A Polytonal Approach to Chromatic Harmonies and Melodies

Imagine that you want to create a piece of music using the chromatic scale. As you know, the western tuning system is comprised of these 12 notes (the chromatic scale), so it kind of means that you could go off in any direction and do whatever. But this can be very off-putting as there are too many approach possibilities. Too many choices are not always a good thing.

So, I would like to present to you one way to harness the power of the chromatic scale by using a polytonal approach and use this concept as your guide to create chromatic harmony and melodies with a twisted/quirky vibe.

Let’s tackle the melody first. A nice way to introduce chromaticism is by mashing up or intersecting two scales.

Mashing Up Scales

So, E minor scale contains the notes E, F#, G A, B, C and D:

While E major has the notes E, F#, G#, A, B, C# and D#:

By intersecting these two modes we get the notes E, F#, G, G#, A, B, C, C#, D and D#:

As you can see and hear, you almost get the full chromatic scale, only missing the F and the A#.

Melody Example

In the following example, I chose the pitch E as reference to pick modes or key areas like E Phrygian, E Dorian, E diminished or A Lydian (from the E major key). I color coded the pitches so it’s easier for you to see what I was thinking in terms of where I got the melodic fragments from.

Orange – A Lydian (E major); Yellow – Chromaticism (from mashing up modes); Blue – E Dorian; Red – E Phrygian; Green – E Diminished

I created the melodies by thinking of getting in and out of the context of these modes or just using the chromatic bits as a result of the modes being mashed up.

And this is what I used to produce the upper register melodic materials. Overall, I think that this is a good approach to avoid the haphazard choice of notes when you wish create this type of effect in your melodies.

The Polytonal Effect

As for what I did to create the polytonal effect in the A section, I used an ostinato in the bass that is based on the Em7 chord from E Phrygian and with some occasional flirts with the chromatic scale; alongside with everything I just mentioned for the upper register melody. Here’s how it sounds:

It is worth saying that my main concern was with register separation and assuring that each instrument occupies its space or area without getting in the way of the other instruments. Also, I was thinking more in terms of melody rather than harmony.

Surprise Chords

Regarding the B section, I wanted to create a contrast, with less movement and to relief tension. For the most part, the melody you hear uses pitches from the E major key. It starts with a C#m7 chord but then I surprise you with a D maj7 chord which I’m borrowing from A major, a nearby key so, no worries about clashing with the melody at that point.

Then I return to C#m7 but instead of repeating the same half-step up chord movement, to a D major, I borrowed a D#7 chord, a whole-step up from C#m. The choice of it being major and dominant is due to what I was hearing in my head in terms of what the bass and melody should be doing at that moment. That’s the spot where I had to change a couple of the melody pitches to accommodate the new chord. I wanted It to sound pretty…

Mashed Up Chords

When using this polytonal way of thinking and organizing your materials, the chord options can also increase substantially. I usually think of the available chords originated from one key center or the other, the ones I’m working with, and then I can choose to alter certain chord tones using pitches from the other key.

For instance, I have a C#m from the E major key, which can be turned into a C+ if I just introduce the C natural from E Phrygian and then I end in Em:

This is pretty much what happened near the end of the B section, but with another chord thrown in the mix, that D#7 you heard before:

Polychords

And since we are working with two key areas, you can also create polychordal structures using chords from one key on the bottom and another from the other key on the top, such as in this example announcing the return to the A section with a bang:

That’s a B major over a C major polychordal structure

Foreshadowing

I was able to return to the A section in a more seamless way is because I managed to reintroduce some elements of what was to come next, like a musical foreshadowing. I talked about this in this video about how to connect different sections in your arrangements.

Here are two examples that show you how I got out from the B section and the second example is how I introduced the A section using an almost pointillistic approach:

From B to A section

The intro to prepare the A section

Full Music Example

Let’s hear how it all sounds put together:

Closing Thoughts

And that’s it, I hope you enjoyed this type of approach. If you would like to embrace experimentation and apply this to your music just follow the steps or guidelines I showed you. If you wanna suggest other ideas, please share your thoughts in the comment section and, if you haven’t subscribed, please do so.

Happy Composing!