Chords etc. in Schmigadoon!

Chords, scales, harmony, melody, etc.
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Starting a thread for this finely crafted TV musical. There's a ton of things to listen to and analyze, especially if you're theatre/opera/classical lover... and I just love every song and am brainwashed now :)

Anyways, I'll start with my takeaways!

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The favourite of my favourite -

With All of Your Heart (Emma Tate's theme)



The arrangement is just perfect. Nothing more, nothing less. Biggest goosebumps on "a life that's lived partway / is no way to live."

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You Can't Tame Me (Danny's theme)



Whoa. I thought the verse was fancy, but the density of chords were just mind-blowing. Knocked off.

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Somewhere Love Is Waiting for You (Mayor Menlove's theme)



All the carefully arranged "little voices" on strings and woodwinds! Goosebumps all the way.

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He's a Queer One, That Man o' Mine (Florence Menlove's theme)



Oh my gawd that Db7 chord!

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Thanks for effort and sharing!
I can especially relate to "With All of Your Heart", on meta level :)



Are you transcribing chords entirely by listening, or do you play along and compare?

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N__K wrote: Mon Oct 11, 2021 2:06 am Thanks for effort and sharing!
I can especially relate to "With All of Your Heart", on meta level :)



Are you transcribing chords entirely by listening, or do you play along and compare?
I have to play along and compare, a LOT. The music is way above what I can immediately tell! I'm learning so much from these songs.

And I make errors all the time with listening alone :D

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shawshawraw wrote: Mon Oct 11, 2021 2:25 pm I have to play along and compare, a LOT.
Yep, same thing for me. I've got relative pitch hearing, so reference tones are constantly needed. When unsure, I fall back on spectrum analysis (16384 FFT, semitone grid overlay), but that's not 100% solution either.

Time expenditure of it can be enormous - and, in line with the song, it usually stops being fun at some point. At which time I often become a "shirker", postponing the work for days (or even years, LOL) until it's again fun, or at least tolerable. But eventually, once the work is done, it is quite rewarding :)

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I am really enjoying Schmigadoon and have a question: Why do many of the songs feel flat or perhaps in a minor chord? Something just feels a bit weird with some of the songs and I’m trying to understand or codify what I’m hearing and why it sounds a bit weird; good, but weird. Even the electronic song played at her friend’s wedding was a bit ‘off’ (albeit intentionally so).

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Markjohnsonii wrote: Mon Dec 27, 2021 10:21 pm I am really enjoying Schmigadoon and have a question: Why do many of the songs feel flat or perhaps in a minor chord? Something just feels a bit weird with some of the songs and I’m trying to understand or codify what I’m hearing and why it sounds a bit weird; good, but weird. Even the electronic song played at her friend’s wedding was a bit ‘off’ (albeit intentionally so).
Yes, many of them sound pleasantly weird! I think I kinda know what you're feeling... A large part of this comes from instrumentation and voice leading choices, not necessarily the chords as a whole.

But as for the matter of chords itself, maybe you're feeling "minor" on a C6 chord, for example?

I think the electronic song "to the left, to the right" has the vocal doubled and detuned!

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shawshawraw wrote: Tue Dec 28, 2021 2:54 pm
Markjohnsonii wrote: Mon Dec 27, 2021 10:21 pm I am really enjoying Schmigadoon and have a question: Why do many of the songs feel flat or perhaps in a minor chord? Something just feels a bit weird with some of the songs and I’m trying to understand or codify what I’m hearing and why it sounds a bit weird; good, but weird. Even the electronic song played at her friend’s wedding was a bit ‘off’ (albeit intentionally so).
Yes, many of them sound pleasantly weird! I think I kinda know what you're feeling... A large part of this comes from instrumentation and voice leading choices, not necessarily the chords as a whole.

But as for the matter of chords itself, maybe you're feeling "minor" on a C6 chord, for example?

I think the electronic song "to the left, to the right" has the vocal doubled and detuned!
Thanks for replying! Yes many of the songs have some interesting melody/harmony combos… I just heard the Mildred Layton song and she was very flat/monotone and had a really strange pitch to it throughout. I don’t get some of the songs for sure.

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Did 4 more songs today!

Enjoy the Ride (1st romance)



It's the most expensive blues I've ever heard! Fancy and delicate. Part 2 with Betsy features the minor tonic chord on phrases 1-3.

I find it very jammable :D

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Suddenly (2nd romance)

(Song starts at 0:47)


Lovely tune! The key changes in interludes are very worth digging.

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I Always Never Get My Man (Blerky's theme)



Yet another bluesy tune with an unbalanced form! (Note the odd-numbered bars and phrases)

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You Make Me Wanna Sing (Josh's theme)

Finally Josh joins the musical! A very moving scene with sentimental arrangement.



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