Microtonal Invention

I'm on a microtonal binge-composing streak and next I thought I'd try to use 1/6ths of a tone instead of just 1/4ths.  I thought that Musescore Studio would have this capability built in as well but it doesn't.  Instead, what I found works, and turned out to be a good enough compromise is using syntonic commas to lower or highten certain notes by about 20 cents.  My goal was to use justly tuned minor and major 3rds in this which would necessitate lowering or heightening the equally tempered thirds by about 15 cents.  If I had been able to use 1/6ths of a tone, I would be approximating that goal at 16.666 cents.

But anyways, I wrote this invention for harpsichord as I've somehow fallen in love with microtonal harpsichord lately.  There are in fact harpsichords built that can play microtones.  Usually in 31edo they look like this:

Edit:  upon further listening and reflection I'm wondering whether this might not also have the character of an Allemande - a dance from a Baroque Dance Suite.  What do you think?

I would love to hear your input, observations, critiques or suggestions!  Thanks for listening.

Hey Peter,

A nice invention! In fact without reading the score I wouldn’t think it’s microtonal , but rather it’s a C major piece played by an out of tuned harpsichord! The dash means up a sixth? I just perceive them as out of tuned sharps or flats haha. Thx for sharing!

Henry

11 minutes ago, Henry Ng Tsz Kiu said:

The dash means up a sixth?

What dash?  There's numbers next to the sharps and flats which designate how many syntonic commas the note is to be lowered or hightened.  Thanks for your review!

Microtonal composition is really complex in theory, but when you listen, it honestly has a certain charm to it. The composition itself is elegant, organized and way better than the crappy invention I created on camera a few videos ago! BTW, love the mordents / trills, since this is something I just recently worked on in Music Jotter. It's amazing to me that something as simple as a trill can greatly enhance a piece of music.

This reminds me of harpsichord music before equal temperament, where each key sounded "off" or out of tune with certain intervals. Like Henry, I didn't think of it as microtonal as much as just being slightly out of tune, but it has a certain charm to it because of that. 

I'm not very well versed with microtonal music, so perhaps it's just my ears that are off when trying to understand it. However, it's pretty impressive that music software can handle the notations and playback for it. 

I like that you're exploring this, as it can only help your growth as a composer. I'm interested to hear how your studies with microtonal music impact your future music. 🙂 I'm also curious, since you're digging into the harpsichord, of how your more "you" harmonic style would be effected with microtones. I think it's very easy to cater your music to a more baroque feel with the instrument, but I know deep down your language is more daring. I get that it's an exercise to practice using them, but just curious about further studies. 

Very cool stuff mate, thanks for sharing