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Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody
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Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody |
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Subject: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: CapriUni Date: 03 Nov 02 - 01:53 PM Hello, all, and Merry Meet! Over the years, I've become increasingly bothered by the Pagan Yule Carols that are out there. While many of them are lovely, nearly all of them are filked from existing Christmas carols, and perpetuate an "US vs. THEM" attitude. So I've set about to write an original Yule carol, with its own melody. And that's where I'm running into trouble. I hear the melody clearly in my head, and could sing it for you at the drop of a hat (as a matter of fact, the melody is now stuck in my head). But when I enter what I think I'm hearing and singing to myself into Noteworthy Composer, it just doesn't sound right on playback, no matter how I fiddle with the duration of the dots, or the placement of rests. Is there such a thing as "rhythmic dislexia" (disrhythmia?)? If so, I may have it. So I'm coming to Mudcat, and asking for some help from our resident tunesters. Could you please take what I have so far, and help shape it into something that makes singable sense? Here are the lyrics, and a midi-to-text file of the pitches of the melody all in quarter notes (the baseline, if you will): COME GATHER TOGETHER by Ann Magill Come gather together and sing with glad hearts! Sing for the sun's return back from the dark. The wheel, it is turning, the dance, it goes on. So raise up your voices. Fill the air with sweet song! Oh, sing with the Goddess: "The world is reborn! Shining as bright as the very first morn." The old year has ended. Let go of old wrongs, And raise up your voices. Fill the air with sweet song! Though winter will bring us cold nights and fierce wind, Know by this dawning that hardship will end, And like the sun's rays, may our hearts all grow strong. We'll raise up our voices -- fill the air with sweet song! Give thanks to the Goddess, the sweet, living Earth -- Thanks for the cycle of death and rebirth. She lives in our hearts and the love that we share. So raise up your voices. Let sweet songs fill the air!
This program is worth the effort of learning it. To download the latest version of MIDItext and get instructions on how to use it click here
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: KT Date: 03 Nov 02 - 02:16 PM CapriUni, I can't help you with the melody 'cause I don't know how to use that program, but wanted to say the lyrics are lovely!!! KT |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: GUEST,CapriUni's Secret Santa Date: 03 Nov 02 - 02:34 PM Yule be surprised when you get your CHRISTMAS present.HO HO HO HO HO |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: mg Date: 03 Nov 02 - 03:14 PM why don't you call someone up who can tape the melody on their answering machine or somehing and then put down the notes. I recommend asking Blessings Barbara if she has the time and/or inclination to do this. mg |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: Jeri Date: 03 Nov 02 - 03:30 PM Capri, I took a stab at it. You didn't do much wrong! At least it made sense to me. All but that last line. I guessed. Which words do you sing when you go up high just before the last note? Good carol - I imagine this could become very popular!
MIDI file: GATHER~2.MID Timebase: 192 Name: Staff This program is worth the effort of learning it. To download the latest version of MIDItext and get instructions on how to use it click here ABC format: X:1
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: CapriUni Date: 03 Nov 02 - 03:31 PM From KT: wanted to say the lyrics are lovely!!! Why thank you, KT! From my SS: Yule be surprised when you get your CHRISTMAS present.HO HO HO HO HO Oh, I do so hope it will be a happy surprise, and not a switch of birch, or somesuch.... For I am doing my best, dear SS, to live honorably and well in the sight of all living things... And that's what being Good is all about, no? From Mary Garvey: why don't you call someone up who can tape the melody on their answering machine or somehing and then put down the notes. I recommend asking Blessings Barbara if she has the time and/or inclination to do this. Now, there's an idea! If she, or any other mudcatter, for that matter, would like to offer their answering machine for such a purpose, perhaps they could PM me their phone #... |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: Mary in Kentucky Date: 03 Nov 02 - 03:33 PM Hi Capri, I hear potential here! First, to anyone wanting to hear this melody, but still too stubborn to use the red Miditext program (like me, sometimes) go here [http://www.concertina.net/tunes_convert.html] to see the notation and also to hear a midi of the tune. It's easy! Just delete all of Capri's double spaced lines (make it all single line spacing). Capri, I'd like to hear some dotted notes or maybe some 6/8 time instead of the even 3/4 time with all quarter notes. You could possibly sing it for us on PalTalk. ;-) I'll have a look at the dots tonight when I have more time and get back with you. Just off the top of my head (before I heard your tune) I was thinking of "the English" sound...like in Greensleeves...going from a minor chord to the adjacent major chord one step down... |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: CapriUni Date: 03 Nov 02 - 04:27 PM From Jeri: Which words do you sing when you go up high just before the last note? The word that goes with high note just before the last one is: "Sweet"... like this: So(e) raise (d) up(c) your (d) voic-(f) es(e), fill(e) the(d) air(c) with(d) sweet(g) song!(c) I occasionally like to slur notes on lyrics, but not often. I prefer a democratic approach: One syllable, one pitch! ;-). Good carol - I imagine this could become very popular! I hope so! I don't mean to sound egotistical, or anything, but I wrote it (am writing it?) because I want to hear more songs like this around the solstice season. You know what they say: "If you want a thing done right...." Oh, and I played back your midi... it was, indeed, very close to what I had in my head, except that I shifted the two eighth notes in the last line from "voices" to "fill the". I guess all I needed was another pair of ears to bounce the song off of, to solidify it, if you will... |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: CapriUni Date: 03 Nov 02 - 04:43 PM From Mary: First, to anyone wanting to hear this melody, but still too stubborn to use the red Miditext program (like me, sometimes) go here [http://www.concertina.net/tunes_convert.html] to see the notation and also to hear a midi of the tune. It's easy! Just delete all of Capri's double spaced lines (make it all single line spacing). Thanks for the link, Mary, that's a groovy site ... I've bookmarked it. I don't know why the abc format turned up double spaced in my post, I didn't do anything differently than I usually do (or did I? :::Scratches head:::), and that's the first time that's happened... Capri, I'd like to hear some dotted notes or maybe some 6/8 time instead of the even 3/4 time with all quarter notes. Well, I started out doing dotted notes, and more of a mix of eighth notes, too... and that's when it starting going all funky in my ears. You could possibly sing it for us on PalTalk. ;-) I'd have to download PalTalk, first, and get a decent mike... I'll have a look at the dots tonight when I have more time and get back with you. Thanks! Just off the top of my head (before I heard your tune) I was thinking of "the English" sound...like in Greensleeves...going from a minor chord to the adjacent major chord one step down... Music theory?!! :::Boggle::: Gawds, can I just say how much I love this place? |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: Pinetop Slim Date: 03 Nov 02 - 04:58 PM Great carol. |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: Jeri Date: 03 Nov 02 - 05:47 PM Just an opinion...anybody surprised I have one? I think if you're doing the tune as a MIDI so other folks can learn it, it's best to go simple - especially if it's for printing sheet music. Those dots can be difficult for some folks to figure out and simplicity also provides room for a bit of creativity. Regarding double spacing of MidiText files: --The program puts line breaks - <br> - in --If you don't un-check 'Automatic Linebreaks', it puts another break in so you have two - double-spacing. It didn't seem to matter to MidiText though. The red MIDI part translated just fine. |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: CapriUni Date: 03 Nov 02 - 06:54 PM I think if you're doing the tune as a MIDI so other folks can learn it, it's best to go simple - especially if it's for printing sheet music. Those dots can be difficult for some folks to figure out and simplicity also provides room for a bit of creativity. Right. Look in any old song book, and you'll hardly ever find any dotted notes, and barely a rest to a measure, except at the beginning and end of the score -- usually just quarter notes, half notes and eighth notes. Not only does it make it easier to pick out the melody for those who are dodgey with reading music (as I am, truth be told), but it allows for flexibilty in emphasis and inflection. And I will be doing this as sheet music. I'll be submitting this to a Pagan writers' webzine due to come out around Yule (Along with another song I've done -- also with help from Mudcatters, which can be found here). |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: Mary in Kentucky Date: 03 Nov 02 - 08:35 PM Yo, Capri, what do you think of this? click here I used the link above, Jeri's ABC, swiped the jpg and midi, and put it on the ivillage site I use. The tempo seems a little slow and the instrument that the program used is a bit funky, but overall, the process seems workable. Are the words in the right places? |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: mg Date: 03 Nov 02 - 08:59 PM cool. I played along with my accordian. I would, and I bet you anything that a lot of people uncounsciously would, change that last g to a b (below middle c) though...you got a winner... mg |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: Mary in Kentucky Date: 03 Nov 02 - 09:32 PM Here's the new page (jpg) with the eighth notes on "fill the." I think I like Mary's (the other Mary) idea about changing the G to B. Don't you just love writing songs by committee? ;-) Remember, you asked! |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: Mary in Kentucky Date: 03 Nov 02 - 09:33 PM oops. click here |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: CapriUni Date: 03 Nov 02 - 10:18 PM From Mary G. cool. I played along with my accordian. I would, and I bet you anything that a lot of people uncounsciously would, change that last g to a b (below middle c) though... Really? I'll try it... though the G just popped into my head at that point... then again, I've been known to do things bass ackwards. Maybe this helps explain why! ;-) {Opens Noteworthy Composer, makes the change, and listens} You know, that is nice :-)... more lullaby-ish, somehow... But maybe that's just because I'm already feeling sleepy. ;-) From Mary In K.: The tempo seems a little slow and the instrument that the program used is a bit funky Hmmm... yes. I'd go for a little bit faster, myself, but it depends on the singer and the audience. The instrument sounded fine to me... But I think my 'puter is playing back with the settings I have in my NWC, right now (flute, rather than piano...) I like the way you extended "hearts" to a half note. Are the words in the right places? Indeed they are! Don't you just love writing songs by committee? ;-) Remember, you asked! As a matter of fact, I do! I'm learning so much more than if I just muddled about trying to do this all by myself. When I do the latter, I find myself doing the same thing over and over, because I stick with what I know without even knowing what other directions there are to go in... |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: MMario Date: 04 Nov 02 - 10:08 AM CU? When you think you are "done" - could you email me the NWC file? And may we put the midi on the mudcat midi page with a link to this thread? lpola(removespam)@edutech.org |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: CapriUni Date: 04 Nov 02 - 11:01 AM CU? When you think you are "done" - could you email me the NWC file? And may we put the midi on the mudcat midi page with a link to this thread? Certainly! I'd be honored! Your email is now in my address book.. |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: CapriUni Date: 04 Nov 02 - 12:50 PM Okay, I think I've got it right... Up until now, whenever I sang along with the midi, I'd always end a quarter beat ahead... I think I've found where the eighth notes are, and made the apropriate changes. (The penultimate note is now also a b): So how does this sound to all of you? Did I get it right, or does the tune now "hiccup"?
MIDI file: GATHER~3.MID Timebase: 192 Name: Come Gather Together This program is worth the effort of learning it. To download the latest version of MIDItext and get instructions on how to use it click here ABC format: X:1
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: mg Date: 04 Nov 02 - 02:58 PM Why don't you start a new thread now with just the lyrics and the final melody in midi form...I think it will be sung a lot this winter.. mg |
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Subject: RE: Writing a Yule Carol -- help with melody From: CapriUni Date: 04 Nov 02 - 05:25 PM From MG: Why don't you start a new thread now ... So I take it that the alterations I made didn't cause the tune to hiccup? btw, I did get a volunteer to offer her voice mail for the singing of it... It will be interesting to find out if what I sang is close to this midi or not... ;-) |
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