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"All That Noise, and All That Sound:" Tonal Ambiguity and Melodic-Harmonic Disconnect in the Music of Coldplay

Welch, Nathanael C.
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu1442761317

Abstract Details

2015, Master of Music, Youngstown State University, Dana School of Music.
Within the music of Coldplay there often exists a disconnect between the melody (vocal line) and the harmony (chord pattern/structure). It is often difficult to discern any tonal center (key) within a given song. In several of the songs I have selected for analysis, the melodies, when isolated from the harmonic patterns, suggest tonal centers at odds with the chords. Because of its often stratified pitch organization, Coldplay’s music is sometimes in two keys simultaneously. Exploring the disconnect between melody and harmony, I will show how that can lead to tonal ambiguity in the sense that there is no one key governing an entire song. Rather, these songs often exemplify sectional centricity, where one or more pitches act as a tonal center in one section of a song.
Jena Root, PhD (Advisor)
Randall Goldberg, PhD (Committee Member)
Tedrow Perkins, PhD (Committee Member)
Steven Raele, PhD (Committee Member)
78 p.
Music
Coldplay; Rock; Music Theory; Popular Music; Britpop

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Welch, N. C. (2015). "All That Noise, and All That Sound:" Tonal Ambiguity and Melodic-Harmonic Disconnect in the Music of Coldplay [Master's thesis, Youngstown State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu1442761317

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Welch, Nathanael. "All That Noise, and All That Sound:" Tonal Ambiguity and Melodic-Harmonic Disconnect in the Music of Coldplay. 2015. Youngstown State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu1442761317.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Welch, Nathanael. ""All That Noise, and All That Sound:" Tonal Ambiguity and Melodic-Harmonic Disconnect in the Music of Coldplay." Master's thesis, Youngstown State University, 2015. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu1442761317

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ysu1442761317
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This open access ETD is published by Youngstown State University and OhioLINK.