Stocking Stuffer... and a ii-V in a Pair 3!
Holiday season is here again and so is the ubiquitous sound of holiday music. I had to laugh recently when I heard the one that repeats "...and a partridge in a pear tree" after each verse. It made me realize (being the city kid that I am), that I've never seen a partridge (or a pear tree either, for that matter).
So after checking with reliable sources, I discovered that a partridge is a game fowl, somewhere in size between a quail and a pheasant. They're ground-nesting birds, like chickens and turkeys, so anyone claiming to have seen - or have received "a partridge in a pear tree" form their true love - has most likely been smoking the bomb schmizz. On the other hand, a roast partridge in pear sauce would look mighty pretty sitting on my plate! Could be that's what they were really talking about in the first place.
So - speaking of pears - the best I can do in keeping with the holiday spirit this time around, is offer up a tasty "pair" of triads - a Triad Pair, to be exact!
So after checking with reliable sources, I discovered that a partridge is a game fowl, somewhere in size between a quail and a pheasant. They're ground-nesting birds, like chickens and turkeys, so anyone claiming to have seen - or have received "a partridge in a pear tree" form their true love - has most likely been smoking the bomb schmizz. On the other hand, a roast partridge in pear sauce would look mighty pretty sitting on my plate! Could be that's what they were really talking about in the first place.
So - speaking of pears - the best I can do in keeping with the holiday spirit this time around, is offer up a tasty "pair" of triads - a Triad Pair, to be exact!
As you might be aware, a true triad pair consists of any 2 adjacent triads from a given scale system. In this case, we're looking at a pair of not too uncommon triad pairs from the Melodic Minor scale system. The example below (Ex. 1) shows a 4-bar ii-V7-I sequence, with triad pairs used on the ii and V7 chords (bars #1 & 2).
A minor 7b5 chord (also known as half-diminished) can always be built from the 6th step of a Melodic Minor scale. As an alternative to the usual half-diminished built from the 7th step of the Major Scale, this Melodic Minor version has a natural 9th, as opposed to a b9 in Major.
The D min7b5 (D-F-Ab-C) in bar #1 is formed from the 6th scale degree of...
F Melodic Minor (F-G-Ab-Bb-C-D-E-)
While any 2 adjacent triads can be useful, the triads in this Melodic Minor pair are formed from the 3rd & 4th scale steps of a Melodic Minor scale. Once again, in the case of:
F Melodic Minor (F-G-Ab-Bb-C-D-E-) that means Ab augmented (AB-C-E) and Bb Major (Bb-D-F) triads - alternating thru inversions and direction - form the melodic line in bar #1.
Ex. 1
A minor 7b5 chord (also known as half-diminished) can always be built from the 6th step of a Melodic Minor scale. As an alternative to the usual half-diminished built from the 7th step of the Major Scale, this Melodic Minor version has a natural 9th, as opposed to a b9 in Major.
The D min7b5 (D-F-Ab-C) in bar #1 is formed from the 6th scale degree of...
F Melodic Minor (F-G-Ab-Bb-C-D-E-)
While any 2 adjacent triads can be useful, the triads in this Melodic Minor pair are formed from the 3rd & 4th scale steps of a Melodic Minor scale. Once again, in the case of:
F Melodic Minor (F-G-Ab-Bb-C-D-E-) that means Ab augmented (AB-C-E) and Bb Major (Bb-D-F) triads - alternating thru inversions and direction - form the melodic line in bar #1.
Ex. 1
Listen
If you're already familiar with the ACE method, you'll know that whatever Melodic Minor scale you use on the ii chord can be transposed up a minor 3rd for the V. This means that in bar #2, the Melodic Minor scale (a minor third up from F Melodic Minor) from which we'll get our triad pair is... Ab Melodic Minor.
An altered dominant chord (G7alt, in bar #2), is formed from the 7th scale step of Melodic Minor - also known scale-wise as the famous/ infamous altered scale, since it contains the root, 3rd, b7 plus the four alterations - b9, #9, #11(b5) & b13 - so:
Ab Melodic Minor (Ab-Bb-B-Db-Eb-F-G), with the altered dominant extensions in red. G is the 7th scale step of Ab Melodic Minor.
Our triad pair - again built from the 3rd & 4th scale degrees - is:
Ab Melodic Minor (Ab-Bb-B-Db-Eb-F-G) = B Augmented (B-Eb-G) & Db Maj (Db-F-Ab).
In viewing the contour of the line in the first two bars, the Ab+ triad ascends on beats 1 & 3. The Bb triad descends on beats 2 & 4, alternating through a pair of inversions in the first measure, before resolving by a half-step (D to Db) in bar #2. There's a quick change of direction as B+ & Db triads alternate in an ascending direction on beats 2 & 3 before B+ descends on beat 4, resolving to the tonic (I) chord - C Maj7 in bar #3.
Except for the enclosure on the last half of beat 4 in bar #3, the material in the final two measures is strictly diatonic to C Major (absent the "avoid-note" F - the 4th scale degree), with an accent on the interval of a Perfect 4th, in bar #4.
The downloadable pdf (link above) has this 4-bar sequence transposed neatly to all 12 keys.
So here's hoping your holidays are full of cheer,
'Cause with these "Pairs", you can jam all year!
(Here! Here!)
B. Stern
An altered dominant chord (G7alt, in bar #2), is formed from the 7th scale step of Melodic Minor - also known scale-wise as the famous/ infamous altered scale, since it contains the root, 3rd, b7 plus the four alterations - b9, #9, #11(b5) & b13 - so:
Ab Melodic Minor (Ab-Bb-B-Db-Eb-F-G), with the altered dominant extensions in red. G is the 7th scale step of Ab Melodic Minor.
Our triad pair - again built from the 3rd & 4th scale degrees - is:
Ab Melodic Minor (Ab-Bb-B-Db-Eb-F-G) = B Augmented (B-Eb-G) & Db Maj (Db-F-Ab).
In viewing the contour of the line in the first two bars, the Ab+ triad ascends on beats 1 & 3. The Bb triad descends on beats 2 & 4, alternating through a pair of inversions in the first measure, before resolving by a half-step (D to Db) in bar #2. There's a quick change of direction as B+ & Db triads alternate in an ascending direction on beats 2 & 3 before B+ descends on beat 4, resolving to the tonic (I) chord - C Maj7 in bar #3.
Except for the enclosure on the last half of beat 4 in bar #3, the material in the final two measures is strictly diatonic to C Major (absent the "avoid-note" F - the 4th scale degree), with an accent on the interval of a Perfect 4th, in bar #4.
The downloadable pdf (link above) has this 4-bar sequence transposed neatly to all 12 keys.
So here's hoping your holidays are full of cheer,
'Cause with these "Pairs", you can jam all year!
(Here! Here!)
B. Stern
Related:
* Sympathy for Melodic Minor - Major's Evil Twin, Pt. 1 *
* Three's a Pair! - Melodic Minor ii-V7-i Triad Pairs *
* The Book of Altered: Altering Your Melodic Minor Consciousness *
* Sympathy for Melodic Minor - Major's Evil Twin, Pt. 1 *
* Three's a Pair! - Melodic Minor ii-V7-i Triad Pairs *
* The Book of Altered: Altering Your Melodic Minor Consciousness *
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