Major fourth and minor fifth

From Microtonal Encyclopedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search

0% vetted by Test

   

Major fourth
Inverse Minor fifth
Name
Other names Eleventh harmonic
Abbreviation M4
Size
Semitones ~5½
Interval class ~5½
Just interval 11:8
Cents
24 equal temperament 550
Just intonation 551.32
Minor fifth
Inverse Major fourth
Name
Other names Eleventh subharmonic
Abbreviation m5
Size
Semitones ~6½
Interval class ~5½
Just interval 16:11
Cents
24 equal temperament 650
Just intonation 648.68
Eleventh harmonic About this sound Play 
<templatestyles src="Multiple_image/styles.css" />
Just augmented fourth on C About this sound Play  and its inverse, the just tritone on C About this sound Play 

In music, major fourth and minor fifth are intervals from the quarter tone scale, named by Ivan Wyschnegradsky to describe the tones surrounding the tritone (F/G) found in the more familiar twelve tone scale.[1]

perfect fourth major fourth tritone minor fifth perfect fifth
in C: F ≊ Fhalf sharp F/G ≊ Ghalf flat G

Major fourth[edit | edit source]

A major fourth (About this sound Play ) is the interval that lies midway between the perfect fourth (500 cents) and the augmented fourth (600 cents) and is thus 550 cents (Fhalf sharp). It inverts to a minor fifth. Wyschnegradsky considered it a good approximation of the eleventh harmonic[1] (11:8 or 551.32 cents).[2] A narrower undecimal major fourth is found at 537 cents (the ratio 15:11). 31 equal temperament has an interval of 542 cents, which lies in between the two types of undecimal major fourth.

The term may also be applied to the "comma-deficient major fourth" (or "chromatic major fourth"[3]), which is the ratio 25:18, or 568.72 cents (F).[4]

Minor fifth[edit | edit source]

A minor fifth (About this sound Play ) is the interval midway between the diminished fifth (600 cents) and the perfect fifth (700 cents) and thus 650 cents (Ghalf flat). It inverts to a major fourth. It approximates the eleventh subharmonic (G), 16:11 (648.68 cents).

The term may also be applied to the ratio 64:45 (G-) or 609.77 cents (About this sound Play ), formed from the perfect fourth (4/3 = 498.04) and the major semitone (16/15 = 111.73),[3] which is sharp of the G tritone. The "comma-redundant minor fifth" has the ratio 36:25 (G), or 631.28 cents, and is formed from two minor thirds.[4] The tridecimal minor fifth (13:9), or tridecimal tritone, is slightly larger at 636.6 cents.

Other[edit | edit source]

The term major fourth may also be applied to the follow, as minor fifth may be applied to their inversions (in the sense of augmented and diminished):

  • The "comma-deficient major fourth" (or "chromatic major fourth"[3]) is the ratio 25:18, or 568.72 cents (F).[4]
  • 45:32 (F+) or 590.22 cents (About this sound Play ), formed from the major third (5/4 = 386.31) and the major tone (9/8 = 203.91) or two major tones (9:8) and one minor tone (10:9)[3]
  • 729:512 (F++) or 611.73 cents (About this sound Play ), formed from the perfect fourth and the apotome.[3]

See also[edit | edit source]

Sources[edit | edit source]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Skinner, Miles Leigh (2007). Toward a Quarter-tone Syntax: Analyses of Selected Works by Blackwood, Haba, Ives, and Wyschnegradsky, p.25. ProQuest. ISBN 9780542998478.
  2. Benson, Dave (2007-01-01). Music: A Mathematical Offering. Cambridge University Press. p. 370. ISBN 9780521853873. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Richard Mackenzie Bacon (1821). "Manuscript Work of Francesco Bianchl", The Quarterly Musical Magazine and Review, Volume 3, p.56.
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 (1832). The Edinburgh Encyclopaedia, Volume 9, p.249. Joseph Parker. [ISBN unspecified]


This article uses material from Major fourth and minor fifth on Wikipedia (view authors). License under CC BY-SA 3.0. Wikipedia logo
Cookies help us deliver our services. By using our services, you agree to our use of cookies.