Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with harmony

Larger voices callin'

Bearman — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:04:53 -0800

Looking for songs with really good vocal harmonies. Any and all genres is great, but I'm especially looking for pop (50s to present) and older country that a beginner can learn how to harmonize.

Also, does anybody have tips on learning how to harmonize?

Magic Chord-O-Matic Machine!

phrontist — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 13:04:20 -0800

I was playing around with a keyboard at a Guitar Center that had an auto-harmonize feature. Below a certain note pressing a key would play a chord instead of a single tone. What was interesting was that playing chromatically (white and black keys) it played chords that retained a firm sense of key (C major) - if you jumped around randomly or did chromatic runs it didn't sound like there were a bunch of modulations taking place. What formula do you think it used to do this?

Poodle Attempts to Destroy Household Harmony! Barking and Peeing Popular Weapons!

amelioration — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 16:52:45 -0800

Help us de-neurose, de-jealous-ize my cranky canine please! I have a 3.5 year old male (neutered) standard poodle (see the muppety cuteness here). I also have a boyfriend of a year and a half (whose cuteness I am not authorized to share). The Poodle, he does not like the Boyfriend. Not one little bit.

It all started on our fourth date. Poodle went directly from "hey, you're a fun and interesting new visitor" to "oh god bad man hate hate hate." Poodle has never been aggressive, but whenever Boyfriend arrives at house Poodle initiates the following sequence: 1) Bark wildly, 2) Run and hide, while continuing to bark wildly, 3) Quiet down, but continue hiding, 4) Maybe, just maybe, be in the same room, but spend all time staring warily at the bad, bad man.

Poodle is very territorial, but doesn't have problems with people in general (or anyone else at all, specifically). Since the arrival of Boyfriend in our lives 1.5 years ago, he's gotten to be wary of tall men, but chills out once he realizes that that tall man isn't Boyfriend. He is crated during the day, and loves his crate -- it's clear he considers that a safe space, which I think is good.

This has been going on, as I said, for a year and a half. Boyfriend spent 2 to 4 nights a week here. Last week, we commenced cohabitating (in my, and Poodle's, house). In the past 24 hours, Poodle has begun doing some submissive peeing when Boyfriend gets too close. Y'know, like when Boyfriend's got the leash in hand and is offering to take Poodle for a walk.

We're searching desperately for any suggestions on how to mitigate this situation. Things that we have tried thus far include:
1. Bribery! Dogs love snacks, right? Well... not this one. Poodle would rather forgo the tasty bit of steak than get within 4 feet of Boyfriend.
2. Boyfriend has taken over feeding duties for Poodle. Occasionally augmented with a delicious drizzling of bacon grease on the kibble. This has been the case for the last week or so. No lessening of the ohmygodbadman attitude.
3. Ignoring Poodle. Maybe if we don't reinforce the behavior it'll go away? Ummmmm... no.
4. What I like to call "Corporal Cuddling." Essentially, I'll grab Poodle for some cuddles, Boyfriend will also rub on him. Poodle will enjoy the attention, but run, run, run like the wind as soon as he can.
5. Playing! Hooray for a dog's favorite toys! Oh, wait, no. Poodle will not behave playfully when Boyfriend is around. No way. Altogether too risky for a Poodle, clearly.
6. Walks! What kind of dog can't be won over with a walk? Boyfriend has started taking Poodle on some walks that are just the two of them. Poodle chills out a bit for a while, but the next time Boyfriend arrives home it tends to be back to normal. So...no progress yet, but this is still in it's early stages.

I love this dog, who is really a fantastically fun, sweet (though still somewhat neurotic) dog when Boyfriend isn't around. Boyfriend is awesome, and willing to try all sorts of things, even though this dog (unlike all other dogs he's encountered) has a real problem with him.

So, does anyone have any ideas of training/tricks/mesmerism we could try with Poodle? Any reassuring stories to share with me? We are far, far, far from giving up, but I certainly don't want Poodle to be this stressed out the rest of his life.

I feel the need to note that Boyfriend is a great guy, and all answers of the "Your dog is trying to tell you something that you can't sense and animals are totally able to see our souls and so DTMFA" will be roundly mocked around this house. Thank you for all practical advice.

Help me understand atonal music

Frankieist — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:38:46 -0800

I've been trying to branch out my musical tastes, and have started recently to listen to atonal and serialist music (Boulez, Schoenberg, Webern). There is something about it that I like, but I'm not quite sure what it is, and I feel like if I knew more about the music in question I could better appreciate it. I have a fair amount of knowledge about music theory, but really only from texts on traditional harmony (including Schoenberg's Theory of Harmony). While the music isn't structured around harmony, there must be other structures because it sounds better than when I randomly smash keys on my piano. What should I be listening for? Repeated motifs? Rhythms?

I imagine that each artist might be fairly idiosyncratic with regard to how they structure their own music. If that's the case I'm more interested in Boulez and Schoenberg, as I like both of them far more than I like Webern.

More generally, if you are someone who listens serialism or atonal music, what do you like about it and how do you process it?

Can I get my PC to use this Mac-based USB device?

kjackelen05 — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:58:43 -0800

Help me set up this USB infrared receiver for my PC. The machine doesn't recognize it when I plug it in. I bought the device after reading in a forum that it can work with Windows to receive remote control commands. I figured this would be perfect for my Harmony One remote, since this computer sits in the living room and uses my HDTV as a display. I realize the device is targeted toward the Mac, but I was hopeful that configuring it for the PC would be a simple task.

I was wrong. The first time I connected the device to my computer, it said that it was installed and ready for use. It did not respond to the commands from my remote, and it was not listed in the device manager anywhere. As a result, I have no idea how to try to configure it. Every time I've connected the device since the first time, the machine has not responded to it in any way. No sound indicating a device has been connected, no system tray icon saying it's being installed, no entry in the device manager, nothing.

If anyone has an idea of how to get this working with my machine, your help is greatly appreciated. If I can't get it working, I'll order something designed for Windows, which isn't the end of the world, but I'd obviously like to use what I've already got if possible. Thanks!

Relevant information: My PC is a Dell Inspiron 531s desktop machine running Windows Vista Home Premium 32-bit.

Relevant links:
Aforementioned forum thread where I learned about this device
Article on the subject that might be more helpful to you than it was to me

Just a square, I guess.

gallusgallus — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 18:22:07 -0800

Music types: help me identify exactly what it is that I dislike about these particular types of jazz! Recently, a friend has been trying to get me into jazz. When exploring, though, I run into a weird hurdle: I really like jazz made up through the thirties, but somewhere in the late 40s/50s/60s, it acquires a specific harmonic quality that I absolutely can't stand. I tend to listen to music mostly for the harmonies and chord progressions, and this particular element literally raises hairs on the back of my neck.

It's not just that later jazz is more free-form and deconstructed; we're talking a particular type of chord or harmony that, in most cases, I can pick out within less than a measure. And it's not just the sheer quantity of dissonance, because (while not the biggest fan), I can listen to Stravinsky or Schoenberg forever without it bothering me in the same way.

Sadly, to say, "I don't do jazz after about 1940" sounds kind of ig'nant, like maybe I'm just an uptight fuddy-duddy who can't handle the Cool. I’d like to be able to identify the specific harmonic quality that bothers me (e.g. "I just don't like augmented fourths," or whatever) but I haven't been able to find any theory-oriented histories of jazz that specifically break down its development into nitty-gritty musical elements. So can anybody help me figure out what chord/interval/harmony/progression I'm talking about?

Some specifics:

I associate this with wind/brass ensembles, but I'm not sure why.
It turns up A LOT in Miles Davis's work. As far as I can see, I hate just about everything the poor guy's ever done.
Definitely present in E.S.P.
Also in Giant Steps, where the opening chords after the solo pretty much typify what I'm talking about.
And it's even in some pop, like The girl from Ipanema. You know the generic light-jazz that plays in elevators in the movies? Totally.
But it's not (obviously) present in Take Five , even though that's later jazz
Also not in Sing, Sing, Sing , even though that's plenty dissonant.

If it'd help, I'm happy to try additional test-cases. What is this harmony? Any ideas, AskMeFi?

A guy and a girl singing together?

zeek321 — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 07:07:03 -0800

I am a music ignoramus. But, I know I really like a man and a woman (a guy and a girl) singing together. Call and response, harmony, part of the lyrics or not, I think it's really amazing when a masculine voice and feminine voice are working together. I like Andrew Bird, Bonnie Prince Billy, Dent May, ...and Avril Lavigne. (Work with me, here.)

What are some amazing bands or just songs with a male and a female lead singer, where the music can be subtle, epic, ambient, soaring, mournful, bittersweet, peaceful, emotionally intimate or just with an awesome and/or racy and/or in-your-face pop hook?

Bonus #1: If you have additional info about whether the music is a team effort, who the creative force is, is there a friendship or relationship outside of the music, etc., that would be very cool.

Bonus #2: Is there a song called "Sleeping Together" where one of the lyrics is "like two notes, sustained"?

P.S. Previously. Noted.

How do I get harmony in my ear?

invitapriore — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 16:21:20 -0800

How do I get harmony in my ears? I like to compose, and I've always been a very uninhibited melody maker. I can very easily get a key, a scale, or a progression in mind, and then sit back, close my eyes, and eventually come out with a melody I really like just by listening to my mind's ear. I can't do the same thing when I want to come up with a sequence of harmonies, though, either as its own thing or as an accompaniment to a melody. I have to rely on theory knowledge and engage in a trial-and-error process to find what I want to do. Sometimes I can hear harmonies under a melody I think up, but I have a hard time identifying them easily.

I guess my question boils down to two things:
1. How can I get myself to be able to generate harmonies as easily as I do melodies?
2. What ear training can I do to be able to hear less common chords? III-VI-II-V-I is a really easy progression to catch by virtue of being so ubiquitous, but I often get lost in novel progressions until a cadence happens.

Help us find a case for our remote.

Dipsomaniac — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 12:43:48 -0800

Does anybody know where to get a sleeve or case for the Logitech Harmony 680 remote? I have Googled and Ebayed extensively but no luck.

Left ear: melody. Right ear: harmony. More, please!

Sweetie Darling — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:11:13 -0800

Left ear: melody. Right ear: harmony. More, please! In an effort to increase my personal safety, I'm walking the dog in the morning with only one earbud in. It's been fun to shuffle through my iPod and get the occasional song where the music I hear in one ear is markedly different than what you hear when listening with the other ear. It seems to happen mostly with mid- to late-'60s songs - Mamas & Papas, CSN, Grateful Dead.

So as I walk, I wonder:
- Was that production style a trend specifically in that era? Did it have to do with the transition from mono to stereo? Why did people stop doing this?
- Can you give me any more examples of artists and/or songs that utilize this technique (any era, any style)? It's kind of fun to listen with one ear, then the other. I think I'm learning more about harmony, which is kind of cool.

Thanks!

Sync calendars iPhone to iPhone

rleamon — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 13:18:13 -0800

She has an iPhone, I have an iPhone, and we want to share a calendar that can be seen and edited by both of us from our iPhones. Should be easy but apparently not... She uses her iPhone exclusively to make calendar entries. She has a Mac with iCal, and so do I, but don't want to have to sync our iPhones to our Macs to see updated entries. We also have a MobileMe family pack but creating a new user account for both of us to access didn't seem to work all the way through to the iPhone. We want to share a calendar if possible, but we'd settle even for my just being able to see her calendar on my iPhone and vice versa. Would prefer not to sync through Google Calendars a la BusySync or Spanning Sync, but if we have to... TIA!

Name this band and song

Jofus — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 03:20:51 -0800

Identify this song and band: American, male, R'n'B vocal group attaining brief mid-chart respectability in the UK in '92 or '93. A tough one this:

I'm looking for a single by an American male R'n'B vocal group from the early nineties.

This would probably have been 1992/93. The band were part of that kind of doo-wop revival that Boyz II Men were part of, (standing around braziers on street corners, singing in terrifying close harmony...) I'm pretty sure it wasn't Boyz II Men, but the comparison is good: 4 or 5 members, identically dressed, probably a bit of rap in there, but mostly harmony vocal...I think their USP was that they were a vocal group that wasn't wussy.

I do remember that they *definately* appeared on "Later with Jools Holland" (In the UK) in appaling yellow leather tracksuits. They would have certainly been promoting their first UK single.

The song itself was a keyboard and drum loop kind of thing that I *think* might have borne a passing resemblance to The Roots "Next Movement" only with a bit of harmony vocal over the top and a wicked bit of modulation in the hook that really tweaked my ear (the only way I can describe the effect is in comparison to the beginning of the Beach Boys "Wouldn't it be nice" but not sounding anything like that.)

OK, so could I be any more vague? Help me chaps. It's driving me mad. What the hell was the song and who the hell were the band? Any and all suggestions welcome. The only thing I can't do is explain why I want to know this.

Publicly available databases involving terrorism and war

proj — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 08:49:28 -0800

After hearing this story on NPR this morning about the Harmony Database of al Qaeda correspondence, I began wondering what other public databases like this exist out there that are ripe for analysis and picking apart. I'm looking specifically for things like this related to the "War on Terrorism" and the Iraq War, but older stuff would be good too.

Balance tattoo?

greta simone — Thu, 17 May 2007 13:09:49 -0800

I'm looking for a symbol/representation for possible use as a tattoo. I've always wanted a tattoo that represents balance or harmony. I can't seem to find anything that isn't seriously lame or overused. It doesn't have to be an actual symbol (as in icon), just some kind of interesting representation.

These are my ideal criteria:
-No asian or arabic language/celtic/etc symbols.
-No libra, yin yang, scales of justice symbols.
-Something that would translate well to a small tattoo (no bigger than two inches across).
-Pretty minimalist (one or two colors [ideally just black], not a lot of heavy detail)
-Ideally something that has a source that I can learn about (done by a specific artist or from the cover of a specific book/album, etc). I don't want just some stock picture found on google image.
-Classy.

I am open to look at creative interpretations of the 'balance/harmony" theme.

Does anyone have any ideas?

Chords / Melody ?

signal — Sat, 04 Nov 2006 09:10:35 -0800

What's the relationship between the melody of a song and its chord structure? I've been playing guitar for some 20 years and when I'm playing a song I understand on some pre-rational level why the chords change at that precise instant, and how the song fits into it, but I've never figured it out on an abstract level that I could explain to somebody else or use to write my own songs.
I can play some blues, and know that at certain chords in a progression, certain intervals sound better than others, but I've never figured out how to go the other way: given a melody, figure out the chords that will fit it.
When I have tried to write songs, the chords tend to match the melody almost exactly (if I sing a C, I play a C chord), which of course sounds like crap.
I'm interested in the theory of this, no matter how dry, and I'm thinking of a pop/rock context.

"why do I always end up being the one who..."

Oobidaius — Mon, 21 Aug 2006 13:04:48 -0800

What are some good ways to avoid strife and keep things fair in a shared living arrangement? Somewhat exhaustive explanation inside. Some background: three of my friends and myself will be moving into a four-bedroom house this week. We are all going to be paying the same amount in rent, since the rooms are all more or less the same, but I think there's some other areas in which the financial burden is less clear-cut.

We've all been on vacation the past two weeks so we haven't had a chance to sit down and establish some rules, but I was wondering what sorts of things have helped minimize discord in similar arrangements any of you have been in? Specifically, how can we make sure that we are all contributing equally (or contributing commensurate to our usage of) with regard to things like food, toilet paper, utensils, etc? That is, to the best of my knowledge, none of us really own the sorts of things that in a house, you take for granted as being there (like cutting boards, or vacuums, or whatever). Since these are things we're all going to be using, what is the best way to split the cost without making it impossible to figure out who gets what when our lease expires (we only have the house for a year since it is getting developed, so there's no question that we'll have to divvy up some of the stuff at the end of the year)?

Slightly more potentially sticky is the question of transportation. Since we'll all have more or less the same schedule, we'll probably want to carpool since it wouldn't make sense for everyone to go separately. But, only three of us have cars (that is, the three of them since I'm the one that doesn't). If you've ever been the person with the car, what sorts of things did your ride-bumming, car-borrowing friend do that made you feel less exploited about the arrangment? Obviously, chipping in for gas money, but what about insurance, etc? Public transportation isn't really much of an option where we are, so I'll probably need to borrow a car to do very basic errands as well.

Ultimately, I want to make sure that we have a system in place to preempt any misunderstandings caused by misjudging the liberties our respective friendships might allow. You might trust someone with your deepest darkest secrets, but that doesn't mean you won't get annoyed if they consistently don't do their fair share of grocery shopping/cleaning/whatever.

I realize this is a big question that can be answered with regard to a variety of aspects, but I'm looking for any sorts of guidelines that you have succesfully used to keep things fair in an arrangement like this. Thanks in advance.

Harmonic pop?

meech — Sun, 09 Apr 2006 02:18:36 -0800

Recently I have been listening to Magic Numbers, The Thorns, Hal and Teenage Fanclub. Should I listen to Crosby Stills Nash & Young, Big Star, Badfinger, Mamas & Papas, Raspberries, Bread or America? I got the other band names from searching for their influences but I don't know where to start. Which albums are the best by the bands above? Will a "Best of..." do for some of them? Any other bands - new or old that you think sound similar to these bands?

C Majority

billtron — Fri, 24 Feb 2006 18:51:36 -0800

Why are C and F the notes without corresponding flat keys on the piano? Or, conversely, why are B sharp and E sharp enharmonic with C natural and F natural?

I have tried to find the answer on line and through my musicologist friends, but to no avail. Everyone's perfectly willing to explain whole steps and half steps and the rudiments of music theory, but what I want to know is why the exceptions to the rule are C and F? Why not D and G? Was there some moment in music history when the Catholic Church declared C flat the devil's accidental? Was it an arbitrary decision among keyboard makers? Is it based on some ancient Greek tombstone?

Why do I favour some names of notes in the chromatic scale over their other names?

goodnewsfortheinsane — Fri, 01 Jul 2005 13:53:18 -0800

MusicianFilter: Why do I favour some names of notes in the chromatic scale over their other names? To me, when mentioning the 'black' notes in the chromatic scale in speech, they're always:

C# - Eb - F# - G# - Bb

and never:

Db - D# - Gb - Ab - A#

My question is two-fold:

1) Why do you think this is?
2) Do you have/do this as well?

Please also state which is your primary instrument. Mine is guitar, and I'm wondering if that could have an influence, even if I can't directly tell how. I also play a little piano.