In the traditional Irish melodies that utilize 2-3 only major chords, while the melodic moves are 4-5 or 6-7 , but also in the traditional Greek music of the Aegean Islands, the starting and ending point of the melodic move is during the duration of a single chord and are notes of the chord! But still the rule 2/3 -1/3 for notes internal and external to the chord still holds, and the starting and ending notes of the melodic move may define the simplicial submelody. The same of course with waltz songs.
In the harmonic method of composition (see post 9) we conversely start with the chord progression, and its chord transitions, we select the starting and ending points of the melodic moves, and then the morphological type of the melodic move , their length , their rhythm , harmonic speeds etc.
LONG-SHORT TWO-STEP PATTERN
A very simple trick to create beautiful melodies like those of Irish songs is to use a two-step rhythmic and melodic scheme of one short-duration note and one long duration (like in ancient Greek language that vowels are divided into two categories long and short duration). The long duration is, say two (or three) times longer, and the long duration is a note belonging to the chord while the short duration it does not! As the timing of this elementary melodic theme pattern, is 3-beats, some times it is 3 notes but two of them the same note and we may call it also triad-pattern. Usually, the two-step pattern is of diatonic density that is the interval of the two notes is a tine or semitone. But sometimes it may be 3 or 4 semitones, that is, of middle harmonic density. One of the goals of the melody is e.g. to walk down or up an octave or an interval of pure fifth or fourth that is to go from simplicial sub-melody center to another. In this way, both internal and external bridges among the chords can be created. We compose small ripples of this walking up or down (bridges) by the two-step pattern so that the long note is always a note of the underlying chord. Thus given a chord progression we may easily compose such beautiful melodies! If there are lyrics and the lyrics e.g. are in the Greek language we immediately derive an appropriate rippling of the melody.
The transformations of this short-long 2-notes melodic theme patter may be
1) Horizontal, time-order Inversion, where the long is first then the short note
2) Vertical, pitch-order inversion, where if the short is lower note and the long is higher now the long is lower and the short is higher pitch.
3) Elongation, where if the pitch distance of the short and long is say 1 or 2 semitones it may become 3, 4, 5, or 5 semitones etc
4) Half-repetition, where the long or the short not is repeated in the next pair of short-long.
5) Unification, where both the short and long notes become of the same pitch and are now a single note.
6) And of course pitch translation , where we shift the pair short-long inside a scale or chord.
Such melodies can be fast e.g. 4 times the 2-notes pattern per measure, or 2 times per chord strumming.
Since the 2-notes pattern is also found in the rhythm of the dance Waltz they can be danced as waltz. That is why sometimes such 2-notes short-long notes created melodies , we may call them drunken waltzes .
Moving in the melody from intervals of 1,2 semitones to 7 (5th) , 12(octave) is moving from anxiety and stress to joy and serenity.
When composing melodies through bridges (see post 72), the bridges themselves are not sufficient to justify the choice of the chords, and we have to walk through the notes of each chord like arpeggios and between the bridges so as to have a full melody that justifies the particular choice of the chords. But when composing melodies after a chord progression through the 2-step patterns (internal-long, external-short notes for the chord) we walk the octave at the area of each chord, therefore we use all the notes of the chord and the melody immediately justifies the choice of the chords.
Here is an example of such a melody
(Frost is all over Irish melody)
http://ungaretti.racine.ra.it/ireland/music/frost.mid
(More traditional and beautiful Irish tunes in midi files here
http://ungaretti.racine.ra.it/ireland/music/irshmenu.htm )
In the harmonic method of composition (see post 9) we conversely start with the chord progression, and its chord transitions, we select the starting and ending points of the melodic moves, and then the morphological type of the melodic move , their length , their rhythm , harmonic speeds etc.
LONG-SHORT TWO-STEP PATTERN
A very simple trick to create beautiful melodies like those of Irish songs is to use a two-step rhythmic and melodic scheme of one short-duration note and one long duration (like in ancient Greek language that vowels are divided into two categories long and short duration). The long duration is, say two (or three) times longer, and the long duration is a note belonging to the chord while the short duration it does not! As the timing of this elementary melodic theme pattern, is 3-beats, some times it is 3 notes but two of them the same note and we may call it also triad-pattern. Usually, the two-step pattern is of diatonic density that is the interval of the two notes is a tine or semitone. But sometimes it may be 3 or 4 semitones, that is, of middle harmonic density. One of the goals of the melody is e.g. to walk down or up an octave or an interval of pure fifth or fourth that is to go from simplicial sub-melody center to another. In this way, both internal and external bridges among the chords can be created. We compose small ripples of this walking up or down (bridges) by the two-step pattern so that the long note is always a note of the underlying chord. Thus given a chord progression we may easily compose such beautiful melodies! If there are lyrics and the lyrics e.g. are in the Greek language we immediately derive an appropriate rippling of the melody.
The transformations of this short-long 2-notes melodic theme patter may be
1) Horizontal, time-order Inversion, where the long is first then the short note
2) Vertical, pitch-order inversion, where if the short is lower note and the long is higher now the long is lower and the short is higher pitch.
3) Elongation, where if the pitch distance of the short and long is say 1 or 2 semitones it may become 3, 4, 5, or 5 semitones etc
4) Half-repetition, where the long or the short not is repeated in the next pair of short-long.
5) Unification, where both the short and long notes become of the same pitch and are now a single note.
6) And of course pitch translation , where we shift the pair short-long inside a scale or chord.
Such melodies can be fast e.g. 4 times the 2-notes pattern per measure, or 2 times per chord strumming.
Since the 2-notes pattern is also found in the rhythm of the dance Waltz they can be danced as waltz. That is why sometimes such 2-notes short-long notes created melodies , we may call them drunken waltzes .
Moving in the melody from intervals of 1,2 semitones to 7 (5th) , 12(octave) is moving from anxiety and stress to joy and serenity.
When composing melodies through bridges (see post 72), the bridges themselves are not sufficient to justify the choice of the chords, and we have to walk through the notes of each chord like arpeggios and between the bridges so as to have a full melody that justifies the particular choice of the chords. But when composing melodies after a chord progression through the 2-step patterns (internal-long, external-short notes for the chord) we walk the octave at the area of each chord, therefore we use all the notes of the chord and the melody immediately justifies the choice of the chords.
Here is an example of such a melody
(Frost is all over Irish melody)
http://ungaretti.racine.ra.it/ireland/music/frost.mid
(More traditional and beautiful Irish tunes in midi files here
http://ungaretti.racine.ra.it/ireland/music/irshmenu.htm )
In this way of composing chord-transition melodic moves, the starting and ending points are of paramount importance. Generally speaking, they are not identical with the centers of the melody, as they do not last in general longer than the other notes. They can be used though to define the simplicial submelody.
IN MORE DETAIL
IN MORE DETAIL
Here we concentrate one only simple organization structure which the closest corresponded in the poetic language and lyrics is the word. So we introduce a concept of micro-melodic theme, called
MUSICAL WORD that we may agree to symbolize say by w. It consists of a very small number of beats higher than 2 e.g. 3 or 4, and we may symbolize it with 0,s and 1,s , which means that at this beat if no sound is heard it is zero, while if a sound is heard it is 1. E.g. (0101) or (011) etc Now we divide the word in its LONG PART , that symbolize by L(w) , and SHORT PART . that we symbolize by S(w) and so that in time duration, or beats it holds that L(w)/S(w)>=2 (e.g. L(w)/S(w)=3 etc).
The musical-words or melodic micro-themes need not be by intervals of 2nds! They can be by intervals of 3rds and 5ths or 4ths!
Such musical words may be ascending, descending or waving. Ascending as excitation may be small (intervals of 2nd) low middle (intervals of 3rds) or high middle (interval of 5th or 4th) or high (intervals of 8th or higher) Of course, as they are combined, they definitely create the effect of waving. BUT the waving is not the very standard by intervals by 2nds but a richer one, that involves many intervals of 3rds and even 5ths, and 8ths. The simplicial sub-melody of such melodies are movements mainly with intervals by 3rds and 5ths. There is also acceleration and deceleration as the melodic theme starts and ends.
Such techniques come also from the syllabic poetry measure and also dancing measure.
E.g. in Homer's Iliad and Odyssey alternate lines of 9 and 8 syllables where the syllables in a each line are grouped by the dactylic hexameter (one long two shorts syllables or 1011 or -UU where - =10 and U=1) This is also the rhythmic tempo of the ancient but also modern Greek dance of syrtos (and laso Cretan Sousta). Thus poetic measure, musical rhythm and dancing rhythm all coincide. It is not a coincidence that in the modern syrtos called kalamatianos, the dancer moves 7 steps right and 2 steps left and so one, and at the same time the full measure of a poetic line of Homer's poems are 9 syllables.
E.g. we may descend with a chord say Am and its relative C (out of chords would be notes of G), and ascend with its chromatic-complementary thee G7 (out of chord notes would be those of Am or C ) etc. In other words, we ascend with even or odd notes and descend conversely. Here although we may utilize only 3 chords (Am, C, G) the alternating-changing may be fast covering practically all waving and melodies of the pentatonic or diatonic scale. The scale-completion of the melody (see post 86) , may be at the next octave rather than in the same octave!
The rhythmic repetition 3 times then the 4th is different is more common than 2 times repeated then 2 times a different. The total range of waving say of the first 3 repetitions may be of size a 5th, while the 4th measure a range of size an 8th, or vice versa.
The musical-words or melodic micro-themes need not be by intervals of 2nds! They can be by intervals of 3rds and 5ths or 4ths!
Such musical words may be ascending, descending or waving. Ascending as excitation may be small (intervals of 2nd) low middle (intervals of 3rds) or high middle (interval of 5th or 4th) or high (intervals of 8th or higher) Of course, as they are combined, they definitely create the effect of waving. BUT the waving is not the very standard by intervals by 2nds but a richer one, that involves many intervals of 3rds and even 5ths, and 8ths. The simplicial sub-melody of such melodies are movements mainly with intervals by 3rds and 5ths. There is also acceleration and deceleration as the melodic theme starts and ends.
Such techniques come also from the syllabic poetry measure and also dancing measure.
E.g. in Homer's Iliad and Odyssey alternate lines of 9 and 8 syllables where the syllables in a each line are grouped by the dactylic hexameter (one long two shorts syllables or 1011 or -UU where - =10 and U=1) This is also the rhythmic tempo of the ancient but also modern Greek dance of syrtos (and laso Cretan Sousta). Thus poetic measure, musical rhythm and dancing rhythm all coincide. It is not a coincidence that in the modern syrtos called kalamatianos, the dancer moves 7 steps right and 2 steps left and so one, and at the same time the full measure of a poetic line of Homer's poems are 9 syllables.
E.g. we may descend with a chord say Am and its relative C (out of chords would be notes of G), and ascend with its chromatic-complementary thee G7 (out of chord notes would be those of Am or C ) etc. In other words, we ascend with even or odd notes and descend conversely. Here although we may utilize only 3 chords (Am, C, G) the alternating-changing may be fast covering practically all waving and melodies of the pentatonic or diatonic scale. The scale-completion of the melody (see post 86) , may be at the next octave rather than in the same octave!
The rhythmic repetition 3 times then the 4th is different is more common than 2 times repeated then 2 times a different. The total range of waving say of the first 3 repetitions may be of size a 5th, while the 4th measure a range of size an 8th, or vice versa.
Let us also assume that the chord progression that underlines the melody is the X(1), X(2) ,...X(n).
As we wrote in previous posts, the melody consists by a progression of melodic themes, that are transformed, by the 4 main transformations or translation, inversion, rotation including dilation and rhythmic transformation. This is indeed happening in to the melodic micro-themes or melodic or musical words during the part of the melody that sounds during say the chord X(i) i=1,2...n, BUT we impose here a very important structure which is the key to the beautiful folk melodies, and makes them compatible with the chord progression that underlines, the melody. And this rule is a
RULE1 OF TRANSIENT AND CHORD NOTES. Obligatory part: In simple words, each musical-word w , that has underlined chord X(i) has the notes of its long part L(w) , to be notes of the chord X(i), (which includes extended forms of X(i) like X(i)maj7 or X(i)7 or X(i)add9 or X(i)sus4 ) while , the notes of its short part S(w) to be transient and belonging to the notes of the neighboring chord that is X(i-1) or X(i+1), (which includes extended forms of X(i+1) like X(i+1)maj7 or X(i+1)7 or X(i+1)add9 or or X(i+1)sus4) or and more rarely to the rest of the chords of the chord progression. And if so if it contains a note from a non-adjacent chord Y(j) of the progression, then usually somewhere in the progression there is a transition X(i)->Y(j) or Y(j)->X(i) . We keep the transient notes sound at most 1/3 of the time only and the notes of the chord at least 2/3 of the time, because of the rule of long and short parts of the musical word or micro-theme. No mentioning of any scale is necessary in this definition (as usually there are more than one) but only of the chord progression, which is compatible with our enhanced concept of modern harmony. Nevertheless the chord progression over which this technique produces fast melodies may contain very fast chord changes, and may not be identical with the actual chord progression that the instruments play as background to the melody. This is the concept of "ghost chords" in the melody as described in the post 87. E.g. The full ghost-chord progression may be D G D G D A D. While the chords really played is only D.
RULE2 An alternative rule is that a musical-word w , that has underlined chord X(i) has the notes of its long part L(w) , to be notes of the chord X(i), (which includes extended forms of X(i) like X(i)maj7 or X(i)7 or X(i)add9 or X(i)sus4 ) while , the notes of its short part S(w) to be transient and is one only intermediate not between the notes of the chord X(i) (usually a 2nd away from the notes of X(i) and preferably but not obligatory this additional note to be a note of the other chords of the progression, again preferably and if possible of the previous or next chord, rarely on of other chords. And if so, if it contains a note from a non-adjacent chord Y(j) of the progression, then usually somewhere in the progression there is a transition X(i)->Y(j) or Y(j)->X(i) .In this way we keep the transient notes sound at most 1/3 of the time only and the notes of the chord at least 2/3 of the time, in addition to the rule of long and short parts of the musical word or micro-theme. Even if we did not have the structure of micro-themes as musical-words with long and short notes , and we are playing in a random way the three notes of the chord plus one transient, in equal time in the average, we are still in the harmony of this chord, because of the proportion 3:1. And this would still hold if we used 2 transient notes in which case we would have the time proportion 3:2. But in addition to this rule if we want also the intervals of 3rds, 4ths, 5th and 8th to be more than 2/3 of all the intervals the way is to apply harping in a chord say with 6 or 8 steps on notes, where it is added only one intermediate note in the chord (e.g. 7nh, 6th, 4th or 2nd) and so that the created intervals of 2nd are only 2 in the 6 or 8 intervals. Then we shift to a relative chord an interval of 3rd away or to a resolution transition which is a chord in an interval 5th or 4th away , or we even shift to a chord a 2nd away in which case we do not use any additional note, and we continue so. So finally %3rds+%4ths/5ths/8ths>=2*(% 2nds) . Again the chord progression over which this technique produces fast melodies may contain very fast chord changes, and may not be identical with the actual chord progression that the instruments play as background to the melody. This is the concept of "ghost chords" in the melody as described in the post 87. E.g. The full ghost chord progression may be D G D G D A D. While the chords really played is only D.
RULE2 An alternative rule is that a musical-word w , that has underlined chord X(i) has the notes of its long part L(w) , to be notes of the chord X(i), (which includes extended forms of X(i) like X(i)maj7 or X(i)7 or X(i)add9 or X(i)sus4 ) while , the notes of its short part S(w) to be transient and is one only intermediate not between the notes of the chord X(i) (usually a 2nd away from the notes of X(i) and preferably but not obligatory this additional note to be a note of the other chords of the progression, again preferably and if possible of the previous or next chord, rarely on of other chords. And if so, if it contains a note from a non-adjacent chord Y(j) of the progression, then usually somewhere in the progression there is a transition X(i)->Y(j) or Y(j)->X(i) .In this way we keep the transient notes sound at most 1/3 of the time only and the notes of the chord at least 2/3 of the time, in addition to the rule of long and short parts of the musical word or micro-theme. Even if we did not have the structure of micro-themes as musical-words with long and short notes , and we are playing in a random way the three notes of the chord plus one transient, in equal time in the average, we are still in the harmony of this chord, because of the proportion 3:1. And this would still hold if we used 2 transient notes in which case we would have the time proportion 3:2. But in addition to this rule if we want also the intervals of 3rds, 4ths, 5th and 8th to be more than 2/3 of all the intervals the way is to apply harping in a chord say with 6 or 8 steps on notes, where it is added only one intermediate note in the chord (e.g. 7nh, 6th, 4th or 2nd) and so that the created intervals of 2nd are only 2 in the 6 or 8 intervals. Then we shift to a relative chord an interval of 3rd away or to a resolution transition which is a chord in an interval 5th or 4th away , or we even shift to a chord a 2nd away in which case we do not use any additional note, and we continue so. So finally %3rds+%4ths/5ths/8ths>=2*(% 2nds) . Again the chord progression over which this technique produces fast melodies may contain very fast chord changes, and may not be identical with the actual chord progression that the instruments play as background to the melody. This is the concept of "ghost chords" in the melody as described in the post 87. E.g. The full ghost chord progression may be D G D G D A D. While the chords really played is only D.
