What if there was a way music worked where by selecting a note or a chord you automatically had knowledge of a slew of options for other possible consonant chords notes (melody and harmony)?
In other words,

Is there a way to organize a KEY where all the chords and notes inside of it are "home" or consonant in such a way that has no tension?( giving the user of this the ability to have much more tonal choice options?)

the Answer is YES! there is something like this!

I am going to describe it to you in this thread making it easy for you!
(without getting bogged down in technical terms and confusing the heck out of you!)

 

In order to Construct a type of KEY where all the chords in it are consonant with each other ( no dissonance)
(also what to even use that for!)
we have to start back at our circle of fifths.
I have made a simple one here myself for you so we don't get bogged down with ton of information here.


Now our starting point is going to be 12 tone equal temperament. ( pianos, guitars, basses etc.)

and within our 12 notes (shown in the circle above)

the "fifth" is the first harmonic of a played note where we get a new note but is only slightly less consonant than a octave.

(please dig deeper into this IF you are unfamiliar)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmonic_series_(music)

what this means for us is we want to start with 12 equal notes, next begin on a note where we can select a fifth up grab the note and continue doing this until we have 7 notes.

Look above at the circle of fifths.

if we begin at the note F , then grab the note to the right of it until we get to 7 notes what happens?

we get F C G D A E B ( for a 7 note scale.)


In this audio example you will hear this sequence of notes playing after each other but ringing out as the next fifth plays.

https://mega.nz/#!ePICEQIL!Vngh1plvlLwa79DwqjKJjIitRX10p5nlEWViigYO8ZI


In this audio example you will hear all these notes played at the the same time together.

https://mega.nz/#!rWJGGaKJ!lVX--2NS_c1qyxXKYqNlfoEiMblI3rowSfKR-mYyfyo


This "scale"(mode-note-collection) already has a name. Lydian.
Therefore we will use the name already given to it. Lydian.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lydian_chord

 

Last edited: May 6, 2018

Now at this point you are probably saying,

"yeah, so what?"
"we already know what this is how it works and how it functions as the predominant role in music theory!"

My answer to you is yes it does and it IS, but we are going to look at it from a different perspective than that.
( even though we will later integrate that to be included)

What we are looking to do here is create a new type of KEY where all the notes and chords are consonance with each other just like in the above sound examples when we play the notes after each other but ringing out, or when we play those notes as a chord ( which is a Major13 #11 chord)
we get consonance, ( in this case we are going to call it "unity").

So bare with me while I explain how we can use this.


lets expand on our above audio examples.

think about this "unity" or consonance or home, where ALL the white keys on a piano are a representation of the F note.

any chords you play or melodies or harmonies are home or at rest or ( we will use the phrase "unity")
with the F note.

lets arrange our Lydian scale in order

FGABCDEF

lets break it down to F major 13 #11 chord

FACEGBD

next lets have a audio example of first

,FACEGBD, next F with ACE above, F with CEG above F with EGB above F with GBD above
F with BDF above and F with DFA above.



https://mega.nz/#!iKhh0RYA!ADh4GxSP7-zRN0BTkgLhs9-FN93_83M1BQ4AYaCEbjs




Next we will do our 7th chords over F



Here we are playing F over FACE, F over ACEG, F over CEGB, F over EGBD, F over GBDF, F over BDFA, F over DFAC

https://mega.nz/#!6GQSHLLR!fSBLkMXlq6a1NVVvA3ncPbPKjO01eflAwh8KWhhcRSI

 

Last edited: May 6, 2018

What we are seeing in the above box, ( please refresh the thread if you cannot see it with examples)

is that F is consonant with all our possible chords in F lydian, FGABCDEF, FACEGBD

we call this "unity" there is no dissonance. all these chords are "voicings" and "flavors" of the F.
-----------------------------------------------






There is a little bit of confusion I hope i can iron out for you.

We need to think of things with this system of unity within Lydian
as we have 5 modes or 5 chords within Lydian.

This differs from having ionian as the center focus in western harmony diatonic where your KEY is NOT in unity.

where in that system you have 7 modes and chords.

why?

Because with Lydian unity there is no such thing as Ionian or Aeolian ( in other words CDEFGAB, CEGB, and ABCDEFG,ACEG)

what we are seeing instead is Inversions of Fmaj13 #11.
(FACEGBD, = CEGBDFA also FACEGBD = ACEBDF)

Please Bare with me and you will see this makes sense when we look closer at our 5 modes and chords of unity with F lydian.

for our 5 modes of F lydian we have

F lydian which is major
G7 which is dominant
Bmin7flat5 which is minor flat fifth or dim
Dmin7 which is our relative minor
Emin7 which is our G7 relative minor

the Amin7 is inversion of Fmaj13#11 starting at 3rd
the Cmaj7 is inversion of Fmaj13#11 starting on fifth.

so you see we lose ionian as a distinct major type chord or mode (but we already have maj in lydian form)
we lose Aeolian as a distinct minor type form( but we already have dorian as our strong relative minor of Fmaj)

As we continue onward this will make more and more sense.(please give a chance if you are confused so far.)

here is a visual chart of our 5 modes and chords which are a part of F lydian ( all consonant and at unity or home with F)

 

Last edited: May 6, 2018

Why does any of this matter? what is the point?

well, lets quickly look at the "old" western style of having Ionian as center point of C major.

so in that system we have KEY of C major (Ionian)
which is CDEFGAB

how many chords are consonant with the C ionian or CEG, or CEGB?

2 are.

with ionian we have 2 other chords besides C which are consonant with it or at unity with it.

CEGB EGBD, and ACEG

the other 4 chords are consonant with G7 GBDF,BDFA,DFAC,FACE.


---------------------------------
Please listen to this audio example below which goes with the above image showing the "old" Ionian based key and how that you have 2 chords at unity with C maj ionian, but the other 4 remaining chords are at unity with G7 in that system.

https://mega.nz/#!faJTQRQQ!fLB1dJ48b9jUAJ_qSRzQtBVVYfUvIZbNtD60zWJtcK8



what this means is that by making F lydian the true center or "unity"
we have 5 other chords or modes which are at unity .

(Instead of the old system of Ionian which has 2 other besides itself which are home or at unity and 4 remaining chords which are at unity with the G7.)

-------------------------------------
With having Lydian as ALL of our Maj type chords
we get 5 chords at unity with it.

 

Last edited: May 6, 2018

Now, please don't worry if you feel like it is unclear to you what is fully being discussed, I promise if you take your time and continue on the pieces will fit for your understanding.











------------------


We looked at the chords at unity(home,rest,consonance) with F lydian. (we get 5 and of every type!)


Audio example of image above.
https://mega.nz/#!iKhh0RYA!ADh4GxSP7-zRN0BTkgLhs9-FN93_83M1BQ4AYaCEbjs



Next lydian ( as the new major)
has a relative minor also. ( like ionian used to in western theory)
and the cool thing all the same chords are at unity with this minor in same way that F was.
D dorian is our relative minor. all the same chords are at unity with it.



here is the audio example to go with the above image of D dorian being at unity ( home ,consonance with all the chords)

https://mega.nz/#!2D5Q0BKb!X8ednweUmldcnqhWoVhmnXvvBO5Kd8fC2J9Sd3-n5j4

 

Summary of chapter 1.

We constructed a scale ( note collection) from fifths (consonance)
in order to have all the possible chords consonant with the home note.

this gives us FCGDAEB, rearranged is FGABCDEF (lydian), FACEGBD Fmaj13 #11 chord.

we create a KEY out of this lydian scale in which the major is lydian.(no such thing as ionian anymore)
we get 5 modes with each unique chords all at rest ( home, consonant ) with lydian.




we see that we have 5 modes and chords, ( the 2 remaining are inversions of lydian.)

Next we found that we also have a relative minor D dorian DEFGABC or DFACEGB Dmin13

which shares the same properties with lydian, ( the same 5 modes and chords are at unity ( home,rest,consonant).

Finally, we learned how this new system differs from the traditional western diatonic system of centering Ionian,
because in that system you have 2 chords in unity with Ionian ( one of them is your relative minor! Aeolian)
But that means that the majority of your chords of the key ( 4 remaining) are at unity with your dominant chord.

The benefits of having lydian major and Dorian as relative minor ( and complete removal of ionian and aeolian)
is that all of the chords in your LYDIAN key are at rest, at home at UNITY with your F note and your D note.

 

Last edited: May 6, 2018

Chapter 2.

The Lydian Chromatic Concept.
-------------------------------------------


What we are going to eventually find out is that ALL 12 notes are consonant within lydian ( by continuing to add fifths FCGDAEBF#C#G#D#A#)

BUT, more on that later...............


We have discussed a new type of system which is focused on Consonance. ( instead of a key broken into consonance and dissonance)

a Lydian KEY is NOT broken into consonance and dissonance.

instead all of the chords in a lydian key are at "unity" with F lydian or F maj FACE chord.
we have a relative minor also D dorian or DFAC which has same relationship.

what this means is that we are able to choose among any of our 5 modes or 5 chords as a type of flavor or unique expression of F lydian.

for example our G7 chord inside of F lydian.

GBDF this is a dominant chord. this chord itself has tension.

next our Bmin7flat5 chord BDFA has tension also.

how does this work in our new lydian system?


Well, these 2 tension chords are actually representations of F lydian ,but with a tension flavor.

they can go from tense to not tense (rest) by resolving to the Lydian chord.


In this audio example to go with above image we are inside our KEY of F lydian.
next we begin with our tense G7 chord and go to rest at Fmaj7(lydian)
next, we go to our Bmin7flat5 tense chord and resolve to rest at Fmaj7 (lydian.)

https://mega.nz/#!CK4lBJwS!QQf0qv0tfqWIWt9Jmlp_OYlStzNoZSxnt7NsgEJglpc

What is happening in this instance we are going from G7 a tense flavor to Fmaj a relaxed flavor.
then we go from Bmin7flat5 a tense flavor to Fmaj7 a relaxed flavor
Notice our root note is always F in this instance.
this is to show that we are in the context of F lydian. these changes from tense to relax are
"flavors" of F lydian.

Next we will look at Emin7 to Fmaj, G7 to Fmaj, Dmin7 to Fmaj



the Emin7 has small tension which relaxes when going to Fmaj.
the G7 has strong tension which relaxes when going to F maj
the Dmin7 has no tension but has "sad" flavor
then relaxes to "happy" flavor when going to F maj.

here are the audio examples of this.

https://mega.nz/#!6OQXXayR!HirzzGbxvPcipHI53U4sM4DWPVioZVmvUytWHSj6toE

So what we are seeing and hearing is that in this Lydian key center system.

we actually have 5 chords that represent Lydian.
chords do NOT resolve somewhere, but instead we choose a flavor to represent a uniqueness we want to express .

----------------------------


This means that a KEY works differently, we think of it differently than traditional western harmony.

we can express a tense dominant flavor, a minor7flat5 tense flavor,
a consonant happy flavor with Fmaj, a minor "sad" flavor with D dorian and a fairly tense "upper extension" but sad flavor of Emin7.

all of these are the SAME or consonant as F lydian.
( even though each have a unique feeling we can evoke dramatically different from another.)

In this Lydian system, a KEY means all of our chords and notes that represent our KEY root.

so F ( lydian) KEY

FGABCDEF
or
FACEGBD (Fmaj13 #11)

means there are 5 chords and modes which represent FACE,
BUT each have their own "flavor" which we can choose from at any time , as a replacement for Fmaj.( remember major means lydian and minor means dorian.)

 

Last edited: May 6, 2018

We just looked at how each one of our possible 5 chords is a flavor option to choose from as expression of F lydian root.

we can choose a G7 or Bmin7 flat5 real tense chord, or we could choose a sad Dmin7 dorian chord. we can choose a Emin7 sad but rich chord or we can choose or plain happy Fmaj chord.

BUT, what about traditional chords progressions we are used to and familiar with?

take our ubiquitous traditional V7 to I or G7 to Cmaj.

how does THIS fit into our new system of Lydian where KEYS work entirely different?

To answer and make easy to understand I have to introduce some new terms.

we are going to call the way our new KEY works ( vertical Harmony)

This means playing changes which are the 5 chords in our key say G7 to Fmaj7 changes INSIDE the Fmaj13 #11 chord .
In other words playing chord OR note changes which are all from our lydian KEY.

Next we are going to call playing changes from multiple KEYS ( horizontal harmony)

In other words if i select a chord from F lydian KEY which is tense say G7, and next I select a chord with no tension BUT from C lydian KEY in this case Cmaj7.
so from G7(f lydian) to Cmaj(Clydian)

These 2 terms make it easy for us to understand that in this new system we began with creating a KEY which creates a Lydian MAj13 #11 chord , such that any of the chords we pic of the KEY represent F lydian.

Those times we play changes of notes or chords say G7 to Fmaj , and these changes are inside of our lydian chord Fmaj13#11
and that our lydian new KEY means at unity with all its chords.
our harmony is Vertical. ( expressing the Fmaj13 #11 broken up over time but same as that chord ringing out)

and Those times where we play changes where our notes or chords change to another KEY which has same relationship ,
BUT we are changing to a different lydian KEY
say
C lydian
CDEF#GABC in other words CEGBDF#A Cmaj13 #11

a chord change from G7 to Cmaj7 or GBDF, to CEGB is changing from Flydian to C lydian.
( a tense chord from F lydian, resolving to a relaxed chord from C lydian)

This changing of Lydian KEYS in a progression is called Horizontal Harmony.

Lets look back at our chart of going from G7 to Fmaj and Bmin7flat5 to Fmaj in 1 KEY of F lydian.


https://mega.nz/#!CK4lBJwS!QQf0qv0tfqWIWt9Jmlp_OYlStzNoZSxnt7NsgEJglpc


now to express the Horizontal harmony of changing KEYS so that G7 resolves to Cmaj and Bmin7flat5 resolves to C maj,

what we want to do is move our F lydian major chords down to C lydian major chords.



here is the Audio example for the above image.

https://mega.nz/#!3L5CjZCb!DVBOoF_ulctTeS8PFGykd4jCd-LzPOBeCiQRSxOl71M

What we see here , and also Hear is that we can change KEY in order to go from G7 to Cmaj and Bmin7flat5 to Cmaj
(remember all major chords are now Lydian)

 

Last edited: May 6, 2018

Summary of chapter 2.

We talked about the meaning of KEY has changed in this new system.
KEY means any chord or mode which represents Lydian ( while retaining its own unique flavor or feeling.

We learned that changes of notes or chords which stay in the root KEY are called
Vertical Harmony.
This means we are simply expressing the Full Lydian chord Fmaj13 #11
but through changes of notes or chords instead of just having FACEGBD played same time and ring together.

WE went through each of the 5 chords and modes and seen that although they are perfectly consonant, ( F lydian FACEGBDF)
each of the chords have varying tension and flavor for instance G7 GBDF and Bmin5flat5 are very tense ( while being in unity with F maj lydian)
while Dmin7 DFAC is more sad but little tension, and Emin7 is more exotic colorful but not as tense as G7 and Bminflat5.

Finally we asked about traditional chord progression such as the V7 to I in traditional western music. the GBDF to CEGB
we found out this ( in our new system) is called Horizontal harmony)
meaning we are changing from F Lydian to C Lydian KEYS. ( picking tense chord GBDF from F lydian and a rest chord CEGB form C lydian)
in order to create that feeling of GBDF to CEGB.

This means with all the benefits of this new Lydian system regarding unity chords in the KEY, we can change KEYS to be able to integrate changes from the "old" system.

The only thing we lose is the Ionian mode and the Aeolian mode. ( because in our new system these are inversions of the Lydian not their own unique modes.) FACEGBD ( CEGBDFA is inversion from the Fifth.) and FACEBD ( ACEGBDF is inversion starting form the third.)

 

This is ONLY the beginning! please stayed tuned! take your time!
I don't want to overwhelm you before continuing to explain more and more
go through slowly and test all this yourself! i will answer any questions you have and ,
I am going to put up examples of what I have covered so far before continuing onward!

 

Amazing lesson...Thank You for putting all of this together.
It would make a great first chapter in your book!

 

Thank you my friend, it means a lot!
I hope, that I am able to inspire you and give you a whole bunch of exciting things to have fun with!

 

interesting stuff. thanks for this, I will do some research myself also...

 

http://www.lydianchromaticconcept.com/

https://www.amazon.com/Lydian-Chromatic-Concept-Tonal-Organization/dp/0970373902

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lydian_Chromatic_Concept_of_Tonal_Organization


here is the information , check it out!

 

Excellent post, now, stuffed with musical examples... and nice move relating jazzy-harmony to any genre, because, in the end, it is really just a way of harmonizing...
Congrats pal... It's MMJ2017 2.0

 

This is nice, thanks - but is there a 'Beginners Jazz Theory / Introduction to Jazz Theory' ?

 

@MMJ2017
Way to go with a new edu post formed to satisfy the people's requests and still be MMJ. I had np with the old MMJ style but putting audible examples makes this a great experience, especially for peeps new to theory. MMJ v2 seems to be exactly where it should mate. Keep it up,
Cheers

 

thanks mmj i think i am starting to see inside the actual grid now....glad that mega.nz worked out for you ive been using it 4 years