Creative Reflections on the Locrian Mode
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Authors
Kinney, Ainsley
Issue Date
2024-04-04
Type
Language
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Abstract
My presentation does not focus on scientific research but on my investigations as a music student and aspiring composer. Although my presentation will have a performance element to it, I selected “Presentation” as my presentation type because it better fits my project. My presentation will introduce my recent composition, Saxophone Quartet in B Locrian, and contextualize it within Western music history and practice. The Locrian mode is considered the darkest and most dissonant of the Gregorian modes. Because our ears have been trained on Western tonality for hundreds of years, a scale as dissonant as Locrian sounds unsettling at best and ugly at worst. To challenge my Western ears, I set out to compose a piece that was both in the Locrian mode and satisfying to listen to. To contextualize my piece, I will first present a digestible music history and theory overview of Western tonality and modes. This explanation will include the origin of modes, the development of tonality, and the “emancipation of dissonance” in the 20th century, which led to modern Western music as we know it today. Musical examples (both recorded and live) will assist in demonstrating these concepts. Establishing this base knowledge will situate my Saxophone Quartet in B Locrian within the greater context of the Western canon. Finally, I will explain the strategies I used to establish the Locrian mode and craft a pleasing composition despite the discordant quirks of Locrian. I will point to specific musical instances within the piece and encourage the audience to listen for them. My presentation will conclude with the performance of Saxophone Quartet in B Locrian by the Alma College Saxophone Quartet. Explaining relevant music history, theory, and examples within my piece will enable the audience to listen with greater attention and understanding. Here is a Musescore MIDI recording and score of Saxophone Quartet in B Locrian: https://musescore.com/user/33193000/scores/13889326?share=copy_link