just melodic steps

Although the sounds of melodic steps are started at
different times, a later sound will form a harmonic
interval with the still resounding memory trace of
the earlier sound or there may even be some reverberance
of the earlier sound in some performances. I believe
this is why the consonances of the octave and fifth
were considered to be of such importance - even having
a mystical significance - in ancient times, even though
to my knowledge we have no certain records of these
intervals having been regularly sounded simultaneously
and it is believed that they were sounded in succession -
i.e. melodically - before the early middle ages and
the times of Hucbald (9th century AD) or a little before.

Dave Hill Potrero, CA

Dave Hill wrote,

>Although the sounds of melodic steps are started at
>different times, a later sound will form a harmonic
>interval with the still resounding memory trace of
>the earlier sound or there may even be some reverberance
>of the earlier sound in some performances. I believe
>this is why the consonances of the octave and fifth
>were considered to be of such importance - even having
>a mystical significance - in ancient times, even though
>to my knowledge we have no certain records of these
>intervals having been regularly sounded simultaneously
>and it is believed that they were sounded in succession -
>i.e. melodically - before the early middle ages and
>the times of Hucbald (9th century AD) or a little before.

I agree about the octave and fifth, but by "melodic steps" I understood you
to mean "scale steps", i.e., major and minor seconds -- to which these
arguments don't apply, in my opinion.