How to transform a theme (scalar mapping demonstration)

[@JohnSmith-gv1fp]

Galen, is amazing grace not already a pentatonic melody?

[@GalenDeGraf]

Great question, and very worth clarifying! "Amazing Grace" uses only notes of a pentatonic scale, and--since the pentatonic scale is a subset of a major scale--the melody can hence be measured at the outset either in terms of a pentatonic scale or in terms of a major scale. Each starting point will produce different musical results when transferring those relationships onto another scale. (As an example the opening interval C-F would be +3 scale steps in major, but only +2 scale steps in pentatonic.) I've chosen to think in terms of major since I found those results more compelling, and also a lot easier to follow in quick a demonstration. However, you absolutely can start by saying it's pentatonic instead of major as I've done in this video. EDIT: Explanation video is out now! kzbin.info/www/bejne/bJvShnWVZaeCn6c

[@stephenmessano1847]

@@GalenDeGraf Thank you for the clarification.

[@jamesrockybullin5250]

This question highlights that this is not as much a compositional technique and more a series of aesthetic choices.

[@GalenDeGraf]

There seem to be two fundamental questions within the comments section of this video: 1) "How does the technique work to map from one scale to another?" 2) "Why do these variations sound different?" There are several comment threads that are about aesthetic choices, which I‘ve enjoyed reading through. Even though the first question in this thread was more about how the technique works, I can follow up on your comment as well (which is more about why they sound different). In the video, I demonstrate how a technique might inspire and interact with other musical choices. Mapping onto another scale was the starting point, but there‘s a lot going on in addition: orchestration, reharmonization, ornamentation, and metric adjustments. When all these combine, that’s when things get really interesting, but scalar mapping also takes on a lesser role in why these transformations all sound so different. And sidenote just to be clear for anyone reading this thread: if people here don‘t understand how I got from a melody that was already pentatonic to a different melody that was also pentatonic, I don‘t blame you at all, because this was only a *demonstration*, not an *explanation*. I will put out a longer explanation video to youTube later. If you can’t wait for that one, the Patreon site already has a different 15-minute video of exercises with more info than you get in this one. EDIT: Explanation video is out now! You can watch it here kzbin.info/www/bejne/bJvShnWVZaeCn6c

[@jamesrockybullin5250]

@@GalenDeGraf Ah, when I said choices, I wasn't referring to orchestration, harmonisation, metre or anything; I was referring to the scalar mapping itself. What you're dancing around in this video is the idea of cyphers: taking some input notes, transforming them using some form of algorithm, and producing some output notes. You choose the algorithm. But not only that, you also chose how to interpret the input notes. You interpreted the original melody as degrees of the major scale, but as was pointed out, an equally valid interpretation is as degrees of the pentatonic scale. Or the chromatic scale is equally valid. You could interpret it in the octatonic scale and omit notes that don't map. You could interpret each pair of notes as one input. Or each note as a pitch-duration coordinate. Or hell, just take an enigma machine and type the letter names of your note input! There are so many ways of interpreting the input; that's what I meant when I said this is more about aesthetic choices than following an algorithmic scalar mapping. Now, when we're introducing the idea of melodic transformation, it can be useful to assign terms to basic transformations, e.g., transposition, inversion, augmentation, retrograde... But once you get beyond those basic transformations, it becomes less important to teach specific transformations than the idea of transformation itself.

[@AzizSugianto28]

so this is how a movie score composer makes a movie music theme for different scenes. thanks for sharing.

[@GalenDeGraf]

Definitely! My next longform video will include how John Powell uses this technique in his score to How to Train Your Dragon.

[@marshallsweatherhiking1820]

I just figured out that octotonic is what they use for dramatic sci-fi sequences, like slowly entering a mothership or slowly descending into a massive cave/tomb. You can enhance the unsettling sense of awe you get with the discovery of something otherworldly.

[@miranhanordestino1554]

octatonic was way more mysterious than necessary, perfect

[@vuadam-akkor405]

I imagine actions from Starwars scene:)))

[@ImpliedMusic]

"i used to make more music theory puns, but i'm trying to scale back." 😅

[@eddieandmaxie]

Oh my god thats crazy 😂😂😂😂

[@Pisceanripple]

Lol

[@duartevader2709]

Should have done scale Bach smh

[@yourangelrr]

🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@paulmayer8654]

You don’t even skip a beat. It’s a minor flaw in your personality. I don’t c major change coming though.

[@SashaL_music]

I LOVE the octatonic one

[@GalenDeGraf]

Check out this subtle octatonic mapping from Middle Earth! kzbin.info/www/bejne/oGG2oXSPnJKNn7ssi=fjcCYvgham0kHJ-9&t=1005

[@Marunius]

Reminds me of Severance theme ;D

[@Angelina-dx9qv]

Sounds like Erik Satie a mix of his Gymnopedies and Gnossiennes

[@MisterMaestro-n7c]

The minor version is really surprising. I thought exclusively using major chords to harmonize would overshadow the minor/sad sound, but somehow it shines through.

[@GalenDeGraf]

I find a lot of the character on that one comes from the orchestration too. If the chords were in the brass section, it would sound far more triumphant. And that‘s what happens in Howard Shore‘s "fellowship" leitmotif in his score to Lord of the Rings (minor melody, harmonized all major triads, but usually orchestrated with more brass for the chords). Using strings as I did softens the character a lot.

[@oddguys178]

The music really swells, its bitter sweet

[@DiscoInTheNunnery]

I think the major chords function more as rootless minor chords in that context. The first few bars establish a minor/Lydian sound.

[@GalenDeGraf]

Depending on which chords are used as harmonies, that mapping/harmonization combination often ends up leaning lydian to varying degrees. I touch on this some in the longer video of exercises.

[@Whatismusic123]

it doesn't. it's literally just Db major. more specifically, Db Lydian. that's probably why you're so confused.

[@GalenDeGraf]

youTube said I should make a channel trailer, so here it is! It's also a trailer for two longform theory videos on moving a theme between different scales. The second of those videos is a set of exercises demonstrated in this video and you can already access it through Patreon. There are also exercises in that video that weren't in this video, like my Debussy style whole tone mapping and a Harry Potter style chromatic mapping.

[@KalebPeters99]

This is a cool idea! But I almost love even *more* your VISUAL choices here. The thumbnail was so enticing, and the imagery during each variation is so evocative! Keep it up, man!

[@GalenDeGraf]

@@KalebPeters99 If you dug the visuals in this, let me know what you think about my most recent vid, or some of my Middle Earth music analyses!

[@JebediahFeed]

The minor one sounded like something straight out of LOTR soundtrack

[@gianlucarusso3898]

It sounded to me more like StarWars

[@dungeonsandstarfields]

Yeah totally LOTRish

[@TheNotSeeingEye]

I love the pedal tone composition for the octatonic melody! That's such a good way to make such a unique harmonic pallet all stay grounded and well... not bad.

[@GalenDeGraf]

Agreed! Credit to Theodore Shapiro on the pedal tone idea there!

[@RichardASalisbury1]

Each version is different from the others, interesting, and musically convincing.

[@lim7lim]

The minor over major and the pentatonic were gorgeous

[@lisakerr-vg2br]

Yep, it amazed me how putting minor lead part over major chords could make a mood different from either major or minor.

[@WACkZerden]

pentatonic was nice... thank you for playing through them all with no talking between lol. Your demonstration is very easy to listen to

[@justinmanser7525]

So this is great. I've been a bassist for decades, using it to write simple pop songs using a lot of tapping....About 5 days ago I started to really try to learn piano and I can attribute my enthusiasm to do so through wanting to play the theme to Severence. Now although on a bass I'm very good at playing left and right hand somewhat independently (although there is a lot of call.response) keyboard is completely different and a real buzz to accomplish. Day 1 left hand, 2 I got the firsy little M7m7 melody thing, day3 trying that decending but on day 4 it was better and today I got it...but man it's really weird learning stuff like that at my age (51). This explaination of themes really is great for trying out different styles of improvisation I'm sure and helps to define a lot of advanced theory composors obviously use...I'm sure I heard some Marvel cinamatic themes in there!!! Thanks very educational stuff!

[@KevinTPLim]

Beautifully demonstrated and illustrated, thank you!!

[@kevinbengi]

The octatonic is just on another level, each of these prints out different moods and they are all very interesting at least I have learnt something new today

[@Goosebump837]

Pentatonic one made my morning glorious. I mean it - this is really cool

[@SilverGoldYT]

Oh I'm so happy to see Severance, I love that show and it needs to be praised more

[@GalenDeGraf]

Show and score are both so great and original!

[@lisakerr-vg2br]

Your pentatonic mapping made me flash back through 50 years of "Western" TV and movie themes and realize they're all basically this lol

[@xenocrates2559]

That was very interesting. In my own music I have mapped a pentatonic melody from one pentatonic scale onto another pentatonic scale (for example: A-C-D-E-G to A-B-C-E-G or A-Bb-D-Eb-G) and from one 7-tone scale to another like major to minor to dorian, etc. I like the effect these changes have; it's recognizable yet also intriguingly different. But I haven't done the kind of mapping you presented here from a major to an octatonic. Even more intriguing. Thanks.

L-o-v-e-l-y work! The Chromatic is lovely scaring, haha... And the Octatonic with the pedal... No words, it reminds me some Gurdjieff compositions... the color...

[@luizmenezes9971]

Major - The churchlike experience Minor - The most sad and depressing thing I ever heard Octatonic - The sci-fi version Chromatic - Sounds like something demented Pentatonic - Incredibly relaxing

[@Marunius]

The minor version was more like superhero / fantasy game or movie, not that sad.

[@lucassism6726]

I did not trust the octatonic

[@john_molden]

Octotonic does sound like an arcade video game But the chromatic sounds like something the Phantom would write

[@ldgarius]

If that's the saddeset, you're in for a treat buddy

[@y0hal0]

major can sound very sad too

[@familiarstranger9617]

i love how much joy this brings you and me

[@nachfullbarertrank5230]

Awesome vid! I'm learning more about writing, and transformation and variation is my personal obsession.

[@nilsandrae]

I get a Chrono Trigger feel from these different versions. Love it!

[@anomymouse5043]

Warning: Octatonic version and chromatic version should be listened to only in daytime. Furthermore, you have to look out for psychopathic killers and evil demons while you listen to those versions. Clearly something very evil is about to happen....

[@avigailomichael]

😂😂😂😂

[@samuelolufemi9311]

😂😂😂👌🏽

[@yashkummar]

I agree

[@irbomusic]

I like how this was unironically what religious leaders in the middle ages believed

[@MatthewEverettGates]

Fabulous demonstration!! Thanks!

[@RJ_Eckie]

I’d never heard of the octatonic scale before but I love that version!!

[@romandubois6473]

Can't believe I only just discovered your channel, amazing work !

[@G8tr1522]

god i love this so much. i wish this was taught more in schools.

[@caoxuanphu7324]

Pentatonic sounds gorgeous

[@tinikadavis2412]

I enjoyed the Octatonic and Pentatonic. Minor over major chords was interesting as well

[@JevatJes]

One of the best discoveries I've had this year: you +1 sub

[@ZalexMusic]

in the chromatic version i hear a bit of the horn part from Rhapsody in Blue's love theme (3 descending notes where the accent changes each time around)

[@sojh17]

This is so useful! I'll need to check out those exercises soon here.

[@Hugo-ej1hb]

Minor version reminds me of Ennio Morricone’s film scores!❤

[@nitroperformanceguy]

THIS IS INCREDIBLE.

[@tabor503]

That Octotonic was sick!

[@Fatuzci]

Thank you very much Galen!

[@Ivan_1791]

Very interesting video. I'm sure people will find it useful. :)

[@andreswainselboim9217]

Nice video Galen! Incidentally I've just been rereading Lerdahl's Tonal Pitch Space, this seems quite closely related.

[@GalenDeGraf]

I was thinking a lot about Dmitri Tymoczko‘s "A Geometry of Music" as I did this. It‘s been at least a decade since I read Lerdahl’s "Tonal Pitch Space“ though. Thanks for the rec to revisit it!

[@tankiplay5383]

This is so peculiar... I barely orientate in English music terms, but I think I understand the concept subconsciously... And it sound wondrous 😇

[@GalenDeGraf]

In Rings of Power, there's a way to think about Bear McCreary's "Sauron" theme as an octatonic mapping of "Halbrand" which is then played backwards. There are other ways to analyze it (see Bear's blog), but I analyze and animate it that way over here if any of you are interested: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oGG2oXSPnJKNn7ssi=fjcCYvgham0kHJ-9&t=1005

[@GalenDeGraf]

And another Middle Earth sidenote: the idea of having a minor melody harmonized with only major chords was inspired by Howard Shore's iconic "fellowship" leitmotif.

[@DimitriLucy-zo8yv]

you mean rings of propaganda? xd

[@aethyr9799]

Rings of Power oh no 💀

[@GalenDeGraf]

I have issues with the writing in Rings of Power, but the music is top notch!

[@DimitriLucy-zo8yv]

@@GalenDeGraf it better be for that budget haha, but seriously poor fucking Tolkien must be rolling in his grave.

[@thisisjuliacosta]

Pentatonic actually gave me an eargasm

[@GalenDeGraf]

Definitely a feeling of release by having the most consonant one right after the most dissonant!

[@hom2fu]

limiting pitches is one of the most power tool.

[@fellipemuniz1762]

I’d listen to this pentatonic for 10h straight up

[@GalenDeGraf]

Glad you liked it! I’ve got all these up on Soundcloud now if you want it as a single track. on.soundcloud.com/6mCC1zc1zexXTqhz9

[@AVeryFancyPigeon]

Can you make each of these a seperate video? I'd like to just listen to possibly the minor and pentatonic versions because they sound so nice.

[@GalenDeGraf]

So glad to hear you like the music! I've just put up the music in this video (plus the inverted Amazing Grace from another video) into a Soundcloud playlist you can access here: on.soundcloud.com/AL63bZ99qu7xwAPUA

[@AVeryFancyPigeon]

@@GalenDeGraf Thank you so much! Can't wait to listen to it!

[@MyFal717]

Amazing job dude

[@Snommelp]

Lovely! Did you consider also working your way through the modes? I doubt Mixolydian would have felt terribly different, but I'd love to hear Amazing Grace in the Locrian mode!

[@GalenDeGraf]

Yes! Variation between modes can be much more subtle. Locrian mode with b5 has some similar flavor to octatonic, but I wanted to keep this video short and maximize difference between versions. I do some discussion of modes in the other related videos to this one within my playlist "how to transform and develop musical ideas" as well as very briefly in the video (currently Patreon only) "how to practice transforming themes, scalar mapping" if you‘re interested.

[@dindin3655]

the minor over major sounds very starwarsy great

[@gabriellem.5519]

really interesting... I will try it

[@ilexopaca9835]

Octatonic scale gives lavender town vibes... good.

[@lucapreston1184]

the backgrounds got me

[@chrisslove5307]

How to flip a sample tutorial without getting caught,Part 1. 😁 Dude, great job!

[@yashkummar]

I prefer minor. Has a nice touch to it

[@remotoadamotroppovelocelaf868]

La pentatonica è veramente affascinante.

[@dieideederimprovisation8436]

Intersting idea. Thanks.

[@msoat34]

Octatonic my beloved

[@m.g_0109]

Can anyone explain why the minor over major worked. Did he use the conplemenary minor scale of the major chords or some other wizardry?

[@GalenDeGraf]

The MELODY for that one used all notes in an F minor scale. Most of the harmonies were either Db major or Ab major chords (sometimes with sevenths), and all the notes for those chords can be found in the F minor scale. That allowed them to fit together. (I also threw in Gbmajor7, so that might have felt like a little wizardry, since that chord uses a note, Gb, that is not found in the F minor scale.)

[@patrickloiseleur]

So brilliant !

[@backupforthevideos3861]

I generally love the octatonic vibes

[@Guto-df3hq]

Muitíssimo bom, incrível... Ganhou mais um inscrito!

[@IDEER-gg17gg]

2:57 severance 🤔?

[@XxMiKe97xXD]

For me Music Theory is like Rocket Science. They're nice, okay, for me y'all are geniuses that are able to understand a bit of what's happening. 😅

[@theyobro1843]

Minor sounds straight outa middle earth 💗❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

[@allenchuck1425]

Aw thanks you so much

[@streamofconsciousness5826]

Were the tempos all the same, it seemed like the Minor one was longer, strung out, and the Octatonic one was quick. If they were not the same did you find each worked best in a specific BPM zone.

[@GalenDeGraf]

There were changes to tempo, and also to the rhythm and meter of the melody. When making these sorts of changes, a good rule of thumb is to make sure notes on strong beats stay on strong beats, but all the tempo and rhythm choices I made were based on the stylistic aesthetic I wanted to achieve and not directly related to the scale itself.

[@saegusamayumi75yago28]

Minor looks majestic🧐

[@erikeriknorman]

75K views in 2 weeks for a channel with 5K subs is wild

[@AshleyKampta2]

Would the choice of scales to map to be more of an emotional choice than an aesthetic one?

[@calebdillman8462]

amazing grace sounding like starwars in octonic and minor👍🏻😎

[@djonakachopper]

I naively expected something more trite from the pentatonic version. It was interesting - beyond my understanding what and how.

[@GalenDeGraf]

I first sketched the pentatonic variation at the piano, more or less with the notes you see on screen in the video, and it DID feel boring that way. The harmonies were nice and lush with sevenths and ninths, but there wasn't much feeling of going somewhere. So I compensated by making the growth happen in the orchestration. I put together an ensemble that combines all the instruments from the previous variations. Midway through, the strings swell, and I split the horn into a duet. If you found it interesting, maybe that could be part of why?

[@wildrice1971]

Really interesting and “ear opening” … very enjoyable, thank you!

[@ymiround]

can octatone version be made to not sound sinister?

[@GalenDeGraf]

In my experience, it sits somewhere between "sinister" and "tense" and these probably correlate mostly with tempo. One of the reason it always has some tension is the high number of augmented and diminished intervals built into the scale. In media music it is frequently used at fast tempos for tension in chase scenes (and I followed suit in a screen scoring sample of an animated chase you can watch on this channel).

[@MagnyTheRed]

I must say that minor amazing grace sounds just like a starbound soundtrack.

[@scott94628]

Thank you ❤

[@Johnstone565]

Great video pal. By any chance going forward could you apply the names of the left hand chords aswell as the notation and sheet music. I'm self thought and I find that helpful.

[@GalenDeGraf]

Thanks. I'll keep that in mind for the future. I was mostly focused on the melodies for this video, but I'm glad to hear people are digging into the harmonies in there as well!

[@igorpaphnutius6065]

The octatonic one is very impressive. The pentationic melody makes no sense, because the original is already pentatonic.

[@GalenDeGraf]

See the pinned comment if you want info about the pentatonic mapping.

[@PaperComa]

I was expecting the chromatic version to be scarier. Guess that’s what I get for listening to extreme sub-genres of metal for years lol

[@calebpillai4774]

The minor over major makes it sound like there are 2 melodies

[@GalenDeGraf]

The string section had some independence.

[@curtpiazza1688]

COOL! 😊

[@luisa.zarama]

Hey! Loved the video. I wanted to ask you how you chose the notes you were gonna use in the chromatic scale. Like what was your criteria to change the notes? Thanks

[@GalenDeGraf]

This is only a trailer, and I‘ll put out an explanation video later. The quick answer is that you define the intervals of a melody according to scale steps of an underlying scale, and then transfer those intervals onto some other scale. I’ve treated Amazing Grace with a major underlying scale (though you could do it as pentatonic instead). In major, the melody starts with +3, then +2 scale steps for the first two intervals. So for a chromatic scale it begins with +3, then +2 SEMITONES since those are the steps of a chromatic scale. (And then continue for the rest of the intervals.) Check back on my channel later for the longer video with more info and examples!

[@blackrachmaninov]

Very nice :) Do you explain somewhere how you did it?

[@GalenDeGraf]

@@blackrachmaninov Yes! See my video "How to fit a musical theme to any context"

[@blackrachmaninov]

@@GalenDeGraf fantastic thank you :)

[@kitanowitsch]

Chromatic is the best!

[@1Patrick2Alexander3]

The chromatic was surprisingly cringy! It sounded good for a horror type scene. Thanks for the demo

[@gcw6444]

how do you map amazing grace onto a pentatonic scale when the melody of amazing grace is pentatonic in the first place?

[@GalenDeGraf]

See the pinned comment!

[@RHS_video_club]

why does the minor one sound like a fantasy film like LOTR??

[@GalenDeGraf]

Howard Shore‘s "fellowship" theme in Lord of the Rings is a minor melody with all major harmonies. In that regard, they’re similar.

[@romartart]

너무 좋은 인터넷 선생님의 수업. 그래픽이 너무 멋져요. 어떤 프로그램을 사용하시는지 궁금해요!

[@GalenDeGraf]

Glad you enjoyed it! The programs I used can be found in the description.

[@luizmenezes9971]

You didn't changed only the scale. You also changed the time signatures.

[@GalenDeGraf]

As well as the harmony and orchestration!

[@JevatJes]

There is minor tonality, there is major tonality, then is there also octatonic, pentatonic, etc? They exist asa tonallity?

[@GalenDeGraf]

There’s a lot going on in this, from the notes I chose in the melody (which was always strictly within one distinct scale for each example), the types of harmonies used, and the instrumental colors. I like to think about these as different flavors within tonality. The pentatonic example used almost only notes of the pentatonic scale, but I did use an occasional note outside that scale in the harmony for variety. The octatonic example was 100% octatonic scale throughout, but even so had a very specific flavor, because of the types of harmony I chose (consonant triads over pedal tone, rather the many diminished triads available for that pitch collection). Glad you enjoyed it!

[@JevatJes]

@@GalenDeGraf Oh! Thank you!🙂

[@Caleb_joe]

So basically Major = happy Minor = sad Octatonic = mystery thriller Chromatic = scary Pentatonic = hopefull

[@Skyflier00]

Wow why did the minor version sound like a Star Wars piece? Same key possibly, I could look this up but I am far to lazy to do that then type my response. Walks like a duck quacks like a duck.

[@GalenDeGraf]

Melody on French horn and opening interval, perhaps?

[@4realbeatss]

Scary Chormatic

[@jameerlawrencebondoc8162]

The Major key sounds like what you would hear in a church. What's the music?

[@danielhughes441]

“Amazing Grace” IS already a pentatonic scale. Most shape-note hymns are

[@GalenDeGraf]

See the pinned comment and I also have longform videos explaining this in more detail.

[@fingolfinmorgoth5511]

The minor sounds like the theme from star wars with the triplet from b6👀

[@_17Nad]

The pentatonic version was almost in major chords

[@PianoDude78]

Is there a reason why you changed meters?

[@GalenDeGraf]

@@PianoDude78 I view scalar mapping as a technique that can be used as inspiration and combined with other ones. In this video, you‘re hearing the way I used mapping as inspiration, not just a sterile operation applied to a series of pitches. For the octatonic mapping, the shift to duple meter had a pretty clear reason: to imitate the Severance theme. Other rhythmic adjustments were more a matter of personal preference. See the longform video "How to fit a musical theme to any context" for a more detailed discussion.

[@PianoDude78]

@@GalenDeGraf I completely agree - I was just confused b/c I looked away from the screen and thought I was tripping when I thought, "Did we just switch to duple?" 😭 I enjoy your videos!

[@crumblebob2297]

Why the major notes start with F. The original song is in G. Somebody help?????

[@GalenDeGraf]

@@crumblebob2297 A piece of music can be transposed to different keys by moving all notes up or down by the same amount. G major is common for Amazing Grace, but if you move all notes down a whole step it would be in F major (in my experience, a more comfortable key/range for congregational singing).

[@crumblebob2297]

​@@GalenDeGraf Wow! exactly the info i was seeking thank you!

[@tabor503]

Why are there flats on the scale?

[@cfthompson]

My guy, Amazing Grace is already pentatonic!

[@GalenDeGraf]

Yes! See the pinned comment.