Vox Composer's Central

Theme

The overview for your composition. It can be a generic place, a specific location, a DnD class, or a central idea, etc. Every mood and phrase alludes to your Theme.

Mood

A general feeling within your Theme. A mood can be a general emotion like elated or forceful; actions like pondering or arguing; or very specific settings like dark woods or boss fight. 

Phrase

The musical bricks that create the sense of mood. The three or more phrases that you make will project the idea of a specific mood within your theme. The phrases within a mood should be related so they do not attract attention, but different enough to where the listener does not hear constant repetition.

Looping

The action of the phrases constantly repeating themselves. Similar to a vamp in a musical, the mood will continue to loop the phrases until a mood change is triggered. In Vox, the order in which the phrases loop will be randomized, so the harmonics and cadence within each phrase should be heavily considered.

Transition

The movement from one phrase to another. Because the phrase order within Vox is randomized, we do not need a specific phrase for transitioning from one phrase to another. Instead, the chord progression towards the end of any phrase should not strictly imply the first chord at the start of the following phrase. If possible, avoid the following at the end of a phrase:

• Dominant 7ths
• Half or Fully Diminished 7ths
• Diminuendos that approach 0 silence.

Additionally, phrases should not begin with any:

• Pickups 
• Silences on Beat 1

Unlike traditional soundboards and playlists, Vox and its moods are designed to jump between themes, composers, and everything in between. As the range of musical creations is endless, it is imperative that you adhere to the guidelines so your work meshes well with other compositions in the catalog.

Theme:

• Themes should hold a central idea. All moods and phrases should support the theme.
• Each theme should have at least 3 moods.
• Only use the keys of C, F, or Bb.
  • You can modulate to other keys within the phrase, but the beginnings and endings of the phrases should be within these three keys.
  • This is to keep consistency with other compositions and avoid failed resolutions.

Mood:

• A Mood should have a specific feeling or concept that supports the theme.
  • Moods can be emotions like happy, sad, angry, sly, etc.
  • They can also be broad like adventure, battle, victory, wandering, etc.
• Each mood should have at least 5 loopable phrases to support it.
• The phrases within a mood should have similar instrumentation. 
  • Instruments and sounds can of course be added when needed.
  • Too much variation within a mood can cause jarring loops.

Phrase:

• Each phrase within a mood should be related, promoting a sense of consistency.
• Each phrase within a mood should be the same tempo.

• Do not include tempo alterations within your phrases. Because the following phrase is random, the tempo alterations may not always create the intentional effect. If you want to include some sort of gradual motion, consider using metric modulations or varying rhythmic intensity through the phrase instead.
• Do your best to stay within standard phrase lengths (4, 8, 16, 32) to avoid being conspicuous.
  • The role of Vox is to support and amplify the gaming experience, not distract. 
  • Having unpredictable phrase lengths can draw unnecessary attention.
• Avoid fading in and out of a phrase for additional dynamics.
  • Because of the use of audio tails, the fade techniques often lead to empty space and stumbling transitions.