Let's explore the language of tonal music. explore every available option. A guide you can refer to for ideas.

First in tonal music . we have the concept of consonance (home)and dissonance.(away from home)
All aspects about how music effects us listeners, along with all the ways the language of music works when writing comes down to consonance and dissonance.


I Circle of fifths.

in the beginning there was the Octave (higher or lower versions of the same note)
the first "other note" is called the Fifth. This note is the most consonant note after the octave. we use it to derive the rest of our other notes, but in the order of most consonance form our starting point.
(the Fifth is slightly more dissonant than a octave but less dissonant than any other note)

We use the circle of fifths to derive or keys, our chords in the keys. and many musical relationships.

 

Last edited: Nov 9, 2017

Best way to explain the circle of fifth is with audio examples. Then it becomes real.

 

What are your thoughts on the spectrum of tones/frequences in correlation to the spectrum of colors ? & also to silence ???

 

The circle of fifths is just a basic tool for understanding notes and chords interrelationships. Great thing to use if you want to modulate from one key to another etc.

Maybe not the best comparison but a bit like:

 

II the C major KEY

This will be the first KEY we discuss and from it we will derive how other keys work.
The key has 7 notes . to get them we look at circle of Fifths and start on C go back one note then forward 7 notes (one counter clockwise then pick the 7 notes clockwise)
this gives us FCGDAEB, now we arrange those notes in normal order that order goes
4,1,5,2,6,3,7 which is C,D,E,F,G,A,B,

(before we continue on with C major key lets make sure we can use the above method to derive any major key. lets say A major key. stat on A go counterclockwise by one D, then clockwise 7 notes, so D,A,E,B,F#,C#,G# then their order goes 4,1,5,2,6,3,7, when we arrange in order from those numbers we have A,B,C#,D,E,F#,G# the same method can easily give you any of the 12 major keys)

now that we have our note for the C major key C,D,E,F,G,A,B, we start on any note and skip every other note to derive the chords for the key
1. cegb C maj7 Ionian CDEFGAB CEGBDFA
2. dfac D min7 Dorian DEFGABC DFACEGB
3. egbd E min7 phrygian EFGABCD EGBDFAC
4. face Fmaj7 Lydian FGABCDE FACEGBD
5. GBDF G7 mixolydian GABCDEF GBDFACE
6. aceg Amin7 Aeolian ABCDEFG ACEGBDF
7.bdfa B min7flat5th Locrian BCDEFGA BDFACEG

now. the key is based off consonance(HOME) and dissonance (TENSION)

this means everything is relative to the note C.

step 1. we start with one note a C note.
step2. our C note turns into the C chord ceg maj triad, cegb Cmaj7 cegbd c maj9 cegbdf c maj11 cegbdfa c maj13

step3. our C chord ( cmaj7 cegb) Implies a resolution of V to I 5. or V is called DOMINANT
( the most tense part of the key) V7 is GBDF or G7. so we have V7 to I or in key of C maj that means the chord GBDF to CEGB
V to I is called a cadence.

step 4. the V7 to I turns into a ii ,V7, I or dfac, to gbdf, to cegb
step 5. looking at our ii, V, I we can derive the rest of our chords



( ii=IV, V=vii%, I=iii,=vi)




in key of C this means

( dfac Dmin7 = face Fmaj7),( gbdf G dominant 7,= bdfa B min7 flat fifth), (cegb cmaj7=egbd Emin7= acegAmin7


this shows how to travel from chord to chord. ( called chord progression) we use dissonance(tension) to consonance(home)

we can use this in a few ways. first to design the chords and how they move in a song we are writing
EX . V to I, or ii, V to I, or IV,vii%,iii,vi,ii,V,I dfac to gbdf, to cegb
another way to use it is melodies , or starting from a tension note then resolving to a home note EX. start on D note go donw to nearest B then up to nearest C rings longer than other 2 (practice on keyboard traveling these single notes, next compare to the above ii, V, I cadence.





step 6. when we look at a ii, V ,I we can see it is the direction of notes on a circle of fifths D to G to C
this brings us to how a ii, V to I can have chord substitutions (chords besides the ones in key) this allows us to use language of music to express more than the very basics of a single KEY
, afterall remember any KEY is a representation of a single note. ( that you have tensions to release or dissonance resolving to consonance (home)

lets look at our ii, V ,I in C major we have Dmin7, to G7, to Cmaj7 or dface, to gbdf to cegb (our G7 is the most tense the cmaj7 is HOME) when we play or V to I or our ii ,V, I or EVEN our IV,vii%,iii,vi,ii,V,I
these are all a representation of the single note C in music language . it gives us the ability to start from a single note and know what we can do next. but now lest learn how to natural expand into other keys ( giving us more chords more melodies to choose from when writing)

to do this we look at Dmin7, to G7, to Cmaj7 we can convert each one of these into dominant chords which will give us 3 total keys


D7 to G7 to C7



{D7 = D F# AC }, {G7 = GBDF}, { C7= CEG [b flat (a#)]

this can be done because in music language a dominant chord resolves to another dominant chord a fifth below it. ( just like how a dominant resolves to the I chord in this case C maj)

Now that we have the 3 dominant chords lets map out their keys and the ii, V to I of each

D7 is V of g maj key , G7 is V of C maj key , C7 is V of F maj key


next the ii, V, I of each is

{Amin7 ,D7 Gmaj7}, {dmin7 G7 Cmaj7} , { gmin7 , C7, f maj7}

here are these KEYS with their notes chords and modes.

G major KEY
GABCDEF#
1.Gmaj7 gbdf# gbd f# ace
2.Amin7 aceg acegbd f#
3.Bmin7 bdf#A bd f# aceg
4.Cmaj7 cegb cegbd f# a
5.D dom7 D F# A C d f# acegb
6. Emin7 egbd egbd f# ac
7. F# min7flat fifth F# a c e f# acegbd

C major KEY
CDEFGAB
1.Cmaj7 cegb
2.Dmin7 dfac
3.Emin7 egbd
4.Fmaj7 face
5.Gdom7 gbdf
6.Amin7 aceg
7. Bmin7flat fifth bdfa

F major KEY
FGA B- CDE
1.Fmaj7 face
2.Gmin7 g b- df
3.Amin7 aceg
4.B- maj7 B- dfa
5.C dom7 ceg B-
6.Dmin7 dfac
7.E min7 flat fifth eg b- d

 

Last edited: Nov 9, 2017

Now, we have the ii, V, I of our 3 dominant chords creating 3 keys in a single progression.

Next we can refer back to how to expand to all of our chord options
and NOW we can see how we can use our chord progression containing 3 dominant chords from 3 KEYS, and expand that out to see what all of our chord tension to home options are.

So using this

and applying it to what we now have. which is this

{Amin7 ,D7 Gmaj7}, {dmin7 G7 Cmaj7} , { gmin7 , C7, f maj7}

we can include all of our chords in a visual ( giving you the way to choose from all chords and where they CAN go next )


{Amin7=Cmaj7},{D7=F#min7flatfifth},{Gmaj7=Bmin7=Emin7}
{Dmin7=Fmaj7},{G7=Bmin7flatfifth},{Cmaj7=Emin7=Amin7}
{Gmin7=B-maj7},{C7=Emin7flatfifth},{Fmaj7=Amin7=Dmin7}

we have now expanded in order to be able to see the possible connections when expanding outward to these 3 keys

We can like before, use this to either travel with the chords themselves, or we can use this to make melodies , (starting with tense note resolving to home note.)
Lets now practice using this on the keyboard so you can hear it.





{Amin7 ,D7 Gmaj7}, {dmin7 G7 Cmaj7} , { gmin7 , C7, f maj7}



{Amin7=Cmaj7},{D7=F#min7flatfifth},{Gmaj7=Bmin7=Emin7}
{Dmin7=Fmaj7},{G7=Bmin7flatfifth},{Cmaj7=Emin7=Amin7}
{Gmin7=B-maj7},{C7=Emin7flatfifth},{Fmaj7=Amin7=Dmin7}


practice these chords in these order , ( when practicing the expanded view what you do is pick from one bracketed option then move to the next connecting them for example.

ill pick Cmaj7, D7, Bmin7, Dmin7-Fmaj7, G7,Amin7,Bmaj7,C7, Fmaj7

Now that we have practiced these chords to hear it ,lets break it down to melody version.
( play consonant or home note ON the beat , play tension note or dissonant note on the OFF beat of your metronome or drum beat for melodies)

ill start with {Amin7 ,D7 Gmaj7}, {dmin7 G7 Cmaj7} , { gmin7 , C7, f maj7}

ill take individual notes to make a melody out of it instead of the chords ( can also put a bass note in for the root of the chord)

Amin7 is aceg so ill pick for my melody the notes A then up to C down to G
D7 is d f# ac so ill continue on with F# then move up to A
Gmaj7 is gbd F# so ill continue going up to G then down to D

Dmin7 is dfac so ill go up to F then up to C
G7 is gbdf so ill go donw to B then down to G
Cmaj7 is cegb so ill go up to B then up to C

Gmin7 is g b- df so ill go up to d then down to B-
C7 is ceg b-, so ill go up to C down to B- down to E
Fmaj7 is face so ill go up to F up to C and finally up to E and end. that is our melody.


So we have A up to C down to G down to F# up to A up to G down to D up to F up to C down to B down to G up to B up to C up to D down to B- up to C down to B- down to E up to F up to C finally up to E.

practice this melody. next add in the bass note of each chord while playing the melody over it in higher range.
Finally practice the bass note, chord changes and melody all it once take your time listen for tension to release
in the melody, listen for tension to release in the chord changes.

 

NEXT a little recap to bring us from where we began to where we are now.

step1.we pick a note in this case C (turns into a C maj KEY)
step2. this NOTE turns into a chord Cmaj7 cegb or Cmaj triad ceg
step3. our Cmaj7 chord turns into a V to I (candence) or gbdf, to cegb
step 4. the V to I turns into a ii ,V7, I or dfac, to gbdf, to cegb

step 5. our ii, V to I, implies the rest of our chords and how they travel ( ii=IV, V=vii%, I=iii,=vi)

in key of C
( dfac Dmin7 = face Fmaj7),( gbdf G dominant 7,= bdfa B min7 flat fifth), (cegb cmaj7=egbd Emin7= acegAmin7

step 6. starting at our ii, V to I this implies 3 dominant chords and 3 keys D7 to G7 to C7
{D7 = D F# AC }, {G7 = GBDF}, { C7= CEG [b flat (a#)]

this can be done because in music language a dominant chord resolves to another dominant chord a fifth below it. ( just like how a dominant resolves to the I chord in this case C maj)

step7.
Now that we have the 3 dominant chords we map out their keys and the ii, V to I of each

D7 is V of g maj key , G7 is V of C maj key , C7 is V of F maj key


next the ii, V, I of each is

{Amin7 ,D7 Gmaj7}, {dmin7 G7 Cmaj7} , { gmin7 , C7, f maj7}

this has review has given given us 7 steps, and now we move on to step 8.

------------------------------------------------------------------
step8. the diminished 7 chord.
if we look at the key of C maj , then look at our dominant chord the G7 or gbdf

the G7 chord implies a G# diminished 7th chord , to get this we just alter the G to become a G# then add the rest of our notes.
G#,B,D,F ( because the notes are the same distance apart, each one of the notes derives a dim7 chord yet they all have the same notes.)
G#BDF = G#dim7}
BDFG# = B dim7}
DFG#B =Ddim7}
FG#BD=Fdim7


because we derived this from our original G7 or V chord we can use these in its place anytime we would normally use the G7 .

lets look at the V, to I in key of C maj that means GBDF< to CEGB or G7 to Cmaj7

we can now substitute the G7 replace it with one of the dim7 chords for example. Ddim7 to Cmaj7 or DFG#B, to CEGB
we can in fact substitute any of them whether Bdim7 to Cmaj7 (notice the B to c change) or we can substitute Fdim7 to Cmaj7

if we look back and remember our equivalent chords we have

( ii=IV, V=vii%, I=iii,=vi)

lets take our C maj7 and expand it to the equivalent chords Cmaj7=Emin7=Amin7
now looking back at our new dim7 chords lets pick a dim7 tension to Cmaj7 equivalent chord based on having a semitone apart just like how we had Bdim7 to Cmaj7

that gives us Cmaj7=Emin7=Amin7
{Bdim7 to Cmaj7}, {Fdim7 to Emin7}, { G#dim7 to Amin7}

these are all V to I variations and also it gives us new chords in between other chords we had all in the context of just C major. and its V chord G7 {the dim7 chords are same as G7} this gives us more options for melody .

this dim7 implication works for any key so lets now apply step 8 to our previous chord progression that contained the 3 neighboring keys. we had.

D7 is V of g maj key , G7 is V of C maj key , C7 is V of F maj key

now all we have to do is take our V7 chord and like we did before sharpen the first note.
we begin with D7 or D F# a c
next we sharpen the d to D# now we have D#,F#,A,C this gives us the for dim7 chords that are a direct equivalent of the D7 chord.
D#dim7 d#,f#,a,c
F#dim7 f#,a,c,d#
Adim7 a,c,d#,f#
cdim7 c,d#,f#,a

and like before each one of these resolves to our I or our I ,iii,or vi (because the I=iii=vi)
that gives us Gmaj7=Bmin7=Emin7
{F#dim7 to Gmaj7}, {Cdim7 to Bmin7}, { D#dim7 to Emin7}

are all V to I cadence in the key of G major

so we have our dim7 chords mapped out forD7 and G7 next is our last chord and key the C7

now all we have to do is take our V7 chord and like we did before sharpen the first note.
we begin with C7 or C E G B-{a#}
next we sharpen the C to C# now we have C#,E,G,A# this gives us the dim7 chords that are a direct equivalent of the C7 chord.
C#dim7 c#,e,g,a#
Edim7 e,g,a#,c#
Gdim7 g,a#,c#,e
A#dim7 a#,c#,e,g

and like before each one of these resolves to our I or our I ,iii,or vi (because the I=iii=vi)
that gives us Fmaj7=Amin7=Dmin7
{Edim7 to Fmaj7}, {B-{a#]dim7 to Amin7}, { C#dim7 to Dmin7}

are all V to I cadence in the key of F major

we can now modify our chord equivalent for the key to include those dim7 chords

( ii=IV, V=vii%, I=iii,=vi) is what we had. but now we have expanded it to be



( ii=IV), {V=vii%=#vdim7=viidim7=iidim7=ivdim7} ,( I=iii,=vi)

 

Last edited: Nov 6, 2017

This is your thread and I don't have anything to add. Just saying that I was killing myself to acquire such knowledge previously but suddenly discovered that playing out with sounds (unlimited numbers) is more interesting and powerful than just limited 12 notes and quit it. I'm desperately praying to GOD that same situation happens to you too but I'm not so hopeful, You don't believe in GOD like me. What can I do?

 

Step 9. the augmented chord.
we began with a single key C major (its dominant or tension is V or G7)
that derives our V to I, then our ii, V , to I
we then learned how to change keys by following the circle of fifths moving in fifths dm7 to g7 to cmaj7 becomes D7 to G7 to C7 (its 3 keys)
in step 8 we just uncovered how the V7 or in C maj the G7 gbdf, is equivalent to 4 different dim7 chords g#,b,d,f

now that introduces 1 extra note in our C major scale the G# note ,
if we then spell a C maj triad CEG but replace the G note with our new note G# we have a new type of chord C augmented c,e,g#
(the augmented I chord resolves to the IV chord in c maj that is ceg#, to face)anytime you have a IV chord in the key coming up you can preced it with a I aug chord. lets say i was doing a ii, V, I in C major dfac,gbdf,cegb BUT i swapped out the ii for a IV chord (remember ii=IV) that gives me face,gbdf,cegb NOW that a four chord is being used I can put the I aug before it, so ceg#,face,gbdf,cegb

another aspect of the C augmented chord is because the notes are same distance from each other each note forms another augmented chord yet with all the same notes.

C augmented C E G#
E augmented E G# C
G# augmented G# C E

each one of these augmented chords resolves to the IV in C major or Fmaj7 face (Lydian)
these can precede a IV chord ( the IV=ii)

So Iaug resolves to IV, III aug resolves to IV , and V#aug resolves to IV
between the diminished 7 we previously learned about and the augmented chord , we now
have a way to add extra color to our tension resolutions whether chords or melodies.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOW we can take our C maj scale and add in the G#, This gives us
CDEFGG#AB

now we have 8 notes AND if we play a scale from high to low or low to high beginning on a C, on an E, on a G


we can have home notes land on the beat and tension notes land on the OFF beat of your metronome. from their we can combine these scale runs with notes of an C maj7 arpeggio ( chord notes one after another instead at same time)

EXAMPLE (note play the scales over a Cmaj7 chord)
low to high CDEFGG#ABC , high to low CBAG#GFEDC starting the root of Cmaj7
low to high EFGG#ABCDE , high to low EDCBAG#GFE starting the 3rd of Cmaj7
low to high GG#ABCDEFG, high to low GFEDCBAG#G starting the fifth

we can mix combinations of these but in such a way as our home notes always land on the beat and tension notes land on the off beat , practice this now on the keyboard see how this changes your world!


Next we can modify our iim7 Dmin7 chord and our V G7 chord to each have 8 notes to use over their chords just like we did with Adding the G# to make the 8 note scale for the C maj7 chord


lets start with our V or G7 (of C major KEY)

all we do is borrow the F# from {G major KEY} and add it to the Mixolydian mode of C major key like this

GABCDEFF# this now has 8 notes and if you play low to high starting on either the G, the B or D or the F, (over top a G7 chord)
you will have chord tones on the beat and tension notes on the OFF beat.
EXAMPLE
low to high GABCDEFF#G, high to low GF#FEDCBAG starting from root
low to high BCDEFF#GAB, high to low BAGF#FEDCB starting from 3rd
low to high DEFF#GABCD ,high to low DCBAGF#FED starting from 5th
low to high FF#GABCDEF, high to low FEDCBAGF#F starting from 7th

from their we can combine these scale runs with notes of an G7 arpeggio ( chord notes one after another instead at same time)

next when we look back out ii,V to I we can take our iim7 or Dmin7 Dorian mode and for this one we can turn it into our 8 note scale by borring the C# note from our D major scale .
when we add in this new note to Dorian of C major this is what we get.
--
Dorian (from C maj)DEFGABCD adding C# = DEFGABCC#D
--
and like with the 2 other 8 notes scale we made before this new 8 note scale allows us to play from low to high or high to low starting on the D the F and the A and have chord tones land on the beat and tension notes land on the off beat.

(practice with a Dmin7 chord underneath)

low to high DEFGABCC#D, high to low DC#CBAGFED starting from root
low to high FGABCC#DEF, high to low FEDC#CBAGF starting from 3rd
low to high ABCC#DEFGA, high to low AGFEDC#CBA starting from 5th
low to high,CC#DEFGABC, high to low CBAGFEDC#C starting from 7th

from their we can combine these scale runs with notes of an G7 arpeggio ( chord notes one after another instead at same time)

in summary we are able to take our iim7, V to I or Dm7, G7, to Cmaj7
and create 8 notes scale for each of these chords which allows us to always land on beat with chord tones and tension notes land on the off beat. these are those 3 8 note scales.

Cmaj bebop CDEFGG#ABC ( added V# of Ionian mode for any key I chord)
Dmin bebop DEFGABCC#D ( added vii# of dorian mode for any key ii chord)
Gdom bebop GABCDEFF#G ( added vii# of mixolydian mode for any key V chord)

this gives us the ability to combine snippets of scales in any direction with arpeggios when creating melodies that fit over top a ii , V, I Cadence.


------------------------------------------
Step 10.
now that we have introduced the I aug chord , and previously we learned how to change keys using the circle of fifths by a fifth.
lets spell a C augmented chord C,E,G#{Aflat} and look where those notes are on the circle of fifths.


we can see that in the circle of fifths we have 3 keys spaced in between C to E to A-{G#}
this brings us to using the C, the E and the G# as major keys and using each of their dominant chords.
lets map that out . what we do is create a V to I , in each of the 3 keys
{Cmajor key{V to I = G7,Cmaj7}, {Emajor key{V to I = B7 to Emaj7}, {Aflat major key{Eflat7 to AfllatMAJ7}

G7,Cmaj7,B7,Emaj7,D#7,G#maj7

if we then add the ii V I for each then we now have

{Cmajor key{ii to V to I =Dmin7, G7,Cmaj7}, {Emajor key{ii to V to I =F#min7, B7 to Emaj7}, {Aflat major key{ii to V to I =Bflatmin7 Eflat7 to AfllatMAJ7}


Dmin7,G7,Cmaj7,F#min7,B7,Emaj7,A#min7,D#7,G#maj7

and then we can expand to use our equivalent chords (with our new dim7 chord added)
for each of these 3 keys



( ii=IV), {V=vii%=#vdim7=viidim7=iidim7=ivdim7} ,( I=iii,=vi)


we have now learned how our KEY works, how to naturally travel to the nearby keys a fifth away on each side of the starting key.
Next we just learned learned how to naturally travel using an augment chords notes ex. C,E,G# which spreads us all across the circle of fifths giving us the ability to use all 12 KEYS.
we could for instance take C , turn into its ii V I, then its new keys D7,G7,C7

lets take this but NOW apply it to what we had just mapped out for the augmented shape.

so we had Dmin7,G7,Cmaj7,F#min7,B7,Emaj7,A#min7,D#7,G#maj7

BUT, like before we can now make each one of these chords a dominant ( like we had dmin7,G7,Cmaj7 turn into D7,G7,C7 then add in its ii, V I of each)


Dmin7,G7,Cmaj7,------F#min7,B7,Emaj7,-------A#min7,D#7,G#maj7

turns into

D7,G7,C7,-------F#7,B7,E7,------A#7,D#7,G#7

and like before , every time you have the V chord you precede it with ii,V to I

lets see what we have NOW.

-------------------------------------
D7 turns into Amin7,D7,Gmaj7
G7 turns into Dmin7,G7,Cmaj7
C7 turns into gmin7 ,C7,Fmaj7
---------------------------------------
F#7 turns into C#min7,F#7,Bmaj7
B7 turns into F#min7,B7,Emaj7
E7 turns into Bmin7,E7,Amaj7
-----------------------------------------
A#7 turns into Fmin7,A#7,D#maj7
D#7 turns into A#min7,D#7,G#maj7
G#7 turns into D#min7,G#7,C#maj7
---------------------------------------------

that gives us an ability to start off with a single note at the beginning c
turn into a KEY C maj KEY
navigate to its keys right near it

and now we can navigate to other keys at a distance while also knowing how the chords from one key can connect to the chords of that new key we are changing to.

by using our chord equivalent for a certain key

( ii=IV), {V=vii%=#vdim7=viidim7=iidim7=ivdim7} ,( I=iii,=vi)

and creating a cadence V to I, ( any version we covered)
we can expand any single key and connect it to any other expanded key ALL while using the natural language of music.

END of VOLUME I.

 

Last edited: Nov 9, 2017

the only thing ,is that what ever you make for music, the listener will hear it in the context of tension to resolution, if that happens to be in the way music language works your golden the listener just feels good and knows not why, BUt if what you wrote does NOT work the way the language works, the listener has NO OTHER CHOICE but to feel upset and dislike the music ( without having any clue why in any way)

THIS, is why there will never be {"playing out with sounds (unlimited numbers)"} TYPE of written music on the top 40 charts with millions of people buying it.
NOT because of anyone's opinion on the matter but because how human beings actually process music with their ears biologically. ( the language of music) I had to come to terms with this in a hard way years ago because like you i enjoy a lot of "out there " stuff, plus i still do haha

I dont think you yet grasp ( no insult intended) what it is im outlining in this thread,
that anytime you play a single note it expands to a key and relationship with every other note and the way they work together in any context is based on tension resolution. ( even modal music works the same way , its just that the musical structure is in slow motion and techniques are used to dampen the feel of tension to resolution.

there is a way music works( to our ears biologically) and by understanding what that actually is in reality, the person creating has millions of options always there for them to choose from at any moment frozen in time.
by learning the language of music
it becomes impossible to have writers block

 

Last edited: Nov 6, 2017

@MMJ2017 Watched this valuable thread to read what's going on. It seems there are some new things to learn

Man that is noise not music

 

Foster is an avant-garde artist, i can respect that.

 

I found this a while ago and being meaning to post it. Don't know if it has been posted here before... Apologies if it has.

Kind of fits into this subject, in the sense of creating modulations.

Modal Interchange.

But on the whole sounds need to be consonant sounding. Have some kind of overtone series. Most of your 'sounds' will be able to be defined within 12Tet. Even more so if you allow for bends. The average non trained musical ear can differentiate between 25 cents of a HZ.

Arguably using sounds with a harsh sounding timbre will actually limit your note choices.

 

I'm the only dummy that voted "no".

Seriously, I'm very good at learning languages but I'm terrible at learning music theory

 

don't be down on yourself! you can do it go slow take your time i promise you will love it!
NEVER HAVE WRITERS BLOCK AGAIN!
I have a feeling your pretty good at it already anyway.

 

VOLUME II BASSLINES

you know we love that fat ass bass rumbling right?

so to create basslines we DO use the previous music language mentioned in Volume I, BUTT ,we also DO have a few things unique the way way basslines music language works. (sure we can make a few notes ring out but lets look at ALL the options just in case we ever NEED some SPICE!)

Part1. we again refer back to our ii, V, to I ( we will stick C maj KEY again for now) that is Dmin7, to G7 to Cmaj7 or DFAC,GBDF,CEGB
we can also keep in mind our chord equivalent

we can start adding detail to our bassline underneath a chord ringing out , with a few unique aspects to bass (there are some thing about the way you make basslines in music language that are unique to it)

step1. 1235
---------
say we start with out Dmin7 or ii (of Cmaj KEY) DFAC is our notes
this implies for a bassline the 1,2,3,5 of the chord or in this case D,E,F,A , ( the E is a 9th of DFACE or Dm7 add 9 chord) adding the 2 , gives a sense of depth and movement without clashing with the chord tones)
when we have a second measure on the same chord we repeat same thing except we always have a LEADING tone right before the next note coming up in a bar. EXAMPLE. 1,2,3,5,1,2,3 leading tone, new note of new chord lets say we are doing Dmin7 then going to G7 that would be DEFA,DEF leading tone GABDGAB leading tone.
Now a" leading tone" simply means a semitone away from where you are heading next if the leading tone is right before D it can be c# or it can be D# , either a semitone below or semitone above resolving either up to new note , or resolving down to new note , you choose based on the details of the chords themselves .

step 2} 1235,123 Leading tone
-----------------
lets remember back to chapter I were we covered the G7 having a substitution with the G#dim7 (G#,b,d,f) , we can see that there is a G# available to use for a leading tone because of this, also our normal E to F and B to C inside of the key are leading tones.
lets go back to our example now and fill in the leading tones .

DEFA,DEF leading tone GABDGAB leading tone.

we can fill in the first leading tone contained in the ii portion with G# so that gives us
{DEFADEFG#}{GABDGAB leading tone}CDEGCDEG.

Next we have the leading tone that is going into our Cmaj7 chord portion of the ii, V to I Cadence
we can do 2 things here either fill in the leading tone with another B octave away or fill it in with a c# so that it then flows right into the Cmaj7 section

{DEFADEFG#}{GABDGABB}CDEGCDEG

or

{DEFADEFG#}{GABDGABC#}CDEGCDEG


step 3 octave displacement
--------------------
the next aspect of basslines is, many times you have a limited range of low to high
"octave displacement" simply means at any point you can bring a note octave up or down to continue your bassline without getting to far below or above your register.say your in G7 and have 1235,123 leading tone or GABDGABC# down you can take 1235 and instead of starting low working higher you can take the 1's higher octave and travel down to go to 235,123 leading tone

another example when to use octave displacement is when your chord duration is too short for 1235,123 leading tone

it may even be 11, next chord's 11 ( a pattern of note to same octave above next note octave below same note)

step 4. using the substitutions and equivalents to have the bass more interesting tha the chords on top of melody.

 

Last edited: Nov 7, 2017

VOLUME III. VOICINGS

we have talked a lot about the language of music structure. Now we are going to cover to to actually use it( take the structure of ii, V to I and put it into the instruments)
we use our basslines as described and with our higher pitch instruments that have the chords or lines,
we use something called voicings to arrange our cadences and progressions so that the 3rds, and 7th of the chord are on top in the melody are while the 1235123leading tone is in the bass , this spreads out everything and makes the most consonant possible.

lets take C maj KEY again and then our ii v I or dm7, G7, to Cmaj7
now the actual notes for that are dfac,gbdf,cegb
BUT we want to change the order of the notes or (voicing) to put the 3rds and 7ths on top AND alternate between 3rd, 7th,3rd,7th when we change chords.

so as we covered we set our bassline in this example to be 1235,123 leading tone etc. ( or short parts 1 leading tone, 1 leading tone)
this would be DEFADEFG#GABDGABBCDEGCDEG

now for our upper chord voicing above the bassline, we keep in our 3rds and 7ths so DFAC (dm7,ii) Dis tonic, F is 3rd,A fifth, Cis 7th so we keep F and C
lets put our 3rd on top ( the high melody note) so that gives us CF (diad or two notes played same time )we can spread them a little too C lower F higher, (while our bassline is playing we play our new diad of CF while the bass traveled underneath

next we want our next chord G7 (GBDF, V) we have G tonic, B 3rd D fifth and F 7th ) if we keep our 7th on top that gives B bottom F on top or BF but now when we add this to our last dmin7 diad we had CF now BF the loweer note slides down the higher note stays same. next when we get to our I Cmaj7 (I, CEGB) we have C tonic, E 3rd G fifth and B 7th ) this time our 3rd on top so B bottom and E top
when we add this to our last 2 diads we now have (dmin7 ii) CF, next (G7 V) BF next BE so when we travel from dmin to g7 one note slides down the C to B next with our g7 diad the higher note slides down and the other stays the same
CF, BF, BE
this little movement as possible changing to the note right near you next is called (voice leading)
it opens up space do you can have different instruments sit in different places without clutter and having them independent

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Next you have Inversions lets take our Dm7 (ii, DFAC)
if you start with DFAC, then putting the first note to last or FACD is voicing 1.
now you have FACD , you put the next one last ACDF and finally CDFA so here is our 4 inversions
(because 4 notes)

here is our Dm7 (,ii,)
1. DFAC
2. FACD
3.ACDF
4.CDFA

practice this to hear how it sounds different ( you can space notes close or spread out depending on the inversion)

here is our G7 (V,)

1.GBDF
2.BDFG
3.DFGB
4.FGBD

here is our Cmaj7 (I,)
1. CEGB
2.EGBC
3.GBCE
4.BCEG

but lets say we are using a Cmaj7 add 11 (CEGBF)
now we have 5 inversions
1.CEGBF
2.EGBFC
3.GBFCE
4.BFCEG
5.FCEGB

lets say we are playing a full G13 (GBDFACE)
now we have 7 inversions
1.GBDFACE
2.BDFACEG
3.DFACEGB
4.FACEGBD
5.ACEGBDF
6.CEGBDFA

all these available options with voicings and inversions allow to to have total control on the way things sound when you are writing , (also which notes turn into which new notes for your melodies)

 

Last edited: Nov 7, 2017

For that thread I just loved the composition, arrangement and strange sounds of the first post. I'm not into Avant-garde, but Foster-garde. I'm interested in twisted sounds not available in synths' presets and compelled to make them by myself. For my styles you don't need to know any of @MMJ2017 's posts. If I'd get interested in his favorite styles, then I would raise my knowledge but for now I don't.

 

my fav styles of music foster911, are Tonal and modal, after those 2, i like the other styles pretty equally.

 

The most formidable ones and crying out for the whole life to master.