My Utterly Spiffing Guide to Light Music. Part 1: Harmony Overview
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 12 ก.ย. 2024
- A project I've been working on for several months. I had a few jobs last year that involved composing 40s and 50s Light Music and I was frustrated with the lack of material online. So, I rolled up my sleeves, did a lot of research and searching and managed to track down a bunch of scores from this era.
First, I did a few mock-ups to get my head around how it all worked (the "My Computer is a 1950s Orchestra" series): • My Computer is a 1950s...
Moving on from that, I thought it would great to make some content breaking down some of the theory and ideas behind this great genre. I'm planning to make a couple more covering the orchestration and arranging further down the road.
Links to recordings of the pieces referenced in this video:
Pizzicato:
Holiday for Strings (David Rose):
• David Rose - Holiday F...
High Heels (Leonard Charles Trebilco as Trevor Duncan)
• Trevor Duncan - High H...
On a Spring Note (Sidney Torch):
• On A Spring Note - Tor...
Melody on the move (Clive Richardson):
• Clive Richardson - Mel...
A Canadian In Mayfair (Angela Morley):
• Video
Legato:
Holiday for Strings (David Rose):
• David Rose - Holiday F...
Lady In Love (Leonard Charles Trebilco as Trevor Duncan as Steve Bretton)
• Trevor Duncan - Lady I...
A Canadian In Mayfair (Angela Morley):
• Video
Melody in the Sun (Ernest Tomlinson as Alan Perry)
• Ernest Tomlinson - Mel...
Portrait of a Flirt (Robert Farnon):
• Video
Sounds used to recreate these excerpts:
Spitfire Audio Chamber Strings
LA Scoring Strings
A few live overdubs of violin & viola I did myself here and there
Spitfire Audio Symphonic Woodwinds
Sequenced in Cubase
FX: U-he Satin, Waves Abbey Road Vinyl, Waves EQ & Compressors
Edited in Filmora
Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.
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Dear Sir/Madam,
It's been pointed out by Mr Daniel Raab (esq), that the close harmony technique used in "Holiday for Strings" at 0:55, "High Heels" at 3:10 and "A Canadian In Mayfair" at 5:37 has a specific name: "Shearing voicings".
In the next Utterly Spiffing guide that I make, I'll make sure to explain what that means and how it's employed in these pieces.
May I offer my gratitude for any felicitations in this comments section.
Yours sincerely,
Sir Alex Ball
End of telegram
Impromptu
Dear Mr Fortesque Impromptu,
My most earnest thanks for your recent telegram. I did enjoy reading it, pipe in hand, as cousin Ethel stocked the fire.
I must offer my sincerest apologies for not fully articulating the interest of one Mr Shearing in said chord voicings. His role was merely to facilitate a rise in notoriety in such technique, but certainly has no claim to its inception.
Much like our recently crowned Elizabeth II, he inherited greatly from his forebears. His Empire being a musical one, of course.
Just talking of the Empire reminds me off my summers in the Virgin Islands, with sea air, typewriter and trunk of gin for company. Oh, it was a simpler time. Aunt Cecily practicing tennis before luncheon, father reading the papers and thinking of Blighty, mother listening to the wireless.
Yours sincerely,
Alexander Ballviourge-Windsor
I am not a musician. However, I can now compose using a computer app called MuseScore. It is magic! I can see the notes and actually hear the music right out loud through a sound system. Whereas before, the music was trapped in my mind's ear! CHEERS SIR ALEX BALL.
Holy hell, how does this have so few views? The quality is off the charts!
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed.
answer: niche content
This might be the best music video I have ever seen on TH-cam.
I can't express how useful, funny, and amazing these and your other videos are
RazzerRaw Cheers!
Just re-watching this, and what also jumps out is the subtle use of dynamics in the pizzicato strings, giving them a lovely bounce :)
Absolutely! All played at very quiet dynamics too with only the accented notes being louder.
Easily the most entertaining music theory vid on TH-cam.
Thanks! There's a part 2 and part 3 will be up shortly.
This is probably the highest quality music TH-cam channel out there, up there with Signals Music
Absolutely splendid series of videos. After spending untold hours over the years deciphering/transcribing/composing in this most delightful of idioms I can't fully express just what a gift to the planet your Spiffing Guide is. My younger self would have been positively gobsmacked to come across them. Many many thanks! Here's to a new generation of joyful light music #stepintothelight
Good to know old bean.
The absolute attention to detail in these along with the density of knowledge is just mind blowing. It's a dream watching these over and over and trying to learn as much as possible all the while feeling like I'm back in time.
I need the spanish subtitles on this video, help me! hahaha. Your job is again wonderful, congratulations bro! (my english is a few bad. sorry)
I haven't even watched 2% of this Alex Ball video and I again can't believe it only as 20k views. The production and dedication and humour you put into these videos is just over the great.
Thanks again from Buenos Aires.
OMGGGG!!! I remembered your video two years later- and worked hard to find it back: thanks to reddit
How come I only learn about this channel now? Absolutely brilliant stuff! I've been a fan of light music for a long time and your remakes are just something special. Your work and the number of views creates hope that maybe light music will once again gets the recognition it deserves, having been virtually forgotten for 40+ years.
I'm looking forward to your future productions.
It's a little sad since younger generations tend to treat it as cartoon music or something of a novel. But with the advent of Vaporwave in recent years it shouldn't be too far fetched.
You had me at “do you like music like this?” … I was riveted by your compelling sandwich analogy … a feast for so many different senses… and what a splendid narrator! Such a pleasant change from that Ball chap. Jolly well done sir!
It's like Stewie Griffin is whispering into my ear.
I have a small, but 'steadily growing' collection of British Light Music from back in the 1940's 50's and 60's. Listening to them is like being taken on a 'round the world' cruise, while in reality I stand and laboriously iron a cotton vest, shirt, and a couple of pillow cases. The perfect antidote to any lockdown morning. Good day old chap!
Thank you so much for making these videos! Great narration btw haha
+SevenUp/DiveBomb I ruined half a loaf of bread making it, so glad you liked it. :)
Thank you for posting this, it's right up my alley!! So happy to hear someone discuss Angela Morley, she's one of my favs.
Angela Morley was one of the very best I think. Have you heard her arrangement of "A nightingale in Berkley Square" with the John Wilson Orchestra?
It's one of my favourite pieces of music ever: th-cam.com/video/8bPwH9NpMWQ/w-d-xo.html
Sublime. And spiffy! As fun to watch as to listen. As an amateur composer/arranger I appreciate the analysis. It's a weirdly specific (and under-appreciated) genre, so it's nice to see some thoughtful effort put in to understanding it. If I ever score a 50's sitcom parody, I'll know how to do it! :-)
I leave the orchestration to orchestrators. I do the basis melody and accompaniment with some harmonization as befits the tune. The idea is to compose as many basic melodies as possible.
By Jove, this was absolutely smashing!
This is truly spiffing
One of my compositions has gradually led me away from rock and metal into the uncertain territories of blues harmony, swinging big bands, parisienne accordions, waltz, funk, disco and congas. God I wish I discovered your channel much sooner! It's exactly what I needed. Also, I live quite close to that bridge at 06:18.
MY FRIEND... MAESTRO... DUDE!
These are the types of arrangements I've been looking for. I LOVE this genre and I've FINALLY found someone who can explain it all to me!
PIP PIP, ALEX! I subscribed to your channel and mediately and you are my vlogger of the week! Many hours will be spent watching your videos! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Thanks Mathew. A genre that everyone recognises but with very little material covering it online. I've wound up attempting to do it myself! Have a few more of these planned but they take a lot of time to research, so gets a bit overwhelming trying to get an episode together.
Alex Ball music lovers everywhere owe you a dept of gratitude!
“Well of course you do, you rambunctious little pumpkin”. Ahahahahaha! That’s made my day. I’ve written to Anthony Eden suggesting he gives you the folio for musical instruction.
Coming back to this series is a treat, I remember when it came out like yesterday
This is stupendous. Thank you.
Please give us part 2!! This is hilarious yet so informative. I love this genre :)
+ThomasNL Will do part 2, definitely. Takes a lot of research to make them so will probably be a little while, but want to do several of these.
Alex Ball cool! If i can help you in any way, please let me know!
Cheers Thomas. Are you any good at working out weird chords? Some of the harmony in there is baffling. Like this chord:
Db, E, F, Ab, B, E
One of the chords in "Portrait of a flirt". I have no idea what that is!
Also, clicked on your channel and saw a Joe Dart clip. Saw Vulfpeck and Joey Dosik in London last week. Was incredible.
Is that chord Db7#9?
I can do harmony! And that one is indeed Db7(#9) or Db7(b10) The latter used more in europe :)
You're bringing TH-cam to a new level Alex! I look forward to every post. BTW I write retro comedy music for tv and now I know I don't know the first thing about it. Eight part harmony, really? Dang! This is going to help me so much.
Thanks Josh. Much appreciated.
8 part harmony - Angela Morley's stuff is incredible. I've got a few of her scores and the string harmonies are amazing. She always manages to squeeze even more notes into the chord. A lot are using 6 part harmony, but I've got a few where she has 8 part. You'd think it would sound a mess, but it's perfect.
I had a bit of trouble working out what some of her actual harmony is because even if you put those 8 notes into harmony software that tells you what chord it is, it can't work it out!
What comedy music are you doing for TV? Have you got any links? Always interested to hear.
Alex Ball The client doesn't like public links but I could send you a Dropbox link. Is there a way to DM on TH-cam?
+Josh Lucan alexballmusic@gmail.com
Hey Alex,
it's really great that you present a couple of score excerpts I am certainly going to have a closer look. You could have digged in a little deeper, e.g. the shearing voicing stuff I wrote you or progressions that have been used, because like this it's more like an overview of composers, pieces and mainly the string parts. Nevertheless, with the extras you put in - the sandwich analogy is hilarous! - this was pretty entertaining and "light" :)
Thanks Daniel. Yep, couple of comments saying it doesn't go into enough detail, which is fair. I probably figured the score reductions with guitar chords would explain more than they did.
Was going to put stuff in about shearing voicing but I was having annoying issues with the editing software, so gave up and left it as it was. I need to get some better software at some point.
Absolutely brilliant and very timely as I'm pitching for an audio drama that requires some 40s and 50s orchestration.
I’m guessing it didn’t get picked up? Update us
Love the accent. Technical/ geeky and fun at the same time.
Glad you enjoyed! If you're interested, I've done two more of these guides that go deeper into the genre on my channel.
Will check them out. Are your mock-ups played or programmed? Which libraries? They sound great!
By jove! what a good show, young män! This was terribly, terribly good. Now to play these top tunes on my portable wireless. Top hole!
I’ve just found your channel. This series is utterly brilliant and very funny too.
Fantastic! Love this. I'll share the heck out of this. Finally some good info on light orch. music. Keep on doing this please!
Thanks very much. Yep, will definitely do more when I have time. Light Music is so ace.
Jolly well done, sir!
Thanks a lot, good job. I am a student of postgraduate composition studies, but I learned more from you than during a year of studies :) After too much information, I must admit you are also a professional filmmaker, your films should be obligatory at universities :) Regards, congratulations, keep it up !!!
Absolutely brilliant!!! Thanks for making this video!
This was all very endearing! I had a jolly good time watching this. Very insightful! Thanks old chap!
+DEADLINE My pleasure, you fruity little muffin. Jolly splendid of you to pass by.
Can’t get enough watching your videos man. Thanks a lot
Eagerly awaiting the further adventures in light music as continued in Part 3.
So, have made the episode 4 times and had a couple of proper jazzers check it and it's not been right. Basically been trying to cover topics that are too big and complex. So rewriting a more simpler approach to it. Should be done soon, just taking a breather before I start it for the 5th time!
Absolutely amazing Alex well done!
+should be doing my homework Thanks, glad you enjoyed. There's a part 2 to this one on my channel and more to come.
This video is so good; rich content and clever humor. It's one of those rare videos where I wish I could have an "extra like++" button to press. The normal like button just can't be smashed hard enough.
Anyway, smashing job, pip pip!
Pretty please with sugar on top.... please continue this amazing series. It is by far my favorite series on your site and I'm very much looking forward to your comments on Brass. Thank you for your fantastic resource.
Thanks Richard. It is on my list, but they take such an enormous effort to research and make and hardly anyone watches them (and the numbers have dropped with each episode), so makes it difficult to get the motivation up.
I'll get the final two done this year.
To be honest, I think the title is what sinks the views, not the content. This is simply the best orchestration dive in available because you outline the core values; then explain the technique, then demonstrate in increasing complexity. The title is clever, but doesn’t beg for clicks anywhere near the quality of the content. I might suggest that if it is views you want, you might consider renaming them so at least orchestrators can find them.
Alex, this was hilarious! thanks for education work and this very entertaining video form! just as I resumed that my years longing string phase was over I probably have to go back and study now...might be I also need a pseudonym.
Oh hell yeah. I wasn't even looking to make this kinda stuff but I am now that I found your videos haha. Nice job mate
Very entertaining and informative. Yes, I like 50's music...I like just about all music...when it is composed and performed with emotion. Music without emotion does nothing for me except a curiosity.
+Ambient Sequential Synth Performer Yep, got a big thing for 50s light music. It's got such an ace character to it.
I think I've found my new favourite channel
Welcome. Make yourself at home.
This is brilliant xD
This is an incredible resource. Thank you for the analysis. Is there any chance you could wield your substantial talent on an analysis and breakdown of pet sounds by the beach boys? There exists a complete scores book for the Beatles but not the beach boys and I would love if someone as amazing as you could shed light on the arrangements and harmonies of those brilliant recordings. Thank you for your amazing work.
Ha ha ha, the best vidéo about harmony ever! Very well made and extremely funny, thanks :-)
Great stuff Alex! Love it.
+Brett Rosenberg Thanks Brett! There's now a part two to this and working on part 3.
Hey Alex, really enjoying your videos (had to laugh out loud at the Pizza Cuto reference) and wanted to ask you, how on earth do you make your string arrangements sound so warm and "old school" (especially referring to your video on A Canadian in Mayfair)? Im using pretty much the same plug ins but my Spitfire Symphonic Strings and Woodwinds just don't sound half as lush (they're more bright, or on the other hand buried in the sound). I guess it's a mixing question, but i'd love to get the same analog / old warm tape emulation feeling as you do, and when i slam a tape emulator on the strings it just doesn't cut it at the moment. Any help is much appreciated!
Hiya,
Glad you like the videos. Thanks for dropping by.
Strings - a big part of the sound is the divisi strings. I'm using a different string patch for every single part and I've gone through every single one to make it sound as realistic as I'm able to. I use Chamber Strings rather than Symphonic and it's much better suited for this style and for layering up because it's small sections. I think Symphonic Strings probably wouldn't sound right because it's too big too start with.
With plugins, I put some processing on the string bus and then something different on the master bus. Keep the settings subtle on each plugin and build it up, rather than slam it into one plugin. Gently rolling off some top end from the strings and saturating them a little makes them warmer, for sure. I'm still figuring it out to be honest.
If you're interested, here's one of the mockups I did with no vintage FX at all. Just the raw programming: soundcloud.com/alex-ball-1/my-computer-is-a-1950s-orchestra-part-4-modern-mix
And here's the processed version: soundcloud.com/alex-ball-1/my-computer-is-a-1950s-orchestra-part-4-vintage-mix
thanks for the reply! I'll try that then definitely.
awesome sense of humor btw
You're welcome old bean!
This is a fun way to learn, thank you!!!!
+Jermaine Allison Thanks Jermaine!
FYI I just showed this to my Dad, who was not only as rapt as I was, but also could tell me that the cricketer bowling in the last shot was Alec Bedser, playing for England, at Lord's. Jim Laker was the penultimate out of the pavilion, too. Beat THAT.
+Jake Yapp I salute your Dad's knowledge!
Hyped for the next one! Hope you'll finish this series!
Perfect mixture of information and comedy. A perfect sandwich if you will.
functionform Thanks very much!
I love the humor in your videos...
I LOVE THIS CHANNEL. Thank you Alex!
Simply smashing! Ta.
the real wonders of TH-cam - brilliant
This is absolutely fantastic! Thank you! :)
Thank you for this!
This video is an outrage. Who do you think you are making hilarious, educational, and fascinating videos like this? I would describe this as an outrage, had I not just done so.
This is a style of music that seems so largely dismissed, yet is really the zenith of composition... drawing on traditional art ("classical") music, jazz, and popular music. It's really... ultimate. But I guess that its light nature and its rather modest application in movies, television, etc. instead of concerts made it sort of a throwaway in the minds of consumers. This fact is even more of an outrage than this incredibly well-made and enviable video.
Thank you for your exquisite work, you terrible, terrible person. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to take the inspiration I feel from this video and go and apply it in the form of doing the work I should have been doing instead of watching this video. Which, I might add, is very frustratingly not musical. But does have to do with musical instruments.
P.S. If you'd like to hear an attempt I made at this style back in 2005 or so, it's the focus of my video that is titled in a way that seems to offend everyone: THE DANGER OF GAS LIGHTING.
These videos are absolutely hilarious! Rather helpful too
Wonderful! Wonderful!
Thank you
Dear Mr. Ball,
FURST!!111!!!11
Sincerely,
Tony
2:27 Heavens no! *faints*
AMReed8 Very uncouth of me, I do apologise.
Excellent
This, is really super.
Dear Sir, your edifying montage of inarguably spiffy compositions on yellowed paper was appreciated by every single person living within this household. The section quoted from Lady In Love by the composer of many pseudonyms bears more than a passing resemblance to the ending of the original Star Trek TV theme. Was Alexander Courage one of his numerous noms de note or did Alexander Courage also likely watch too much Scooby Do?
Yep, definitely has the same thing as Star Trek going on! But is about 10 years before Star Trek.
Perhaps Courage was Bretton who was Duncan who was Trebilco?
He would have got away with it if it weren't for those pesky kids.
Well done, sir! 👏🏆
This is amazing. Thank you.
funniest guide I´ve ever seen... great!!!
Great video here !
+Pablo Cortina Thanks!
This is fine, fine amusement.
Hey. Thanks for creating such cool video! I went through your video and while I think you present nice examples, I am scratching my head where you actually teach things. You mentioned quite a very few things but you leave very much open everything explaining why that works. So I am not getting quite right about your approach. Apart from that? Did you had a cold while recording that video?
Charmand Grimloch Thanks for the comment.
I've taken excerpts from pieces, made easy-to-follow score reductions and put the chords on the score. The idea was that it shows what kind of chords are being used and how they're voiced using real examples.
Thanks for the feedback though, if you found it confusing then I'll take that on board for the next one.
Nah no problem. Thats a good video anyways, but I was expecting that you talk a bit about the example you posted. Sure that makes sense that you show the chords. Still...maybe not easy to explain: But there are reasons why certain chords are working in a chain and some are better than others. I was hoping you shed light upon that a bit as well. NO worries, cool video :)
No, fair point. I probably should have done a section where I explain what chords you can extend and what chords you can swap etc. So Chord I can become a 6/9 chord for example, or chord V can be a 13th or b13th. Or why one chord can follow another in a sequence.
That sort of stuff?
Constructive criticism is good, so I appreciate it. All good.
This is absolutely amazing! Thankyou!
You're welcome. There's two more of these on my channel if you like them.
I’ve watched them tonight, they are equally amazing. And genuinely really helpful as I’m trying to write something at the minute along this vein. So thankyou, a lot! You’re ace!
Good to hear. Send a link when you've written it. Always interested to hear.
Fenomenal!🤩
This absolutely amazing.... thanks a lot....
more of these please !
zawette Yep, doing a part 2. Takes quite a lot of time to make these, but it's coming.
Seu canal é incrível! It's wonderful.
Why is this guy whispering. This is no secret message to Russia. HAW! But thanks for showing how complex arrangements can be! I never saw the sheet music before and actually run as a video. THANK YOU!
Hi Hugh.
The voice over was improved in part two: th-cam.com/video/AwvwBm556LA/w-d-xo.html&lc=Ugzz3kFHAT6dneeAzyB4AaABAg
Also goes more into detail on specifics. Will be doing about 6 or 7 of these. It's an awesome genre that needs covering online!
This is so great
Hahaha. Love it!
splendid!
😂😂 Yet so briljant! 😇
Verry verry Cool!!!!!
I can honestly say that I've never seen anything like this before in my life. I mean that in a good way. Unfortunately I didn't have a typewriter to write this comment so I did it the old fashioned way using the Android keyboard.
Thanks old bean.
Please Alex, could you tell me the name of the vst strings you're using? (especially on the sustains), I can't understand if is just the voicing or, also, the actual samples... in any case, amazing work mate!
ps: also kudos for your work on italian musical ethymology!! ;-)
underrated
...I lost it at pizza cutto
0:23 ... I've watched the _Predator_ episode too much. 💪
Think you'll ever do a video on the Exotica genre from the 50s/60s?
Ha. I've considered doing some of the mushy library music that became the soundtrack of 70s XXX movies, but not the earlier exotica stuff.
Is there a particular thing/score you had in mind?
Anything from the Tiki / Exotica era by Les Baxter, for sure. I love his and Martin Denny's exotic covers of Misirlou.
Ah yes, I know that kind of vibe. Don't think I'll get into a video about the theory as they takes masses of research and time to put together, but could compose something like it and talk about that. The Optigan and Mellotron rhythms would be perfect for the backbone and I have all of those.
The orchestration is basically Impressionism-lite
Thank you for your great videos! I am really enjoying these and learning a lot. Can I ask where you get those orchestral scores? I tried to search and buy it on google but I couldn't find it easily... :(
Great, glad they're of use.
Scores of this era of stuff have either been donated to me or I've borrowed them from the amazing Light Music Society collection: lightmusicsociety.com/the-library/
You won't find them available for sale anywhere, so it's only from private collections.
wow thank you so much!! :)
I allways verry like your Work, you are realy great!
Now you David Angel? He s first job for Filmcomposing was to whrote and orchestrate music for Bonanza, David Rose was his boss and the 80 years old Hugo Friedhofer worked at this Time also on Bonanza and teaching David Angel how to made refinements on David Angels first writhings. David Angel was later ghostwrhiter for Maurice Jarre an others. David Angel was my Teacher vor Filmcomposing.
Thanks Gerold. I've not heard of David Angel until now. I'll have to look him up. So David Rose taught him and he taught you?
Amazing video!
+nRGcomposing Thanks! Working on part 2 at the moment.
Why do I feel hungry after watching this video? I've already eaten dinner!
Ha Ha - Absolutely love these videos.
love it!