The Satyric Fir-Cone

The Satyric Fir-cone is a form of music used during marches and military engagements originating in The Questionable Riverside. The rules of the form are applied by composers to produce individual pieces of music which can be performed. A singer recites nonsensical words and sounds while the music is played on a isarilu and two to six riraya. The musical voices cover melody, harmony and rhythm. The entire performance should be delicate, and it is to be moderately loud. The melody has mid-length phrases throughout the form. Only one pitch is ever played at a time. It is performed using the emayethi scale and in the cowe rhythm. Throughout, when possible, composers and performers are to alternate tension and repose.

• The Satyric Fir-cone has a well-defined multi-passage structure: a theme, an exposition of the theme, a bridge-passage and a recapitulation of the theme.
• The theme is voiced by the melody of the singer reciting nonsensical words and sounds, the melody of the isarilu and the melody of the riraya. The passage is extremely fast. The singer's voice covers its entire range and the isarilu ranges from the strained middle register to the buzzy high register. The passage should be composed and performed using frequent modulation.
• The exposition is voiced by the melody of the singer reciting nonsensical words and sounds, the melody of the isarilu and the rhythm of the riraya. The passage is moderately paced. The singer's voice stays in the middle register and the isarilu covers its entire range from the sonorous low register to the buzzy high register.
• The bridge-passage is voiced by the melody of the singer reciting nonsensical words and sounds and the harmony of the riraya. The passage accelerates as it proceeds. The singer's voice stays in the high register. The passage should be composed and performed using trills.
• The recapitulation is voiced by the melody of the riraya and the rhythm of the singer reciting nonsensical words and sounds. The passage is slow. The singer's voice stays in the middle register. The passage should be composed and performed using trills.
• Scales are constructed from twelve notes spaced evenly throughout the octave. The tonic note is a fixed tone passed from teacher to student.
• The emayethi heptatonic scale is thought of as two disjoint chords spanning two perfect fourths. These chords are named iwarivuli and ucame.
• The iwarivuli tetrachord is the 1st, the 2nd, the 4th and the 6th degrees of the semitone octave scale.
• The ucame tetrachord is the 8th, the 9th, the 10th and the 13th (completing the octave) degrees of the semitone octave scale.
• The cowe rhythm is a single line with two beats. The beats are named fi (spoken fi) and acimedewe (ac). The beat is stressed as follows:
• | - x |
• where x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.

Events