Category: Free music downloads

[Music] Autumn
This piece was a lot of fun to write. It’s in 7/8, with the bar broken into 2/3/2 rather than the more traditional 3/2/2. There’s a severely tortured Irish flute in the mix, sounding somewhat foghorn-like (from around 0’55), as well as washing machines being bashed and kitchen sink strainers being bowed. All this adds up to a very cinematic sound.

(Download: Opus | Ogg | MP3)

Autumn by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
If you’re interested in using any of my music in your games, videos, or other multimedia productions, let me know!
2013-05-31
[Music] Fundament
I wrote this track back around July 2012 for inclusion in the 2012 Songs for the Cure album, but as it looks as though that’s not going to happen (no word on it from Josh Whelchel since April), I’m putting it up here for your aural pleasure. If you like it, donate some money to your local cancer council!
This is a retro video-game inspired piece; chiptune sounds and brass collide to provide an epic (but still playful) feel.

(Download: Ogg | MP3)

Fundament by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
2013-05-23
[Music] Starlit
I’ve been listening to Armin van Buuren a lot recently, and the result is this track: arguably my first “straight” trance track. There are, however, strong orchestral and rock influences in it, plus a few chiptune elements thrown in for good measure.
This was the first track I wrote with my new headphones (courtesy of my lovely wife) — Sennheiser HD 598s.
Listening to this track does make me realise that I’ll need to spend some time (when I get the chance!) learning how to master my tracks properly. The overall volume on this track is way too low (it’s been amped to the point of not-quite-clipping), but I’m loathe to compress it until I’m confident that I can do so without producing sausage music. So if anyone has any tips on audio compression, I’m all ears! 🙂

(Download: Opus | Ogg | MP3)

Starlit by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
If you’re interested in using any of my music in your games, videos, or other multimedia productions, let me know!
2013-05-17
[Music] When you’re asleep
This track is a fusion of orchestral and electronic sounds — a technique which seems to become more and more a part of my idiom. A slowish lead-up to a strong middle section, which then moves through to a floating solo viola line (I love the slightly “rougher”, less refined sound of violas as compared to violins), then back to the fuller electronic/orchestral sound — a straightforward ternary form, which so often works well.
Note: play this one loudly. 🙂

(Download: Opus | Ogg | MP3)

When you’re asleep by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
If you’re interested in using any of my music in your games, videos, or other multimedia productions, let me know!
2013-05-12
[Music] Orchestral Sonata II
My wonderful wife gave me a copy of Session Strings Pro for Christmas, and this is its first outing. I’m very impressed by the sound and precision of Session Strings — especially compared to the VSL strings that come bundled with Kontakt.
This is a programmatic (movie/game-type) orchestral piece in a rough sonata form.

(Download: Opus | Ogg | MP3)

Orchestral Sonata II by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
2013-01-09
[Music] Falls apart
This piece starts out quietly, but moves into a fuller, orchestral and synthetic middle section. To my ear, it would work quite well in a game, with its emotive melody underpinned by a driving rhythm, parenthetically enclosed by an almost-melancholic processed piano.

(Download: Ogg | MP3)

Falls Apart by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
2012-12-22
[Music] Contraflagration
Not only is this the first Kyrie that I’ve written, it’s also probably one of the least traditional. It’s a reworking of a track I wrote last year, Conflagration. This time round, I’ve gone more down-tempo, made the orchestration a little more “classic”, and heavied it up a bit. The chord progression’s also changed a bit.
The vocals were made using speak.js, which is an emscripten-compiled version of the open-source eSpeak speech synthesiser.

(Download higher-quality mp3)

Contraflagration by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
And here’s Conflagration, the original:
[audio:http://www.barryvan.com.au/music/Conflagration.mp3](Download)

Conflagration by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
2012-12-20
[Music] End of day
I asked, and apparently this doesn’t count as “dub”, despite the “woob-woob” bass. A melange of physical and synthetic instruments, this piece puts a strong focus on the viola lead, supported by light violins, cellos, and piano, and underpinned by the aforementioned “woob-woob”-ing.

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End of day by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
2012-10-27
[Music] Next to you
Although originally conceived as a lyrical piano piece, this track is at its best in the central section, where bass and synth lead dominate (at least in my opinion). It’s somewhat experimental (there are some interesting sounds in the mix), but not, hopefully, too much so.

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Next to you by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
2012-10-20
[Music] Flat
At the end of a long week, I sat down to write this piece. Writing music has always been cathartic for me; this piece expresses pretty much exactly how I felt when I wrote it.

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Flat by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
2012-10-13
[Music] Daylight
For some reason, 7/8 has always appealed to me. This laid-back track layers 7/8 lines at normal- and half-speed to establish a “flow” — which is then disrupted at the end by offsetting some lines by a quaver or a crotchet.

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Daylight by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
2012-10-07
[Music] Antigen
This track was a lot of fun to write. Absynth and Massive take centre stage (piped through Guitar Rig) to create a large, full sound with overtones of glitch trance and synthpop.

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Antigen by Barry van Oudtshoorn is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
2012-10-03