Music Theory feature articles
interviewSynthetic scales from tetrachords of altered modes - Pa… - Harmony Basics - Part 68
In the previous article you learned that Lydian tetrachords were absent from the modes of the melodic minor scale. But since we really like the oddest combinations, I suggest we wrap up this brief review of the different possibilities offered by the use of tetrachords looking at what happens when you combine Lydian tetrachords with the new tetrach…
- interview
Synthetic scales from tetrachords of altered modes - Pa… - Harmony Basics - Part 67
Last time we started exploring the tetrachords of the altered modes in general and the synthetic scales created from the tetrachords of the melodic minor scale in particular. You saw that apart from the tetrachords of the natural modes, altered modes provide a whole new range of "building bricks": the diminished, harmonic, Lydian #2 and minor #4 t…
- interview
Synthetic scales from tetrachords of altered modes - Pa… - Harmony Basics - Part 66
After having reviewed in our last article the synthetic scales resulting from the taking apart of natural modes and the redistribution of their tetrachords, let's see what you get when you do the same with altered modes.
- interview
Synthetic scales from natural modes - Harmony Basics - Part 65
In the previous article I introduced synthetic scales, which made us dig up an element of scales and modes which we had already touched upon before: tetrachords. So before we move on I think it's important to highlight the interest of splitting scales and modes into tetrachords and then put them back together.
- interview
Synthetic scales - Harmony Basics - Part 64
Last time I told you we would discover a couple of somewhat particular scales: the harmonic major and double harmonic major scales. But they belong to a larger group called synthetic scales, which I think we should discuss before we move into these two specific cases.
- learning
Harmony Basics - Part 63 - The modes of the harmonic minor scale - Part 2
Today we'll continue studying the modes of the harmonic minor scale we began last week. I invite you to discover with me...
- learning
Harmony Basics - Part 62 - The modes of the harmonic minor scale - Part 1
After having studied in the previous article the altered modes of the melodic minor scale, today we'll look into those of the harmonic minor scale.
- learning
The modes of the melodic minor system - Harmony Basics - Part 61
After the brief deviation in the last installment, it's time to continue with our favorite altered modes.
- learning
The return of the return of the pedal - Harmony Basics - Part 60
Dear friends, do allow me to open a brief parenthesis in our harmony series with this article.
- learning
Altered modes, the specific case of the half-diminished… - Harmony Basics - Part 59
You might be wondering why I'm writing about these scales as a "particular case" even though I hadn't mentioned them when talking about the altered and Bartok scales. Well, these two scales often lead to a quite legitimate confusion so I decided to straighten things up and write an article to clarify things before moving forward. Even if that mean…
