Pitch and tuning in Beninese brass bands

Copeland, Lyndsey

doi:10.1080/17411912.2018.1518151

Cited by 3 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Novelty biases could be can describe choosing novel microtonal tunings as a means of expression [140,151]. An example of a prestige bias is where tunings are copied from players/instruments that are acknowledged as good [46,87].…”

Section: How Are Scales Selected?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On the other hand, instruments are constrained in how reliably they can be re-tuned to the same scale. There is a long history [152,182] behind the practice of tuning using harmonic intervals [50,52,59,67,88], and reports exist of tuning according to the step sizes [38,49,51], tuning instruments visually [87,88,96,183], and copying a reference instrument [46,87].…”

Section: How Are Scales Selected?mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Convergent evolution in a large cross-cultural database of musical scales

McBride,

Passmore,

Tlusty

2023

PLoS ONE

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Scales, sets of discrete pitches that form the basis of melodies, are thought to be one of the most universal hallmarks of music. But we know relatively little about cross-cultural diversity of scales or how they evolved. To remedy this, we assemble a cross-cultural database (Database of Musical Scales: DaMuSc) of scale data, collected over the past century by various ethnomusicologists. Statistical analyses of the data highlight that certain intervals (e.g., the octave, fifth, second) are used frequently across cultures. Despite some diversity among scales, it is the similarities across societies which are most striking: step intervals are restricted to 100-400 cents; most scales are found close to equidistant 5- and 7-note scales. We discuss potential mechanisms of variation and selection in the evolution of scales, and how the assembled data may be used to examine the root causes of convergent evolution.

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Section: How Are Scales Selected?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: How Are Scales Selected?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Convergent evolution in a large cross-cultural database of musical scales

McBride,

Passmore,

Tlusty

2023

PLoS ONE

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“…Novelty biases can be found in the numerous composers in the 20th century who experimented with microtonal tunings [118]; Gamelan tuners also indicate the use of tuning variability as a form of expression [109]. There is also some indication of a prestige / success bias, where tunings are chosen because they are associated with success, or good ability [67].…”

Section: How Are Scales Selected?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Musicians will also tune their instruments according to the sound of adjacent intervals [18,29,31]. An underappreciated form of tuning is to tune an instrument visually [67,68]; e.g., are the holes on a flute evenly spaced? Do the xylophone bars increase in size according to a smooth gra-dient?…”

Section: How Are Scales Selected?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Do the xylophone bars increase in size according to a smooth gra-dient? One can also tune according to some standard (outstanding Gamelan orchestra [26]; the best-sounding player in a group; using an electric tuner [67]). In addition to the fundamental frequency, the spectral quality can be tuned as a secondary consideration [109].…”

Section: How Are Scales Selected?mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Convergent evolution in a large cross-cultural database of musical scales

McBride¹,

Passmore²,

Tlusty³

2021

Preprint

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Scales, sets of discrete pitches used to generate melodies, are thought to be one of the most universal features of music. Despite this, we know relatively little about how cross-cultural diversity, or how scales have evolved. We remedy this, in part, we assemble a cross-cultural database of empirical scale data, collected over the past century by various ethnomusicologists. We provide statistical analyses to highlight that certain intervals (e.g., the octave) are used frequently across cultures. Despite some diversity among scales, it is the similarities across societies which are most striking. Most scales are found close to equidistant 5- and 7-note scales; for 7-note scales this accounts for less than 1% of all possible scales. In addition to providing these data and statistical analyses, we review how they may be used to explore the causes for convergent evolution in scales.

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Matrix Listening; or, What and How We Can Learn from Historical Sound Recordings

Luker

2022

Ethnomusicology

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A matrix number is an alphanumeric code that is inscribed into the run-out area of commercially recorded gramophone discs. In this article, I argue that orienting our scholarly listening around matrix numbers—what I call “matrix listening”—can help us reframe our engagement with historical sound recordings as primary sources and thereby lend valuable insights into any number of scholarly questions. It can also help us revisit the issue of materiality in recorded sound specifically and music in general, approaching sound recordings not only as container technologies for “music” as a purified domain but as complexly agentive material things.

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Pitch and tuning in Beninese brass bands

Cited by 3 publications

References 33 publications

Convergent evolution in a large cross-cultural database of musical scales

Convergent evolution in a large cross-cultural database of musical scales

Convergent evolution in a large cross-cultural database of musical scales

Matrix Listening; or, What and How We Can Learn from Historical Sound Recordings

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