There is a danger of confusion in the term “mixture,” since the use of notes between 3 ˆ and 3 ˆ might also be described as a kind of mixture. In this study, we seek not only to examine the use of mixture between 3 ˆ and 3 ˆ, but also to investigate the possible occurrence of blue notes that fall between the two degrees. (3) Blue notes also arise in general discussions of popular music analysis, as an example of musical phenomena that cannot easily be captured with traditional music notation ( Mcclary and Walser 1990, 282 Middleton 1990, 95). Other mentions of blue notes in rock could be cited, though it is sometimes unclear whether the microtonal or the chromatic meaning of the term is intended (e.g., Whiteley 1990, 41). Brackett ( 1994) finds blue notes in the soul singers Wilson Pickett and James Brown Tallmadge ( 1984) finds them in Stevie Wonder and Sly Stone Daley ( 1997) finds them in the “new wave” singer Patti Smith. Weisethaunet suggests that the microtonal pitch practice of the blues “has also found its way into other styles of music, in particular jazz and rock” ( 2001, 108). However, blue notes have also been cited as an important phenomenon in later styles of popular music. In his pioneering study of early “downhome” blues, Titon ( 1994) argues that microtonal inflections are frequent and intentional, and represents them often in his transcriptions (see also Evans 1982, van der Merwe 1989, Kubik 2008, Stoia 2010, and Curry 2015). As the term suggests, blue notes are thought to be particularly characteristic of the blues. In this article, however, we employ only the “microtonal” meaning of the term, not the “chromatic” one. The term “blue note” also sometimes refers to certain notes within the chromatic scale, most often 3 ˆ and 7 ˆ, when used in a major-mode context ( Wagner 2003) from this viewpoint, mediant mixture itself might be considered an aspect of “blue note” usage. (2) Blue notes are most often said to occur between 3 ˆ and 3 ˆ (sometimes known as “blue thirds” or “neutral thirds”), though they have been observed in other parts of the scale as well ( Titon 1994 Weisethaunet 2001). Discussions of blue notes generally assume that the “in-between” tuning of these notes is intentional, and that they should be understood as categorically distinct from the chromatic categories on either side. While there is some inconsistency in the use of this term, it usually refers to pitches that fall in between chromatic scale steps. Of particular importance here is the concept of the blue note. It has also been suggested, however, that this may oversimplify the cognitive representation of pitch in modern popular music. All of the discussions cited above assume the basic framework of the Western chromatic scale, in which the octave is divided into twelve equal steps. Mediant mixture raises a still deeper theoretical issue. (Here we define “rock” broadly-as it is often used-to include a wide range of late 20th-century Anglo-American popular genres, such as 1950s rock’n’roll, Motown, soul, heavy metal, disco, and 1990s alternative rock.) In this paper we examine the phenomenon of mediant mixture within rock melodies, in hopes of gaining a better understanding of where and how it occurs. (1) In many other songs, though, both 3 ˆ and 3 ˆ are used within the melody itself. One common scenario for mediant mixture is where 3 ˆ is used in the harmony while 3 ˆ is used in the melody the opening of Elvis Presley’s “Jailhouse Rock” is one example ( Example 1). Some theorists have suggested viewing the 3 ˆ as an alteration of an underlying 3 ˆ ( Stephenson 2002 Wagner 2003) or have proposed alternative scale formations that include both degrees (Temperley and de Clercq propose the “pentatonic union” scale, 1 ˆ- 2 ˆ- 3 ˆ- 3 ˆ- 4 ˆ- 5 ˆ- 6 ˆ- 7 ˆ). From a theoretical point of view, mediant mixture is of interest since it resists explanation in terms of conventional diatonic and pentatonic scales, none of which include both 3 ˆ and 3 ˆ. Mediant mixture has been noted and discussed by a number of authors ( Stephenson 2002 Wagner 2003 Everett 2004 Biamonte 2010 Temperley and de Clercq 2013). A characteristic feature of pitch organization in rock is the use of both 3 ˆ and 3 ˆ within a song-what we will refer to as mediant mixture. Copyright © 2017 Society for Music TheoryĮxample 1.
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