source file: mills3.txt Date: Sat, 20 Dec 1997 18:57:00 +0100 Subject: On the Septimals From: Carl Lumma >>>}In the more usual timbres at least, the 7:6 interval beats too much to >>>}be consonant, affected as it is by the unison. > > Speaking for my own experience, I don't concur with that whatsoever. I >don't find 7:6 to be unpleasant or beating at all. (And I certainly have a >lot of experience with 7:6, since my current main microtonal fascination >approximates it well, and uses it as one of several basic building blocks). > > In comparison to 6:5, I find that 7:6 is no less discordant, but it is >certainly darker in character, and has a certain "zap" sensation in place >of 6:5's sweetness. I agree. I find that the 7/6 juices up minor 7th chords, not to mention providing the 7/4 for the 4^7 chord. > That being said, I personally think that, although "dissonant" may be a >livable choice of adjectives to describe 9:7, two that describe it better >to my ears are "shocking" and "startling". Good adjectives. I'd like to also remind of the way harmonic intervals work with their buddies. The 9/7 behaves quite a bit differently in a plain dyad than it does in a 4,5,6,7,8,9 chord. >And also related to septimals, I don't find 7:4 to be even slightly >discordant. I have described it over the list as like "a fifth with an >attitude". Now I freely acknowledge that that's a self-contradictory >description because of the obvious fact that 7:4 isn't ANY kind of fifth >(except maybe a way-sharp augmented one!). Still to my ears 7:4's auditory >effect has some curious similarities with 3:2's. I don't know if I can put >those similarities into words any better than this: As with 3:2 or 2:1, >7:4 fuses pitches very tightly, and its lack of the sweetness of major and >minor thirds and sixths makes it seem quasi-perfect. I'd never thought about this before, but it is so true. It has that "square" feeling I always associate with the 3:2. >But unlike any perfect interval, it has a flourescent "zap" much like 7:6's, >which is the "attitude" part. damn straight. Carl SMTPOriginator: tuning@eartha.mills.edu From: Carl Lumma Subject: Miscaline PostedDate: 20-12-97 18:57:45 SendTo: CN=coul1358/OU=AT/O=EZH ReplyTo: tuning@eartha.mills.edu $MessageStorage: 0 $UpdatedBy: CN=notesrv2/OU=Server/O=EZH,CN=coul1358/OU=AT/O=EZH,CN=Manuel op de Coul/OU=AT/O=EZH RouteServers: CN=notesrv2/OU=Server/O=EZH,CN=notesrv1/OU=Server/O=EZH RouteTimes: 20-12-97 18:55:44-20-12-97 18:55:44,20-12-97 18:55:18-20-12-97 18:55:19 DeliveredDate: 20-12-97 18:55:19 Categories: $Revisions: Received: from ns.ezh.nl ([137.174.112.59]) by notesrv2.ezh.nl (Lotus SMTP MTA SMTP v4.6 (462.2 9-3-1997)) with SMTP id C1256573.006277AE; Sat, 20 Dec 1997 18:57:28 +0100 Received: by ns.ezh.nl; (5.65v3.2/1.3/10May95) id AA22724; Sat, 20 Dec 1997 18:57:45 +0100 Date: Sat, 20 Dec 1997 18:57:45 +0100 Received: from ella.mills.edu by ns (smtpxd); id XA22726 Received: (qmail 463 invoked from network); 20 Dec 1997 09:57:16 -0800 Received: from localhost (HELO ella.mills.edu) (127.0.0.1) by localhost with SMTP; 20 Dec 1997 09:57:16 -0800 Message-Id: <19971220175529765.AAC206@ascend530.nni.com> Errors-To: madole@mills.edu Reply-To: tuning@eartha.mills.edu Originator: tuning@eartha.mills.edu Sender: tuning@eartha.mills.edu