Synopses & Reviews
An exploration of musical harmony from its ancient fundamentals to its most complex modern progressions, addressing how and why it resonates emotionally and spiritually in the individual.andnbsp; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;W. A. Mathieu, an accomplished author and recording artist, presents a way of learning music that reconnects modern-day musicians with the source from which music was originally generated. As the author states, "The rules of music--including counterpoint and harmony--were not formed in our brains but in the resonance chambers of our bodies." His theory of music reconciles the ancient harmonic system of just intonation with the modern system of twelve-tone temperament. Saying that the way we think music is far from the way we do music, Mathieu explains why certain combinations of sounds are experienced by the listener as harmonious. His prose often resembles the rhythms and cadences of music itself, and his many musical examples allow readers to discover their own musical responses.andnbsp;
Review
andquot;This book goes beyond what most textbooks offer, and its highly original pedagogy deserves the attention of every teacher of harmony.and#160; Above all, this is a book for anyone who would like to acquire harmony as a lived experience rather than as mere memorization of unyielding rules on paper.andquot;and#160;
Review
andquot;Mathieu is consistently proving himself to be one of the best in musical theory.andquot;and#160;
Review
andquot;This volume offers experiential keys to help unlock the mystery of how music works its deep affect upon us.and#160; Harmonic Experience extends any reader's understanding of music and is a user-friendly, elegant and graceful work. It is a technical treatise about the inner workings of music.andquot;
Review
andquot;Mathieu's books are worth reading for anyone in any field of music--jazz, classical, gospel, or any other. He's found the words to tell the power of music.andquot;
Review
"Mathieu's books are worth reading for anyone in any field of music--jazz, classical, gospel, or any other. He's found the words to tell the power of music." < b=""> Pete Seeger, <> folksinger
Review
"This book goes beyond what most textbooks offer, and its highly original pedagogy deserves the attention of every teacher of harmony. Above all, this is a book for anyone who would like to acquire harmony as a lived experience rather than as mere memorization of unyielding rules on paper." < b=""> Chien-Chang Yang <> , < i=""> Quarterly Journal of the MLA <>
Review
"Mathieu is consistently proving himself to be one of the best in musical theory." < b=""> John Coltrane <> in < i=""> Downbeat Magazine <>
Review
"This volume offers experiential keys to help unlock the mystery of how music works its deep affect upon us. Harmonic Experience extends any reader's understanding of music and is a user-friendly, elegant and graceful work. It is a technical treatise about the inner workings of music." < b=""> Daniel Atesh Sonneborn <> , Smithsonian Institution
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 532-537) and indexes.
About the Author
W. A. Mathieu is the author of andlt;Iandgt;The Listening Bookandlt;/Iandgt;, andlt;Iandgt;Harmonic Experienceandlt;/Iandgt; and andlt;Iandgt;The Musical Lifeandlt;/Iandgt;. He has recorded solo piano music for Windham Hill and other labels. He lives in Sebastopol, California, where he writes and teaches.
Table of Contents
andlt;Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Editor's Prefaceandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Introduction andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;andlt;/Bandgt;andlt;Bandgt;Part 1: Harmonic Purity: Feeling the Numbersandlt;/Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;1 Seeing Air and Touching Soundandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;2 Singing Unison with a Droneandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;3 Singing Octavesandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;4 Singing Perfect Fifthsandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;5 Singing Major Thirdsandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;6 A Map of Harmonic Relationshipsandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;7 The Perfect Fifth Below: Hello Motherandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;8 The Major Third Belowandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;9 The Central Section of the Map Completedandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;10 The Five-limit Lattice of Twelve Notesandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;11 Available Modes: Lydian Through Phrygianandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;12 Mixed Modesandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;13 Internalizing the Latticeandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;14 Numbers and Mysteriesandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;15 Chomatic Pairsandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;16 Beyond Twelve Notes: The Extended Five-Limit Latticeandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;17 The Seventh Partial and Beyondandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;18 The Practice of Pure Harmonyandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Part 2: The Selective Use of Equal Temperamentandlt;/Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt;19 Leaping from Paradiseandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;20 Six Unambiguous Chordsandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;21 Twelve Unambiguous Chords: Tonal Harmony within the Lattice of Twelveandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;Notesandnbsp; andlt;/Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;22 Unambiguous Triadic Harmony in the Extended Latticeandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;23 Dronality in Equal Temperament: Mixed Modesandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;24 Dronality in Equal Temperament: Mixed Modesandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;25 Chromatic Pairs and the Magic Modeandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;26 Pushing the Magic Mode Envelopeandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Part 3: The Function Commas of Equal-Tempered Tonal Harmonyandlt;/Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt;27 Comma Phenomenaandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;28 Didymic Pairs of Tonesandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;29 Didymic Pairs of Triadsandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;30 The Great Diesis: The Beauty of the Beastandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;31 The Tonal Array of the Great Diesisandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;32 The Diaschismaandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;33 Quasi-functional and Nonfunctional Commasandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;34 The Shape of Tonalityandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Part 4: Harmonic Practice, Analysis, and Review of the Theoryandlt;/Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt;35 Practical Mattersandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;36 A Small Syllabus of Diatonic Sequencesandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;37 Cadential Practices: Parallel Borrowingandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;38 The Long Cadence: A Comprehensive View of Cadential Energyandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;39 Tonicization and Modulationandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;40 Modal Modulationandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;41 A Syllabus of Cyclic Sequencesandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;42 Symmetrical Harmony and the Dissolution of Tonalityandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;43 The Notation of Positional Analysisandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt;44 Review of the Theoryandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;Afterwordandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Glossary of Termsandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Glossary of Singable Tones in Just Intonationandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Sourcesandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Acknowledgmentsandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;General Indexandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Index of Ratiosandnbsp; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt;Index of Most-Referenced Examples, Figures, and Tablesandlt;/Bandgt;