4 BUliEAU OF AMEKICAN ETiiNOl.CKiY | lu i.i.. r,:; 



the initial tone to the keynote. Fifty-four per (rent of the songs 

 begin on the dominant, incheateci as the twelfth in songs having a 

 compass of 12 tones, and as the fifth in songs of smaller range. Next 

 in number are the songs l)eginning on the octave, which comprise 

 15 per cent of the entire number. 



Table 3 shows the tones on which the songs end. Sixty-seven 

 per cent end on the tonic, and in 90 per cent (indicated in Table 4) 

 the final tone is the lowest tone occurring in the melody. From 

 these characteristics it is not surprising to find, in Table 5, that the 

 largest proportion of songs has a compass of 12 tones and that the 

 next smaller group has a range of an octave. Thus it will l)e seen 

 that the melodic Ix^undarv of a majority of Chip]iewa songs corres- 

 ponds to a fundamental tone and its princi])al harmonic upper partial 

 tones, commonly called overtones.' It has been stated already (Bul- 

 letin 45, p. 5) that " the phonograph record shows the octave, fifth, 

 and twelfth sung accurately by men who give the other intervals with 

 uncertain pitch," and further observation has confirmed this state- 

 ment. 



Having observed the outlines of the melodies, the tone-material 

 comprised in them may be noted. Table 6 shows that 131 songs, 

 or about 39 per cent of the entire number, contain the tones of the 

 pentatonic, or five-toned, scales, accordmg to the five varieties of 

 the pentatonic scales described by Helmholtz.- The tones are the 

 same in all these scales, the difference being in the keynote. The 

 intervals between the tones which comprise the five-toned scales 

 are the same as the intervals between the black keys on the piano. 

 Supposing these toners to constitute the material under consideration, 

 we should have the first five-toned scale according to Helmholtz 

 by using C sharp as the tonic, or keynote; the second five-toned 

 scale by using D sharp; the third by using G sharp; the fourth bj" 

 using F sharp ; and the fifth by using A sharp. This series contains 88 

 songs on the fourth five-toned scale, more commonly known as the 

 "major pentatonic," or "Scotch scale," and 40 songs on the second 

 five-toned scale, more commonly known as the "minor pentatonic," 

 while two songs (Nos. 51, 2) are on the fifth five-toned scale, and 

 one (No. IIC) is on the first five-toned scale. As the fourth five- 

 toned scale occurs in the largest number of songs, we seek to know 

 what groups of tones may have led up to it or in what incomplete 

 form it may be found. It is interesting to note that the next smaller 

 group (the major triad and sixth) comprises 12 per cent of the entire 

 number and contains the tones of the fourth five-toned scale lacking 

 the second. These tones are used in two different ways: (1) The 



' ' ' The ear wlien it s attent ion has been properly <yrected to the effect of t he vibrations which strike it . . . 

 liecomes aware of a whole series of higher musical tones, which wc will call the harmonic upper partial 

 tnvfs." — Helmholtz, The Sensations of Tone, translated by Ellis, London, lS8o, p. 22, 



2 Ibid., pp. 2t>(), 2t>l. 



