Finding Slonimsky’s Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns in Two Concerti by John Adams - John Adams has candidly acknowledged the significance of Nicolas Slonimsky’s Thesaurus of Scalesand Melodic Patterns (1947) in his own compositional output. Recent studies affirm that Adams’sworks incorporate patterns from this book of cyclically related musical synonyms, yet there is littleunderstanding of the properties and organizational principles that make up the Thesaurus and, mostimportantly, how Adams integrates these ideas in his music. This study provides a closer look at theThesaurus and examines two representative movements by the composer, drawn from the ViolinConcerto (1993) and the piano concerto titled Century Rolls (1996).Keywords: John Adams, minimalism, Nicolas Slonimsky, Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns,Violin Concerto, Century Rolls I wish to acknowledge Michael Buchler, Christina Fuhrmann, and theanonymous reviewers of this journal for their helpful suggestions on earlierdrafts of this article.These accounts are included in the back cover of the 1975 Charles Scribner’s Sons edition.Porter (1998, 149); Bair (2003).Brubeck’s song Elegy, for instance, consistently employs one of the melodicpatterns Slonimsky introduces in the preface to the Thesaurus.See Kostelanetz (1997).minting his own.”5 The kind of impact Slonimsky had onAdams carried over to his music. Following Slonimsky’s deathin 1995, Adams composed an orchestral work entitled Slonimsky’s Earbox (1996), which “memorializes [Slonimsky’s] witand hyper-energetic activity, but [it] also acknowledges [Adams’s]great debt to his Thesaurus.”6 One of Slonimsky’s “mindboggling abilities” was his attempt to form scales and melodicpatterns “in such a way as to cover every kind of combination.”7In the words of Schoenberg, this was “an admirable feat ofmental gymnastics.”8Compositional materials and techniques from the Thesauruscan be observed in Adams’s works from the 1990s onwards.9Yet although Adams has openly acknowledged borrowing fromthis source, he has not specified the nature or desire of his influence. In this study, I explore the manner in which he incorporatesSlonimsky’s patterns and scales, as well as other relevant issues:how does Adams’s employment of these patterns interact within Adams (1999, 65). Ibid. Slonimsky (1995, 37). The notion that Slonimsky created an exhaustivebook of patterns is misleading. Sanchez-Behar’s dissertation elaborates thispoint further (2008, 28). Schoenberg (1949). Sanchez-Behar (2008, 1, 3). Adams’s works ranging from 1992 to thepresent are composed in a new style: “[Adams’s] career as a composer maybe divided into four periods: (1) 1970–77, confined to Adams’s initialexperimentation with minimalism, emulating Reichian tape techniques;(2) 1977–87, marked by gradually changing harmonies in a minimalistand post-minimalist style, concluding with the opera Nixon in China;(3) 1987–92, a transitional period characterized by Adams’s discontentwith and reassessment of his compositional style, during which he beginsto show a discernable preoccupation for contrapuntal writing in The Deathof Klinghoffer (1989–91); and (4) 1992–the present, a conscious break fromharmonic structures in favor of a contrapuntal style, which comes intofruition with the Chamber Symphony (1992), a work modeled afterSchoenberg’s Kammersymphonie, Op. 9” (2). Downloaded from http://mts.oxfordjournals.org/ at :: on November 14, 2015Ever since its publication in 1947, The Thesaurus ofScales and Melodic Patterns by Nicolas Slonimsky hasbeen a widely used source of musical composition andimprovisation. The organizing elements of this work remain anenigma to most casual Thesaurus practitioners today, but itsinfluence on numerous musicians from vastly different backgrounds is undeniable. In the classical world, important figuressuch as Henry Cowell, Leonard Bernstein, Virgil Thomson,Howard Hanson, Arthur Honegger, and Arnold Schoenberghave written testimonials that reveal, at least, a passing familiarity with the Thesaurus.1 In the jazz community, too, the Thesaurushas gained enormous respect. Several reports on John Coltraneassert that he devoted time studying this book and, in fact,scholars have convincingly demonstrated how part of “GiantSteps” is directly derived from Slonimsky’s work.2 Another greatjazz musician who has been influenced by Slonimsky is DaveBrubeck, whose 2003 album Park Avenue South draws directlyfrom the Thesaurus.3 In the rock genre, musicians including FrankZappa and guitarists Steve Vai and, more recently, Bucketheadhave candidly acknowledged use of Slonimsky’s patterns.4Another recent musician who has been forthright on hisadoption of the materials found in the Thesaurus is the composer John Adams. His fascination not only for Slonimsky’swork but also for his charismatic personality stems from theirclose friendship. Adams describes Slonimsky as a “character ofmind-boggling abilities” and a “coiner who never tired of
( ) . Interpolation of two notes in Slonimsky’s Pattern 10. THESAURUS OF SCALES AND MELODIC PATTERNS ByNicolas Slonimsky Copyright 1947 (Renewed) Schirmer Trade Books, a division of Music Sales Corporation International CopyrightSecured. All Rights Reserved. Reprinted by Permission. Sanchez-Behar (2014, 58).from the Thesaurus. Drawing on Stephen Heinemann’s notation for pitch-class set multiplication, the ascending form ofSlonimsky’s Pattern 10 can be represented as 0–2–5 06 0–2–5–6–8–e, where ordered segment 0–2–5, referredto as the multiplicand, is transposed using a tritone or interval6-cycle 06 , which is the multiplier.11 The series that comprises the union of these two operators, called the product,results in pcs 0–2–5–6–8–e, which Slonimsky notates as C–D–F–F –G –B. Heinemann accurately notes that despite hispitch-class approach to multiplication, Slonimsky’s patterns arerealized in pitch space.12 For instance, patterns that revolvearound an interval 3-cycle 0369 can be generated with principal tones using minor thirds, such as the chapter “SesquitoneProgression: Equal Division of One Octave into Four Parts,” orwith major sixths, as in “Sesquiquadritone Progression: EqualDivision of Three Octaves into Four Parts.”The types of patterns found in Slonimsky’s Thesaurus containinteresting musical properties. The main core of Slonimsky’sbook consists of patterns that are transpositionally and inversionally symmetrical.13 Some of the patterns meet EdwardGollin’s14 criteria for what he calls multi-aggregate cycles,which consist of repeated patterns of two or more distinctintervals that complete the aggregate more than one timebefore returning to their point of origin.15 Several theoristshave developed methods for predicting when and where pcs areduplicated in patterns such as those found in the Thesaurus.16 Heinemann (1998). Heinemann’s theorems for multiplication could not be expressed as elegantly in pitch space without further refinement of his system. A handful of scholars have discussed the properties of musical patterns likethose found in Slonimsky’s work: Brown (2003), Cohn (1988), Gollin(2007), Heinemann (1998), and Lambert (1990). Gollin (2007). Multi-aggregate cycles are, in fact, quite a common occurrence in the Thesaurus, particularly in the chapters titled “Diatessaron Progression,” “Diapente Progression,” and “Sesquiquinquetone Progression,” which generatepatterns based on cycles 1 and 5. Diatessaron Patterns 826–829, forinstance, illustrate dual-aggregate cycles. Heinemann (1998) discusses how pitch-class duplications can be predictedby comparing the respective interval-class vectors of a multiplicand andmultiplier. The number of repeated pcs in the product is derived by multiplying each interval class from the vectors compared and adding their total,with the exception of ic6, which is transpositionally symmetrical and thusyields twice as many duplications. If one interval class other than ic6 isshared between operands, one note will be repeated in the product, resulting in a total cardinality of A B – 1 (this method of finding set cardinality is severely limited in most other instances). If there are no intervalclasses in common, then there are no repeated pitch classes in theirproduct. For example, the interval-class vectors from the operand sets inDownloaded from http://mts.oxfordjournals.org/ at :: on November 14, 2015a surrounding musical passage, how do patterns relate to oneanother and interact within a musical work, and what is themanner or substance of his application? In other words, does theinclusion of patterns affect merely the surface structure, or does itbear implications for the larger components of a work?To understand the properties of these musical scales and melodic patterns, and as a precursor to the discussion of Adams’suse of them, I will begin with an exploration of Slonimsky’sThesaurus. Subsequently, my study will consider various ways inwhich Adams utilizes Slonimsky’s melodic patterns: (1) quotingthem in their entirety, (2) gradually mutating them throughvarious kinds of pitch modifications, and (3) paraphrasing themto create unique patterns that resemble those from Slonimsky’sThesaurus. Observing the manner in which melodic patternsfunction and interact with their surrounding context will helpelucidate the kinds of conditions necessary for a seamless incorporation of Slonimsky’s materials and techniques. This finalportion of the study will illuminate the types of harmonies thatSlonimsky suggests for his patterns and how Adams re-createsthem in his instrumental works.The bulk of material found in the Thesaurus contains overone thousand melodic patterns arranged into chapters accordingto interval cycles (referred to as principal tones) that divide oneor more octaves into equal parts. Slonimsky devotes the mostattention to patterns whose principal tones divide a singleoctave into various equal parts, which he labels Semitone,Whole tone, Sesquitone, Ditone, and Tritone Progressions.Slonimsky’s prefix “sesqui” signifies the addition of a semitoneto any given interval; thus, a sesquitone corresponds to a minorthird. The pitches that divide the octave into equal distances arein turn ornamented through the insertion of notes below (infrapolation), between (interpolation), and/or above (ultrapolation)these given pitches. Slonimsky’s title “Thesaurus” suggests thata composer can look for musical “synonyms” according to theirdivision of the octave, type(s) of inserted pitches, as well as theircardinality.10 One can observe, for instance, patterns such asTritone Progressions (or cycles) that contain an interpolation ofone pitch (thus a pattern length of four pitches), two pitches(which yields patterns of six pitches), and so on.Slonimsky’s Progression in Example 1 shows how his ornamentations can be inserted into an interval cycle. Slonimskyclassifies Pattern 10 as a Tritone Progression formed throughthe insertion of two interpolated notes. The melodic pattern inthis illustration is shown in ascending and descending form, afeature that is characteristic of nearly all melodic patterns
’ Pattern 402 0–5–4 0369 do not share interval classes; thus, theiroperation yields twelve pitch classes, resulting in a derived twelve-toneseries, which is generated by either one of the recurring operands. In Heinemann’s words, “two operand sets A and B with no interval classes incommon will produce a set with a cardinality equal to A B ” (79). Theexact order position of an initial duplication can also be predicted (Lambert[1990]). Lambert details a method for finding the position of the firstduplication in what he refers to as a combination cycle, which equates toSlonimsky’s pattern interpolation of one note within an interval cycle. The enneatonic is also known as the “Tcherepnin” scale in Russia becausethe composer Alexander Tcherepnin (1899–1977) had used it more extensively than any other composer. It is discussed in a number of writings byJohn Schuster-Craig and more recently in a dissertation by Kimberly AnneVeenstra (2009). Incidentally, Olivier Messiaen classifies this collection ashis third mode of limited transpositions in Technique de mon langagemusical (1944) and refers to it as “the best of all modes [of limited transposition]” (Messiaen [1994, 64]). Slonimsky (1975, vi).explanation for why the linear segment 0–2–4 06 , knownas the whole-tone collection, does not appear in this list,though it can be found elsewhere in the Thesaurus (Patterns 36and 569).19 Based on this and other comparable instances, itseems evident that Slonimsky tried to avoid the duplication ofthis pattern, as well as other “modes of limited transposition”such as the octatonic scale, which can be included within a3- and a 6-cycle.Adams’s instrumental works incorporate patterns from theThesaurus through various means. One of these ways entails theuse of exact quotations that stem from Slonimsky’s work.When present, these complete representations assume dominance over an extended passage of music. Adams referencesSlonimsky’s complete Pattern 425 in the third movement ofhis piano concerto Century Rolls (1996) in Example 3. LikeSlonimsky’s Thesaurus, Adams’s passage features the pattern inprime and retrograde forms. Slonimsky begins all of his patternson pc 0, but here Adams transposes this pattern to begin onpc 6 (or G ) to accommodate the surrounding musical space.Slonimsky classifies this pattern as having an ultrapolation ofthree notes within a 3-cycle 0369 . In Heinemann’s notation,Slonimsky’s pattern consists of an ascending 0–4–t–6 0369 , and the retrograde of its expansion, or 0–3–7–1 0963 . Here, the tetrachord 4–25 [0268], which can bethought of as the familiar Mm7( 5) (or less likely thought of as aroot-position French augmented-sixth chord), is transposedaround a cycle of minor thirds. Adams renotates Slonimsky’spattern so that each triplet group comprises an ascending ordescending major third in the prime form, but because pc 6 isnot repeated before beginning the retrograde, the pattern transforms into a series of alternating ascending minor thirds anddescending tritones (mainly augmented fourths). The resultyields the notes from an octatonic collection, which is one ofAdams’s preferred collections in his recent instrumental One of the forerunners to Slonimsky’s Thesaurus, titled The SchillingerSystem of Music Composition, likewise lists a series of patterns and symmetrical scales. In the section on the interpolation of two notes within a 6-cycle,the author Joseph Schillinger includes the whole-tone collection andarranges the patterns in a slightly different order: 0–1–2 06 , 0–1–3,0–2–3, 0–1–4, 0–3–4, 0–1–5, 0–4–5, 0–2–4, 0–2–5, and 0–3–5 (vol. I[148–54]). Schillinger’s monumental treatise on musical composition andhis theoretical concepts includes two volumes and extends over 1,500pages. His work is more highly driven by mathematical logic and its significance on music. The thrust of his ideas revolves around permutated musicalstructures that create a sense of continuity. The Schillinger System was highlyinfluential during its day; notable musicians such as George Gershwin,Glenn Miller, and Benny Goodman have been known to study underSchillinger’s tutelage. An even earlier attempt at organizing symmetricalscales and patterns, which predates Schillinger’s work, is Alois Hába’sNeue Harmonielehre (1927). However, Hába’s organizing principle combines patterns that solely bear inversional symmetry to others such as thoselisted in Example 2. Ultimately, Slonimsky’s Thesaurus has proven to bethe most successful book of scales and patterns, in part due to its userfriendly approach that attempts to exhaust all patterns with little jargonmostly confined to the book’s preface, rather than present few patterns asgerminating ideas for further exploration and creation of other patterns.Downloaded from http://mts.oxfordjournals.org/ at :: on November 14, 2015If one considered Slonimsky’s melodic patterns as unorderedcollections of pitch classes, then Richard Cohn’s musicalproperties detailed for transpositional combination (e.g., thecommutative and associate properties) would be fully applicable. Aside from the theoretical properties inherent in thesepatterns, a broad assertion about their pitch-class content canbe made: a compilation of the melodic patterns reveals thatnearly all consist of either the octatonic collection (set-class8–28), the enneatonic collection (set-class 9–12), varioussubsets of these two collections, including enneatonic subsetssuch as the hexatonic collection (set-class 6–20) and thewhole-tone collection (set-class 6–35), and last, twelve-tonerows and other patterns that complete the chromatic aggregate.17 The pervasiveness of the octatonic and enneatoniccollections is naturally a by-product of transpositional combination through interval cycles that maximize specific intervals,which in turn minimize others; the octatonic has the highestic3 representation of all octachords, while the enneatonic doesthe same for ic4.The patterns within each interval cycle are organized in asystematic manner. Consider Example 2, which illustrates theinterpolation of two notes within a 6-cycle. Here, the multiplicands begin with the most compact trichord 0–1–2 and proceedin the following order: 0–1–3, 0–1–4, 0–1–5, 0–2–3, 0–2–5,0–3–4, 0–3–5, 0–4–5. From this arrangement of patterns, onecan surmise that Slonimsky did not consider inversionally orrotationally related sets as equivalent. Given that any of Slonimsky’s patterns “can be transposed to any tonal center accordingto a composer’s requirements,”18 0–1–2 06 , 0–1–5 06 , and 0–4–5 06 are related by rotation. The proximityof patterns that are inversionally or rotationally equivalent is aby-product of Slonimsky’s order, and for this reason Slonimskydraws close association of this musical relationship through hissynonyms. The remaining 6-cycle patterns in Example 2belong to the same set class, Forte’s 6–30 [013679], and arerelated by rotation and inversion: 0–1–3 06 , 0–2–5 06 , and 0–3–4 06 are inversionally related to 0–1–4 06 , 0–2–3 06 , and 0–3–5 06 . Slonimsky offers no
( ) . Slonimsky’s Pattern 425 in Adams’s Century Rolls, third movement. THESAURUS OF SCALES AND MELODICPATTERNS By Nicolas Slonimsky Copyright 1947 (Renewed) Schirmer Trade Books, a division of Music Sales CorporationInternational Copyright Secured. All Rights Reserved. Reprinted by Permission. Century Rolls by John Adams Copyright by HendonMusic, Inc., a Boosey & Hawkes company. Reprinted by permission.works, such as Slonimsky’s Earbox (1996). This pattern has aneven distribution of pitch repetitions and therefore projectsthe octatonic collection twice before returning to its point oforigin.20 Aside from Adams’s own transposition and the addedrhythmic swing effect, his excerpt is identical to Slonimsky’spattern.Adams presents complete replications of Slonimsky’s patterns without disguise, thereby directly acknowledging thepoint of origin or source for inspiration and, subsequently, subjects them to a series of pc modifications, such as those found inExample 4. The example shows a straightforward illustration ofthis process in the opening measures of Adams’s Violin Concerto, first movement (1993). In this incipit, Adams featuresSlonimsky’s Pattern 10, transposed to begin on E.21 ImaginingE as pc0, Slonimsky’s Pattern 10 can be notated as: ascending0–2–5 06 ; descending 0–e–8 06 . The set classformed by these pcs consists of the hexachord collection 6–30[013679], a subset of the octatonic collection. The ascendingpattern first maintains the register of the original, and shortlyafter Adams transposes various pitches down an octave to Slonimsky’s Pattern 425 reveals a similar characteristic to what Gollindescribes as a multi-aggregate cycle, though with the octatonic collection;hence, it produces what I call a multi-octatonic cycle. This musical depiction compiles the highest textures from the violin I,violin II, and viola parts. Occasionally chromatic notes are enharmonicallyrespelled in the score transcribed for violin and piano.Downloaded from http://mts.oxfordjournals.org/ at :: on November 14, 2015 . Interpolation of two notes in a C6-cycle.
’ prevent a continuous melodic rise. After commencing the concerto with a transposed replica of Slonimsky’s Pattern 10,Adams begins a process of gradual transformation through theremoval of pcs. Each asterisk in the illustration signals omittedpcs from Slonimsky’s ordering.22 The omitted notes from theascending patterns (B , C, D , E, F ) are generally arrangedaccording to the same structure as Pattern 10, which producesthe intervals 2 3 1 . Thus, the absence of these expectednotes reinforces the intervallic structure that defines the initialpattern. Like Slonimsky, Adams also incorporates the retrograde form of the pattern (starting on m. 10), albeit in modifiedform. Omitted notes in Adams’s retrograde form are far morefrequent and occasionally outline A–C–E, or an A-minor triad.In the modification that I refer to as a “pitch-class interchange,”Adams swaps the ordering of two notes. The influence of thispattern on the Violin Concerto can be traced throughout theentire movement to a greater or lesser degree, and its effectbears a direct impact on the surface and structure of the entiremovement.Another compositional technique that displays influence ofSlonimsky’s Thesaurus involves paraphrasing a pattern’s continuous melodic ascent and descent ( prime and retrograde),guided by a recurring interval to form a cycle. The genesis ofAdams’s newly composed patterns can be traced directly toSlonimsky’s work because they appear after a transparent reproduction of one of Slonimsky’s patterns has been introduced. In In the context of minimal music, Warburton (1988) refers to this gradualremoval of notes from a pattern as a block reductive process.this manner, a traceable pattern is used as a starting point;Adams’s own twist can be interpreted as variations on a pattern.Example 5 illustrates how Adams reworks Pattern 425 in “HailBop” from Century Rolls, given in Example 3 (mm. 128–31).The recurring tetrachord from Pattern 425—by coincidence amember of 4–25 [0268]—has been altered, yet Adams’s newpatterns resemble Slonimsky’s in their contour; moreover, boththe prime and retrograde forms appear in the score. Adams’svariations alternate between two pitch-class collections, withthe exception of the [026] trichord in m. 134, which is nevertheless a subset of the [0258] tetrachord heard in the followingmeasure. Each variation utilizes two pitch-class collections: variation 1 contains [0258] or its subset [026], as well as [0146];variation 2 includes [0147] and [0135]; variation 3 employs[036] and [0156]. Adams’s newly composed patterns formthree different hexachordal collections: 6–21 [023468] in mm.134–35, 6-Z40 [012358] in mm. 144–47, and 6-Z28 [013569]in mm. 152–55. It is intriguing to discover that none of thehexachords are subsets of Slonimsky’s octatonic pattern. Bydeparting from the parent collection, Adams highlights aprocess of development in his own variations.23The employment of two set classes to create a new kind ofpattern, as Adams develops in Example 5, is not foreign to the Timothy A. Johnson’s (2005) presentation “Diatonic Transformations inthe Music of John Adams” confirms a similar point on contrasting seemingly unrelated pitch-class collections. Namely, Adams signals new formalsections with pitch collections that have fewer common tones than thosemaintained within a former section.Downloaded from http://mts.oxfordjournals.org/ at :: on November 14, 2015 . Slonimsky’s Pattern 10 in Adams’s Violin Concerto, first movement. THESAURUS OF SCALES AND MELODICPATTERNS By Nicolas Slonimsky Copyright 1947 (Renewed) Schirmer Trade Books, a division of Music Sales CorporationInternational Copyright Secured. All Rights Reserved. Reprinted by Permission. Violin Concerto by John Adams Copyright by HendonMusic, Inc., a Boosey & Hawkes company. Reprinted by permission.
( )treatment of a small number of patterns in the Thesaurus,such as those titled “Non-Symmetric Interpolation” (Patterns49–52), and “Bitonal Arpeggios” (Patterns 1191–1213). However,one of the primary organizing principles of the Thesaurus concernsdirected intervals, rather than the collection of unordered pcs toform set classes. Therefore, the directed intervals that generate thealternating set classes will remain the same (or at times be inverted)when a set class is produced. Yet Adams’s variations depart fromthe kind of linear regularity seen in Patterns 49–52 and 1191–1213.Like Slonimsky’s Pattern 425, Adams’s variations revolve around a3-cycle 0369 , except that Adams distorts one of the principalcyclic tones with each variation (the only hexachordal collection thatallows for a complete 3-cycle is found in variation 3, but Adamschooses to deviate away from Slonimsky’s pattern of transposition).Although one cannot make a direct one-to-one correlationbetween Adams’s unique variations and patterns from theThesaurus, each of the variations contains embedded portionsfrom patterns that stem from the same chapter in which onefinds Pattern 425, entitled “Sesquitone Progression.” Pattern425 features the ultrapolation of three notes within a 3-cycle,while traces from Patterns 528, 533, and 540 found in the variations all feature the infra-inter-ultrapolation of three notes, alsowithin a 3-cycle.24 Considering that there are 177 patterns These three patterns contain the following pcs shown using Heinemann’snotation for multiplication: Pattern 528 0–t–1–9 0369 ; Pattern533 0–t–2–9 0369 ; Pattern 540 0–9–2–6 0369 . To trace theresemblance, one must examine Slonimsky’s patterns with directedDownloaded from http://mts.oxfordjournals.org/ at :: on November 14, 2015 . Slonimsky’s Pattern 425 reworked in “Hail Bop” from Century Rolls. THESAURUS OF SCALES AND MELODICPATTERNS By Nicolas Slonimsky Copyright 1947 (Renewed) Schirmer Trade Books, a division of Music Sales CorporationInternational Copyright Secured. All Rights Reserved. Reprinted by Permission. Century Rolls by John Adams Copyright by HendonMusic, Inc., a Boosey & Hawkes company. Reprinted by permission.
’ intervals in modulo 12 space. Slonimsky’s Pattern 528, for instance, generates the following repeating pc series four times before returning to its starting point: -2 3 8-6 . Adams’s variation 1 rotates the pattern to beginwith the second directed interval 3 8-6-2 , while the other two variations also rotate Slonimsky’s pattern by one note. The significance of step-class intervallic analysis in Adams’s instrumentalworks from the 1990s onwards has been raised by Sanchez-Behar (2008),and the earliest trace of Adams’s initial workings in step classes has beendocumented in China Gates (1977), which Adams and scholars alike regardas his first opus (Sanchez-Behar [2014]). Closer examination of Adams’sworks reveals that the notion of interval transposition in diatonic space or amodulo-space of smaller cardinality is pervasive as a means of motivicdevelopment. For a discussion and application of the term “step class,” refer to Neidhöfer(2005) and Santa (1999).The method in which Adams integrates and transformsSlonimsky’s patterns does not appear to occur simply at thesurface level but rather at the very core, retaining motivic andstructural relationships that bind a whole work. In the thirdmovement from Century Rolls, the octatonic collection comesto the fore subsequent to Slonimsky’s pattern and Adams’sunique molding of Pattern 425 that ensues in mm. 126–57.The movement continues with a particularly lucid manipulation of the octatonic collection represented through scales andother motivic material reminiscent of Adams’s earlier handling of this collection. Moreover, the musical setting preceding m. 126 associates motivic interrelationships throughoctatonic subsets as well as a rhythmic character that augurs thesyncopated figures found subsequently. In the first movement ofthe Violin Concerto, Adams’s opening, stemming directly fromSlonimsky’s Pattern 10, virtually shapes and molds the entiremovement. Adams describes the first movement, which bearssome resemblance to a concerto in its use and placement of acadenza for the soloist: “The large organism is a picture of thesmallest cellular structure. For example, in the first movement,those rising waves of triads become basic genetic material forthe entire movement. They make their effect felt everywhere,even in the cadenza.”27 Adams candidly acknowledges that thesource of the smallest cellular structure derives from the Thesaurus.28 The opening pattern is subjected to various transpositionsjuxtaposed to create parallel second-inversion major triads.Formal development in the Violin Concerto, arising fromAdams’s microcosmic treatment of Pattern 10, shapes thelarger gestalt. Adams’s more extensive approach to implementing Slonimsky’s patterns in the Violin Concerto departs fromthe occasional use found in Century Rolls. Close examination ofAdams’s works appears to pinpoint the Violin Concerto as thecomposer’s initial and deliberate adoption of this resource.In this regard, the first movement can be understood as anexperimental study of sorts, as one musical realization derivedfrom Slonimsky’s raw materials and molded by Adams. In theViolin Concerto, Pattern 10 develops in a varie
Keywords: John Adams, minimalism, Nicolas Slonimsky, Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns, Violin Concerto, Century Rolls E ver since its publication in 1947, The Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns by Nicolas Slonimsky has been a widely used source of musical composition and improvisation. The organizing elements of this work remain an
Concerto (1993) and the piano concerto titled Century Rolls (1996). Keywords: John Adams, minimalism, Nicolas Slonimsky, Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns, Violin Concerto, Century Rolls E ver since its publication in 1947, The Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns by Nicolas Slonimsky has been a widely used source of musical .
invented by Nicolas Slonimsky in 1938 [13]. Figure 1. An image of the Mother chord and Grandmother chord in Slonimsky’s Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns (p. 185). The Grandmother chord has the additional property that the intervals are odd and even alternately, and the odd intervals decrease by one whole-tone, while the
The title pays tribute to the Russian-born Nicolas . Slonimsky. Although best known as the author of several witty books on music, his exhaustive compendium . The Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns. has been an invaluable resource for Adams in his own music. Slonimsky’s Earbox
Slonimsky's Lexicon of Musical Invective, 2nd ed. (New York: Coleman-Ross, 1965). Paul Rosenfeld's and Cecil Gray's denouncements of Der Rosenkavaliercan be found in Slonimsky, p. 195. 2 Richard Strauss, cited in Richard Strauss & Romain Rolland: Correspondence
Nicolas Slonimsky’s sojourn to Latin America in 1941-42 with 10,000 to secure works from South and Central America. Slonimsky would produce his pioneering book, Music of Latin America (Thomas A. Crowell, 1945) as a result of the trip. Fleisher remained actively in
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Bair, Jeff, Cyclic Patterns in John Coltrane’s Melodic Vocabulary as Influenced by Nicolas Slonimsky’s Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns: An Analysis of Selected Improvisations. Doctor of Musical Arts (Performance), August 2003,
Paediatric Anatomy Paediatric ENT Conditions Paediatric Hearing Tests and Screening. 1 Basic Sciences HEAD AND NECK ANATOMY 3 SECTION 1 ESSENTIAL REVISION NOTES medial pterygoid plate lateral pterygoid plate styloid process mastoid process foramen ovale foramen spinosum jugular foramen stylomastoid foramen foramen magnum carotid canal hypoglossal canal Fig. 1 The cranial fossa and nerves .