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Double Happiness with appetizer

🔗Jonathan M. Szanto <JSZANTO@...>

11/25/2002 3:09:23 PM

Joy in 3 parts, musically speaking!

Starter: Graham Breed's 1st Hardy Song
Primo: Kraig Grady
Secundo: Bill Sethares

So Graham started the whole thing with his first glimpse of song settings (I'm assuming/guessing you refer to Thomas Hardy?), and Graham I look forward to hearing the setting of the text. Why not convince someone near you to do the singing if you are too shy? I like the 'period' feel of it, but would you also like to share something about the tuning(s) used?

Then, for the first course, early this morning I get a note from Kraig Grady about a small gem he has unearthed. A lovely paean on hammered dulcimer in twin tunings, everyone should go take a listen to "Untitled Love Song", found over at:

http://www.microtonal.org/music.html

Thanks, Kraig; it seems impossible for you to do un-lovely music.

And lastly, today's mail arrived with the entree, Bill Sethares CD "Exomusicology". I've given each track a quick listen, and while I've been a fan of Bill's for quite a while, the variety and quality is remarkable. I will definitely post more on this one, and I'll be asking Bill to answer - publicly - questions about a couple of the pieces. But mostly:

BILL! Would you mind posting to the list the best way for people to order a copy of the CD? I would recommend it very highly to all...

Man, just when I was about to give up on music,
Cheers,
Jon

`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`
Real Life: Orchestral Percussionist
Web Life: "Corporeal Meadows" - about Harry Partch
http://www.corporeal.com/
NOTE:
If your reply bounces, try --> jonszanto@...

🔗graham@...

11/26/2002 5:38:00 AM

In-Reply-To: <5.1.0.14.2.20021125150004.00a0ac30@...>
Jonathan M. Szanto wrote:

> So Graham started the whole thing with his first glimpse of song
> settings (I'm assuming/guessing you refer to Thomas Hardy?),

Yes, it says on the web page.

> and Graham
> I look forward to hearing the setting of the text. Why not convince
> someone near you to do the singing if you are too shy?

I don't know anybody who could sing this. I'll do it myself when I get
round to setting the microphone up and practising enough that I can sing
in tune.

> I like the
> 'period' feel of it, but would you also like to share something about
> the tuning(s) used?

As if I'd choose a text called 'neutral tones' and then set it in
meantone! No, it's E-Mohajira. Probably tuned to 31-equal. It should
be, anyway, I'll have to check that.

Graham

🔗Jonathan M. Szanto <JSZANTO@...>

11/26/2002 7:45:16 AM

G,

{you wrote...}
> > (I'm assuming/guessing you refer to Thomas Hardy?),
>
>Yes, it says on the web page.

Then I was neither assuming nor guessing but remembering! :)

>I don't know anybody who could sing this. I'll do it myself when I get >round to setting the microphone up and practising enough that I can sing >in tune.

Maybe you can find someone! Then again, it would be good to hear it in the 'authors' voice - you'll certainly know the inflections you'd like better than any other.

>As if I'd choose a text called 'neutral tones' and then set it in >meantone! No, it's E-Mohajira. Probably tuned to 31-equal. It should >be, anyway, I'll have to check that.

Just in case someone wanders by, on this list or your site, who isn't as well versed in some of these matters as you or others... in that instance, information on the tunings, etc., could be valuable to their experience.

OTOH, mystery is good, too.

Ta,
Jon

> Graham
>
>
>[MMM info]------------------------------------------------------
>More MMM music files are at http://www.microtonal.org/music.html
>------------------------------------------------------[MMM info]
>
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`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`
Real Life: Orchestral Percussionist
Web Life: "Corporeal Meadows" - about Harry Partch
http://www.corporeal.com/
NOTE:
If your reply bounces, try --> jonszanto@...

🔗Jon Szanto <JSZANTO@...>

11/26/2002 8:07:55 AM

One last bit to Graham,

--- In MakeMicroMusic@y..., graham@m... wrote:
> Yes, it says on the web page.

I guess I was in such a hurry that morning that I missed the Hardy link as well. If anyone would like to see the text that Graham is setting, the link is on his page and also here:

http://www.bartleby.com/121/8.html

Lovely poem, Graham - indeed, your choice of intonation sets well the 'grayness' of the text. Look for a timbre that is lifeless too!

Is "chidden" a past-tense of "chide", similar to "chided"? A quick search led me to that, but sometimes earlier forms of English give me pause in interpretation.

How many poems are you wanting to set to music?

Cheers,
Jon

🔗graham@...

11/26/2002 9:01:00 AM

In-Reply-To: <5.1.0.14.2.20021126074055.02daccc0@...>
Jonathan M. Szanto wrote:

> Maybe you can find someone! Then again, it would be good to hear it in
> the 'authors' voice - you'll certainly know the inflections you'd like
> better than any other.

Clevedon isn't filled with microtonalists. That clevedon-microtonal
mailing list is still really quiet. This song's written for my vocal
range anyway. For the other ones I want something higher, so I might have
to polish off my pitch shifter.

> Just in case someone wanders by, on this list or your site, who isn't
> as well versed in some of these matters as you or others... in that
> instance, information on the tunings, etc., could be valuable to their
> experience.

The music should speak for itself. I don't want them to look like
demonstrations of tuning systems, unless they are.

> OTOH, mystery is good, too.

Yes, but it's complicated to work with so I'll put it to one side for a
while. I think I'll go back to miracle for Julie Jane.

Graham

🔗graham@...

11/26/2002 9:13:00 AM

In-Reply-To: <as068r+bo7d@...>
Jon Szanto wrote:

> I guess I was in such a hurry that morning that I missed the Hardy link
> as well. If anyone would like to see the text that Graham is setting,
> the link is on his page and also here:

No, that's new. I did a search for "Hardy Neutral Tones" on Google.

> http://www.bartleby.com/121/8.html
>
> Lovely poem, Graham - indeed, your choice of intonation sets well the
> 'grayness' of the text. Look for a timbre that is lifeless too!

Yes, the mood of the poem happens to fit what I was doing with neutral
third scales when I was playing around with them a few years ago. It was
a real shame to stop the counterpoint sounding too exciting, but it was
still fairly easy to write which is why I started with it.

I'm also trying not to make it so dull that it sounds depressing. Even if
that would capture the spirit of the poem.

> Is "chidden" a past-tense of "chide", similar to "chided"? A quick
> search led me to that, but sometimes earlier forms of English give me
> pause in interpretation.

According to my dictionary, yes.

> How many poems are you wanting to set to music?

I'll keep going until I get bored. There are 3 more I can remember now
that I've worked out the tune, but not how to write it down. I've been
working on them for a few months now, but not very hard.

Graham