Here’s a subject that I tried hard to explain using songs, without apparent success. Maybe the podcast format will work better.
It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing by Ethan Hein
But what actually is swing?
Read on SubstackPodcast episode on blue notes
Modulations in “Man in the Mirror”
It’s modulation week in aural skills class, and that means we get to talk about my two favorite pop song key changes, both of which are from the same Michael Jackson song.
The song was written by Glen Ballard and Siedah Garrett. Michael and Quincy Jones produced. Glen Ballard also co-wrote and produced “Hold On” by Wilson Phillips and “Hand in my Pocket” by Alanis Morrissette. The man has a way with an indelible earworm.
Ray Charles on the podcast
I did a podcast episode about Ray Charles’ recording of “You Are My Sunshine”, a crucial example for my pop theory and aural skills classes.
This is the first episode where I layered multiple versions of the same song on top of each other for ease of comparison.
The circle of fifths is a lie
In this episode, I use “Don’t You Worry ‘Bout A Thing” by Stevie Wonder (1973) as a jumping off point to contemplate the headache of naming notes and chords in keys with a lot of flats and sharps in them.
New podcast episode on McCoy Tyner and the fourths chord
Making my first podcast episode really lit a fire under me, so I quickly produced a second one, about quartal harmony in jazz, classical and film music.
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I started a podcast
The debut episode is about “Peter Piper” by Run-DMC. This episode and the next couple will be free; then I’ll contemplate instituting a paywall.
Thelonious Monk plays the blues
Everything is terrible, but at least we have the blues to help us through it. Blues melody week is my favorite week of pop aural skills class. Last session, after one of my sections worked through some Aretha Franklin and John Lee Hooker, we listened to a couple of jazz tunes, including “Functional” by Thelonious Monk, recorded in 1957.
I love Monk so much that I forget how divisive he can be. A couple of my students visibly flinched at the opening seconds of this recording. In fairness to them, it is definitely intense.
Aretha Franklin sings “Bridge Over Troubled Water”
We’re coming up on blues melody day in aural skills class. I always like to do some close listening to Aretha Franklin for that session, especially her version of “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” I hadn’t previously done any analysis of it; we just listen and let it speak for itself. But I thought, this semester, I want to be more ambitious and get into the details.
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I wrote a song about chromatic embellishments
There are two kinds of embellishing tones, the ones from inside the key and the ones from outside. The outside ones are called chromatic embellishments, and that name is appropriate; you get the most color from careful application of the “wrong” notes.
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