DOCSLIB.ORG

Harmonic Major – Part I, Blackbird by Adam Coulombe

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Harmonic Major – Part I, Blackbird by Adam Coulombe Harmonic Major – Part I, Blackbird By Adam Coulombe The tonality of harmonic there is an absence of seven triad on the flat sixth degree. G major is a fundamental tonality in primary chords and their scales. harmonic major is spelled : music harmony. There are those Usually, only the G A B C D E♭ F♯ G that have never heard of it, and tonalities of major, melodic minor, My belief is that those that have heard of it but do and harmonic minor are taught and eventually everyone will have the not understand that it is a used when analysing the harmony a opportunity to understand tertian completely tertian and diatonic piece of music moves through. This harmony correctly, and completely, tonality. Tertian harmony is the can create an incorrect analysis of that there are four tonalities, term given to chords spelled with a the harmony in a piece when major, harmonic major, melodic major or minor third interval chords from harmonic major are minor, and harmonic minor. I between each chord tone in root used but not recognized as such. believe this should be a standard position, to start with. Diatonic For example, the sheet music to model for all musicians to study as refers to one note being the center Paul McCartney’s Blackbird has a basis to understand all other of the tonality, called the tonic been consistently printed forms of applied harmony. note, and that the harmony created incorrectly due to this lack of I am interested to know in this tonality relates ‘to the tonic.’ knowledge of the tonality of what other institutions and Why this tonality is largely harmonic major. Hard to believe? teachers teach the four tonalities in misunderstood is perhaps best not Well, working with Hal Leonard, the tertian harmony at this time. Music covered completely here, but I publisher authorized to notate and harmony is perfect, completely, and believe it is because of a way of sell the sheet music to Blackbird, I did not invent that, it is so because thinking that does not lead back have agreed that my analysis of it is not ambiguous and does not correctly to a complete picture of Blackbird is correct and that the contradict itself when it is tertian harmony. notation of harmony will be interpreted correctly to include The harmonic major scale, changed to reflect the chord it harmonic major. Below is a list of for example C harmonic major, is borrows from harmonic major. So th 7 chords, in both G major and G spelled : let us explore this particular harmonic major for comparison : C D E F G A♭ B C example. In the incorrect version of G major G harmonic Major The complete spelling of Blackbird, the chord notated after the chord then is : the E minor chord is E♭ major. This G ma7 G ma7 C E G B D F A♭ C means that there is a B♭ note in the Each of these chord tones A mi7 A mi7(♭5) chord progression for two beats. An has a major or minor third interval E♭ triad is spelled : E♭ G B♭. We between them, in its primary B mi7 B mi7 are in G major in Blackbird, and spelling – root position. This makes there is no B♭ in this part of the it tertian, spelled with major and C ma7 C mi ma7 harmony, as it would make the minor thirds, like the C major scale, song go into G minor for two beats, the C minor melodic scale, and the D 7 D 7 and then we would return to G C minor harmonic scale. Therefore major. This is incorrect. It is E mi7 E♭ aug ma7 there is nothing synthetic, invented, supposed to have a B natural, not a or created out of the human B♭, and this makes the chord E♭ F♯ mi7(♭5) F♯ dim7 imagination about harmonic major, augmented : E♭ G B, from G it is a completely diatonic tonality In my next column, I will harmonic major, and the harmony that fulfills a sequence of thirds, discuss the most perfect example of stays major for this part of the and therefore it is of equal value as harmonic major I have come across song. the other tonalities. The absence of so far, which borrows chords freely This is the correct chord this understanding leads to an from this tonality throughout the at this point in the harmony for ambiguity and a confusion in the song, which is Sleepwalk by Santo & Blackbird. It comes from the vocabulary of musicians; because Johnny. tonality of harmonic major, where there is naturally an augmented .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Chords and Scales 30/09/18 3:21 PM
    Chords and Scales 30/09/18 3:21 PM Chords Charts written by Mal Webb 2014-18 http://malwebb.com Name Symbol Alt. Symbol (best first) Notes Note numbers Scales (in order of fit). C major (triad) C Cmaj, CM (not good) C E G 1 3 5 Ion, Mix, Lyd, MajPent, MajBlu, DoHar, HarmMaj, RagPD, DomPent C 6 C6 C E G A 1 3 5 6 Ion, MajPent, MajBlu, Lyd, Mix C major 7 C∆ Cmaj7, CM7 (not good) C E G B 1 3 5 7 Ion, Lyd, DoHar, RagPD, MajPent C major 9 C∆9 Cmaj9 C E G B D 1 3 5 7 9 Ion, Lyd, MajPent C 7 (or dominant 7th) C7 CM7 (not good) C E G Bb 1 3 5 b7 Mix, LyDom, PhrDom, DomPent, RagCha, ComDim, MajPent, MajBlu, Blues C 9 C9 C E G Bb D 1 3 5 b7 9 Mix, LyDom, RagCha, DomPent, MajPent, MajBlu, Blues C 7 sharp 9 C7#9 C7+9, C7alt. C E G Bb D# 1 3 5 b7 #9 ComDim, Blues C 7 flat 9 C7b9 C7alt. C E G Bb Db 1 3 5 b7 b9 ComDim, PhrDom C 7 flat 5 C7b5 C E Gb Bb 1 3 b5 b7 Whole, LyDom, SupLoc, Blues C 7 sharp 11 C7#11 Bb+/C C E G Bb D F# 1 3 5 b7 9 #11 LyDom C 13 C 13 C9 add 13 C E G Bb D A 1 3 5 b7 9 13 Mix, LyDom, DomPent, MajBlu, Blues C minor (triad) Cm C-, Cmin C Eb G 1 b3 5 Dor, Aeo, Phr, HarmMin, MelMin, DoHarMin, MinPent, Ukdom, Blues, Pelog C minor 7 Cm7 Cmin7, C-7 C Eb G Bb 1 b3 5 b7 Dor, Aeo, Phr, MinPent, UkDom, Blues C minor major 7 Cm∆ Cm maj7, C- maj7 C Eb G B 1 b3 5 7 HarmMin, MelMin, DoHarMin C minor 6 Cm6 C-6 C Eb G A 1 b3 5 6 Dor, MelMin C minor 9 Cm9 C-9 C Eb G Bb D 1 b3 5 b7 9 Dor, Aeo, MinPent C diminished (triad) Cº Cdim C Eb Gb 1 b3 b5 Loc, Dim, ComDim, SupLoc C diminished 7 Cº7 Cdim7 C Eb Gb A(Bbb) 1 b3 b5 6(bb7) Dim C half diminished Cø
    [Show full text]
  • A Group-Theoretical Classification of Three-Tone and Four-Tone Harmonic Chords3
    A GROUP-THEORETICAL CLASSIFICATION OF THREE-TONE AND FOUR-TONE HARMONIC CHORDS JASON K.C. POLAK Abstract. We classify three-tone and four-tone chords based on subgroups of the symmetric group acting on chords contained within a twelve-tone scale. The actions are inversion, major- minor duality, and augmented-diminished duality. These actions correspond to elements of symmetric groups, and also correspond directly to intuitive concepts in the harmony theory of music. We produce a graph of how these actions relate different seventh chords that suggests a concept of distance in the theory of harmony. Contents 1. Introduction 1 Acknowledgements 2 2. Three-tone harmonic chords 2 3. Four-tone harmonic chords 4 4. The chord graph 6 References 8 References 8 1. Introduction Early on in music theory we learn of the harmonic triads: major, minor, augmented, and diminished. Later on we find out about four-note chords such as seventh chords. We wish to describe a classification of these types of chords using the action of the finite symmetric groups. We represent notes by a number in the set Z/12 = {0, 1, 2,..., 10, 11}. Under this scheme, for example, 0 represents C, 1 represents C♯, 2 represents D, and so on. We consider only pitch classes modulo the octave. arXiv:2007.03134v1 [math.GR] 6 Jul 2020 We describe the sounding of simultaneous notes by an ordered increasing list of integers in Z/12 surrounded by parentheses. For example, a major second interval M2 would be repre- sented by (0, 2), and a major chord would be represented by (0, 4, 7).
    [Show full text]
  • Many of Us Are Familiar with Popular Major Chord Progressions Like I–IV–V–I
    Many of us are familiar with popular major chord progressions like I–IV–V–I. Now it’s time to delve into the exciting world of minor chords. Minor scales give flavor and emotion to a song, adding a level of musical depth that can make a mediocre song moving and distinct from others. Because so many of our favorite songs are in major keys, those that are in minor keys1 can stand out, and some musical styles like rock or ​ ​ jazz thrive on complex minor scales and harmonic wizardry. Minor chord progressions generally contain richer harmonic possibilities than the typical major progressions. Minor key songs frequently modulate to major and back to minor. Sometimes the same chord can appear as major and minor in the very same song! But this heady harmonic mix is nothing to be afraid of. By the end of this article, you’ll not only understand how minor chords are made, but you’ll know some common minor chord progressions, how to write them, and how to use them in your own music. With enough listening practice, you’ll be able to recognize minor chord progressions in songs almost instantly! Table of Contents: 1. A Tale of Two Tonalities 2. Major or Minor? 3. Chords in Minor Scales 4. The Top 3 Chords in Minor Progressions 5. Exercises in Minor 6. Writing Your Own Minor Chord Progressions 7. Your Minor Journey 1 https://www.musical-u.com/learn/the-ultimate-guide-to-minor-keys A Tale of Two Tonalities Western music is dominated by two tonalities: major and minor.
    [Show full text]
  • Arpeggios - Defined & Application an Arpeggio Is the Notes of a Chord Played Individually
    Arpeggios - Defined & Application An arpeggio is the notes of a chord played individually. You can get creative with arpeggios and generate all kinds of unique sounds. Arpeggios can be utilized to outline chords, create melody lines, build riffs, add notes for color, and much more - the sky is the limit! KEY POINTS: There are a few key points to consider when playing arpeggios. The first is you want to hear the arpeggio one note at a time. You don’t want the arpeggio to sound like a strummed chord. You want to hear each note of the arpeggio individually. Arpeggios are the notes that make The goal is to infer the color of the chord with the arpeggio. Kill each note after it is played by muting the strings so the notes dont bleed into each up a chord. other. Another key to good arpeggio playing is mixing arpeggios together with scales, modes, and licks. Mix them into your lead lines as per the video lessons from this course. Try creating musical phrases combining Be sure to sound arpeggios with scales and licks. each note of the arpeggio Another key point is knowing where the arpeggios “live” within a scale. You want to be able to grab arpeggios quickly. Over utilizing the same individually. You three note triads up and down the neck can often sound a bit sterile and don’t want the non-melodic. So be sure to mix the arpeggio in with other scales and licks. arpeggio to sound Often when playing arpeggios you may need to utilize the same finger for like a strummed two or more adjacent strings.
    [Show full text]
  • Discover Seventh Chords
    Seventh Chords Stack of Thirds - Begin with a major or natural minor scale (use raised leading tone for chords based on ^5 and ^7) - Build a four note stack of thirds on each note within the given key - Identify the characteristic intervals of each of the seventh chords w w w w w w w w % w w w w w w w Mw/M7 mw/m7 m/m7 M/M7 M/m7 m/m7 d/m7 w w w w w w % w w w w #w w #w mw/m7 d/wm7 Mw/M7 m/m7 M/m7 M/M7 d/d7 Seventh Chord Quality - Five common seventh chord types in diatonic music: * Major: Major Triad - Major 7th (M3 - m3 - M3) * Dominant: Major Triad - minor 7th (M3 - m3 - m3) * Minor: minor triad - minor 7th (m3 - M3 - m3) * Half-Diminished: diminished triad - minor 3rd (m3 - m3 - M3) * Diminished: diminished triad - diminished 7th (m3 - m3 - m3) - In the Major Scale (all major scales!) * Major 7th on scale degrees 1 & 4 * Minor 7th on scale degrees 2, 3, 6 * Dominant 7th on scale degree 5 * Half-Diminished 7th on scale degree 7 - In the Minor Scale (all minor scales!) with a raised leading tone for chords on ^5 and ^7 * Major 7th on scale degrees 3 & 6 * Minor 7th on scale degrees 1 & 4 * Dominant 7th on scale degree 5 * Half-Diminished 7th on scale degree 2 * Diminished 7th on scale degree 7 Using Roman Numerals for Triads - Roman Numeral labels allow us to identify any seventh chord within a given key.
    [Show full text]
  • Music in Theory and Practice
    CHAPTER 4 Chords Harmony Primary Triads Roman Numerals TOPICS Chord Triad Position Simple Position Triad Root Position Third Inversion Tertian First Inversion Realization Root Second Inversion Macro Analysis Major Triad Seventh Chords Circle Progression Minor Triad Organum Leading-Tone Progression Diminished Triad Figured Bass Lead Sheet or Fake Sheet Augmented Triad IMPORTANT In the previous chapter, pairs of pitches were assigned specifi c names for identifi cation CONCEPTS purposes. The phenomenon of tones sounding simultaneously frequently includes group- ings of three, four, or more pitches. As with intervals, identifi cation names are assigned to larger tone groupings with specifi c symbols. Harmony is the musical result of tones sounding together. Whereas melody implies the Harmony linear or horizontal aspect of music, harmony refers to the vertical dimension of music. A chord is a harmonic unit with at least three different tones sounding simultaneously. Chord The term includes all possible such sonorities. Figure 4.1 #w w w w w bw & w w w bww w ww w w w w w w w‹ Strictly speaking, a triad is any three-tone chord. However, since western European music Triad of the seventeenth through the nineteenth centuries is tertian (chords containing a super- position of harmonic thirds), the term has come to be limited to a three-note chord built in superposed thirds. The term root refers to the note on which a triad is built. “C major triad” refers to a major Triad Root triad whose root is C. The root is the pitch from which a triad is generated. 73 3711_ben01877_Ch04pp73-94.indd 73 4/10/08 3:58:19 PM Four types of triads are in common use.
    [Show full text]
  • Major and Minor Scales Half and Whole Steps
    Dr. Barbara Murphy University of Tennessee School of Music MAJOR AND MINOR SCALES HALF AND WHOLE STEPS: half-step - two keys (and therefore notes/pitches) that are adjacent on the piano keyboard whole-step - two keys (and therefore notes/pitches) that have another key in between chromatic half-step -- a half step written as two of the same note with different accidentals (e.g., F-F#) diatonic half-step -- a half step that uses two different note names (e.g., F#-G) chromatic half step diatonic half step SCALES: A scale is a stepwise arrangement of notes/pitches contained within an octave. Major and minor scales contain seven notes or scale degrees. A scale degree is designated by an Arabic numeral with a cap (^) which indicate the position of the note within the scale. Each scale degree has a name and solfege syllable: SCALE DEGREE NAME SOLFEGE 1 tonic do 2 supertonic re 3 mediant mi 4 subdominant fa 5 dominant sol 6 submediant la 7 leading tone ti MAJOR SCALES: A major scale is a scale that has half steps (H) between scale degrees 3-4 and 7-8 and whole steps between all other pairs of notes. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 W W H W W W H TETRACHORDS: A tetrachord is a group of four notes in a scale. There are two tetrachords in the major scale, each with the same order half- and whole-steps (W-W-H). Therefore, a tetrachord consisting of W-W-H can be the top tetrachord or the bottom tetrachord of a major scale.
    [Show full text]
  • When the Leading Tone Doesn't Lead: Musical Qualia in Context
    When the Leading Tone Doesn't Lead: Musical Qualia in Context Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Claire Arthur, B.Mus., M.A. Graduate Program in Music The Ohio State University 2016 Dissertation Committee: David Huron, Advisor David Clampitt Anna Gawboy c Copyright by Claire Arthur 2016 Abstract An empirical investigation is made of musical qualia in context. Specifically, scale-degree qualia are evaluated in relation to a local harmonic context, and rhythm qualia are evaluated in relation to a metrical context. After reviewing some of the philosophical background on qualia, and briefly reviewing some theories of musical qualia, three studies are presented. The first builds on Huron's (2006) theory of statistical or implicit learning and melodic probability as significant contributors to musical qualia. Prior statistical models of melodic expectation have focused on the distribution of pitches in melodies, or on their first-order likelihoods as predictors of melodic continuation. Since most Western music is non-monophonic, this first study investigates whether melodic probabilities are altered when the underlying harmonic accompaniment is taken into consideration. This project was carried out by building and analyzing a corpus of classical music containing harmonic analyses. Analysis of the data found that harmony was a significant predictor of scale-degree continuation. In addition, two experiments were carried out to test the perceptual effects of context on musical qualia. In the first experiment participants rated the perceived qualia of individual scale-degrees following various common four-chord progressions that each ended with a different harmony.
    [Show full text]
  • HOW to FIND RELATIVE MINOR and MAJOR SCALES Relative
    HOW TO FIND RELATIVE MINOR AND MAJOR SCALES Relative minor and major scales share all the same notes–each one just has a different tonic. The best example of this is the relative relationship between C-major and A-minor. These two scales have a relative relationship and therefore share all the same notes. C-major: C D E F G A B C A-minor: A B C D E F G A Finding the relative minor from a known major scale (using the 6th scale degree) scale degrees: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 C-major: C D E F G A B C A-(natural) minor: A B C D E F G A A-minor starts on the 6th scale degree of C-major. This relationship holds true for ALL major and minor scale relative relationships. To find the relative minor scale from a given major scale, count up six scale degrees in the major scale–that is where the relative minor scale begins. This minor scale will be the natural minor mode. 1 2 3 4 5 6 C-D-E-F-G-A The relative minor scale can also be found by counting backwards (down) by three scale degrees in the major scale. C-major: C D E F G A B C ←←← count DOWN three scale degrees and arrive at A 1 2 3 C-B-A Finding the relative major from a known minor scale (using the 3rd scale degree) scale degrees: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 A-(natural) minor: A B C D E F G A C-major: C D E F G A B C C-major starts on the 3rd scale of A-minor.
    [Show full text]
  • Musical Chord Preference: Cultural Or Universal?
    Working Paper Series MUSICAL CHORD PREFERENCE: CULTURAL OR UNIVERSAL? DATA FROM A NATIVE AMAZONIAN SOCIETY EDUARDO A. UNDURRAGA1,*, NICHOLAS Q. EMLEM2, MAXIMILIEN GUEZE3, DAN T. EISENBERG4, TOMAS HUANCA5, VICTORIA REYES-GARCÍA1,3, 6 VICTORIA RAZUMOVA7, KAREN GODOY8, TAPS BOLIVIA STUDY TEAM9, AND RICARDO GODOY3 1 Heller School, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02154, USA 2 Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 3 Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellatera, Barcelona, Spain 4 Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA 5 Centro Boliviano de Investigación y Desarrollo Socio-integral (CBIDSI), Correo Central, San Borja, Beni, Bolivia 6 ICREA, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellatera, Barcelona, Spain 7 147 Sycamore St, Sommerville, MA 02145, USA 8 Pediatric Medical Care Inc., 1000 Broadway, Chelsea, MA 02150. USA 9 Tsimane’ Amazonian Panel Study, Correo Central, San Borja, Beni, Bolivia *To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: [email protected] Word count: 9,372 (excluding abstract and cover page) 2 Abstract (338 words) Purpose. Recent evidence suggests that when listening to Western music, subjects cross- culturally experience similar emotions. However, we do not know whether cross-cultural regularities in affect response to music also emerge when listening to the building blocks of Western music, such as major and minor chords. In Western music, major chords are associated with happiness, a basic pan-human emotion, but the relation has not been tested in a remote non- Western setting. Here we address this question by measuring the relation between (i) listening to major and minor chords in major and minor keys and (ii) self-reported happiness in a remote society of native Amazonian hunters, gatherers, and farmers in Bolivia (Tsimane’).
    [Show full text]
  • Scale Essentials for Bass Guitar Course Breakdown
    Scale Essentials For Bass Guitar Course Breakdown Volume 1: Scale Fundamentals Lesson 1-0 Introduction In this lesson we look ahead to the Scale Essentials course and the topics we’ll be covering in volume 1 Lesson 1-1 Scale Basics What scales are and how we use them in our music. This includes a look at everything from musical keys to melodies, bass lines and chords. Lesson 1-2 The Major Scale Let’s look at the most common scale in general use: The Major Scale. We’ll look at its construction and how to play it on the bass. Lesson 1-3 Scale Degrees & Intervals Intervals are the building blocks of music and the key to understanding everything that follows in this course Lesson 1-4 Abbreviated Scale Notation Describing scales in terms of complete intervals can be a little long-winded. In this lesson we look at a method for abbreviating the intervals within a scale. Lesson 1-5 Cycle Of Fourths The cycle of fourths is not only essential to understanding key signatures but is also a great system for practicing scales in every key Lesson 1-6 Technique Scales are a common resource for working on your bass technique. In this lesson we deep dive into both left and right hand technique Lesson 1-7 Keys & Tonality Let’s look at the theory behind keys, the tonal system and how scales fit into all of this Lesson 1-8 Triads Chords and chord tones will feature throughout this course so let’s take a look at the chord we use as our basic foundation: The Triad Lesson 1-9 Seventh Chords After working on triads, we can add another note into the mix and create a set of Seventh Chords Lesson 1-10 Chords Of The Major Key Now we understand the basics of chord construction we can generate a set of chords from our Major Scale.
    [Show full text]
  • Root Position Triads Part-Writing
    LearnMusicTheory.net 2.7 SATB Part-writing 3: Root Position Triads General guidelines for all part-writing Prerequisites. Follow guidelines for voicing triads and avoid the fiendish five. Roman numerals: Name the key and include roman numerals with inversion symbols below each chord. Doubling: Doubling means giving more than one voice (S, A, T, B) the same note, even if it is a different octave. Root, third, and fifth must all be included in the chord voicing (except #3 below). 3. The final tonic 1. Double the root 2. V-vi or V-VI: In the progression root position V to root may triple the root and for root position triads. position vi or VI, double the 3rd in the vi/VI chord. omit the fifth. OK NO! NO! NO! NO! YES 3rd! root root 5th! 3rd! 3rd LT! LT LT 3rd! root 5th! 3rd! root root C:V vi C:V vi C:V vi C:V I LT is parallel unresolved! 5ths & 8ves! Avoid overlap. Overlap occurs when the lower voice of any pair of voices moves above the former position of the upper voice, or vice-versa. OK exception: In T and B only, 3rd moving to unison 1 step higher or vice-versa NO! NO! OK bass moves above tenor moves below OK: same note tenor's former note former bass note (here C-C) is acceptable Melodic intervals: Avoid AUGMENTED melodic intervals and avoid leaps of a 7th in one voice. Generally best to keep common tones or use small leaps. Diminished intervals are OK, especially if NO! NO! they then move by step in the opposite direction.
    [Show full text]