When a progression uses chords that aren’t part of the diatonic set like this, they’re known as borrowed chords, as they’ve been borrowed from another key. Likewise, the third chord in the set is a non-diatonic major V chord, but this always resolves to a diatonic minor v chord for the fourth chord. Normally in a natural minor diatonic set, the ii chord should be a diminished chord, but the sixth and final chord in each set here is always a major II chord, which isn’t diatonic to the key. Our first set of six chords takes this form:ĭeadmau5: “The Moog Voyager - I can't seem to escape that synth. The progression is based on a series of six-chord mini-progressions, building blocks that Purcell uses to create an ever-ascending cycle that see-saws between heartache and majesty. The track begins with an extended drum intro accompanied by a sustained Bm chord, and it’s from this that our cycle begins. At the same time, the continuous shifting from minor to major tonality and back again brings us constant dramatic tension. It’s the mechanical, cyclic nature of the chord progression here that fascinates and delights, continually modulating (changing key) with the mathematical precision of a clockwork device. This soundtrack then later provided the inspiration for Cygnus X’s The Orange Theme, which then itself became the inspiration for Clockwork. In 1971, composer and Moog aficionado Wendy Carlos famously based her theme music for the notorious Stanley Kubrick movie A Clockwork Orange on this Purcell piece. ![]() The root of this song, believe it or not, goes back over 300 years in the form of a 1695 composition by the English baroque music composer Henry Purcell named Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary. This is played by a synth sound made up of what appears to be two square waves tuned a few cents apart, giving it a kind of human, slightly out-of-tune aspect, which is then enhanced by some sort of pitch envelope modulation that seems to make the tails of the notes fall away in pitch slightly. The second topline part is the famous whistle hook itself, which follows a similar example to the synth flute, avoiding any black notes. The Lydian mode has a whimsical, lighthearted quality about it, which is why the synth riffing sounds so uplifting. The fourth degree of the C major scale is F, so if we play all the white notes from F to F, with an F in the bass to give it its tonal centre, we get F Lydian an F major scale with a sharpened fourth degree. The Lydian mode is what you get when you play the notes of the scale from the fourth degree of the scale rather than the root note, resulting in a different pattern of intervals between the notes. However, when the chord changes to FMaj7, with an F in the bass now dictating the tonal centre, playing the notes from the C major scale over this chord results in a subtle change of mode from Ionian (the major scale) to Lydian. This is no real surprise, as the notes of the C major scale (C, D, E, F, G, A and B) can be found in both chord shapes. When you look at what this synth is playing, it never strays from the white keys, regardless of whether it’s played over the CMaj7 or FMaj7. Music theory basics: how to understand musical modes and use them in your songwriting The first is a kind of freeform synth flute noodling, largely improvised over the top of the chords. ![]() Meanwhile, over the top, the track’s topline consists of two main parts. The chords are then backed up by a round, analogue synth bass part that highlights root notes and fifths, which are playing a skippy, offbeat pattern in classic Chicago house style, locking in the swung feel of the 909-sourced drums.Īrrangement-wise, things are very basic, the main drum, bass and chord parts never letting up for a moment. Interestingly, when swapped around and played with the FMaj7 first, followed by the CMaj7, this alternating progression forms the basis of Gymnopedie No.1, a very famous, wistful piece of classical piano music composed by Erik Satie in the early 1900s. The CMaj7 is played in the 2nd inversion (G, B, C, E), while the FMaj7 is voiced in root position (F, A, C, E). In the key of C major, this iconic floor-filler takes the form of a simple, alternating two-chord pattern, switching between two bars each of CMaj7 and FMaj7. For clarity, we’re examining the EK 12” mix of this tune, which has different instrumentation to the album version, swapping out the original’s real flute for a synthetic version. A seminal early Chicago house classic track, the original version of The Whistle Song is a track found on Frankie Knuckles’ 1991 album Beyond the Mix.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |