What is Polytonality? | Q+A

Поділитися
Вставка
  • Опубліковано 2 чер 2024
  • Exploring Polytonality, musical memes, and picardy thirds! Answering all of your questions about bass and music in general. BASS
    Many thanks to Brendan Hayes, Jeff T, Ike Zhang, Craig Smith, Jack Mahlmann, Emma and James Weidner for their insightful questions.
    0:11 What is Polytonality?
    6:40 Stop treating music like a meme!
    9:05 What is a Picardy Third?
    10:30 How do you keep your wrist straight in the lower registers of Bass Guitar?
    11:50 How was music a “lingua franca” when you were on tour in Mongolia?
    13:18 Aren’t you a cultural imperialist touring for America?
    15:08 Why didn’t you go to the University of Maryland?
    MOZART A MUSICAL JOKE:
    • Mozart - Musical Joke
    NYO Canada 2017 Good Foundation Chamberfest, Jun 28
    Recital Hall, Wilfrid Laurier University
    Heinrich I. F. Biber: Battalia Á 10
    Norwegian Chamber Orchestra
    • Heinrich I. F. Biber: ...
    Stravinsky: Petroesjka / Petrouchka Concertgebouw Orchestra Live concert HD
    • Stravinsky: Petroesjka...
    ⦿ Adam Neely T-shirts! ⦿
    teespring.com/stores/adam-nee...
    ⦿ SUPPORT ME ON PATREON ⦿
    / adamneely
    ⦿ FOLLOW ME ON THE INTERNETS ⦿
    / adamneely
    / its_adamneely
    ⦿ Check out some of my music ⦿
    sungazermusic.bandcamp.com
    insideoutsidemusic.bandcamp.com
    adamneelymusic.bandcamp.com
    Peace,
    Adam

КОМЕНТАРІ • 2,4 тис.

  • @MathematicianDr
    @MathematicianDr 4 роки тому +6373

    I never sing out of key. My singing is polytonal with respect to the music.

    • @MisterAppleEsq
      @MisterAppleEsq 4 роки тому +90

      Reminds me of Adam's Elton John story.

    • @paulvanmaldegem6315
      @paulvanmaldegem6315 4 роки тому +297

      I never sing dissonant. I just sing microtonal

    • @joemca7917
      @joemca7917 4 роки тому +5

      Mister Apple oh yeah!

    • @accipiterignitus5123
      @accipiterignitus5123 4 роки тому +59

      The singing could be also polymicrotonal

    • @swissarmyknight4306
      @swissarmyknight4306 4 роки тому +83

      If you know enough music theory you never make mistakes. Its all just chromaticism and polyrhythms.

  • @dysonjb688
    @dysonjb688 3 роки тому +899

    “Two keys at once?!”
    My big brain: C# and Db

    • @kent631420
      @kent631420 3 роки тому +11

      C# and Db are enharmonic, meaning they sound the same, so it's really just one key

    • @andypantz8919
      @andypantz8919 3 роки тому +187

      @@kent631420 pretty sure that is the joke

    • @kent631420
      @kent631420 3 роки тому +13

      @@andypantz8919 r/wooosh

    • @beckst3r
      @beckst3r 3 роки тому +112

      @@kent631420 dude you were the one who got r/wooshed

    • @andypantz8919
      @andypantz8919 3 роки тому +13

      @@beckst3r for sure haha

  • @tonyhakston536
    @tonyhakston536 4 роки тому +3493

    People always ask, “what is jazz?”
    but never, “how is jazz?”
    How is jazz, Adam?

    • @10mimu
      @10mimu 4 роки тому +115

      dying

    • @tonyhakston536
      @tonyhakston536 4 роки тому +72

      Human Effigy Maybe, but like.
      What isn’t dying?

    • @jreynoldswrap
      @jreynoldswrap 4 роки тому +218

      @@10mimu "Jazz isn't dead. It just smells funny." - Frank Zappa

    • @jamesha175
      @jamesha175 4 роки тому +25

      jazz is doing just fine, thank you

    • @Bushwhacker-so4yk
      @Bushwhacker-so4yk 4 роки тому +19

      Why is jazz?

  • @emotionalagliophilic8623
    @emotionalagliophilic8623 4 роки тому +373

    The part about “Happy Birthday” always becoming polytonal is so true

    • @edwardgivenscomposer
      @edwardgivenscomposer 3 роки тому +13

      didn't used to be. this is what happens when people are no longer encouraged to sing or play an instrument.

    • @lonelittlejerry917
      @lonelittlejerry917 2 роки тому +2

      @@edwardgivenscomposer lmao shut up

    • @wolfetteplays8894
      @wolfetteplays8894 Рік тому +1

      @@edwardgivenscomposer truee

    • @kreeperkiller4423
      @kreeperkiller4423 Рік тому +5

      polytonal AND the different keys they're singing in are microtonal as well!

    • @YourAverageLink
      @YourAverageLink Рік тому

      You often hear about the birthday paradox in terms of how likely two people share a birthday. The real birthday paradox is how many people do you think need to be in a room to have all twelve keys covered?

  • @AdamNeely
    @AdamNeely  4 роки тому +3194

    all licks in todays episode are in 17-tone equal temperament.

  • @rohiogerv22
    @rohiogerv22 4 роки тому +350

    WHEN I WAS
    A YOUNG BOY
    MY FATHER
    TOOK ME INTO THE CITY
    TO SEE 2 MARCHING BANDS AT THE SAME TIME

  • @quistyquistsounds4841
    @quistyquistsounds4841 4 роки тому +2191

    Can we talk about how hard it is to purposefully sing in a different key than the accompaniment?? That might be the most impressive segment I've seen from you.

    • @luukwoudstra8903
      @luukwoudstra8903 4 роки тому +43

      Yeahh! I was also wondering how he does that.

    • @user-qn9pr3kq3o
      @user-qn9pr3kq3o 4 роки тому +112

      while he is also the one playing the accompaniment

    • @EMan753
      @EMan753 4 роки тому +5

      Right!!!!

    • @paulumoh7546
      @paulumoh7546 4 роки тому +4

      Not quite difficult sir/madam.

    • @AFN2750
      @AFN2750 4 роки тому +24

      Be as tone deaf as I am

  • @instinctbrosgaming9699
    @instinctbrosgaming9699 4 роки тому +540

    I like how Ives also wrote "actual notes" in the trumpet for The Unanswered Question. Like, no we didn't write this wrong.

    • @hengsikai2862
      @hengsikai2862 4 роки тому +82

      Lmao I think the "actual notes" refers to notating in concert pitch, as opposed to traditional notation where a written C would sound as a concert B-flat on the trumpet. I dont think Ives was reassuring anyone that he didn't make a mistake when writing the melody.

    • @seabassthegamer6644
      @seabassthegamer6644 4 роки тому +103

      @@hengsikai2862 But that interpretation isn't as funny

  • @niamhoconnor8986
    @niamhoconnor8986 4 роки тому +1014

    Fun fact: ADAM NYLEE'S WORST TRAINWRECK WAS A POLYTONAL ELTON JOHN COVER AT A WEDDIN

    • @AlasdairGR
      @AlasdairGR 4 роки тому +7

      Niamh O'Connor Underrated comment

    • @jjamesjams
      @jjamesjams 4 роки тому +16

      Polytonality DESTROYED

    • @gilliangilliangillian
      @gilliangilliangillian 4 роки тому +37

      i'm going to write out a quadritonal Elton John cover to be played at my wedding

    • @niamhoconnor8986
      @niamhoconnor8986 4 роки тому +5

      @@gilliangilliangillian that's the spirit!

    • @niamhoconnor8986
      @niamhoconnor8986 4 роки тому +1

      @@AlasdairGR thanks!

  • @secretmilo
    @secretmilo 4 роки тому +563

    Music has always been a meme. Mozart wrote a song called "lick my ass" that he liked so much that he even wrote a sequal.

    • @TAP7a
      @TAP7a 4 роки тому +133

      Mozart was a massive scatophile. And one of the greatest composers who ever lived. And also died young.
      What a dude

    • @ingwerschorle_
      @ingwerschorle_ 4 роки тому +34

      @@lifeontheledgerlines8394 he also wrote lyrics like: "sleep well and stretch your ass to the mouth" :D
      ps. It's actually leck mich im arsch
      pps. mozart karaoke is a BASSing great idea😂

    • @lifeontheledgerlines8394
      @lifeontheledgerlines8394 4 роки тому +2

      @@ingwerschorle_ Dammit, I was so close!

    • @lifeontheledgerlines8394
      @lifeontheledgerlines8394 4 роки тому +1

      @@ingwerschorle_ I'd edit my comment, but it's UA-cam isn't letting me edit my comment. Argh, what is happening with this platform?

    • @lifeontheledgerlines8394
      @lifeontheledgerlines8394 4 роки тому +1

      @@ingwerschorle_ Okay, thanks for the correction! I can finally fix it (edit is now working again).

  • @irmaakesson3421
    @irmaakesson3421 Рік тому +15

    The fact that you can sing happy birthday in f# while accompanying yourself in c. You are truly incredible

  • @KuraSourTakanHour
    @KuraSourTakanHour 4 роки тому +348

    Music can be a joke if it wants, we dont progress at anything if we're stifled over convention

  • @georgealbert6562
    @georgealbert6562 4 роки тому +278

    "Q+A" to "New Horizons in Music" is the same as how "Michaels Toys" is to "Vsauce"

  • @yuvalne
    @yuvalne 4 роки тому +185

    Mozart had a lot of memes in his music (a musical joke, and of course, the classic leck mich im arsch). Haydn in his 6th symphony gives the horn a two-bar solo, most likely as an inside joke with his horn player. Bach inserted folk songs into his Goldberg Variations. Bold of you to assume musicians ever did treat music seriously, Jeff T.

    • @gypsytabor1675
      @gypsytabor1675 4 роки тому +21

      Yep. And sometimes they even added easter eggs and references in their pieces. Like tristan chord in Debussy's opera before phrase 'je suis triste'.

    • @RobertMilesAI
      @RobertMilesAI 4 роки тому +4

      Right! And in fact A Musical Joke was one of the first big examples of polytonality too

    • @dishwasherdetergent3366
      @dishwasherdetergent3366 4 роки тому

      @@gypsytabor1675 wasn't the Tristan chord Wagner?

    • @Choinkus
      @Choinkus 4 роки тому +4

      The more you learn about mozart, the more you realize he was pretty much a living meme

    • @gypsytabor1675
      @gypsytabor1675 4 роки тому

      Yes, that's the point.
      Debussy used it right before phrase "je suis triste" which sounds a bit like Tristan. So he cleverly referenced Wagner in his piece. Kind of inner joke. These nerds ))

  • @gustavosperling
    @gustavosperling 4 роки тому +64

    The unanswered question from Charles Ives is a genius masterpiece.

  • @brennam5596
    @brennam5596 4 роки тому +72

    No, I'm not tone deaf! I just sing with
    ✨ *P o l y t o n a l i t y* ✨

  • @kadourimdou43
    @kadourimdou43 4 роки тому +551

    Q. How the hell did you sing in a different key?

    • @clintmclintock
      @clintmclintock 4 роки тому +21

      ua-cam.com/video/5Ju8Wxmrk3s/v-deo.html

    • @mullhaupt4977
      @mullhaupt4977 4 роки тому +3

      Same question here

    • @larrymm1963
      @larrymm1963 4 роки тому +18

      Practice vocal lessons to get familiar with he scale and notes

    • @mullhaupt4977
      @mullhaupt4977 4 роки тому +34

      @@larrymm1963 I've actually just tried it and it definitely sounds a lot harder than it is. As long as you can listen to the whole thing out in both keys ahead of time it's easy to not get mixed up.

    • @larrymm1963
      @larrymm1963 4 роки тому

      @@mullhaupt4977 What if you have headphones on and go directly into the board with the instrument as to be able to lower either volume also read the instrument lines

  • @kyrla
    @kyrla 4 роки тому +505

    Alright, which tuning system are you doing the lick on today

    • @stefan1024
      @stefan1024 4 роки тому +25

      Yes.

    • @ingwerschorle_
      @ingwerschorle_ 4 роки тому +42

      A= 420 BLAZE IT

    • @Almanildo
      @Almanildo 4 роки тому +5

      I'm guessing the timbres are messed up, warping the overtones to be off the harmonic series

    • @AdamNeely
      @AdamNeely  4 роки тому +141

      17-tet

    • @GigglebunsUV
      @GigglebunsUV 4 роки тому +1

      a = 378

  • @calebgeary3890
    @calebgeary3890 4 роки тому +236

    During worship rehearsals, I've gotten pretty good at throwing off the lead vocalist by harmonizing the melody a half step below.
    I'm now better at that than actually singing a melody

    • @SmokeyG69
      @SmokeyG69 4 роки тому +25

      I do this in school band ensembles to see if the director notices

    • @shorty-music-123
      @shorty-music-123 4 роки тому +12

      absolute madlad

  • @zaynemaddox2508
    @zaynemaddox2508 4 роки тому +615

    Gets copyrighted for happy bday*

    • @wiseausrs
      @wiseausrs 4 роки тому +5

      Should have came in with the claps and the sparklers!

    • @PackerFanGamer
      @PackerFanGamer 4 роки тому +31

      Can't, it entered the public domain recently

    • @PaulSharrock
      @PaulSharrock 4 роки тому +15

      @@PackerFanGamer Happy Birthday has always being in the public domain, it just took a bit of money to prove that in court.. The original copyright was for one piano arrangement of the song, nothing more.

    • @benhawkes7503
      @benhawkes7503 4 роки тому +2

      @@PackerFanGamer and its just a joke

    • @archiemac5137
      @archiemac5137 4 роки тому +1

      @@benhawkes7503 yes and the joke wasn't logical

  • @DrLenardChurch
    @DrLenardChurch 4 роки тому +187

    With all this spice you'll need to start your own version of Hot Ones where you expose people to denser and denser polytonality until they cry.

  • @PBrrtrn
    @PBrrtrn 4 роки тому +111

    I just want to say the thumbnail is not clickbaity enough. May I recommend something more along the lines of "TWO keys at ONCE? Experiment gone WRONG (I DIED)"

    • @Theraot
      @Theraot 4 роки тому +11

      Add "Red hot spicy, hydraulic press"

  • @earlleonard
    @earlleonard 4 роки тому +42

    I used the picardy third ending in a thrash mental song about a wizard (written with a bunch of elementary school grade 4 kids for an engagement program I ran), because the suddenly happy ending sounded medieval to me. They dug it

  • @BarryPiper
    @BarryPiper 4 роки тому +58

    What is lost in translation is often regained through interpretation.

  • @samdenomme5431
    @samdenomme5431 4 роки тому +90

    “We get the woodwinds coming at you with… some more weird stuff” sounds like my highschool concert band lol😂

  • @DBruce
    @DBruce 4 роки тому +325

    I'm actually taking a certain musical meme very seriously in my next musical composition. I must be the future (-:

  • @LJMadrigalMusic
    @LJMadrigalMusic 4 роки тому +86

    Compose a piece with polytonality. The treble clef will play in F# major scale while the bass cle will play in the key of Gb major. Let's see if that'll annoy the pianist. 🤣🤣

    • @shorty-music-123
      @shorty-music-123 4 роки тому +17

      Composer: *hands pianist sheet music* Here's the new piece for the concert.
      Pianist: *starts visibly shaking at seeing that its in Gb and F# at the same time*
      C: What's wrong?
      P: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

    • @emmetharrigan5234
      @emmetharrigan5234 3 роки тому +4

      Prokofiev kind of did that with the third piece of Sarcasms (1912). Right hand starts in f# and left hand in f. Three sharps on the top staff and five flats on the bottom

    • @merrybeans3029
      @merrybeans3029 2 роки тому

      @@emmetharrigan5234 don't know that piece,, but f#/f is *actual* polytonality, as opposed to F#/Gb which is the same thing just written differently, not two entirely different keys, and wouldn't throw a professional much because both hands have the same muscle memory of that sound (F#/Gb)...it's more just a visual irritation that you can get around by knowing the sound that's supposed to happen.

  • @nathankulp4275
    @nathankulp4275 4 роки тому +88

    “ A trumpet playing some weird stuff.” Welcome to 4th grade trumpet lessons

    • @merrybeans3029
      @merrybeans3029 2 роки тому +1

      Beats the hell outta 3rd grade recorder class. Lol

  • @bigweld4328
    @bigweld4328 4 роки тому +284

    PROTIP make sure the synth and the vocals are in the SAME KEY

    • @perplexingpantheon
      @perplexingpantheon 4 роки тому +11

      I love that meme

    • @safwannizam2932
      @safwannizam2932 4 роки тому +4

      Diego Rodriguez that comment was from 7 years ago lol

    • @gabethebabe8187
      @gabethebabe8187 4 роки тому +6

      Holy shit this comment is so funny oh my fucking god nice one dude!

    • @dr.jekyllproject7172
      @dr.jekyllproject7172 4 роки тому +2

      Close enough for jazz

    • @musicdev
      @musicdev 4 роки тому

      This is the comment we all knew was somewhere around here 😉

  • @alexshih3747
    @alexshih3747 4 роки тому +34

    8:17 For real tho, Mozart and Haydn are the two memelords of the classical music canon. After listening to their music you get the feeling that neither of them took life that seriously. No wonder they were best friends.

  • @YoutubePizzer
    @YoutubePizzer 4 роки тому +473

    you could’ve used a song that isn’t happy birthday
    one’s ears are trained to accept happy birthday being sung in all 12 keys
    Edit: nevermind he made fun of it in the video

    • @trigon7015
      @trigon7015 4 роки тому +2

      And Warner Chappell have probably claimed him now

    • @notsogreatsword1607
      @notsogreatsword1607 4 роки тому +18

      This is why you watch the whole video before commenting. A rule which I'm breaking right now.

    • @johnwiese6760
      @johnwiese6760 4 роки тому +33

      You act like its only sung in 12 keys, not counting microtonal music

    • @plexquared1877
      @plexquared1877 3 роки тому +8

      @@johnwiese6760 Yeah I was singing it this one time in class and I swear that one guy was singing in some sort of e half sharp key or something

    • @forbiddenfursona
      @forbiddenfursona 3 роки тому +1

      @@plexquared1877 X e n h a r m o n i c

  • @DavidMcCoul
    @DavidMcCoul 4 роки тому +141

    Polytonality: “A musical joke” - W.A. Mozart

    • @ajarofnutella
      @ajarofnutella 4 роки тому +19

      not nearly as good as "lick my ass", also by mozart

  • @MattLeGroulx
    @MattLeGroulx 4 роки тому +51

    An interesting theory about the Picardy third is that because the major 3rd occurs so strongly in the overtone series that when choral music was sung in a cathedral, say the Amiens cathedral in Picardy, France, that when you ended a piece on a minor chord the minor third would clash with the overtone major 3rd of the fundamental. The Picardy 3rd was the solution to that and it kind of stuck.

  • @harrisonglenn6204
    @harrisonglenn6204 4 роки тому +188

    Nobody:
    14-year olds who know more than one Nirvana song: 6:47

    • @abcrx32j
      @abcrx32j 4 роки тому +1

      Even if Nirvana is a meme

    • @theknifesedge57
      @theknifesedge57 4 роки тому

      @@abcrx32j ur a meme

    • @abcrx32j
      @abcrx32j 4 роки тому

      @@theknifesedge57 Yeah, maybe memes are too relevant to compare them to Nirvana, my bad. The are more like an old shitty movie that a lot of people make references of

    • @theknifesedge57
      @theknifesedge57 4 роки тому +2

      @@abcrx32j i kinda like them but i see where you're coming from

    • @dead_kennedys7870
      @dead_kennedys7870 4 роки тому +1

      Ricardo Rodríguez Edgy CONTRARIAN 14 year old who knows one Nirvana song.

  • @sya8002
    @sya8002 4 роки тому +67

    Hey Adam, question for your next Q+A:
    Musical storytelling is heavily influenced by the notions of tension and release, which in academical music are realized by harmonic tools (chords, progressions, etc). But as you mentioned in some of your videos, other styles of music use other devices: EDM has buildups and drops, extreme metal has breakdowns and so on.
    If harmony creates tensions/releases because of dissonant and consonant sounds, what is explanation behind drops and breakdowns? Does our ear prefer slower parts, or is it because of passing from dense parts to more saturated ones?
    As usual, great content!

  • @TavinhoPowers
    @TavinhoPowers 4 роки тому +18

    man, that interpretation of the trumpet asking the question gave me the chills! Thank you opening my mind to this beautiful and intriguing kind of music

    • @jkb1O5
      @jkb1O5 3 роки тому

      Same. Awesomely Inspired

  • @picolete
    @picolete 4 роки тому +338

    House of cards, holding A minor on your left hand feels kind of wrong, hmmmmm

    • @fjrjdjjjcdjjdj7282
      @fjrjdjjjcdjjdj7282 4 роки тому +7

      😂😂😂

    • @LotharLive
      @LotharLive 4 роки тому +65

      "but I thought, that's just Frank"

    • @mihajlostojanov7311
      @mihajlostojanov7311 4 роки тому

      It's the best comment, You made me laugh so hard. Thank you !!! :))))

    • @brij4174
      @brij4174 4 роки тому +5

      You win the internet for today.

    • @j_freed
      @j_freed 4 роки тому

      (Implicitly saying) *...I mean yeah, she's a hot piece of ass, but it's just agonist the law!*

  • @andersridder1125
    @andersridder1125 4 роки тому +56

    Hi Adam!
    I keep hearing the question: "does it djent?", but I have yet to discover HOW something djents. Could you elucidate how a monotonic, syncopated, percussive guitar riff can be so intriguing?
    Here, I am not referring to the origin of the term, which is, as far as I know, essentially just an onomatopoeia misheard by an interviewer of Fredrik Thordendal.
    Thank you!

    • @eliasmg9144
      @eliasmg9144 4 роки тому +6

      Can't tell if you're fucking around, you are making a sincere question or both

    • @TheStuF
      @TheStuF 4 роки тому +3

      @@eliasmg9144 can you tell if does he djent?

    • @eliasmg9144
      @eliasmg9144 4 роки тому

      @@TheStuF no

    • @xxXthekevXxx
      @xxXthekevXxx 4 роки тому +1

      If it makes your head bob, it djents

  • @nibblrrr7124
    @nibblrrr7124 4 роки тому +265

    6:42
    > transhumanism avatar
    > disgusted at playful experimentation with weird ideas to achieve new sensations
    pshhhhhh

    • @luigivercotti6410
      @luigivercotti6410 4 роки тому +4

      Trans-what? That looks more like the hewlett packard logo to me

    • @areadenial2343
      @areadenial2343 4 роки тому +13

      @@luigivercotti6410 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transhumanism
      It's a philosophical movement which believes humans will reach the next stage in evolution through technology and exploring new ideas. The h+ logo is one of its symbols, as I recall.

    • @forbiddenfursona
      @forbiddenfursona 3 роки тому

      fakie lol

  • @timbretimbre1442
    @timbretimbre1442 4 роки тому +30

    Diaghilev: How much longer will it go on like that?
    Stravisnky: Till the end, my dear fellow

  • @Riurelia
    @Riurelia 3 роки тому +11

    Yesterday, I converted one of my melodies into a polytonal one. Originally, it was in E major, but I made a version in F major and C sharp major. When I first heard it, I thought "This sounds ugly but I like it". Since then, I've listened to it several times and I've gotten desensitized to it so it doesn't actually sound bad anymore.

  • @TheStuF
    @TheStuF 4 роки тому +47

    question for q and a - "is 1/1 the best time signature?"
    Thanks for great videos, adam :)

  • @jamestreanor4361
    @jamestreanor4361 4 роки тому +72

    Sounds like how you would sing Happy Birthday at a funeral.

  • @sebstins
    @sebstins 4 роки тому +15

    Multiple Adam Neely's singing Happy Birthday polytonically is one of my favourite clips now.

  • @davidgustavsson4000
    @davidgustavsson4000 4 роки тому +27

    You might mention it, but I might forget to write, so.
    I'm thinking about "F sharp" by Tim Minchin.

  • @gijsclement1496
    @gijsclement1496 4 роки тому +15

    I quite like the fact that today is my birthday and Adam just played this amazingly spicy 'happy birthday'🌶😂

  • @mikislives
    @mikislives 4 роки тому +18

    Question for your next Q & A: Is there a way of accurately transcribing ambient and glitch music? The artists like William Basinski or Tim Hecker are amongst my favorites and it makes me curious about the theory behind it all.

    • @wolfetteplays8894
      @wolfetteplays8894 Рік тому

      Yes, it is, but you would certainly need software more advanced than MuseScore

  • @landmo6481
    @landmo6481 4 роки тому +45

    I didn't know my life was missing a Djent form of the lick but now I do. Stevie T, where you at?

    • @jessecrans
      @jessecrans 4 роки тому +3

      The solo in periphery's graveless, check it out

  • @taeojohnston
    @taeojohnston 4 роки тому +50

    Question for your next Q&A;
    Hello Adam, What do you think about playing chords on bass as a 'flavor enhancer"? As someone who plays prog-rock and alternative, I like to throw chords in sometimes, but these are genres were this is more acceptable. I know that bass "is not supposed to do that", but, I feel that they could have some really nice effects on traditional pop and or Jazz music. Thoughts :)

    • @tcampbell1314
      @tcampbell1314 4 роки тому +10

      Not Adam, but might have a bit of an answer! I think one of the reasons bass chords are frowned upon is more a scientific thing than a genre thing.Because the notes on a bass all have a fairly low frequency, when chords on the bass are played those frequencies are a lot closer together then if you played a chord on a guitar. As harmonies begin to have smaller distance between frequencies, the overall quality of the harmony starts to get a lot muddier and less distinct. A major triad on a guitar for example, sounds much cleaner and richer than a bass as well due to this, while a triad at the high end of a piano sounds overly bright and empty. The clashy, muddy sound of a bass chord struggles to find a place in very 'clean' genres like pop music, while genres like metal and prog embrace the clash a lot more. Hope this brings some light to things.

    • @jasper24601
      @jasper24601 4 роки тому

      Taeo Life yes

    • @XENOGOD
      @XENOGOD 4 роки тому +2

      i love bringing in major thirds on the A and D string while slapping, it's super spicy and funky and works fairly well, fifths and minor thirds too, whole chords are problematic though

    • @wingracer1614
      @wingracer1614 4 роки тому +4

      @@XENOGOD Yeah I'm not a fan of full triads on bass but man 5ths and octaves can be KILLER when used well.

    • @XENOGOD
      @XENOGOD 4 роки тому +1

      @@wingracer1614 they can be used in a mellow setting, like cliff burton in "Orion", I really recommend you try it out because it's soooo fun

  • @ionwyns
    @ionwyns 4 роки тому +15

    I was hoping you’d say Happy Birthday, Canada on the happy birthday song!

  • @werepuffin
    @werepuffin 3 роки тому

    Thank you so much for these videos, Adam. My school background in (English) composition and teaching, not music-But the pandemic has me spending a lot of time with my guitar now, trying to understand music from the building-blocks up.
    I’ve had trouble finding references that do this-but you are always willing to go deep and explain things to the root. I’ve so much appreciation for your knowledge, experience, perspective, humor and morals. Thank you for continuing to share

  • @BenjaminStaern
    @BenjaminStaern 4 роки тому +6

    Bartok uses a lot of polytonality in many of his seminal works like Dance Suite, Wooden Prince, The Miraculous Mandarin, Concerto for Orchestra and some of his chamber music.

  • @benbisaillon7488
    @benbisaillon7488 4 роки тому +26

    Question for the next QnA: Im curious, because your band makes EDM, what are some interesting bits of music theory that appear in the genre?

    • @arielyemini4221
      @arielyemini4221 4 роки тому

      Sounds interesting!

    • @red13emerald
      @red13emerald 4 роки тому

      I can immediately think of the 3:4 polyrhythms, ratchets, frequency modulation, non-diatonic basslines. There’s probably more.

    • @nuberiffic
      @nuberiffic 4 роки тому

      @@red13emerald but all of those things happen outside EDM...

    • @ace-smith
      @ace-smith 4 роки тому

      and?

    • @nuberiffic
      @nuberiffic 4 роки тому

      @@ace-smith so it wouldn't be a video about music theory in EDM, it would just be a video about theory.
      Which is all of his videos

  • @sashalyubashevsky
    @sashalyubashevsky 4 роки тому +10

    for your next Q&A:
    what makes good free jazz?

  • @timothygilman3010
    @timothygilman3010 2 роки тому +1

    Adam Excellent content again. Thanks for highlighting "The Unanswered Question" from Charles Ives. I had never heard it. I like haunting music and the dissonance from the trumpets and woodwinds in this piece definitely invoke a strong emotional response. Pure gold thanks...

  • @jakegearhart
    @jakegearhart 4 роки тому +6

    Bernard Herrmann's theme for the Twilight Zone was only used in season one; the theme you played in the video was composed by Marius Constant and was used for the rest of the series.

    • @ffaudio5520
      @ffaudio5520 4 роки тому +1

      That explains a lot, was looking it up now... that sounds more like him. Even though the Bernard Hermann one is also using polytonality, maybe even better than the later one.

  • @Codeaholic1
    @Codeaholic1 4 роки тому +5

    I truly learn a lot from your videos. I love cramming all the musical brain food in to my face holes. Thanks for being a crazy awesome human being.

  • @ronanmcintyre
    @ronanmcintyre 4 роки тому +106

    Does the happy birthday polytonality example have anything to do with Nahre Sol's wired video that was uploaded like 3 hours before this video?

    • @Octambulism
      @Octambulism 4 роки тому +8

      My birthday is tomorrow. Missed the Neely Polytonal Happy Birthday by one day :c

    • @khalidalzouma9656
      @khalidalzouma9656 4 роки тому +12

      this coincedence is literally insane

    • @stefan1024
      @stefan1024 4 роки тому +8

      Happy Birthday has been public domain for a few years now. Before that you had to pay royalities to use it in media. That's why in movies and tv shows published before the 2010s every birthday scene just has the last two words "... tooo youuuuu!!". It might be one of the best known musical pieces on earth and has a very easy to understand musical structure, so it's perfect for musical examples. Almost everybody can (kind of sing it). It's like a children song or a folk song, but not just for just one language/region/country but all of them.

    • @alvaro.2c
      @alvaro.2c 4 роки тому +2

      Adam going straight to level 14!

    • @francoisrd
      @francoisrd 4 роки тому

      Rónán McIntyre my question exactly

  • @superhardgameplays
    @superhardgameplays 4 роки тому

    I cannot describe how much I love ur channel... Thank u

  • @rickkeam
    @rickkeam 2 роки тому

    A simple fan comment. Adam your stuff is great. Keep up the good work!

  • @Fannywikstrom95
    @Fannywikstrom95 4 роки тому +59

    July 1st is Sufjan Stevens’ birthday and I take the fact that you didn’t mention him personally

    • @CugnoBrasso
      @CugnoBrasso 4 роки тому +3

      Come on, the fourth of July is only three days away and I'm already crying!

    • @o.steinman3855
      @o.steinman3855 4 роки тому +1

      Fanny Evelina Poor Subaru’s probably gonna write a song about it now

    • @ivyssauro123
      @ivyssauro123 4 роки тому

      He's shit anyway

  • @seanmclaughlin4055
    @seanmclaughlin4055 4 роки тому +33

    Hey Adam, so I’ve noticed while listening to instrumental arrangements of songs that vocal melodies can often sound kinda lame when played on an instrument. A particularly good example of this is on the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s arrangement of 21st Century Schizoid Man by King Crimson. The song starts with a loud and powerful intro and leads to an almost comically underwhelming clarinet solo of the vocal melody. I found this strange because on the original track the vocals are so powerful. I assume it has something to do with the vocal inflections that an instrument can’t reproduce, but maybe you can shed some more light on it.
    TL;DR why do certain vocal melodies sound lame when played on instruments?

    • @certifiedpossum8655
      @certifiedpossum8655 4 роки тому +10

      I think I've got an explanation on that. Vocal melodies (at least in contemporary music) tend to have less intervals between notes and some words are sang in unison. This isn't a problem with vocals as you sing different words per note. However all acoustic instruments can only produce one sound per note. So it sounds quite and very boring.

    • @evan-moore22
      @evan-moore22 4 роки тому +3

      I blame them for soloing a clarinet to do vocals. In my experience, an instrumental version of vocals (for most male singers) is best on violas or French horns.

    • @oldvlognewtricks
      @oldvlognewtricks 4 роки тому +2

      Sean McLaughlin I always understood this in terms of how vocal lines are designed to work with lyrical information. If a melody is complete in itself it can be syrupy and over-the-top when you add words. On the other hand, an excellent vocal line can seem trite and incomplete when you take away the words.
      (The words are also often pretty trite when you take away the music)
      That’s how it makes sense to me, anyhow.

  • @thejellyfish206
    @thejellyfish206 4 роки тому +2

    This video is pure gold with the Amadeus edit and the fact that the lick transitions are all polytonal

  • @lesly9101
    @lesly9101 2 роки тому

    Fantastic Teacher guides his students literally thru the entire Cosmos of Music.
    This Dude is an extremely talented high performing VJ and content creator blessed with a beautiful, perfectly modulating maskulin kind of voice, which but only to listen to is a already a perfect treat….!

  • @gpeddino
    @gpeddino 4 роки тому +8

    "The Unanswered Question" is one of the eeriest things I've ever heard.

  • @mxtantrum
    @mxtantrum 4 роки тому +4

    [long post and no patato + English is not my mother tongue = i'm sorry. But the music list is worth it ! ]
    I've been tracking down songs that seem to have at some point a tone in both major and minor, like Jeff Beal's House of Cards theme (which btw was the last title I added to that list).
    Here it goes:
    - The (quite long) outro of NIN's cover of Gary Numan's Metal (it gets very clear at around 4:45) [ ua-cam.com/video/B-qPWh_jDLA/v-deo.html ]
    - in Radiohead's Daydreaming, the sudden modulation in A major at 3:56 is accompanied by Thom's backward high pitch voice hitting a C natural at 3:59 [ ua-cam.com/video/TTAU7lLDZYU/v-deo.html ]
    - in Tangerine Dream's "Resurection", from their album Electronic Meditation, you can hear a G natural played throughout, while the harmonies shime and change. At 1:05, a D sharp minor comes in, while the G natural remains. This is a great one. [ ua-cam.com/video/egqNokZNXgY/v-deo.html ]
    - in Harry Smith's 1952 "Anthology of American Folk Music" famous compilation, you can hear a tune called "Wake Up Jacob" by a band called "Prince Albert Hunt's Texas Ramblers". The tune has a violin riff in E minor playing upon a guitar strumming an E major. This is socially interesting, and must certainly be linked to the "blue note". [ ua-cam.com/video/B0wMJBpAoMQ/v-deo.html ]
    - in Robert Cray's last album, there's a lovely soul song called "The Way We Are", with a clean guitar solo, as you should expect. At 2:59, Robert hits an A natural on a F# major chord. I suppose this is classic blue note and it blends in quite naturally. [ ua-cam.com/video/4rL8K63wjqo/v-deo.html ]
    - NIN (again) has a beautiful "quiet" version of "The Day The World Went Away" on the album "Halo 13 - The Day the World Went Away". From 4:43 on, giving free way to his habit of repeating a musical phrase while the harmonies change, Trent has the piano playing a melody that starts in F#, E, B... . Every first chord of the progression is a muffled C# major, making the piano's B very spicy. This is a great example, as I believe it to be a very conscious choice, quite similar to Jeff Beal's. [ ua-cam.com/video/gWDnbyiMhaU/v-deo.html ]
    - The song that triggered my attention was William Sheller's beautiful song "La Navale", which has some lovely unexpected maj7 chords scattered here and there. In the solo, you can hear the guitarist hit an ugly (not spicy, ugly) C natural at 4:45 while the rest of the band is playing a conclusive A major. This is the one case I just can get used to. [ ua-cam.com/video/KiC3XS036RM/v-deo.html ]
    - I used it in a soundtrack I wrote to a friend of mine's play, so I guess this is a good opportunity for sharing a piece of my music, so I guess this is a "wanna check my SoundCloud?" time : soundcloud.com/maxke/06-le-survivant-fait-un-mauvais-reve The "spicy part" is obvious and starts at 3:55. The play is about to survivors that need to share whatever is left of livable space and end up in confrontation. This tune is about a dream the main character has. I wanted to express the gap between reality as it was and our memories of it.
    In bonus, two songs that flirt with this process, but instead of superposing the minor third with the major one, they alternate them in a very tricky way:
    - Swansea by Joanna Newsom (this one is very subtly written, perhaps closer to a "blue note" you can hear it at 4:40, the melody plays an E natural and is soon after joined by a C# major chord, which is the tone of the song) [ ua-cam.com/video/NUpElXWVMj4/v-deo.html ]
    - The Horrors (man, do I luv'em) in the groovy "Sea Within a Sea": in the lovely and mesmerizing outro (btw just how that intro is blended with the first half of the song must please Tantacrul), Faris Rotter sings a melody in F# that goes C#, A#, B, A#, G#. Now, the outro arpeggiator makes a 3 chords progression that goes F# major, D# minor, G# major. That G# major is very spicy, it comes in just a moment after Rotter hits the B natural. [ ua-cam.com/video/4r2KPRYsQSk/v-deo.html ]
    I think some composers use it more purposefully than others. To me, NIN did particularly good. I mean you would'nt want your strawberry icecream topped with hot Tabasco, right?
    Cheers from Belgium

  • @RaistlanCE
    @RaistlanCE 3 роки тому

    The first thing I thought of was Petrushka, a favourite of mine. Thanks for putting some in, and the link to the live performance.

  • @restlessboar5863
    @restlessboar5863 4 роки тому +1

    Question for your next Q&A: How familiar are you with the music theory behind Ska as a genre, and more specifically behind Streetlight Manifesto? I haven't been able to find a lot of in depth conversation about their music that really gets into the theory, and I'm still very much beginning so I don't know exactly what to be looking for. Thanks for all the great content!

  • @solidgroundmusic
    @solidgroundmusic 4 роки тому +5

    I used to use the piccardy third to end "breaking the girl" in a band I had back in the day. fun way to spice up a song that had a minor fade out

  • @thejrfanclub628
    @thejrfanclub628 4 роки тому +40

    "a djent version of the lick" Now that needs to happen like rn

  • @Olifant0
    @Olifant0 4 роки тому

    Adam Neely
    Hi,
    I’m an a level music student at the moment and I’m struggling quite a bit with essays and understanding terms (still struggling with essays they are so confusing and complicated). However, thanks to your videos I feel like I understand a bit better now. Which is really amazing because I would really like to be better at the subject I want to spend (and have spent) all my life on.
    Thanks a lot,
    Ethan

  • @moradan81
    @moradan81 3 роки тому +2

    Wow, Picardy third, that thing Sui Generis did at the end of "Cuando comenzamos a nacer", a very grounded raw dramatic representation of life's darkest aspects, which uses a minor scale to acompany the sadness and depression of the themes it describes only to finish in a major version of the tonic chord. I always ended the song on the minor chord and never adhered to the original composer's use of Picardy. Never knew it had a name, either.

  • @Brillemeister
    @Brillemeister 4 роки тому +3

    Just adding to the Bernard Hermann lovefest: his last and most violent-sounding score, due to its lack of strings, Taxi Driver. It's one of the best accompaniments to a dramatic story I've ever heard. RIP

  • @markdm1125
    @markdm1125 4 роки тому +11

    Question for QnA: Have you ever accompanied a harp, and if so, how well suited do you think the harp is for jazz performances?

    • @victoriaj2129
      @victoriaj2129 Рік тому

      Yes this! (For anyone who has never heard a harpist play jazz, check out Alice Coltrane and Deborah Henson-Conant)

  • @scottabroughton
    @scottabroughton 3 роки тому

    Great video! I live in rural Honduras where often at church services the person leading the singing starts in one key and the accompanying keyboardist has to play the song in several keys until he finds the vocalist's key (who may or may not have modulated to another key) or just settles into whatever key he's most comfortable with. The rest of us get to pick whether we want to follow the vocalist with the microphone or the keyboard.
    Also muy picante.

  • @davekrochenski
    @davekrochenski 4 роки тому

    I'm gonna have to take these video's one day at a time, I'm afraid it's gonna short the wiring in my head if I marathon em... no matter, awesome work.

  • @Flyght023
    @Flyght023 4 роки тому +28

    *NEW FAVE TOON 2k19*: Happy Birthday in C/F# by Adam Neely #yay
    Melon review it already

  • @SpectraMakesMusic
    @SpectraMakesMusic 4 роки тому +7

    PROTIP make sure the key and the key are in the SAME KEY

    • @potestoniko
      @potestoniko 4 роки тому +1

      PROTIP make Shure the key And the synth are in the same vocals
      XD

  • @Chaosdude341
    @Chaosdude341 4 роки тому

    You do a really good job with those diplomacy questions. Bravo.

  • @TyronDeakin
    @TyronDeakin 4 роки тому

    Love your channel Adam! thank you!

  • @joemucchiello4542
    @joemucchiello4542 4 роки тому +3

    Even the Beatles played with the Picardy Third in "And I Love Her". It's in F#m (and then Gm) and ends on D.

    • @songfulmusicofsongs
      @songfulmusicofsongs 4 роки тому

      I would say it definitely sounds to be a tonic, so it's as though it was the Dm the whole time instead of F6. So the Gm would actually be a iv. And the D, the tonic.

    • @kjl3080
      @kjl3080 3 роки тому

      Roundabout ends on an E maj

  • @afp_bass
    @afp_bass 4 роки тому +3

    Hey Adam!
    You made clear to us many times that straight wrists are important in regards to preventing injury. As I am transitioning to 6 string bass I am finding it a lot more difficult keeping a straight left wrist especially when playing lower strings. What tips can you recommend for people on 6 string in regards to preventing any injury playing?

  • @calebrobinson3144
    @calebrobinson3144 4 роки тому

    You are literally talking about really deep melodic music theory mostly in the context of classical music. I am a trap producer who only knows the real basics. Music is awesome, so diverse and different yet so similar at the same time. I love your stuff Adam :)

  • @quaraeasaurustex1823
    @quaraeasaurustex1823 4 роки тому

    I've been trying to figure out how people get this sound for sooooooo long. Thank you so much Adam this is now my favorite video of yours because now I can finally express myself with the sounds I've always wanted to achieve. Hello pollytonality!

  • @arroraseliant8482
    @arroraseliant8482 4 роки тому +6

    Hey Adam! I notice you quite often talk about music as it relates to language. In your juggling polyrhythms video you quickly explain the various polyrhythms uding english phrases and you've previously made a whole video on speech-rhythms in hip-hop.
    So I wonder, do you know of any writing on the relationship between prosodic/poetic metre and musical rhythms? Maybe as some sort of bridge between music theory and poetry theory. I'm thinking it might be of use in lyric writing and as a sort of rhythmic solfege akin to the takadimi-system, but closer to regular language.

  • @koschanothere
    @koschanothere 4 роки тому +5

    Question for your next Q&A what can you say on music before the classical era? I was wondering what kind of music there was before classical

  • @amosw766
    @amosw766 4 роки тому

    That Ives piece is crazy stunning. Wow.

  • @ERNesbitt
    @ERNesbitt 4 роки тому

    My wife is a music teacher; we are both musicians, but she taught me about the Picardy Third. Now, I can't unhear it. We laugh whenever it comes up. We've noticed that quite a few church pianists/organists will throw it in whether or not the song calls for it.

  • @dakotacortez4334
    @dakotacortez4334 4 роки тому +6

    Hi Adam! I was reading a musical acoustics text book, and the author stated that the pitch of a sound wave can be affected by the intensity of the sound wave. Could you explain this phenomenon?

  • @BATTIS94
    @BATTIS94 4 роки тому +5

    Heinrich Biber

  • @jclcrow2621
    @jclcrow2621 3 роки тому

    Lots of Charles Ives influence in the ZODIAC score by David Shire. Thanks for the vids, mon! These are excellent.

  • @hampaslupangpotograper
    @hampaslupangpotograper 3 роки тому +1

    I really love this channel in explaing hard stuff in easy way

  • @n-determineyoutube4981
    @n-determineyoutube4981 4 роки тому +6

    It actually amazes me how you can sing in another key. I would just now physically be able to :D

  • @CaliBrewed
    @CaliBrewed 4 роки тому +7

    Not only did I learn Dan Akroyd, Missy Elliot and Liv Tylers birthday but I am now craving spicy food!

  • @undergroundmonorail
    @undergroundmonorail 4 роки тому

    those bass posture tips are probably going to help me play guitar hero for longer, thanks mr neely

  • @VUrosov
    @VUrosov 4 роки тому

    Hey, Adam. Congrats on getting 800k subscribers. Here's a question for your next Q+A:
    You use sibelius to compose music, how much do you rely on the program playing the notes back at you? Do you think you'll be able to write down exactly what you want without this audio feedback? And for even crazier measure, would you be able to write music blindfolded but with sound on? Which way would it be easier and why?
    P.S. Isn't that crazy that I read my own comment in your voice as I'm writing it?

  • @thomascattalani5845
    @thomascattalani5845 4 роки тому +5

    Future Q & A Question:
    How hard was it to play in C and sing in F#?

  • @jxnasp3920
    @jxnasp3920 4 роки тому +8

    what are your thoughts on Jaco Pastourius? And how do you think he has impacted the bass in genaral?

  • @FelixJacominoEdTech
    @FelixJacominoEdTech 4 роки тому +1

    I feel like I deserve another music degree after watching all your videos. You rock!! (and roll ;) And, I reeeeally appreciate your food analogies. They work very well for me as a musician and complete foodie.

  • @arneluebbertyguitar5980
    @arneluebbertyguitar5980 4 роки тому

    Great videos and topics Adam!!!!