Horizontal and Vertical Aspects of Melody

1. Viewing Vertically

In Chapter I, we started by learning about the nature of melody independently of chords. However, in this Chapter II, I will explore the relationship between chords and melody as a set.

In the tonal gravitation theory so far, I focused mainly on how the melody moves, such as “tendency and its resolution”, “convergence and divergence”, “stride leaps”, etc.

This means that we were looking at the melody in terms of its “horizontal” flow. In contrast, when discussing the relationship between chords and melody, the “vertical” position of the melody becomes crucial.

In Chapter II, we will examine the intervalic relationship between chords and melody. The terms “horizontal” and “vertical” are often used just as metaphors in the world of music theory. But in LMT, disscussing melodies from these two contrasted aspects is so important that these metaphors are officially adopted as theoretical terms.

• Horizontal Aspect of Melody
  The “kernel” of the melody, tendency and its resolution within the key, movements involving getting closer or further from the tonal center, and more.
• Vertical Aspect of Melody
  The degree relationship between the melody and the chords at that moment, and all the effects that arise from the combinations of the two.

2. Odd and Even

On analyzing the melody vertically, the intervalic degrees become the “ruler.” In basic chords like major and minor chords, Rt3^rd5^th serve as chord tones. These three notes creates stable harmony and produce a consonant sound, whereas the notes of the 2^nd4^th6^th and 7^th degrees create dissonnance, some form of “muddiness”.

The 7^th degree, while it does have some muddiness, is more tolerable compared to the dissonance created by the 2^nd, 4^th, and 6^th degrees, and it resides in a somewhat delicate position. Additionally, the sound of each degree from 1 to 7 is different, and their musical meanings and level of muddiness also vary.

For example, the 3^rd of the chord is the note that determines brightness/darkness, as it defines whether a chord is major or minor. And the 5^th is considered colorless and transparent, as explained in the beginning of the chord section. Differences in texture due to the degree are also present in all the other degrees. By distinguishing the evenness/oddness of degrees, you can open up new possibilities for “vertical composition”.

In the initial stages of Chapter I, as it would have been too confining to delve into such details, and the chapter is so made that no chord theory is required, I left these explanations out. But in Chapter II, by introducing chord knowledge into melodic theory, we take an obvious step up.

3. Genre Differences

The emphasis on the horizontal and vertical aspects varies significantly by genre.

Classical Music

Classical music places the greatest emphasis on the vertical aspect. The use of even-degrees is regulated with fine rules and the dissonance is strictly controlled by theory. For example, the main phrase of “Eine kleine Nachtmusik” is entirely composed of odd-degrees.

Phrases made up of chord tones alone are clear and free of muddiness. There are acoustic reasons for classical music’s vertical orientation—Considering performances in concert halls with relatively long reverberation times and ensemble with various timbres in orchestras, mixing dissonance involves a greater risk than other genres.

Jazz

In jazz, too, there is a strong vertical orientation (depending on the sub-genre within jazz tho). The theory is based on the principle of choosing notes that match the changing chords and playing them to convey the sound of the chords clearly.

Creating melody with a vertical orientation inevitably brings out the characters of chords, whether bright or dark. Therefore, jazz tunes often tends to create colorful and elegant impressions.

Vertical Melodies in Popular Music

Therefore, even in pop music, vertical melodies are effective when aiming at emotional ballads with colorful sounding melodies.

These are examples of vertical-oriented songwriting. “Memories” is particularly straightforward—On I chord the melody is “so – mi fa so“, and when the chord descends by 3rd to VI_m, the melody also drops by third, forming “mi – do re mi“. This is a typical example of a vertical melody line where the melody and the chords harmonize.

“Memories” clearly pays homage to Pachelbel’s Canon. In that sense, it can be said to follow a style rooted in classical vertical composition.

Vertical melodies intentionally pick up chord tones, so as a result, even when listening to the melody alone, some fragmented sense of a chord emerges, allowing you to feel the chord progression to some extent. In this regard, it can be said that melodies alone are enjoyable enough.

Vertical melody can convey the chords through the melody itself. However, if the movements of melody are at “beck and call” of the chord and lose their own charm, it’s like putting the cart before the horse. Therefore, vertical melody-making can be considered a method for intermediate-level musicians, if not exclusively for the advanced.

Horizontal Melodies in Popular Music

On the other hand, in genres like rock or dance music, horizontal-oriented melody becomes a crucial key. If you align too much with the chords, it might even sound overly proper and, ironically, uncool.

Above is a playlist featuring extremely horizontal-oriented melodies. It emphasizes continuous repetition of the same notes or repeating the same phrases relentlessly. Since the melody itself scarcely has a sense of chords, listening to it as a standalone melody might feel somewhat bland. However, this approach allows for memorable phrases to be repeated many times, planting the melody in the listener’s memory.

Horizontal-oriented melodies abandon the role of providing a sense of chords and delegate it to the chord section. Instead, they focus entirely on capturing the listener’s attention through the repetition of catchy phrases or the presentation of interesting rhythms.

So, it’s not about which is better, vertical or horizontal; it depends on the genre and the concept of the song. That said, melodies that are designed beautifully from both horizontal and vertical perspectives often become great songs.

Therefore, the goal of Chapter II is to move beyond a horizontal-only approach, become conscious of the relationship with chords, and learn to use multiple approaches interchangeably as needed. That’s what makes it truly powerful!

Summary

• Melodies can be observed from two perspectives: “vertical” and “horizontal”.
• Melody lines can be roughly classified as either vertically-oriented or horizontally-oriented, and genre preferences inhibit here.
• Vertical melodies tend to enhance the chord progressions and generally have rich sound colors.
• Horizontal melodies rely more on the content of the melody itself, such as repetition of motives.
• Mastery of both approaches is the key to creating excellent melodies.

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