[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > > Than you Phil Taylor for a sensibly argued case. A welcome change from the > this-is-my-opinion-and-I'm-sticking-to-it attitude that has been prevalent > lately. Unfortunately I didn't agree with any of it. > > He wrote - > > >In order to describe a piece of music completely, you need to > >know any two of the tonic, mode and key signature. > > The key signature is sufficient alone. Tonic and mode are implicit in the > tune. >
> Bryan Creer > > To subscribe/unsubscribe, point your browser to: >http://www.tullochgorm.com/lists.html I also respectfully disagree with Phil Taylor's rationalle. I pointed out my objections to the K:key-mode specification, instead of a direct key signature sharp or flat specification, in a communication here on Jan 25, 2001. Here is a slightly revised version of it. The first line of the Introduction on Chris Walshaw's ABC homepage says "abc is a language to notate tunes in an ascii format." It says nothing about describing, or in any way characterizing tunes. That, at present, seems to be beyond the stated purpose of ABC. Notation can be unambiguously satisfied by giving the number of sharps or flats on the key signature; It doesn't require any interpretation of keynote or mode to do that. As many as 3 different 'descriptions' in terms of key and mode are supplied for some of the tunes given in 'Sources of Irish Traditional Music', 1998. Who decides which one to use? Keys and modes are subject to interpretation, an interpretation that is sometimes not unique. The tune is the tune; it doesn't need a 'description' in terms of key and mode. Circular modes, ones that don't end on the keynote, (which are 4% of the 6601 tunes coded in file COMBCODE.TXT on my website) can sometimes be difficult to figure out as far as key and mode go, and not all interpreters will come out with the same key-mode combination for a given tune. Bruce Olson -- Roots of Folk: Old British Isles popular and folk songs, tunes, broadside ballads at my website <A href="http://www.erols.com/olsonw";> Click </a> Motto: Keep at it; muddling through always works. To subscribe/unsubscribe, point your browser to: http://www.tullochgorm.com/lists.html
