Re double tonic tune discussion
Hi Rob Mac Killop
First a disclaimer. I am not a musician. I am a hobbyist fiddler with an
intense interest in the Scottish music I grew up with in Cape Breton. I
am also new to the the computer world and as a result cannot utilize its
many features which would make this e-mail easier for readers to follow
the discussion.
Your first paragraph, "you cannot have two tonics" Why not? The word
tonic is just a word to describe the note which is the focus of a tune
or a portion of a tune. If a tune has two focus points it has two tonics
or is "double tonic"
Your second paragraph, I was referring to the Italian version of the
fiddle not the earlier versions of instruments which were also called
fiddles or something similar. The point I was making was that the
highland pipes had been around for centuries and the characteristics,
advantages disadvantages alike of the pipes or whatever instrument,
have a dominating influence on the music and further that the pipes
were the reason why tunes tended to be composed with two focuses, or
"double tonic"
Your third paragraph, The fact that pipes are used around the world does
not mean that an 8 or 9 note scale is not limiting. Instruments in use
are selected for a whole host of reasons not related to function. The
ultimate customer for music is the human ear. The average human can
hear notes which range from 16 to 16,000 vibrations per second and can
distinguish 1,200 notes in that range. An 88 key piano has a range of 16
to 4000+ vibrations per second, has 12 notes per octave; the fiddle,
Italian version, has a range of approx. 200 to 4000 vibrations per
second, can produce not only the 55 notes as on the piano but small
deviations from these pitches to achieve the most pleasing interval to
the ear. The highland pipes have 9 notes, can play 8 notes of the 12
note diatonic scale, and a frequency range of approx. 400 to 800. David
Johnson in his book "Scottish Fiddle Music in the Eighteenth Century"
says .....".By 1790 the violin had swept its competitors off the
board..........." This was less than 100 years after its arrival The
above summary explains why this happened.
Your fourth paragraph, Keys and modes, Perhaps I don't understand this.
The way I see it these are two separate things, the key being the
focus of a piece of music, usually where the tune starts and ends, and a
mode is a given pattern of notes [usually 8] selected from a group of
12. Can't you focus any mode on any note and can't you change both the
mode and the key in a tune and presto! you've a "double tonic" or
"double key" tune which as I understand it is the legacy passed to us
by the pipes when, for example, a tune is partly in G locritian and
partly in A mixolydian or A mixolydian and B aeolian.
Your fifth paragraph
The C note on the highland pipes is ambiguous. Is it C or C sharpe. The
designation of its scales obviously depend on which it is.
Alexander Mac Donald
Posted to Scots-L - The Traditional Scottish Music & Culture List - To
subscribe/unsubscribe, point your browser to: http://www.tullochgorm.com/lists.html
