Periodic scale: Difference between revisions
m Category |
m add link to article that's needed: human hearing range 10 octaves × 200 JND (both approximations) make about 2000 different pitches |
||
| Line 6: | Line 6: | ||
<math>(2)\ s[i + P] = s[i] + O</math> | <math>(2)\ s[i + P] = s[i] + O</math> | ||
Scales written in the widely used [http://www.huygens-fokker.org/scala/scl_format.html Scala format] are implicitly assumed to be periodic, with the repetition interval equal to the last scale entry, and the period equal to the number of notes (on the second line) of the scale. Informally, a periodic scale could be defined as the kind of scale a Scala .scl file is intended to denote. Of course, since arbitrarily high and low pitches go beyond the range of human hearing, this definition is a mathematical idealization, but it is much simpler to adopt the idealization than to worry about that. Neither Scala nor the above definition assumes that the scales are [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monotonic_function monotonically strictly increasing], but this condition, giving a '''monotone periodic scale''', is often important to add: | Scales written in the widely used [http://www.huygens-fokker.org/scala/scl_format.html Scala format] are implicitly assumed to be periodic, with the repetition interval equal to the last scale entry, and the period equal to the number of notes (on the second line) of the scale. Informally, a periodic scale could be defined as the kind of scale a Scala .scl file is intended to denote. Of course, since arbitrarily high and low pitches go beyond the [[human hearing range|range of human hearing]], this definition is a mathematical idealization, but it is much simpler to adopt the idealization than to worry about that. Neither Scala nor the above definition assumes that the scales are [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monotonic_function monotonically strictly increasing], but this condition, giving a '''monotone periodic scale''', is often important to add: | ||
<math>(3)\ i < j\text{ implies }s[i] < s[j]</math> | <math>(3)\ i < j\text{ implies }s[i] < s[j]</math> | ||
| Line 18: | Line 18: | ||
== Scale properties == | == Scale properties == | ||
=== [[ | === [[constant structure|Constant Structure]] === | ||
If interval classes are disjoint, then the scale is a constant structure. In other words, constant structure (a term coined by [[Erv Wilson]]) means that i≠j implies class(i) ∩ class(j) = ∅. In academic music theory, this is called the ''partitioning property''. | If interval classes are disjoint, then the scale is a constant structure. In other words, constant structure (a term coined by [[Erv Wilson]]) means that i≠j implies class(i) ∩ class(j) = ∅. In academic music theory, this is called the ''partitioning property''. | ||
=== [[ | === [[Rothenberg propriety|Propriety]] === | ||
If s is monotone, and if i ≤ j implies every element in class(i) is less than or equal to every element in class(j), then s is (Rothenberg) proper. If i < j implies every element in class(i) is strictly less than every element in class(j), then s is strictly proper. In academic music theory circles, strict propriety is most often called ''coherence''. Note that strict propriety implies constant structure. | If s is monotone, and if i ≤ j implies every element in class(i) is less than or equal to every element in class(j), then s is (Rothenberg) proper. If i < j implies every element in class(i) is strictly less than every element in class(j), then s is strictly proper. In academic music theory circles, strict propriety is most often called ''coherence''. Note that strict propriety implies constant structure. | ||
| Line 27: | Line 27: | ||
=== Epimorphism === | === Epimorphism === | ||
If there exists a homomorphism h: G → ℤ so that h(s[i]) = i, then s is weakly epimorphic with the homomorphism h. If s is monotone and weakly epimorphic, it is epimorphic. An important special case is where G is a JI group and h is a val. Epimorphic scales in this restricted sense were apparently first considered by [[ | If there exists a homomorphism h: G → ℤ so that h(s[i]) = i, then s is weakly epimorphic with the homomorphism h. If s is monotone and weakly epimorphic, it is epimorphic. An important special case is where G is a JI group and h is a val. Epimorphic scales in this restricted sense were apparently first considered by [[Yves Hellegouarch]]. The name comes from the fact that h is an epimorphism onto ℤ. | ||
=== [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myhill%27s_property Myhill's property] === | === [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myhill%27s_property Myhill's property] === | ||
A monotone scale in which every class but classes nP have exactly two elements has Myhill's property. If every such class has exactly three elements, it has the '''trivalence property'''. Myhill's property is synonymous with '''strict [[ | A monotone scale in which every class but classes nP have exactly two elements has Myhill's property. If every such class has exactly three elements, it has the '''trivalence property'''. Myhill's property is synonymous with '''strict [[MOS]]''', though some authors prefer to identify MOS itself with Myhill's property. | ||
=== Distributional evenness === | === Distributional evenness === | ||
A monotone scale in which every class comes in exactly n elements is n-distributionally even, or '''n-DE'''. If n=2, then we can simply say that it is distributionally even. <span style="line-height: 1.5;">Distributional evenness is also synonymous with '''[[ | A monotone scale in which every class comes in exactly n elements is n-distributionally even, or '''n-DE'''. If n=2, then we can simply say that it is distributionally even. <span style="line-height: 1.5;">Distributional evenness is also synonymous with '''[[MOS]]''', though some authors prefer a stricter definition of MOS identifying it with Myhill's property. | ||
=== Convexity === | === Convexity === | ||
The scale is [[ | The scale is [[Convex scale|convex]] if every convex combination of notes, meaning every ℕ-linear combination of scale notes, is a scale note. If the quasiperiod '''P''' is normalized so as to be positive and minimal, this is equivalent to the condition that the equivalence classes of the notes modulo the repetition interval '''O''' is a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convex_lattice_polytope ℤ-polytope] in the lattice defined by a basis for G mod '''O'''. | ||
=== [[ | === [[Maximal evenness]] === | ||
Maximally even scales of n notes in m edo are any mode of the sequence ME(n, m) = [floor(i*m/n) | i=1..n], where the "floor" function rounds down to the nearest integer. | Maximally even scales of n notes in m edo are any mode of the sequence ME(n, m) = [floor(i*m/n) | i=1..n], where the "floor" function rounds down to the nearest integer. | ||
| Line 54: | Line 54: | ||
[[Category:Scale]] | [[Category:Scale]] | ||
{{Todo| cleanup }} | {{Todo|cleanup}} | ||