Hope - Emotional and Dark MIDI Pack

I feel like such a somebody. I have a dozen or so of Todd’s MIDI packs, and I’ve taken his (great) “Production Music Mastery” course, and this is the first time I’ve been asked for a review! Usually I get flooded for requests for that and I don’t WANT to get them because the product is not worth the pixels it’s printed on.

In this case, though - bravo. I’ve got the degree from Berklee, been composing for an embarrassing number of years, had placements all over the place, scores in many of the other places…and I still find these packs useful, sometimes for specific ideas, and sometimes just for inspiration.

The two things I like most about them are:
1) They do a lot with a little. The orchestration is almost always very simple, using full ensemble patches instead of individual instruments for example, but always just “works.”
2) My Achilles' Heel in MIDI programming was always how to get the “breathing” just right - i.e., getting the mod wheel moves to feel natural and “live” - so I love to get a glimpse into how others approach it. Todd, as a former brass player, is a rock star with that. I continue to learn a lot just by switching my automation viewer on and following along like a cat watching a laser on TV. Too much fun!