Microtonal Notation

Guidelines booklet

Osvaldo Glieca
MMXIII osvaldo.glieca@ymail.com

Microtonal Notation

This is my standard notation for quarter tones, the enharmonic equivalent stand as the double flat it is the semi sharp equivalent of the preceding note, as well as the double sharp it is the equivalent semi flat of the following note. It is advisable to follow a general rule of using sharp signs only when asceding and flat signs only when discending and trying to keep the sight-reading as clear as possible.

b Bb

I have personally found more practical to call them as flat and semi-flat and as sharp and double-sharp or eventually semi-sharp and double flat and to avoid the terminology of one quarter tone or three quarter tones that make the conversation rather complicated.

& # B
< n>

< n>

...and so on

enharmonic equivalent

enharmonic equivalent

& B <n>
enharmonic equivalent

B b B b
enharmonic equivalent

< n>

B b B b

<n> B b
...and so on

enharmonic equivalent

Afterword
The microtonal explorations in the last century have not reached an accepted practice, and, as composers are still looking ahead in the twenty-first century, there is not a clear answer for this. Microtonality is still present as an open agenda for two main reasons: firstly the diatonic and dodecaphonic systems have exhausted the composers sensibility finding in microtonality a new expressive source, secondly the presence of micro-tonal music in the traditional world music is pushing composers to build and devise acceptable theories and system to organize microtones. It is inevitable to ignore this harmonic expansion in the future as some composers find themselves of being strong supporters while others have a moderate point of view. Some composers actually think that microtonality can be the only salvation of traditional dodecaphony, diatonicism or whatever system they think of. Also, microtonality has been present alternatively since the middle ages, but yet not able to find a clear harmonic territory until the present time. Without shadow of doubt microtonality it is still an open business and it is unclear to see how and in which degree it will be present in our music in the future. Between all the theories applied the most reasonable is the division of 24 tones, which is based on the equal temperament with the subsequent net division of their tones. This added factors will obviously enrich the harmonic language with a great expansion, this eventuality will create an interesting resource as it will be possible to build customized systems to control the tones hierarchies. It will be somehow possible even to reintroduce tonality in the old sense with 24 possible different keys, or rebuild new theories to organize specific tones to renovate the whole harmonic palette as some spectralist composers experimented during the ealry 1970s. Osvaldo Glieca
24 June 2011