something I love. There were few times I heard this in uncompressed songs. ZUN made the piano do really cool note moves on these tracks, I liked that too.
If background bass and background piano cannot coexist being prominent, it seems a good idea to emphasize one in some sections and the other in other sections.

[@TouhouMusicFan]

@@KarlZuniga Just to comment a little more on what I thought of the OST, I liked how there is a certain feeling of elegance, probably due to the piano and that it moves in a carefree but very harmonious way, really interesting. Also, the "sound effects" of the themes sound great.
I also love that ZUN finally has another drum kit, I was longing for beats that sounded more like drum beats, and I really missed a cymbal beat that sounded good. Although the beats are unfortunately not as prominent, they sound good.
For a intermediate game it's one of the best OSTs in my opinion, and I'm even finding that a good part of the themes outperforms a lot of TH18 themes. But actually TH18's OST is in a low place compared to other main games, for me, although I see potential in the style that ZUN introduced in it, which even seems to have been better achieved in some TH18.5 themes, in my opinion.
No need to worry about the delay in responding.

[@KarlZuniga]

@@TouhouMusicFan Yes, the piano sounds at a very low volume. That's one of the reasons why I decided not to transcribe that track, if I tried it I would just stress myself out hahaha.
From what I've heard it's just pure piano in the background, only in a small part you can hear some acoustic guitar notes

[@globalmelodious]

素晴らしいアレンジ

[@KarlZuniga]

Thaaaanks!

[@kalehakaido561]

Karl make this a vocaloid when?.
But nice job with the transcription karl

[@Fishnberg]

Touhou style song!?
interesting idea...

[@KarlZuniga]

Haha, I doubt I could do that
Thank you very much for commenting