The Fonio-Grain of Strawberries

The Fonio-grain of Strawberries is a form of music used to commemorate important events originating in The Turquoise of Revolutions. The form guides musicians during improvised performances. Three singers recite The Pistil of Dates while the music is played on a lustilok. The musical voices join in melody and counterpoint, harmony and rhythm. The entire performance should be fiery. The melody has mid-length phrases, while the counterpoint has phrases of varied length throughout the form. It is performed in the ster rhythm. Throughout, when possible, performers are to glide from note to note, use mordents, add fills and spread syllables over many notes.

• The Fonio-grain of Strawberries has a well-defined multi-passage structure: a lengthy verse and a chorus all repeated one times, a bridge-passage and a verse and a chorus.
• The first verse is voiced by the melody of the singers and the melody of the lustilok. The passage is consistently slowing, and it is to be very soft. Each of the singers' voices ranges from the low register to the middle register and the lustilok ranges from the raucous low register to the fragile middle register. Only one pitch is ever played at a time in this passage. The passage is performed using the vallal scale.
• The first chorus is voiced by the melody of the singers and the counterpoint of the lustilok. The passage is extremely fast, and it is to start loud then be immediately soft. Each of the singers' voices covers its entire range and the lustilok ranges from the fragile middle register to the sparkling high register. Only one pitch is ever played at a time in this passage. The passage is performed using the febamus scale.
• The bridge-passage is voiced by the melody of the singers and the rhythm of the lustilok. The passage is very fast, and it is to fade into silence. Each of the singers' voices ranges from the low register to the middle register and the lustilok stays in the sparkling high register. Only one pitch is ever played at a time in this passage. The passage is performed using the kekorith scale.
• The second verse is voiced by the melody of the lustilok and the harmony of the singers. The passage gradually slows as it comes to an end, and it is to be very loud. The lustilok ranges from the fragile middle register to the sparkling high register and each of the singers' voices covers its entire range. This passage features only melodic tones and intervals. The passage is performed without preference for a scale.
• The second chorus is voiced by the melody of the singers and the rhythm of the lustilok. The passage is half the tempo of the last passage, and it is to be loud. Each of the singers' voices ranges from the middle register to the high register and the lustilok covers its entire range from the raucous low register to the sparkling high register. Only one pitch is ever played at a time in this passage. The passage is performed using the kam scale.
• Scales are constructed from twenty-two notes dividing the octave. In quartertones, their spacing is roughly 1xxx-xx-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 pentatonic scale is constructed by selection of degrees from the fundamental scale. The degrees selected are the 1st, the 6th, the 12th, the 17th and the 22nd.
• The febamus heptatonic scale is constructed by selection of degrees from the fundamental scale. The degrees selected are the 1st, the 3rd, the 7th, the 11th, the 13th, the 16th and the 20th.
• The kekorith pentatonic scale is constructed by selection of degrees from the fundamental scale. The degrees selected are the 1st, the 5th, the 9th, the 15th and the 20th.
• The kam heptatonic scale is constructed by selection of degrees from the fundamental scale. The degrees selected are the 1st, the 4th, the 7th, the 11th, the 13th, the 16th and the 19th.
• The ster rhythm is made from three patterns: the zulal (considered the primary), the lesul and the afonan. The patterns are to be played in the same beat, allowing one to repeat before the other is concluded.
• The zulal rhythm is a single line with three beats. The beat is stressed as follows:
• | - x x |
• where x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.
• The lesul rhythm is a single line with thirty-two beats divided into five bars in a 7-10-6-5-4 pattern. The beat is stressed as follows:
• | - 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 afonan rhythm is a single line with eight beats divided into four bars in a 2-2-2-2 pattern. The beats are named stat (spoken sta) and vazast (va). The beat is stressed as follows:
• | x - | x - | x - | - x |
• where x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.

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