On the composition of modal structures of Tuvan traditional songs

Abstract

One of the most important aspects of musical language of song folklore of Tuvans – the scale – is as yet underinvestigated in contemporary Tuvan musicology. The author is studying the effect of structural principles in scale and sound gamut of Tuvan folk songs. The theory of monodic scales (S.P. Galitskaya, E.V. Gertsman, Yu.G. Kon, Kh.S. Kushnarev, etc.) forms the methodological basis for the analysis. The object of our studies are manuscripts of traditional Tuvan songs published by Russian musicologists (A. N. Aksenov, Z. K. Kyrgys, etc.) serves as material base for analysis. The analysis revealed that traditional Tuvan songs are usually based on two- or three-part composite gamut structures. This significantly enriched the substantial aspect of the process by complicating types of links between the sounds, making the medium more profound, compact and complete. Scale links and subscales were detected that can interconnect in four manners (discrete, monolithic, catenary, inclusive). Conjunction principles are illustrated by a few folk songs. Catenary and inclusive manners of conjunctions have been noticed to be dominating. A vast variety of different link combinations has been detected. This is a point where intonational abundance of folklore melos reveals its inexhaustibility.

Keywords

• Тува
• тувинцы
• тувинский песенный фольклор
• лад
• монодия
• ангемитоника
• пентатоника
• ладовые звенья
• принцип составности