[lbo-talk] Chuck's Cassirer posts

Miles Jackson cqmv at pdx.edu
Wed Jun 18 21:19:01 PDT 2008


Michael Pollak wrote:
> On Wed, 18 Jun 2008, Miles Jackson wrote:
>
>
>>This is inaccurate. Many musical scales do not include the fourth and
>>the fifth.
>
>
> For example?
>
> Michael

Well, the major pentatonic scale does not include the fourth; the locrian scale does not include the fifth; the Iwato (Japanese) scale does not include the fifth; the whole tone scale does not include the fourth or the fifth. Arab scales divide the octave into sixteen unequal intervals that do not correspond well to the twelve notes in the Western chromatic scale.

In sum: there is nothing natural and necessary about any particular musical scale.

Miles



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