The Pod of Grains

The Pod of Grains is a form of music used to commemorate important events originating in The Splattered Orcas. The form guides musicians during improvised performances. A speaker recites nonsensical words and sounds while the music is played on a uwaredo. The musical voices are joined in melody. The entire performance is fast, and it is to become louder and louder. The melody has short phrases throughout the form. It is performed using the everinopefa scale and in the ocaquica rhythm. Throughout, when possible, performers are to alternate tension and repose.

• The uwaredo always does the main melody.
• The Pod of Grains has a well-defined multi-passage structure: a passage and another one to two passages, a bridge-passage and a brief finale.
• The first simple passage should feel mournful. Only one pitch is ever played at a time in this passage. The passage should be performed using rapid runs.
• Each of the second simple passages should be delicate. This passage features only melodic tones and intervals.
• The bridge-passage should sparkle. Only one pitch is ever played at a time in this passage.
• The finale should be triumphant. This passage features only melodic tones and intervals.
• Scales are constructed from seventeen notes dividing the octave. In quartertones, their spacing is roughly 1-xx-xx-x-x-xxx-xx-xxxxxO, where 1 is the tonic, O marks the octave and x marks other notes. The tonic note is a fixed tone passed from teacher to student.
• The everinopefa pentatonic scale is constructed by selection of degrees from the fundamental scale. The degrees selected are the 1st, the 3rd, the 9th, the 14th and the 17th.
• The ocaquica rhythm is made from two patterns: the ebecari and the mila. The patterns are to be played in the same beat, allowing one to repeat before the other is concluded.
• The ebecari rhythm is a single line with twenty-nine beats divided into five bars in a 5-6-4-6-8 pattern. The beat is stressed as follows:
• | - - x x - | - x - - - - | x - x - | x X x - - x | - X - x x x x x |
• where X marks an accented beat, x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.
• The mila rhythm is a single line with eight beats divided into four bars in a 2-2-2-2 pattern. The beat is stressed as follows:
• | - x | - x | x - | x - |
• where x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.

Events