Differential notes. Baka pygmies polyphonies

Hello

I'm new to this list. I enjoy it very much even if often I can't follow -
I'm just a self-taught musician.

I'd like to propose to your commentaries a hypothesis on scales used in
Baka Pygmies vocal polyphony. Here goes.

Ethnomusicologists generally agree to say that Pygmy musics use anhemitonic
pentatonic scales, but opinions diverge when it gets more specific. Pierre
Sall=E9e believed the Bibayak Pygmies of Gabon used a equipentatonic scale
until his use of a Synclavier music computer lead him to rather consider "a
scale taking in account the presence of perfect fifths, whose principle
remains to be found" (communication to the Congress of Ethnomusicology in
Belfast, 1985). Unfortunately he died the same year. Simha Arom's pioneer
research on scales in Central Africa involve testing different scale models
by asking musicians to play them on a transformed DX7 synthesizer. In these
experiences, the equipentatonic scale was the most frequently accepted as a
valid model. On the other hand, pitch measurements he made on xylophones in
the same area consistently suggest scales with three different types of
basic intervals. Besides, in a series of publications (Analyse Musicale 23,
1991) about his research, he mentions a hypothesis "trying to assimilate
the studied scales to a pentatonic system constructed not from the cycle of
fifths, but from the series of natural harmonics".

When in 1989 I stayed two months among the Baka Pygmies, I had no
theoretical preconceptions about their music; I just enjoyed it as an
enthusiast and attentive listener. And when back in Europe I tried to do
some "fake Baka music" using a Akai S1000 sampler and Logic software, I had
never heard of Pierre Sall=E9e's experiences - my idea was just to have some
fun. But soon I realized that trying to understand what was going on in
Baka music was much more fun than using is as an ingredient for some
superficial musical collage.

I came across a hypothesis about Baka tonal organization which as far as I
and Simha Arom know is original, but confirms the three hypotheses I quoted
above : three different basic intervals, presence of perfect fifths, and
influence of the series of harmonics.

My view is that the scale specific to the Baka vocal polyphonies consists
of non fixed degrees constantly trying to establish between them simple
ratios, in such a way that two degrees sung together produce a differential
note which is the common "root" of these two notes considered as
"harmonics". I believe these differential notes to be consciously produced
and considered as musically significant in Baka music. I even suspect the
melody formed by their succession to be the matrix of the polyphony -
different variations from the same patterns producing the same "virtual
bass line".

According to my measurements, the basic intervals used seem to be 7/6, or
267 cents (small minor third), 8/7, or 231 cents (large second), and 9/8,
or 204 cents (whole tone).

If intervals between degrees are determined by differential notes which can
change according to the musical context, the polyphony can produce
intervals very close from each other, but with a different function : 7/6 +
8/7 (498 cents, the perfect fourth) is only a few cents apart from 8/7 +
8/7 (462 cents) or 7/6 + 9/8 (471 cents); 7/6+7/6+8/7+8/7+9/8 (1200 cents,
the octave), from 7/6+8/7+8/7+8/7+9/8 (1164 cents), etc. This could explain
the often quoted presence of "major sevenths" in Pygmy polyphonies, which
have no place in a anhemitonic pentatonic scale. In my opinion, this also
raises the question whether it is pertinent to use the term "pentatonic"
for a music in which the role of the octave isn't necessarily the same as
in ours.

I mentioned Simha Arom's field experiences in which the equipentatonic
scale model was the most often accepted. This could imply its role as the
most widespread "mental tuning template", but alternatively, and this is my
guess, this could just say that the equipentatonic scale is the most
acceptable static representation of a scale evolving dynamically.

Come to think of it, couldn't we say exactly the same thing of the
equal-tempered twelve tone scale ? Doesn't the intonation of a classical
string quartet also constantly evolve in time according to the musical
context ? Isn't that musical context largely dependent of the human ear's
physiological preference for simple ratios over complex ones ? And if there
is such a thing as a "mental tuning template" shouldn't we consider these
microtonal shifting strategies as a part of it?


As said before I am not a specialist and the above might contain lots of
evidence, rubbish and confusion. Still I'd like very much to have
reactions, advice, books references etc.

Or maybe, for a start, just an answer to this : has anybody heard of a
music tradition where differential notes are consciously used as a part of
the music ?

Thank You.

Vincent Kenis



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