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twelve keynotes

Hughes

CHAPTER V.
DIAGRAM II.—THE TWELVE KEY-NOTES, EACH DEVELOPING ITS SIX TONES IN THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY SOUND.

"Nature's universal law is progress with self-adaptation."
[Harmonies of Tones and Colours, Diagram II - The Twelve Keynotes1, page 23]


The twelve key-notes, with the six notes of each as they veer round in trinities, are again written in musical clef, and the scales added. The key-note leads the scale, and, after striking the two next highest notes of the seven of the harmony, goes forward, with its four lowest, an octave higher. The seven of each harmony have been traced as the three lowest, thus meeting the three highest in three pairs, the fourth note being isolated. Notwithstanding the curious reversal of the three and four of the scale, the three lowest pair with the three highest, and the fourth with its octave. The four pairs are written at the end of each line, and it will be seen how exactly they all agree in their mode of development. Keys with sharps and keys with flats are all mingled in twelve successive notes. If we strike the twelve scales ascending as they follow each other, each thirteenth note being octave of the first note of the twelve that have developed, and first of the rising series, the seventh time the scales gradually rise into the higher series of seven octaves beyond the power of the instrument. Descending is ascending reversed. After the seven and octave of a scale have been sounded ascending, the ear seems to lead to the descending; but ten notes of any scale may be struck without the necessity of modulation; at the seventh note we find that the eleventh note in the progression of harmonics rises to meet the seventh. For instance, B, the seventh note in the scale of C, must have F#. This point will be fully entered into when examining the meeting of fifths. To trace the scale of C veering round as an example for all, we may begin with C in Diagram II., and go forward with F, G, A, and B an octave higher. If the twelve scales were traced veering round, they would be found to correspond with the twelve as written in musical clef. [Harmonies of Tones and Colours, Diagram IV - The Development of the Twelve Major Scales, page 26a]


Hughes
The 12 Key-notes and their trinities and scales written in musical clef, with their chords added, all rising in the two octaves, as before. [Harmonies of Tones and Colours, The 12 Keynotes and Their Trinities and Scales, page 28c]

The following table shows the regularity of each seven of the twelve key-notes ascending by fifths, and the use of the two poles is again seen. The key-notes and their trinities are closely linked into each other, the three highest notes of the lower fifth key becoming the three lowest of the higher fifth key, and the four lowest becoming the four highest in an octave higher. The twelve keys, rising in each note a tone higher and descending a tone lower, cause the meetings by fifths. Having examined the table, we may strike the keys by fifths as written in the musical clef, beginning with the lowest C in [Harmonies of Tones and Colours, Diagram VII - The Modulating Gamut of the Twelve Keys1, page 29]

In the development of the key-notes, the sharp or flat is written to each note, but not to the keys. The reversal of the three and four notes of each seven of the twelve key-notes and their trinities meeting by fifths having been traced, we will now examine the twelve scales meeting by fifths, and the results arising from the reversal of the three and four notes of each fifth lower scale in the fifth higher. Take as an example the scale of C: C D E F G A B, and that of G: G A B C D E F#. The four lowest notes of the seven of C are the four highest, an octave higher, in G; F, the central and isolated note of the seven of C, having risen a tone higher than the octave in the scale of G. The twelve scales thus modulate into each other by fifths, which sound the same harmonies as the key-notes and their trinities. Refer to the twelve scales written in musical clef ascending by fifths, and strike them, beginning at the lowest C in the bass clef; this scale sounds no intermediate tones, but these must be struck as required for all the scales to run on in fifths. After striking the seven notes of C, if we fall back three, and repeat them with the next four notes of the seven; or strike the seven and octave of C, and fall back four, repeating them and striking the next four, the four last notes of each scale will be found to be always in the harmony of the four first of the fifth higher scale. When the twelve scales ascending have been thus gained, as we trace them also on the table, they may be struck descending by following them as written in musical clef upwards, and [Harmonies of Tones and Colours, Diagram VII - The Modulating Gamut of the Twelve Keys2, page 30]

DIAGRAM IX.—THE MINOR KEY-NOTE "A" AND ITS SIX NOTES VEERING ROUND IN TRINITIES—THE TWELVE KEY-NOTES THUS DEVELOPING WRITTEN IN MUSICAL CLEF BELOW.

"Lord, on Thee Eternity had its foundations—all
Spring forth from Thee; of light, joy, harmony
Sole origin:—all life, all beauty Thine!"—Sir J. Bowring.
[Harmonies of Tones and Colours, Diagram IX - The Minor Keynote A and Its Six Notes, page 34a]


ALTHOUGH only twelve notes of a keyed instrument develope perfect minor harmonics, there are fifteen different chords, the double tones D#-E♭, E#-F♭, A#-B♭ all sounding as roots. The fifteen roots are written in musical clef. A major and a minor fifth embrace the same number of key-notes, but the division into threefold chords is different. In counting the twelve, a major fifth has four below the third note of its harmony, and three above it; a minor fifth has three below the third note of its harmony, and four above it. A major seventh includes twelve key-notes, a minor seventh only eleven. As an example of the minor chords in the different keys, we may first examine those in the key of A, written in musical clef. The seven of its harmony have two threefold chords, and two of its ascending scale. If we include the octave note, the highest chord of the descending scale is a repetition (sounding an octave higher) of the lowest chord of the seven in its harmony, and the second chord of the descending scale is a repetition of the first chord of its ascending scale. These two repetition chords are only written to the key of A: the chords of the other eleven keys will all be found exactly to agree with those of A in their mode of development. We may again remark on the beautiful effect which would result if the colours of the minor chords could be seen, with the tones, as they develope. [Harmonies of Tones and Colours, Diagram XII - The Chords of the Twelve Minor Keys, page 37a]

CHAPTER XVI.

DIAGRAM XIII.—THE TWELVE KEY-NOTES, WITH THEIR TRINITIES, SCALES, AND CHORDS, THE THIRTEENTH BEING OCTAVE, ARE REPEATED IN MUSICAL CLEF, RISING SEVEN TIMES THROUGH SEVEN OCTAVES, AND FALLING AGAIN.
[Harmonies of Tones and Colours, Diagram XIII - The Twelve Keynotes with Their Trinities, page 38a]


The twelve key-notes with their Trinities and Scales repeated, with the addition of the chords. [Harmonies of Tones and Colours, The Twelve Keynotes with Their Trinities and Scales Repeated, page 38c]

DIAGRAM XVIII.—The 12 key-notes with their trinities and scales repeated, with the addition of the chords. [Harmonies of Tones and Colours, Additional Diagrams, page 57]

The twelve key-notes with their Trinities and Scales repeated, with the addition of the chords. [Harmonies of Tones and Colours, The Twelve Keynotes with Their Trinities and Scales Repeated, page 63]

See Also


keynote
Twelve

Created by Dale Pond. Last Modification: Thursday April 15, 2021 03:17:56 MDT by Dale Pond.