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 Reciprocal melody vs chords 
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Post Reciprocal melody vs chords
Here's a novel working tool in theory of harmony, song writing and Stick playing - melody as the reciprocal of chords.

That's glibly phrased but here's the essence. Whether composing or just listening, you can analyze any repeated melody note in reference to the chords going by. If the chord moves up by a particular interval, say from C to Eb (I like to theorize in the key of C), and your melody repeats a G as in "One Note Samba", the G is of course up a 5th relative to the tonic C chord, then up only a major 3rd at the Eb chord. You've moved the chord up a minor 3rd (C to Eb) while the held or repeated melody G moves down by a minor 3rd relative to the new chord. Up versus down, counterintuitive but reciprocal.

Repeating the main thematic note of your melody (a well known song writer's device and good for improv too), you move your chords around as in the above "Samba" in C with the "One Note" G:

C w/5th, Eb w/maj3rd, Dm w/4th, G7 w/root, and repeat. Just another way of looking at harmony and one that I use a lot. Here's another song.

"Happy" (Cuz I'm Happy) with Pharrell Williams (if it were in the key of C)

The "happy" lyric is sung at the 6th degree of the C major scale (a happy happenstance perhaps), except that you never get to tonic C chord in the following progression of four repeated chords:

- The chorus starts on the IV chord (F) with "happy" sung at major 3rd degree of that chord.
- Then to the III chord (Em) with the same melody A now at the 4th degree of that chord.
- Then to E7 as the III chord with the same relationships.
- Then to the VI7 chord (A7) with the same "happy" A now at the root of that chord,

The thematic "happy" note at the 6th scale degree of C major keeps changing reciprocal relationship with the progressing chords. First, the bass root descends by a half step IV to III chords (from F to Em) while the repeated melody note (an A) ascends by a half step relative to the new chord. Then from E7 to A7, the bass root ascends by a 4th interval while the melody A note descends by a 4th (from 4th degree to tonic).

Nice resolution but it goes on. The four-bar phrase repeats from the A7 back to the F. Doing the math (reciprocally), its a transition from the VI7 back to the IV chord, a drop of the bass root by a major 3rd (4 chromatic steps down BTW), and of course the "happy" melody A note is raised in its relationship to the new IV chord the same interval, a major 3rd.

Does this analysis seem obvious to some of you, maybe to the point where it "goes without saying"? Or, does it seem so obscure that you don't even want to think about it, especially while playing? I say, use all faculties of mind, the more mix, the richer the experience.


Sun Aug 09, 2015 5:14 pm
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Post Re: Reciprocal melody vs chords
Thanks for starting a thread!

My estimation is that it is normal for us to interpret the melody notes in relation to the chords. It is not entirely normal to change the chord instead of the melody to create harmony, although it may be gaining sway.

You mentioned this concept at FHA 2014 in relation to Soundgarden. Dave Brosky has mentioned it recently here as a harmonization tool to enhance old or new melodies. Some of us might start catching on.

As a bass player, I found it fun to change guitar players' chords by playing a different root note than they expected, which changed their chords and the melody relational by chain reaction. Not everyone appreciated it, but some did. In your C example, playing a fierce A underneath it makes a happy moment a dark Am7, and if the singer is on a G or A, all the better for emphazing the VII or the new root.

As you have proven time and again, it is useful to shake up our methods, lest we fall into stagnation.

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Sun Aug 09, 2015 5:40 pm
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Post Re: Reciprocal melody vs chords
I have often enjoyed how the changing of chords made a repeated melody note sound different. Kind of how painters use various color underpaintings to change how the color, yellow for example, is perceived. The post reminded me of an old Meat Puppets song where there is a one note guitar solo. If you are not fond of off-key harmonized whistling, skip to the 2:00 mark. The solo goes on for about a minute, and even includes a mistake or two, I believe. I love the idea of the song, though, and it makes me happy. Also, I think there is an example of my underpainting analogy on the cover of the album. Purely coincidence, I guess. Is this an example of what you are talking about, Emmett? Albeit in a much simpler form? If not, I will have to reread your post to better understand it. If nothing else, you helped me wax nostalgic for 3 minutes and 20 seconds. Thank you!

Mike

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFlO0I3asb4[/youtube]

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Sun Aug 09, 2015 6:24 pm
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Post Re: Reciprocal melody vs chords
Kinda like the Soundtrack to "Nightmare Before Christmas" all of the melodies are pretty much standard Christmas tunes, but reharmonized for maximum 'scare'.

I think... I might be interpreting it wrong.


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Mon Aug 10, 2015 5:18 pm
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Post Re: Reciprocal melody vs chords
Another one note dominated song, altho the melody moves around a bit, is Katy Perry's "California Gurls" with Snoop Dog (in the sand). That main note in the chorus is the tonic, an F in the key of F, and the chords jump around two to a bar. Analyzing the repeated F in the melody in terms of each particular chord flying by, it becomes a different scale degree relative to the root of each chord.

Here's a common example of a dominating thematic melody note in the key of C with its major 3rd E repeated often in the melody. I present 8 bars of "Has Anybody Seen My Gal" starting with "5 foot 2, eyes of blue"...

- C major with melody E as the 3rd degree of the key center and of that particular chord.
- E7 with melody E as the 1st degree (tonic) of that particular chord.
- A7 with E as the 5th degree.
- and A7 again
- D7 with E as the 2nd degree, implying a 9th chord.
- G7 with E as the 6th degree, implying a 13th chord.
- C major
- and C major again

From E7 at bar 2 to C major at bar 7&8, the chords move in a familiar pattern of 3,6,2,5,1 (usually represented in Roman numerals showing chordal relationships to the key center). The common E melody note moves conversely, reciprocally, from bar 2 thru 7 - 1,5,2,6,3.

Forwards or backwards, these numbers perfectly reflect the "circle of 5ths" (or of 4ths going the other way), but from within the confines of the conventional seven tone scale or mode. (If you ignored sharps, flats, raised 4ths, natural 7ths, etc., you'd be working with the twelve chromatic tones.)

If the above progression were further extended to include F and Bb chords after the ending C chord, the F chord would include melody E as its natural 7th degree, followed by Bb with melody E as its raised 4th degree (and there it stops). So now you have a chord progression from E7 at bar 2 all the way to Bb #11 at the final added bar - 3,6,2,5,1,4,b7, a sequence of chords moving upward in 4ths (or downward in 5ths).

And of course the repeated melody E keeps morphing into a different scale degree as seen from each successive chord, moving by the reciprocal of the chord progression. From E7 at bar 2, it's 1,5,2,6,3 with the added natural 7 and raised 4th scale degrees.

Working in twelve tones is more straightforward because the numbers really do add up.


Tue Aug 11, 2015 2:22 pm
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Post Re: Reciprocal melody vs chords
I like how the cycle can be offset by a half-step and still have it come full circle back to the root. A tune that I am revisiting is Here's that Rainy day which makes good use of this.

Image

The second chord in the cycle moves from the root to the minor third after which they cycle through 4ths and in the fifth measure, it is kicked up a half step which sets it back on track to a ii-V-I progression.

Mike - Meat puppets Up on the Sun is one of my favorite albums. This was a great time in my life and this album was a soundtrack of sorts. It was punk music, but not angry or mean. Gritty with fun lyrics and progressive undertones that did not take itself too seriously. I now need to listen to this.

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Thu Aug 13, 2015 4:38 am
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