The Wholegrain Birdseed

The Wholegrain Birdseed is a form of music used for entertainment originating in The Faded Petticoat. The form guides musicians during improvised performances. A speaker recites nonsensical words and sounds while the music is played on a etdir. The musical voices are joined in melody. The entire performance should be bright and is fast. The melody has phrases of varied length throughout the form. It is performed using the vallal scale and in the nebulursed rhythm. Throughout, when possible, performers are to alternate tension and repose and play legato.

• The etdir always does the main melody.
• The Wholegrain Birdseed has a well-defined multi-passage structure: a lengthy theme, an exposition of the theme and a lengthy recapitulation of the theme.
• The theme is to be in whispered undertones. The etdir stays in the dull high register. This passage is richly layered with full chords making use of the available range. The passage should be performed using frequent modulation.
• The exposition is to become softer and softer. The etdir covers its entire range from the heavy low register to the dull high register. Only one pitch is ever played at a time in this passage.
• The recapitulation is to be moderately soft. The etdir covers its entire range from the heavy low register to the dull high register. Chords are packed close together in dense clusters in this passage.
• Scales are constructed from twenty-three notes dividing the octave. In quartertones, their spacing is roughly 1xxxxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxO, 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 vallal heptatonic scale is constructed by selection of degrees from the fundamental scale. The degrees selected are the 1st, the 4th, the 6th, the 9th, the 13th, the 16th and the 20th.
• The nebulursed rhythm is made from two patterns: the vazast (considered the primary) and the ong. The patterns are to be played in the same beat, allowing one to repeat before the other is concluded.
• The vazast rhythm is a single line with three beats. The beats are named mudesod (spoken mu), liloran (li) and toker (to). The beat is stressed as follows:
• | - x x |
• where x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.
• The ong rhythm is a single line with four beats. The beats are named febamus (spoken fe), tinos (ti), afonan (af) and stat (sta). The beat is stressed as follows:
• | - - x - |
• where x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.

Events