Vocal Theme and Variations

During our last class meeting the comment was made that we don't really explore too much with vocal theme and variation. I had intended for the theme and variation I wrote to be played via computer or piano. However when it came time to perform the variation I thought perhaps we could try it using our voices. It was difficult for me to explain how we as a class were going to perform this theme and variations. Once finished we established that perhaps round singing could be a form of theme and variation, which I very much agree with.
I then began to think about jazz. Every time I sang with my undergraduate jazz group I tried my hand at scatting and embellishing on an already existent melody. This indeed was an example of theme and variation. Every time I scatted over "God Bless The Child" or "Autumn Leaves" I borrowed material from the original theme and added a few notes here and there. Vocal theme and variations make up jazz singing. In fact we use vocal theme and variations in many songs we perform.
Our discussion of theme and variation has prompted some questions in my head. Is theme and variation at the root of all music? Is all music a variation on some pre-existing theme? The discussion of borrowing themes and setting variations has occasionally turned into battles of plagiarism in music. If music is based simply upon theme and variation is it possible that battles of plagiarism may be confused with variations on a theme that are very similar? Is there really plagiarism in music or is it just variation?
I will address these questions in class then in my next blog!

Theme and Variations in the Practice Room

I was sitting in a practice room a few days ago at the music school where I teach waiting to meet with my boss. I had no "sheet music" or "vocal music" 'to practice. For the past 10 years at least I have always headed to the practice room with specific, notated music to practice. Sitting in this practice room with only the piano in front of me I began to practice scales, something that a pianist wanna be like me should be practicing! After about 5 minutes of this I began to get bored and started to "improvise" on major triads. I settled on the arpeggiation of an F major chord using two octaves. To this arpeggiation I added a descant melody on a descending C major scale. (Now I am discerning the music theory elements as I am explaining my theme but in all actuality when I was creating this theme I was simply, just playing, not really focusing on whether it was in F Major or C Major.) Suddenly after about 10 minutes I had a theme. I started slowly to add onto this theme with different variations of it. For example instead of arpeggiating the chords I played blocked chords or attempted to play it in a "Pomp and Circumstance" style. I then added IV and V chords to my variation and started to create variations on that! It was really quite exciting and I had no agenda. If not for the meeting that I had to go to I could have sat in that practice room for hours and played with this one theme.
When my boss knocked on my practice room door to signify that she was ready to meet with me I was almost disappointed. I have never really sat down at the piano, which I am not the most skilled, and just played "non-notated music".
I did not notate my theme and variations and to be honest I can only remember the theme. I plan to keep working with this theme and add a few new variations. Perhaps I will try to notate it as well. On the other hand could it be better just to let this theme exist in my head and allow myself to simply "play"?

Music in San Diego

I have just returned from a leisure vacation in San Diego, California. Music was a constant as I traveled, being that I listened to my I-pod during the flight then of course turned on the radio while driving the rental car. However our class discussions came to mind on my first full night in San Diego. My friend took us to a restaurant and bar that had a live band and swing dancing. The band consisted of 5 men playing the upright bass, electric bass, guitar, drums and the lead singer also improved on his harmonica. I was intrigued to see the relaxed attentiveness of the audience watching this band in a bar setting. I was also very taken by the swing dancing that was being performed by audience members as the band played. I would not have thought this mix of jazz and blues music could have been danced to in the way these people were dancing. I should also say that all of the couples dancing were above the age of 40!
While watching all of this I kept thinking back to our discussions in class about "galumphing" and musical play as well as improvisation in music. It was almost as if I was watching a live version of our class discussions. I was visually and aurally experiencing how creative musical process can work. The band was the improvisation in this case. They were playing some cover songs and some original music but there was never one song that did not include an improvisational section, whether it was on the harmonica, bass or drums. The dancers I classified as the "galumphers". I later learned the type of dance they were doing was actually called "West Coast Swing" which I would see much more of as my vacation progressed. However the dancers played a major role in the creative process of this live music in that they were actually "living" the music. There were not strict rules as to what the band or the dancers could or could not do and it was absolutely wonderful!