Double Bass Spooky sounding scales intervals and chords

[smeet]

There’s a guy on YouTube that does a lot of composition and covers of songs using subsets of a 31-tone scale. Spooky and beautiful in subtle ways.

 

[Lionel Albert]

Be careful ! Here all 4ths have to be perfect ! Diminished 4ths and augmented fourths are automatically called major 3rds and tritones !

 

[Bruce Calin]

My long-suffering piano teacher many years ago described augmented chords as "chords of rising expection" and diminished as "chords of impending disaster." They were very descriptive to a kid.

 

[Bob_Ross]

I suggest looking at the sounds you can create by stacking 2nds and the sounds you can create by stacking 4ths.

The opening chord from Jerry Goldsmith's score to the original Alien movie is a stack of six consecutive minor 7ths (0,10 intervals).
Spooky/scary ...but also mysterious, like "Am I supposed to be scared!?!?"

 

[what the pluck]

Oooh .. I wanna go home and try that…

 

[Don Kasper]

six consecutive minor 7ths

This:?
C,Bb,Ab,Gb,E,D,C.
Just a spread out C7,+5,9,#11.(Spooky voicing, tho!)
Am I understanding your construction?
Help!
Thx.

 

[Bob_Ross]

This:?
C,Bb,Ab,Gb,E,D,C.
Just a spread out C7,+5,9,#11.(Spooky voicing, tho!)
Am I understanding your construction?
Help!
Thx.

You are understanding the construction correctly, it is from bottom to top C, Bb, Ab, Gb, E, D, C
But I would argue that it is misleading to call that verticality a "C7 anything" since it doesn't function or behave like a C augmented chord...it just sits there and creates an unnerving atmosphere of dread and mystery, without ever suggesting that, gosh, if only it moved to a chord based on G it would sound like resolution. As used in the Alien score it's a sound-object, not a "chord" per se.

 

[Don Kasper]

it just sits there

Well, sometimes a chord "just sits there....". I hear it (reduced) as a Dominant 7th chord, when folded back down from its spread out voicing.
It does demonstrate how creative orchestration can enhance and deepen fairly normal Harmonic material.
No BassBrawl intended, Bob...I do enjoy your posts (overall)
Thx for the stimulating post, and civility. I appreciate both.

 

[Lo-E]

They all sound spooky if you laugh maniacally while you play them.

 

[what the pluck]

if only it moved to a chord based on G it would sound like resolution.

Going to try this on a gig soon.. I play with a didgeridoo player who has 2 didges one in Eb and one in C.. we play a kind of improvised ambient world music.. want to try this staring on Bb and resolving on the didges pedal.. I like to lay off the didges note and find different ways to resolve to it..