Hi, I'm Pedro and for this video I would like you to imagine that
you want to create a piece of music using the chromatic scale.
As you know, the western tuning system is comprised of these 12
notes, the chromatic scale. So it kind of means that you
could go off in any direction and do whatever, but this can be
a bit off putting as there are too many approach possibilities
and too many choices is not always a good thing, right?
So I would like to present to you one way to harness the power
of the chromatic scale by using a polytonal approach and use
this concept as your guide to create chromatic harmony and
melodies with a twisted, quirky vibe.
Let's tackle the melody first. A nice way to introduce
chromaticism is by mashing up two or intersecting 2 or more
scales. But let me show you how this
works. So E minor scale contains the
notes EF sharp, GABC&D, while E major the notes are EF sharp,
G#, ABC sharp and D sharp. By intersecting these two nodes,
we get the nodes E F# GG sharp, ABCC sharp, D&D sharp.
As you can see in here, you almost get the full chromatic
scale, only missing the F and the A sharp.
In the following example, I chose the pitch E as a reference
to pick modes or key areas like EF region E Dorian, E
diminished, or a Lydian which is from the E major key.
I color-coded the pitches so it's easier for you to see what
I was thinking in terms of where I got the melodic fragments
from. So the way I created these
melodies was by thinking of getting in and out of the
context of these modes, or just using the chromatic bits as a
result of the modes being mashed up.
And this is what I used to produce the upper register
melodic materials. Overall, I think that this is a
good approach to avoid the haphazard choice of notes when
you wish to create this type of effect in your melodies.
As for what I did to create the polytonal effect in the A
section, I used an ostinato in the bass that is based on the E
minor 7th chord from E free Gen. and with some occasional flirts
with the chromatic scale alongside with everything I just
mentioned for the UER register melody.
Here's how it sounds. It is worth saying that my main
concern was with register separation and assuring that
each instrument occupies its space or area without getting in
the way of other instruments. Also, I was thinking more in
terms of melody rather than harmony.
Regarding the B section, I wanted to create a contrast with
less movement and to relieve tension.
For the most part, the melody you hear uses speeches from the
E major key starts with the C# minor 7th chord, but then I
surprise you with a D major 7th chord, which I'm borrowing from
A major A nearby key. So no worries about flashing
with the melody at that point. Then I returned to C# minor 7,
but instead of repeating the same half step up chord movement
to AD major, I borrowed AD sharp dominant chord, a whole step up
from C# minor. The choice of it being major and
dominant is due to what I was hearing in my head in terms of
what the bass and melody should be doing at that moment.
That's the spot where I had to change a couple of melody
pitches to accommodate the new chord.
I wanted it to sound pretty. When using this polytonal way of
thinking and organizing your materials, the chord options can
also increase substantially. I usually think of the available
chords originated from one key center or the other, the ones
I'm working with, and then I can choose to alter certain chord
tones using pitches from the other key.
For instance, I have AC sharp minor from East major key which
can be turned into AC augmented if I just introduce the C
natural from if region. This is pretty much what
happened near the end of the B section, but with another chord
thrown in the mix. That D sharp dominant chord you
heard before? And since we are working with
two key areas, you can also create Poly chord structures
using chords from one key on the bottom and another from the
other key on the top, such as in this example, announcing the
return to the A section with a bang.
That's AB major over C major polycordial structure.
I also was able to return to the A section in a more seamless way
because I managed to reintroduce some elements of what was to
come next, like a musical foreshadowing.
I talked about this in this video that will be shown here
about how to connect different sections in your arrangements.
The link to it is also in the description along with other
reference links to help you with anything you might need to
follow this video. Another example of foreshadowing
was what I did in the intro section to kind of prepare what
was going to happen on the A section.
All right, and now it's time to hear the full example.
Let's hear it and how it all sounds put together.
And that was it. I hope that you enjoyed this
type of approach and if you'd like to embrace experimentation
and apply this to your music, just follow the steps or
guidelines that I just showed you.
If you want to suggest our ideas, please share your
thoughts in the comments section.
And if you haven't subscribed, please do so.
As always, check the links in the description and also the
Beyond Music Theory blog where you'll find lots of other useful
information as well as courses, online coaching and the Beyond
Music Theory ebook. Thanks for watching and until
next time.