RE: What do you think is necessary in order to have an excellentcomposition?

["Qua Veda" <qua@oregon.com>]

 It would be interesting to build some algorithm in Max that generates a
music form based on golden section or one of the other similarly pleasing
mathematical series.

Maybe its already done.  
-Qua

-----Original Message-----
From: Douglas Baldwin [mailto:coyotelk@optonline.net] 
Sent: Wednesday, February 21, 2007 2:12 PM
To: Daryl; Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com
Subject: Re: What do you think is necessary in order to have an
excellentcomposition?

Well, Daryl, I'm gonna go hit up some of my favorite songs/music and see if
there's something Golden in their form. You got me thinking! What I would
like to see (or hear) is if the "Golden Mean" can be heard in retrospect
after one or two listenings, just as "key center," "tonal center," "unusual
time signature," "blues phrasing," etc. can be heard.
dB


> True, the structure isn't apparent until the piece is complete. The 
> way I view it is that, if a high point has occurred at roughly 2/3 of 
> the way through a tune, the end seems to arrive at a time that is 
> expected and pleasing.
>
> Any pop song that has a guitar solo before the bridge or last verse 
> would roughly follow the model. Tons of Beatles tunes...for instance, 
> Here Comes the Sun. The building bridge after "sun, sun, sun, here it 
> comes" happens after two verses...then it's another verse, another 
> chorus and out. I mentioned Bach earlier, If I remember correctly in 
> the Chaconne or the ubiquitous cello suite prelude in G, the fastest 
> passages and highest note occur at a Rectanglish spot.
>
> Daryl Shawn
> www.swanwelder.com
>
> > I beg to differ. The Golden Mean exists outside of time. You observe 
> > the golden mean as a whole. Music exists in time. You don't know how 
> > much
music
> > is ahead (i.e., how much of the ratio is left) until you get to the 
>end.
You
> > don't observe music as a whole until it's over. I've listened to 
> > some of Bartok's pieces which are written around the Golden Mean, 
> > and I don't
hear
> > it. I like the music, but I don't hear it.
> >
> > But tell me, what songs use the Golden Mean? Maybe if I listen more,
I'll
> > begin to notice it.
>