Harmonic major scale

Harmonic major scale on C

The harmonic major scale is major scale with a lowered sixth. Lowering the sixth makes it leading by a semitone to the fifth and makes the upper tetrachord of the scale the same as in the harmonic minor scale.

Harmonic major scales are commonly used in jazz and have corollaries in Indian ragas.

Background

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov considered four scales to be the "basis of harmony": the natural minor and major, and the harmonic minor and major. The harmonic major scale is a major scale with the a lowered sixth degree. American musicologist Richard Taruskin polled his colleagues about the scale and found most of them had never heard of it. At least one of Rimsky-Korsakov's peers thought he invented the scale. Anatoly Lyadov helped Rimsky-Korsakov formulate his harmonic pedagogy, and Lyadov's method was derived from his teacher Yuliy Ivanovich Iogansen. ^{[1] : 222–6}

The scale is commonly found in Claude Debussy's music. ^[2] Toru Takemitsu used the harmonic major scale in compositions like Coral Island and Rain Tree Sketch II. The latter was dedicated to Olivier Messiaen, whose analysis of scales was a major influence. Takemitsu's concept of the scale might have been derived from George Russell's ideas about scales where the harmonic major scale was configured as a "Lydian diminished scale". ^[3]

In Hindustani and Carnatic music, the harmonic major scale respectively corresponds to the Raag Nat Bhairav and Raga Sarasangi. ^[4]

Construction

A progression in harmonic major Play .

The scale is simply a major scale with a lowered sixth. ^[5] It is also the harmonic minor scale with a raised third. The chief value of this synthetic scale are the voice leading possibilities it generates. Jazz soloists often rely on its various modes. ^[6]

The lowered sixth provides entry to progressions that are not governed by the circle of fifths. ^{[1] : 231ff} Composers can use it to create more symmetrical harmonies. ^[2] In addition to the scale's minor subdominant chord, the triad built on the sixth scale degree is an augmented chord. ^{[7] : 7}

References

1. Taruskin, Richard. "Rimsky-Korsakov Catches Up", Musical Lives and Times Examined: Keynotes and Clippings, 2006–2019. University of California Press, 2023. 222.
2. Tymoczko, DMitri (2004). "Scale Networks and Debussy". Journal of Music Theory. 48 (2): 245. doi:10.1215/00222909-48-2-219.
3. Burt, Peter (2001). The Music of Toru Takemitsu. Cambridge University Press. p. 101, 231. ISBN   0-521-78220-1.
4. Iyer, Radhika. Elements of Indian Music: The Melakarta System . Mel Bay Publications, 2018. 28.
5. Haunschild, Frank (2000). The New Harmony Book. AMA-Verlag. p. 122. ISBN   9783927190689.
6. Lawn, Richard; Hellmer, Jeffrey L. (1996). Jazz: theory and practice. Alfred Publishing Company. pp. 43ff. ISBN   0-88284-722-8..
7. Rimsky-Korsakov, Nikolai (1943). Practical Manual of Harmony. Carl Fischer, LLC. ISBN   978-0-8258-5699-0.

Further reading

• Coulombe, Adam. "Harmonic Major: Part I — Arranging Blackbird". Canadian Musician Magazine. No. July/August 2015. p. 27.
• Haerle, Dan (September 1, 1982). The Jazz Language: A Theory Text for Jazz Composition and Improvisation. Alfred Music. ISBN   978-0760400142.
• Hewitt, Michael (2013). Musical Scales of the World. The Note Tree. ISBN   978-0957547001.
• Riley, Matthew. "The 'Harmonic Major' Mode in Nineteenth-Century Theory and Practice." Music Analysis, 2004.
• Slonimsky, Nicolas (1947). Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns (First ed.). Music Sales America. p. 152, 159. ISBN   978-0-8256-1449-1.
• Willmott, Bret (1994). Mel Bay's Complete Book of Harmony Theory and Voicing. Mel Bay Publications. ISBN   1-56222-994-X.
• Yamaguchi, Masaya (2006). The Complete Thesaurus of Musical Scales (Revised ed.). New York: Masaya Music Service. ISBN   0-9676353-0-6.

External links

• The Tonal Center page
• "Harmonic Major Scale, Modes, Chords and Arpeggios Music Theory Video" via YouTube