C major scale

As you may know, I am writing a collection of short instrumental sketches inspired by the feelings I get from different musical scales.

The project is called “Moods and Modes” and it’s summarized in another page of this website.

After exploring pentatonic scales, the blues scale and the pentascales, I turned my attention to the “humble” C major scale.

C major scale

That is, in its simplicity, the scale we all learn as kids:

At my ears it calls for simple and serene melodies. I decided to explore it from different point of views: that of the mind and that of the body

The mind

The C major scales can be the stuff of dreams, at least the serene and simple ones. This is the melody I came up with (here played on the piano, with chords):

I thought the perfect dress for this simple dream should be completely acoustic, with piano, strings and flute. That’s how Simple Dreams came to be:

The body

The C major scale is the perfect one to dance to (with a smile on your face). Hear this simple melody based on the descending C major scale:

A caribbean mood, a flute and a trumpet playing a game of “call and response” transformed this little melody in Serenidad:

The joke

Now let’s try a little joke by spicing the C major scale with a “blue note”. This idea came from the always inspiring method of improvisation “Create First” by Forrest Kinney. If you add a lowered third you get this mischievious 8-note scale:

Here’s a melody I wrote with this hybrid scale, continuously drifting between a major and a minor mood:

I gave the melody to a fiddle (to be honest, I imagined it played by a violin from the start) with the accompaniment of a small “speakeasy” jazz band. The result is “Easy Goin’”:

That’s how the tracks number 7,8 and 9 of my Moods and Modes project were made. I’d really love to know what you think about it.

Thanks for reading!

If you like this project and my music, consider supporting them by:

  1. Subscribing to my newsletter. By doing so, you will be informed of every new release, ang get a free download of Sail Away, the second track of the project
  2. Download from Bandcamp the tracks of the project directly supporting my music (Thank you!!)
  3. Streaming, saving and adding to your playlists these tracks on Spotify: Simple Dreams ; Serenidad and Easy Goin’
  4. Sharing this post with everyone you think may like it :)

Stay tuned for the next releases! Coming next: A minor!

scales

Related