Passamezzo moderno
Encyclopedia
The Gregory Walker or passamezzo moderno ("modern half step"; also quadran, quadrant, or quadro pavan) was "one of the most popular harmonic formulae
in the Renaissance
period, divid[ing] into two complementary strains
thus:"
.
For example, in C major the progression is as follows:
The progression or ground bass, the major mode variation of the passamezzo antico
, originated in Italian and French dance music during the first half of the 16th century, where it was often used with a contrasting progression or section known as ripresi. Though one of Thomas Morley
's characters in Plaine and Easie Introduction to Practicall Musicke denigrates the Gregory Walker, comparing unskilled singing to its sound (Morley 1597, 120), it was popular in both pop/popular/folk and classical musics through 1700. Its popularity was revived in the mid 19th century, and the American variant (below) evolved into the twelve bar blues
(van der Merwe 1989, 198–201).
Listed in Helms, Ilmbrecht, and Dieckelmann (1954):
Others:
, is a variation
in which the subdominant (IV) chords become the progression IV-I (van der Merwe 1989, 201-202).
.
For example, in C major this variation is as follows:
Chord progression
A chord progression is a series of musical chords, or chord changes that "aims for a definite goal" of establishing a tonality founded on a key, root or tonic chord. In other words, the succession of root relationships...
in the Renaissance
Renaissance music
Renaissance music is European music written during the Renaissance. Defining the beginning of the musical era is difficult, given that its defining characteristics were adopted only gradually; musicologists have placed its beginnings from as early as 1300 to as late as the 1470s.Literally meaning...
period, divid[ing] into two complementary strains
Phrase (music)
In music and music theory, phrase and phrasing are concepts and practices related to grouping consecutive melodic notes, both in their composition and performance...
thus:"
| 1) | I | IV | I | V |
| 2) | I | IV | I-V | I |
For example, in C major the progression is as follows:
| C | F | C | G | C | F | C-G | C |
Passamezzo antico
The passamezzo antico was a ground bass or chord progression popular during the Italian Renaissance and known throughout Europe in the 16th century...
, originated in Italian and French dance music during the first half of the 16th century, where it was often used with a contrasting progression or section known as ripresi. Though one of Thomas Morley
Thomas Morley
Thomas Morley was an English composer, theorist, editor and organist of the Renaissance, and the foremost member of the English Madrigal School. He was the most famous composer of secular music in Elizabethan England and an organist at St Paul's Cathedral...
's characters in Plaine and Easie Introduction to Practicall Musicke denigrates the Gregory Walker, comparing unskilled singing to its sound (Morley 1597, 120), it was popular in both pop/popular/folk and classical musics through 1700. Its popularity was revived in the mid 19th century, and the American variant (below) evolved into the twelve bar blues
Twelve bar blues
The 12-bar blues is one of the most popular chord progressions in popular music, including the blues. The blues progression has a distinctive form in lyrics and phrase and chord structure and duration...
(van der Merwe 1989, 198–201).
Examples
Listed in van der Merwe (1989, 198–201):- several in The Fitzwilliam Virginal BookFitzwilliam Virginal BookThe Fitzwilliam Virginal Book is a primary source of keyboard music from the late Elizabethan and early Jacobean periods in England, i.e., the late Renaissance and very early Baroque. It takes its name from Viscount Fitzwilliam who bequeathed this manuscript collection to Cambridge University in 1816...
- "Up and Ware Them A Willie"
- "Jimmie Rose"
- "Darling Nelly Gray"
- "Wreck of the Old 97"
- Woody GuthrieWoody GuthrieWoodrow Wilson "Woody" Guthrie is best known as an American singer-songwriter and folk musician, whose musical legacy includes hundreds of political, traditional and children's songs, ballads and improvised works. He frequently performed with the slogan This Machine Kills Fascists displayed on his...
's "There is a House in This Old Town" - Irving BerlinIrving BerlinIrving Berlin was an American composer and lyricist of Jewish heritage, widely considered one of the greatest songwriters in American history.His first hit song, "Alexander's Ragtime Band", became world famous...
's "Alexander's Ragtime BandAlexander's Ragtime Band"Alexander's Ragtime Band" is the name of a song by Irving Berlin. It was his first major hit, in 1911. There is some evidence, although inconclusive, that Berlin borrowed the melody from a draft of "A Real Slow Drag" submitted by Scott Joplin that had been submitted to a...
" - The Rolling StonesThe Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
' "Honky Tonk WomenHonky Tonk Women"Honky Tonk Women" is a 1969 hit song by The Rolling Stones. Released as a single on 4 July 1969 in the UK and a week later in the US, it topped the charts in both nations.-Inspiration and Recording:...
" (1969) - Carole KingCarole KingCarole King is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. King and her former husband Gerry Goffin wrote more than two dozen chart hits for numerous artists during the 1960s, many of which have become standards. As a singer, King had an album, Tapestry, top the U.S...
's "You've Got a FriendYou've Got a Friend"You've Got a Friend" is a song from 1971, originally written and performed by Carole King. It was included in her album Tapestry of 1971, but was made famous by James Taylor's cover version the same year...
" (1971)
Listed in Helms, Ilmbrecht, and Dieckelmann (1954):
- Hans NeusidlerHans NeusidlerHans Neusidler , was a German composer and lutenist of the Renaissance.-Life:...
's "Gassenhawer" (Nuremberg, 1536) - "Oxstedter Mühle" (folk dance from Lower Saxony) (B section)
- Diego OrtizDiego OrtizDiego Ortiz was a Spanish composer and musicologist, in service to the Spanish viceroy in Naples and later to Philip II of Spain. Ortiz published influential treatises on both instrumental and vocal performance....
' Recercada Prima / Segunda / Tercera sobre el Passamezzo Moderno (three-part didactic composition in Tratado de Glosas sobre cláusulas y Otros Generos de Puntos en la Música de Violones, 1553). (Readers of Spanish may benefit from the Spanish-language Wikipedia's more extensive treatment of Diego Ortiz and of the Tratado de Glosas.)
Others:
- Iron & WineIron & WineSamuel Beam , better known by his stage and recording name Iron & Wine, is an American singer-songwriter. He has released four studio albums, several EPs and singles, as well as a few download-only releases, which include a live album...
's "A History of Lovers" (Iron e Wine 2005) (verses; chorus and interludes follow ripresi IV-I-IV-V progression)
American Gregory Walker
The American Gregory Walker, popular in parlour musicParlour music
Parlour music is a type of popular music which, as the name suggests, is intended to be performed in the parlours of middle class homes by amateur singers and pianists...
, is a variation
Variation (music)
In music, variation is a formal technique where material is repeated in an altered form. The changes may involve harmony, melody, counterpoint, rhythm, timbre, orchestration or any combination of these.-Variation form:...
in which the subdominant (IV) chords become the progression IV-I (van der Merwe 1989, 201-202).
| 1) | I | IV-I | I | V |
| 2) | I | IV-I | I-V | I |
For example, in C major this variation is as follows:
| C | F-C | C | G | C | F-C | C-G | C |
Examples
Listed in van der Merwe (1989, 201–202):- "Jesse James"
- "The TitanicThe Titanic (song)"The Titanic" is a folk song and children's song most known for being sung in the United States at summer camp...
" - "My Little Old Sod Shanty"
- "CottonfieldsCotton Fields"Cotton Fields" is a song written by blues musician Huddie Ledbetter, better known as Lead Belly who made the first recording of the song in 1940.-Early versions:...
" - Gus Cannon's "Walk Right InWalk Right InWalk Right In is the title of a country blues song written by musician Gus Cannon and originally recorded by Cannon's Jug Stompers in 1929, released on Victor Records, catalogue 38611. It was reissued on album in 1959 as a track on The Country Blues....
" (1929)
On original progression
- Second strain's first I becomes I-I7 (for a stronger "lead-in" to the upcoming IV):
- "Gathering Flowers From the Hillside" (Carter FamilyCarter FamilyThe Carter Family was a traditional American folk music group that recorded between 1927 and 1956. Their music had a profound impact on bluegrass, country, Southern Gospel, pop and rock musicians as well as on the U.S. folk revival of the 1960s. They were the first vocal group to become country...
, 1935) - Second strain progresses from IV directly to a full measure of V, displacing its second (half-measure) I:
- "Kiss The GirlKiss The Girl"Kiss the Girl" is a calypso song from Disney's 1989 animated film The Little Mermaid, composed by Alan Menken with lyrics by Howard Ashman. In the film, the song was performed by Samuel E. Wright...
" (Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, 1989) from Disney's The Little MermaidThe Little Mermaid"The Little Mermaid" is a popular fairy tale by the Danish poet and author Hans Christian Andersen about a young mermaid willing to give up her life in the sea and her identity as a mermaid to gain a human soul and the love of a human prince...
(chorus; verses follow standard twelve-bar pattern) - "Three Little Speckled Frogs" (traditional children's songChildren's songChildren's song may be a nursery rhyme set to music, a song that young children invent and share among themselves, or a modern creation intended for entertainment, use in the home, or education...
) - BluegrassBluegrass musicBluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
variation: First strain's change from I to IV and back is omitted: - "She'll Be Comin' 'Round the Mountain" (traditional) text at Anon
[n.d. ]; melody at http://www.ingeb.org/songs/cominrou.mid (file composed specifically for dissemination via ingeb.org website pursuant to site's policy imposing non-commercial and share-alike restrictions but not attribution requirement)
- The Bluegrass variation frequently occurs in conjunction with the I-I7 "lead-in" and/or the direct IV-to-V transition listed above.
The resulting progression is ||| I | I | I | V || I(-I7) | IV | (I-)V | I ||| ; examples include:-
- "Free Little Bird" (David Holt and DocDoc WatsonArthel Lane "Doc" Watson is an American guitar player, songwriter and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues and gospel music. He has won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Watson's flatpicking skills and knowledge of traditional American music are highly regarded...
and Merle Watson; not to be confused with Lynyrd SkynyrdLynyrd SkynyrdLynyrd Skynyrd is an American rock band prominent in spreading Southern Rock during the 1970s.Originally formed as the "Noble Five" in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1964, the band rose to worldwide recognition on the basis of its driving live performances and signature tune, Freebird...
's "Free BirdFree Bird"Free Bird" is a song by the American southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd...
") (Holt Watson and Watson 2009). - "Yakety SaxYakety Sax"Yakety Sax" is a piece of music written by James Q. "Spider" Rich and popularized by saxophonist Boots Randolph.The composition includes pieces of assorted fiddle tunes such as "Chicken Reel", and was written for a performance at a venue called The Armory in Hopkinsville, Kentucky...
" (The Benny Hill ShowThe Benny Hill ShowThe Benny Hill Show is a British comedy television show starring Benny Hill.There were various incarnations of the show between 1951 and 1991, and it aired in over 140 countries. The show is generally sketch-based with heavy use of slapstick, mime, parody and double-entendre...
theme) by Boots RandolphBoots RandolphHomer Louis "Boots" Randolph III was an American musician best known for his 1963 saxophone hit, "Yakety Sax"...
and James Q. "Spider" Rich- Vamp/ostinatoOstinatoIn music, an ostinato is a motif or phrase, which is persistently repeated in the same musical voice. An ostinato is always a succession of equal sounds, wherein each note always has the same weight or stress. The repeating idea may be a rhythmic pattern, part of a tune, or a complete melody in...
of first strain until closing line of song: - "MbubeThe Lion Sleeps Tonight"The Lion Sleeps Tonight", also known as "Wimoweh" and originally as "Mbube", is a song recorded by Solomon Linda and his group The Evening Birds for the South African Gallo Record Company in 1939. It was covered internationally by many 1950s pop and folk revival artists, including The Weavers,...
" (Solomon LindaSolomon LindaSolomon Popoli Linda , also known as Solomon Ntsele , was a South African Zulu musician, singer and composer who wrote the song "Mbube" which later became the popular music success "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", and gave its name to the Mbube style of isicathamiya a cappella popularized later by...
, 1939), imported into English as "Wimoweh [uyimbube]"/"The Lion Sleeps Tonight"
- Vamp/ostinato
- "Free Little Bird" (David Holt and Doc
-
On American variant
- IV-I is reversed, becoming I-IV or I7-IV:
- "Tennessee Waltz" (StewartRedd StewartHenry Ellis Stewart , better known as Redd Stewart, was an American country music songwriter and recording artist who co-wrote "The Tennessee Waltz" with Pee Wee King in 1948.-Biography:...
and KingPee Wee KingJulius Frank Anthony Kuczynski , known professionally as Pee Wee King, was an American country music songwriter and recording artist best known for co-writing "The Tennessee Waltz"....
1947) (verse and second strain of chorus) - Second I in second strain becomes II7, yielding second-strain progression of || I | IV-II7 | I-V | I ||| :
- "Truck Drivin' Song" ("Weird Al" Yankovic"Weird Al" YankovicAlfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic is an American singer-songwriter, music producer, accordionist, actor, comedian, writer, satirist, and parodist. Yankovic is known for his humorous songs that make light of popular culture and that often parody specific songs by contemporary musical acts...
, releasedRunning with Scissors (album)Running with Scissors is the 10th studio album by "Weird Al" Yankovic, released on June 29, 1999. The album contains the hit single "The Saga Begins", a parody of Don McLean's song "American Pie".-Details:...
1999) (A section; also shifts rhythm of two final bars from | I-V | I ||| to | I | V-I ||| )
Sources
- Anon. [n.d.]. “Coming 'round the Mountain”. Song text, at Leader in Lieder mit Midi Melodies website. (Accessed 22 May 2010)
- Carter Family. 1935. "Gathering Flowers From The Hillside" or http://www.traditionalmusic.co.uk/carter-family-songs/Gathering-flowers-from-the-hillside.htm. Columbia 37636. Recorded May 7, 1935.
- Helms, Anna, Otto Ilmbrecht, and Heinrich Dieckelmann (1954). Die Tanzkette, Frankfurt am Main: Hoffmeister Verlag.
- Holt, David, Doc Watson, and Merle Watson. 2009. "Free Little Bird". Piney Grove Ramblers: Bluegrass for the People website. (Accessed 22 May 2010)
- Iron e Wine ([2005]). A History of Lovers CifrasFX website. (Accessed 22 May 2010).
- Middleton, Richard (1990). Studying Popular Music. Milton Keynes and Philadelphia: Open University Press. ISBN 0335152767 (cloth); ISBN 0-335-15275-9 (pbk). Reprinted 2002.
- Morley, Thomas (1597). A Plaine and Easie Introduction to Practicall Musicke. London: Peter Short.
- van der Merwe, Peter (1989). Origins of the Popular Style: The Antecedents of Twentieth-Century Popular Music. Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN 0-19-316121-4.