Jimmy's MIDI Commissions

[Jimmy]

Hey, folks!

So, long story short, I think it's time for me to branch out into serious territory. Creating about 400 MIDIs (!!!) over the last decade or so for all you folks has been tons of fun, though things have slightly thinned out lately in terms of my musical workload (outside of my 30in30 works). Seeing as I haven't had many requests over the last year or so, I figure now is the time to get back in the game, and get serious.

So with that: introducing commissions!

Don't be frightened by the concept - I think you're going to like what I have. With these offers you're getting quality-assured music from someone with close to ten years of experience within the Doom community, and with the theory and practice of music in general. You will also be getting a close-to-immediate result upon payment, the details of which I will lay out below.

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WHAT MY MIDIS SOUND LIKE

Conductor (6:22) - originally written for MXU's Harvester, also used in Back to Saturn X E1MAP07
A six-minute adventure of electronic synths and basses coupled with mellow guitar flourishes, powerful choirs and a hyperactive percussion line.

Petrichor (Blood of the Stone) (9:22) - written for Back to Saturn X E2MAP24
A nine-minute atmospheric rhapsody that modulates between lullaby-like major keys and death-march minors, with largely fluid time signatures. Features mainly orchestral and choral instrumentation with a slightly rocky breakdown towards the end.

The Ever Shrine - Part 2 (7:10) - written in a day as the finale track for 30in30-4
A seven-minute piece with emphasis on embellished chords, slower passages with gracefully descending scales, repeated motivic ideas, and cheeky arpeggios. Instrumentation is a potpourri of ideas rooted in heavy rock, with both rhythm and solo guitar, rock organ, and piano, the main focus being on percussive keyboard sounds and the tribal sound of an echoing pan flute.

---

I have more than 400 further MIDI works, many of which are viewable/downloadable here.
http://jamespaddockmusic.com/midis/

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First we'll go over some basics:

HOW TO ASK / GUIDELINES

• Send me a PM via Doomworld, or an e-mail (jamespaddock(at)hotmail(dot)com), with the word "commission" or "[COM]" somewhere in the subject line, plus the "KEYWORD" of the commission type you wish to commission from me - these are listed below.
  
• In the message body, specify the QUANTITY of tracks you'll be requiring, and providing an idea of your desired LENGTH of all the tracks will also be very helpful.
  
• If I have outside commitments such as university studies (which will be ongoing), I may not respond to your initial request right away. I ask for your patience.
  
• google.com.au/search?q=aud+to+usd]Fees are in Australian dollarydoos (AUD).
  
• Fees listed here are minimums. The final cost will vary based on how much time I end up taking, and the difficulty of the composition - easy, quicker stuff will be cheaper, but I charge progressively more for more serious/demanding tasks.
  
• Payments must be provided upfront unless marked otherwise - please use PayPal. Send it over as soon as you're ready.
  
• Please be as specific with every track in your request as possible to guarantee your satisfaction with the end product. These specifications include but are not limited to:
  1. Speed/tempo, mood or feel (slow and sombre, or fast and hectic? etc.)
     
  2. Instruments to include/exclude (guitars, percussion, any sound-effect instruments like Bird Tweet, etc.)
     
  3. Any musical criteria you can provide (major/minor key, chordal structures, etc.)
     
  4. It will help me immensely if you provide a download link or YouTube video of a track/tracks you'd like me to write something in the spirit of.
     
  5. It will also stimulate/accelerate my creative process if I can see a copy of the project you would like me to compose for, or see screen captures at the very least.
• I can refund in extreme cases if you aren't satisfied with the result, or if I find that I can't complete the request.

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Below are the commission batches, ranging from express (cheap) to extreme (costly).

The UPPER-CASE words are the KEYWORDS you'll need to add to the subject line when commissioning me via PM or e-mail, so I know roughly how much work you'll be asking of me.

Please read below for the offers I have:

COMMISSION BATCH 1 - EXPRESS PACK
For your quickfire needs!

• SPEEDY MIDI 1 (starting at $30 AUD/track): For instant results. I will spend a maximum of 30 minutes on a new track, starting the moment you send over the money, or asap. You get the finished track at the end of that 30 minutes. Since this type of commission is based around a highly limited time spent on the track, the track duration will be indeterminate. (Example of work: Anything from here.)
  
• SPEEDY MIDI 2 (starting at $60 AUD/track): For quickfire but negotiable results. I will spend a maximum of 30 minutes on a new track, starting the moment you send over the first $30, or asap. I then send you the track in its state as at the end of that 30 minutes, you offer suggestions to me, and I embellish and finalise the track. You get the track once I'm done, at which point I will require the rest of the payment. Since this type of commission is based around a highly limited time spent on the track, the track duration will be indeterminate. (Example of work: Anything from here.)
  
• TITLE MIDI or INTER MIDI (starting at $20 AUD/track): I will write a track for a menu or intermission screen. TITLE MIDIS will be about 10 seconds long usually unless you need a longer one. INTER MIDIS are usually longer but I probably won't go above a minute (for either). You may suggest changes once I send the completed track to you. (Example of work: My title MIDIs folder.)

COMMISSION BATCH 2 - STANDARD PACK
For your commonplace musical needs!

• JIMMY MIDI 1 (starting at $40 AUD/track): For MIDI files of 3-6 minutes in length. I spend an indeterminate amount of time on a new track, starting the moment you send over the money, or asap. You get what I send to you after that period.
  
• JIMMY MIDI 2 (starting at $80 AUD/track): For MIDI files of 3-6 minutes in length. I spend an indeterminate amount of time on a new track, starting once you send me the first $40, or asap. You get what I send to you after that time, at which point you are then free to offer suggestions to me, and I finalise the track, at which point I will require the rest of the payment.
  
• MIDI REMAKE or MIDI REMIX (starting at $30 AUD/track): I will remake an already-existing piece of music for you in MIDI format. You may suggest changes once I send the completed track to you. Note that the fee for this offer will be extremely variable. Remakes can be very challenging to do, and the length of the original will have a lot to do with how much I end up charging. Remixes are a slightly different matter: they could turn out to be either simpler (i.e. more creative freedom for me) or more complicated (i.e. having to work around the content already there) than outright remaking the original track, so I will charge either more or less than normal. (Example of work: MIDI remakes and remixes already completed.)
  
• MIDI REPAIR (starting at $30 AUD/track): I will repair an already-existing MIDI format track for you, and you'll need to specify exactly what's wrong with it so I can address it. Again, the fee for this offer will be extremely variable. The length of the original MIDI and the difficulty of fixing it will have a lot to do with how much I end up charging.

COMMISSION BATCH 3 - PREMIUM PACK
For your more demanding needs.

• LENGTHY MIDI 1 (starting at $80 AUD/track): Reserved for MIDI files of 6 minutes or over. I spend an indeterminate amount of time on a new track, starting the moment you send over the money, or asap. You get what I send to you after that period.
  
• LENGTHY MIDI 2 (starting at $160 AUD/track): Reserved for MIDI files of 6 minutes or over. I spend an indeterminate amount of time on a new track, starting once you send me the first $40, or asap. You get what I send to you after that time, at which point you are then free to offer suggestions to me, and I finalise the track, at which point I will require the rest of the payment.
  
• MIDI ALBUM (starting at $300 AUD, i.e. $60 AUD/track): If you wish to commission me five or more of any of these offers, consider taking up this offer to save time: I will create 5-10 MIDI tracks for your project, giving you the opportunity to have me fine-tune each track until the end product fits your satisfaction. For 10 or more MIDIs, I will provide every tenth track free. (You'll get 10 tracks for ~$540, or 20 tracks for ~$1080. Sound expensive? I ask you to consider how much work 10-20 tracks for just one project would amount to.) (Example of work: Reverie. [was not commissioned at time])

ADDITIONAL - EXCLUSIVITY RIGHTS
All these offers are "non-exclusive" - i.e. your commissioned tracks are eligible for use by myself or the rest of community, since I post everything I do on my online "portfolio" here. However, if you wish to buy "the rights" to the music I compose for you, you will have to pay double the commission cost. For this price you're getting the guarantee that the works I compose for you will not be released into the public sphere, and they are yours and yours alone - not even I can do anything with them.

WHAT I CAN DO:

• MIDI files in a wide range of genres: rock, metal, electronic, ambient, pop, and I can give a damn good shot at (within reason) anything else you throw at me. Bear in mind that I'm working within the confines of MIDI, however, so there will be some significant degree of limitation I am working within.
  
• MIDI files in a range of musical styles and forms: traditional verse-chorus-verse, progressive, atonal, non-repeating, etc.
  
• Guitar/synth solos, and to a certain extent drum solos.
  
• I can imitate the compositional style of certain popular MIDI composers - such as Bobby Prince, Lee Jackson, Bjørn Lynne (Lemmings/Worms soundtracks), Seppo Hurme (Gubble soundtrack), Christopher Wilkins (CHRIS3.mid and CHRIS5.mid), and Edwin van Veldhoven (Danielle's Face aka Hellcore MAP01's song). Or those known to Doomworld - like Mark Klem, David Shaw, Jeremy Doyle, Marc Pullen, stewboy, esselfortium, jmickle66666666, Alfonzo, Xaser, etc.

WHAT I WON'T DO:

• This should go without saying, but, any work for which you elect that paying me is optional. If you're emailing me for work, I won't do a single thing until I see payment.
  
• Any work for a project that clearly doesn't exist yet. As per the guidelines above, send me screenshots, video, or something as tangible proof of effort.
  
• Any work where you specify absolutely nothing to me and just tell me "do whatever". I work better under limitations or at least regulation.
  
• Is your project a dumb anti-humor-saturated so-bad-it's-bad jokewad? You can go away, thanks.
  
• Concerning MIDI REMAKES, I won't do renditions of heavily noise-based genres like EDM (dubstep, moombah, trap music), "extreme" subgenres of heavy metal (extreme death metal, grindcore, goregrind) or glitch music.
  
• Microtonal pieces. These are generally extremely awkward to create in MIDI.
  
• Black MIDIs. 100kb is large for a MIDI file, so certainly I will go nowhere near the vicinity of several gigabytes/terabytes in size.

That about wraps it up. I hope you've all enjoyed my music over the years and I sincerely hope I can create more for this community, and I'd like to imagine beyond as well, for whatever reason. :D

Cheers!

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EXAMPLE MESSAGE:

Subject: [COM] [SPEEDY MIDI 1] For my upcoming video game!
Message:

Hi James!

I'm working on a little shoot-em-up game, which needs a really quick midi for its background music.

I was thinking something in the style of the Microsoft Pinball theme, a classic spacey tune.

The track need only be 2-3 minutes long but feel free to make it longer if you can find the inspiration!

I would also like exclusivity rights to the track, as I'd like my game to be the first time people hear it.

If you're fine with this, I'll send over payment as soon as I can.

Best regards,
Joe Bloggs

[Marnetmar]

Anyone who commissions this guy for midis will not be disappointed in the slightest. I requested an instrumental NIN-ish track for a project I'm working on and every one of my expectations were exceeded :)

[Fuzzball]

Hnnng Jimmy don't make me spend all my money on midddddiiiiiiss

[Voros]

Do you take Bangladeshi Taka notes?

[Jimmy]

Jimmy said:

• google.com.au/search?q=aud+to+usd]Fees are in Australian dollarydoos (AUD). Fees listed here are minimums.

If you use Paypal, you can use it to convert your native currency into AUD.

[Varis Alpha]

i assume these fees are for if you want music for your Doom projects, as well? whenever i get my ass off finishing Project Doomjockey, i'd certainly like some help from you in finalizing the project, most notably for a E1M5 remix, so hence me asking. of course i'd be able to afford it when the time comes, although i still need to finish 8 or so tracks myself.

would you also take payment for fixing up MIDI files? as i mentioned, i'd probably need help in finalizing Doomjockey when it comes around, and you've fixed up my tracks in previous MIDI projects on here, so you'd probably be a good person to have onboard doing that. but it'd be a lot of tracks, and i wouldn't really expect you to fix the entire Doom soundtrack's worth of remixes for free.

[Jimmy]

Doomhuntress said:

would you also take payment for fixing up MIDI files? as i mentioned, i'd probably need help in finalizing Doomjockey when it comes around, and you've fixed up my tracks in previous MIDI projects on here, so you'd probably be a good person to have onboard doing that. but it'd be a lot of tracks, and i wouldn't really expect you to fix the entire Doom soundtrack's worth of remixes for free.

I would definitely consider it. Obviously the rate will be entirely down to how difficult the fix ends up being (for each track). I might add that to the Standard Pack, I wondered if I was missing out on something, heh.

[Jimmy]

There, just added a MIDI REPAIR commission to the standard pack. Starting fee will be pretty cheap ($15 AUD) but that'll obviously add up given a larger number of tracks to do the same thing to.

[vadrig4r]

As pretty much anyone who's played a map with his midis knows, well worth it. Good luck mate.

[Frisky]

Damn, if only I could have a pass on the payment and just not do it at all...

[Jimmy]

Frisky said:

Damn, if only I could have a pass on the payment and just not do it at all...

Uhhhhhhhh, what? Are you seriously asking if you can request a commission and just not pay me?

Read this:

Jimmy said:

WHAT I WON'T DO:

• This should go without saying, but, any work for which you elect that paying me is optional. If you're emailing me for work, I won't do a single thing until I see payment.

If you want free midis forever, there's like 475 here - organised by folder and zipped up in a single <2MB file, no less.
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/5r85188b24l3vki/AACZ3QlDpTS-dGK0fijPe4HBa?dl=0

[Frisky]

Jimmy said:

Uhhhhhhhh, what? Are you seriously asking if you can request a commission and just not pay me?

No, I'm not asking. ._.

[Gez]

Just create a project so awesome that Jimmy will want to contribute for free. All you have to do is be awesome.

Jimmy said:

If you want free midis forever, there's like 475 here - organised by folder and zipped up in a single <2MB file, no less.
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/5r85188b24l3vki/AACZ3QlDpTS-dGK0fijPe4HBa?dl=0

30in30-2&3 are included; I thought they were Bandcamp bonus exclusives?

[Jimmy]

I just wanted a .ZIP file and .M3U playlist with everything in it. People who want to use my tracks in their Doom WADs can get the ZIP, while people who just want to listen to the tracks on their various devices have to buy the BandCamp versions.

[Frisky]

Gez said:

Just create a project so awesome that Jimmy will want to contribute for free. All you have to do is be awesome.

Because an alien invasion late 1940's TF2-styled WAD will get respect? I don't think so.
Wait... -_-

[Jimmy]

If you have some actual concepts of your project to show, then unless it's a terrible/malicious jokewad with no clear effort put into it, I am fairly open-minded.

Frisky, either put up, or kindly stop posting about nothing in my thread.

[Tolwyn]

I think it would be worth the price for new music in the MIDI format (if you need MIDI). It's a music format that takes a lot of skill to do right and Jimmy definitely has that skill!

For me, I only work with digital audio now, and probably would have more headaches trying to work in the General MIDI soundset!

Good luck, Jimmy.
:)

Edit. Easteregg of Doomworld. Don't spell definitely incorrectly.
*******ely. There see?

[Jimmy]

:D !

Thanks a bunch for the words of encouragement, Dave. :>

[obake]

Congratulations on the success, Jimmy. :)

[ReFracture]

I wish you nothing but the best of luck, having heard many of your midis I have no doubt your clients will be pleased. I spread the word a little bit when Dime was streaming The Adventures of Square the other day.

[Vorpal]

I gave Jimmy 2 weeks to do something specific for me, and after some back and forth he had a final version ready within 4 days. Very satisfied!

[Jimmy]

I figured this is as good a place as any to notify people, but my MIDI repository has moved!

You can now find just about everything I've ever done here:
http://jamespaddockmusic.com/midi-files/
And the following permanent URLs will provide a handy link to my entire collection, and be periodically updated.
Download .ZIP file (500 files, 1.8MB)
Get .M3U playlist (links to the on-site repo)

And as an extra treat for you all since I'm in a generous spirit, here are some tracks from Adventures of Square E2!
Jet Your Own Pack (4:02)
Lunartech Fridge (3:44)
Trianger (3:20)
Pyramidine (3:28)

On another, slightly more serious note: I had to close my commission contact forms due to spam, but I'm reopening that channel due to my present financial situation being less than savory. Anybody who has work for me to do please get in touch. :)