#quartal harmony

[davidbeardmusic]

Composed around quartal harmony and a cycle of fourths. Limited to the use of only four notes to create the melody and harmony, one of these notes replaced every two bars. A slow, dreamy, soothing Strings and Piano track inspired by tides, water, delicate waves, lunar tides, the planets etc. Slow-paced, ever-changing, drifting tonality. "...A system based on quartal harmony would be able to accommodate all conceivable chords more uniformly than the tertian system..." (Arnold Schoenberg, Theory of Harmony; Chords Constructed in Fourths. License for media use here: http://www.pond5.com/stock-music/75766062/lunar-tide-main-version.html Download Jpeg here: http://www.davidbeardmusic.com/QuartalWheel.jpg Enjoy x

[guitarguitarworld]

John Coltrane and McCoy Tyner Style Quartal Guitar Line | Jazz Improvisation Lesson

[sibyl-of-space]

who wants to hear more weird kinda bad bullshit. this 20th century harmony class is interesting because it is forcing me to write in styles that i don’t like, and i am learning from the experiences even if i don’t like them.

(and then of course once i finished the harmonization i spent ~15 minutes on the world’s laziest DAW session. just throwing some synths and drum loops on it for shiggles)

[scibot9000]

a locrian study

a lot of ppl look at the flat 5 and say "oh it's unusable" but never consider that the perfect 4th is basically the negative harmony version of the perfect 5th. of course locrian would be negative harmony only, right?

or so i say, but this still doesn't quite feel resolved. it's basically a sus4 ykno? still better than just. dim.

it might also be worth exploring locrian's relationship with quartal harmony but that's for another study.

[redskysailor]

Hi Everyone needs to listen to my final composition project for sophomore music theory or I am LITERALLY going to explode. Ok. Thankyou

For this project I had to compose eight measures of music and include five of the techniques we've covered in the last few weeks of music theory. I really really love Locrian mode (minor with a bonus b2 and b5, or B to B on the white keys of a piano), so I knew I wanted to do something with that for sure. Here's a list of some of the topics I wound up including:

Polymodality

Pandiatonicism

Quartal harmony

Quintal harmony

Polychords

Polymodality (or polytonality) means that I wrote this in two different keys/modes, in this case B Locrian and F Lydian. (To hear a Lydian scale, play F to F on the white keys of a piano.) These two modes have all of the same pitches in common (white piano keys), so it was easier to get them to fit together without sounding super icky. However, B and F are also a tritone apart, so there's definitely still some crunchiness going on! Tritones are nicknamed "the devil's interval" due to their spooky sound, but they can still be heard in pop culture tunes such as the Simpson's theme song and "Maria" from West Side Story.

Pandiatonicism just means that while I'm still staying within a certain key (or keys, in this case), I'm not sticking to traditional chord resolutions. Certain chords or notes naturally want to resolve to other chords... for example, sing or play a regular major scale (C to C on the white piano keys) and stop at "ti." Do re mi fa so la ti.... You'll notice the tension as you hold out the ti, as it wants to resolve back up to the first note of the scale, "do." But I'm not following the rules >:)

Quartal and quintal harmony refers to chords built in fourths (quartal) and fifths (quintal) rather than the traditional thirds or triads. A triad is just a regular degular chord, consisting of 3 notes in intervals of 3... For example, a C major triad would be C, E, G. The third note up from C is E (C, D, E), and the third note up from E is G (E, F, G). Triads!

Polychords are just two different chords being played at the same time. This happens naturally with polymodality since we're working in two different keys.

Thanks for reading! I'd like to experiment more with Locrilydian in the future, perhaps with a Lydian melody in the treble clef and more ominous Locrian undertones in the bass clef. I hope you like it as much as I do :]

[xx-karlmarx-xx]

@midnightpotatoes tagged me 2 share 5 songs ive been listening to recently lets go!

1. Take Me Apart - Kelela : QUEEN of alt R&B genuinely if you dont listen to Kelela she is a MUST LISTEN!!! her voice is soo damn gorgeous and her quartal and quintal harmonies are just chef's kiss

2. Love Between... - Kali Uchis : Love Kali SOO much her voice has a beautiful breathy quality and this song sounds soo classic, luv the bells ; _ ;

3. Ad Nauseam - Ethel Cain : This one is from her unreleased catalogue. Love Ethel so much her writing is masterful and the opening line of this song gets me every time

4. Undo - Björk : Björk is the OG ALT-POP QUEEN!!!!!!!!!! This song brings back some very good memories of my teenage years and the whole album holds a very special place in my heart <3 reminds me of transformation and finding myself

5. Sound of Rain - Solange : last but DEFINITELY not least our other Alt R&B queen singing beautifully over Pharell's genius production what more could one ask for! Luv Solange soo much she also holds a v special place in my heart bc one of my dearest friends was the one to put me on her music allllll the way back in 2016

i dont have many oomfies on tumblr but i will tag the few i have!! @syreno-x @lob31 @citrus-and-cinnamon

[jjtheplum]

sexiest thing a man could do is knowing about quartal harmony

[bookish-library]

I'm back with more music baby!!!

This time (heh) based on the man, the myth, the decomposing legend himself, Time! (Well, technically Mask, but I'm considering them the same for this purpose). I based this off his time in Termina, with the resetting 3-day cycle.

Hope you enjoy! I have more music based off of Zelda/LU characters:

Hyrule (Zelda 1), Sky (Skyward Sword)

More info about the song under cut!

So for this assignment the song had to be in ABACA format, which I thought fit perfect with the 3-day cycle of Majora's Mask.

The song starts with the world ending, the moon coming crashing down. The A section is the reset, a parody of the Song of Time played on the flute. The B section is a failure, with the world coming to an end once more followed by a reset. The cycle continues again, with the C section as another failure. The final reset, the third time the A section comes back, is a success, with everything turning out okay.

This piece features polychords, planing, cluster chords, Quartal/quintal harmony, and altered dominant chords.

If you got this far, and understood at least something, yay! I'm a total music nerd, and would love to chat, music, zelda/lu, or life! I've got two more assignments due for my class, so hit follow to see who gets music next!

[automaticfrenchhorn]

Big piece today, one of my densest as well. It began from the playful bassoon pattern, which I quickly expanded into several fun variations that became the foundation of the piece. After that, I experimented with various textures above the bassoon, resulting in the piece's melodies.

Said melodies have a neat quality; they are generally diatonic, yet in a different key than the bassoon below. This is best seen in the flute's F# major melody over the bassoon's A major pattern in measures 5-6. It's a pseudo-polytonal idea, since there are never any vertical cross-relations; every harmony can be understood vertically, usually as an expression of a particular lydian scale or quartal pattern.

As always, these pieces are welcome for anyone and everyone to play! All I ask is that you share it with me, because I'd love to hear it done by live players!

[amaezingblog]

🎼 Final Recital pieces (compositional approaches)

Principle Study 🎻 Sem 2

Tales of the Legendary Festival

heavy usage of quartal and quintal intervals

wide contrast in dynamics and texture

prolongation of developmental sections

picturing a festival-like feel/visual

ostinato line on vibraphone

Sentimental Railway

usage of dissonant vertical structures imitating train "horns" - combination tritones

altered scale/free atonal scale-like melody

varying rhythms imitating train tracks (constant and ostinato-like feel)

change in texture and mood in new section - more tonal

breaking up phrases and distributing to Vln 1 and 2 to ease from being too busy

silvery, soft trills at the end to give different texture and feel from train-like rhythmically driven sections

incorporated chinese/japanese-like elements

Mountain Lights

mountain inspirations - picturing beauty of mountains, translating into music

beautiful and gentle lines, yet slightly grand-like (mountains are huge)

contrapuntal texture

narrative like sections - different developmental stages

drones by bassoon and horn at 2nd section stage

variations of crossover barline rhythm/harmonies

atonal structures, modulating scales, chromatic slides

changes in tempo and mood

usage of gamelan saron into "eery creepy" section

[jc]

4. Quartalsbericht Klein-Tyler

Na gut, ich kann doch noch nicht berichten, dass der Einjährige schon laufen kann. Aber im letzten Quartal hat Klein-Tyler nicht nur angefangen, auf seine ganz eigene Art zu krabbeln. Er steht schon längst lieber als dass er sitzt oder krabbelt und er fordert bei jeder Gelegenheit ein, an den Händen gehalten irgendwo langzulaufen. Allzu weit weg ist der nächste, ich meine: der erste Schritt nicht.

Auch sonst ist Klein-Tyler ein ganz normales zwölf Monate altes Kind. Er spielt gerne, meistens mit den Sachen seiner Schwester. Außerdem überprüft er mit Vorliebe regelmäßig, ob das Gesetz der Schwerkraft noch gilt. Und natürlich muss er immer wieder testen, wie die Welt schmeckt. Wie gesagt, ein ganz normales Baby Kleinkind.

Klein-Tyler betet seine große Schwester an. Eines seiner ersten Worte war eine Lautfolge, die schwer nach ihrem Namen klingt. Er macht ihre Geräusche nach, er krabbelt ihr überall hinterher und fühlt sich in ihrem Zimmer am wohlsten. Wenn die beiden dort sind und spielen, herrscht meistens große Harmonie. Es gibt aber auch die anderen Momente, in denen Klein-Lea ihrem Bruder immer wieder etwas aus den Händen reißt. Früher hat er das klaglos hingenommen, mittlerweile äußert er zum Glück sein Unbehagen. Es ist sehr spannend zu sehen, wie er sich immer mehr Respekt verschafft und sich durchzusetzen versucht. Auch wenn Klein-Lea natürlich das ehrfürchtig bewunderte Vorbild bleibt.

Was den Appetit angeht, hat sich Klein-Tyler nicht verändert. Er ist nach wie vor kein Kostverächter und hat bisher jeden Schritt mitgemacht, der ihn an normales Essen heranführt. Einzig Weintrauben verschmäht er zu großen Teilen. Die eignen sich dafür aber gut, um erneut das Vorhandensein der Schwerkraft zu überprüfen.

Drei Tage vor seinem ersten Geburtstag begann Klein-Tylers Kita-Eingewöhnung. Davon werde ich dann in einem Vierteljahr berichten.

(Ich danke Alex Matzkeit für die Idee des Quartalsberichts. Hier gibt es alle von Klein-Tyler. Und hier zum Vergleich die seiner Schwester.)

(Original unter: https://1ppm.de/2023/09/4-quartalsbericht-klein-tyler/)

[nolanthecomposer]

Debussy's Cloche a travers les fueilles Whole Tone Scale, Added Note Chords, Quartal/Quintal Harmony by Nolan The Composer Welcome to another first for NTC! I’m excited to start working on theory and analysis videos here on the channel. This is going to be a learning curve, and I look forward to riding it. If there are any questions, or if you notice a mistake please let me know and I’ll happily address them and get around to correcting any mistakes. In this music theory analysis video, I delve into the mesmerizing composition "Cloche a travers les fuellies" by Claude Debussy. Join me as I unravel the intricate web of harmonies and explore the fascinating techniques employed by Debussy in this enchanting piece. My website: https://ift.tt/mAeU5CT via YouTube https://youtu.be/-J4S_3vj4A8

[guitarguitarworld]

Jazz Fusion Alternate Picking Guitar Exercise Analysis

Hi Guys, As requested, here are the two youtube shorts [uploaded horizontal] with the Tab/Notation. [Sorry, some notation is a bit messy] VIDEO OF THE EXERCISE: Alternate Picking guitar exercise. Jazz Fusion music mid tempo. Lesson/How to: EXERCISE ANALYSIS: PLEASE NOTE: These are only exercises to connect and get familiar with the jazz tools of improvisation in regards to alternate…

[sibyl-of-space]

The full version of my 20th century harmony midterm. The assignment was to write a piano piece drawing from 3 different harmony practices we studied, and I was like "well if I'm writing kind of deranged stuff anyway why don't I go all out" so that's why it has drumloops and shit. The first half or so is not much changed from the last version I posted, the second half has a lot of additions though.

A section: quartal harmony based on E B section: octatonic C section: bitonal (E minor on top and G# minor on bottom)

...and then there's a recap of A at the end that does the quartal thing again but in G# this time instead of E.

IDK these weird harmonic practices are kinda growing on me. Writing insane music is really fucking fun actually

[fleetingarrivals]

Mulatu Astatke’s Mulatu from Black Jesus Experience (2020) is Ethiopian jazz with quartal harmonies and a screechy guitar solo.

[sheetmusiclibrarypdf]

The Piano Improvisations of Chick Corea: A musical analysis (2/2)

The Piano Improvisations of Chick Corea: A musical analysis (2/2)

An analysis of the Chick Corea Piano Improvisations leads to the consideration of several other issues. One of the most pressing of these is the question of whether analytical methods usually associated with composed classical music are useful in the examination of improvisations employing the jazz style. This, in turn, raises more fundamental questions as to the differences between improvisation and composition, and between jazz and classical music. The methods used in this study— traditional harmonic, formal, and motivic analysis combined with melodic and harmonic reduction— do indeed prove to be valuable means of examining the music. As to the question of boundaries between improvisation and composition; jazz and classical music however, inquiry into the Piano Improvisations serves only call the validity of making such distinctions at all into question. On the subject of placing music into jazz or classical categories, Corea has the following comments : One can get into a great deal of controversy trying to label things. As a matter of fact, one of the artist's functions is to create, and not to be worried with what already established mold one may fit into. . . . in that sense, there should not even be a question. If there is, then that raises the point of the purpose of the question. Is it so that we will know where to place this music in the curriculum? Or is t so so that we may know how to review it, in what section of the magazine, the classical or the jazz section? Or is it so that we will know what record label it should be sold under? Steven Larson makes a similar point regarding the supposed differences between composed and improvised music. In answering the question of whether it is possible to apply analytic methods developed for the study of composed music (Schenkerian analysis) to improvisation, Larson writes, "This question suggests misconceptions about the content and origin of Schenker theories. . . . Compositions he analyzed may be considered records of successful improvisations." Larson goes on to demonstrate that many of the relationships found in composed music are also possible in improvisation. The nature of Chick Corea's Piano Improvisations demonstrates that the jazz and classical styles have much in common and can be blended to the point that the resulting music cannot be placed into either category. The present study also adds to evidence given in Larson's dissertation, that improvisation and composition are closely related, and that many qualities associated with composition can be produced in improvised music. The harmonic language in the Piano Improvisations is a combination of common practice harmony, jazz harmony, and more modern effects such as quartal/quintal sonorities and polychords. Traditional dominant-tonic relationships are common, but the chords are often altered, in a sense creating a highly contextualized treatment of consonance and dissonance. The clearest manifestation of this is the addition of extended notes, such as sevenths and ninths, even to the final tonic harmonies. Consider, for example, the final harmony of Noon Song, which reduces to the following (m. 75):

The presence of a major seventh (C-sharp) and ninth (E) in no way diminishes the stability and finality of this sonority. This is due to the context that has been established throughout the piece: chords, tonic or otherwise, featuring only the root, third, and fifth of the triad are exceedingly rare. In Ballad for Anna, a piece with a strong tonic of Eflat minor, the most common voicing of the tonic chord is as follows (e.g. m. 1):

Though this sonority is essentially a polychord (D-flat major triad over E-flat), the piece establishes a context whereby it serves as the tonic harmony. The nonfunctional harmonies that do occur are often circumscribed by traditional functionality. Consider the following passage from Noon Song (m. 22):

The series of quartal harmonies serve to prolong a functional harmony, in this case a rootless F-sharp dominant harmony, serving a clear role as V/vi. The quartal harmonies are a logical choice for moving between two versions of the F-sharp sonority that are themselves voiced mainly in fourths. Harmonic motion in the Piano Improvisations, and indeed in much of jazz, often uses the same basic progressions driven by the same sort of voice leading as in common practice classical music. It is in the voicing of the individual chords, specifically in the notes added or omitted, that the main differences are found. In terms of harmony and tonality jazz and classical styles particularly as embodied in the Piano Improvisations, do not represent different languages so much as two dialects of the same language. One of Corea's most impressive accomplishments in the Piano Improvisations is the improvised creation of convincing forms. The common process from which the forms are generated is the use of variation technique. All the pieces use variation in some way, based on either harmonic or motivic material. This provides for a combination of variety and stability. In his article on improvisation in the N e w Grove Dictionary of Jazz, Barry Kernfeld writes: The essence of improvisation in jazz is the delicate balance between spontaneous invention, carrying with it both the danger of loss of control and the opportunity for creativity of a high order, and reference to the familiar, without which, paradoxically, creativity cannot be truly valued. This balance of invention and reference to the familiar is a central feature of the Piano Improvisations. This is especially evident in the treatment of melodic and motivic materials. Most of the pieces have one or two motives from which a wide variety of melodic material is derived. This is an important factor in lending coherence to a potentially unwieldy genre. As Barry Kernfeld observes, "The fertility of invention of the greatest improvisers may be gauged by the variety of possibilities they find in a single theme. In addition to motivic unity within the individual pieces, there are connections between the Piano Improvisations as a group. All of the main motives involve stepwise descent through a third. Compare the main motives from each of the pieces: Noon Song, (x2)

Song for Sally

Ballad for Anna (a common version)

Song of the Wind (one of the most recognizable melodies)

Sometime Ago (y motive)

In the case of Ballad for Anna and Sometime Ago the motives not only have the same intervallic content, but similar contour and rhythm as well. In addition to the main motives, much of the less structured melodic material throughout the Piano Improvisations also uses descent by step. The motivic material often has an effect on other aspects of the music as well. In Noon Song, for example, the different versions of the main motive help to define the form. In Ballad for Anna the harmonies often move by third, the interval spanned by the main motive. The melodic motion by second in Song of the Wind is reflected in the predominant bass notes of the major sections. The high degree of motivic unity in the Piano Improvisations is difficult to explain without a truer understanding of the nature of improvisation. In Thinking in Jazz, an in-depth investigation into jazz improvisation using an ethnomusicological approach, Paul Berliner writes :

Jazz sheet music trancriptions download here.

The popular definitions of improvisation that emphasize only its spontaneous, intuitive nature— characterizing it as the 'making of something out of nothing'--are astonishingly incomplete. This simplistic understanding of improvisation belies the discipline and experience on which improvisers depend, and it obscures the actual practices and processes that engage them. Improvisation depends, in fact, on thinkers having absorbed a broad base of musical knowledge, including myriad conventions that contribute to formulating ideas logically, cogently and expressively. Improvisation as understood in this light has produced, in the Piano Improvisations, music that embodies blending of styles, a high degree of formal integrity, and, an artful combination of economy and invention. Heinrich Schenker, yearning for a composer of new music who would carry on the traditions he revered, wrote, "this coming genius will . . . b e similar to the great masters of the past, but certainly just as different from them as all of them are different from each other."Hyperbole aside, the Chick Corea Piano Improvisations show that this is possible in ways that Schenker never would have imagined."

Chick Corea: Vigilette | JAZZ NIGHT IN AMERICA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRLwsSbqlwo&t=428s Read the full article