Minor Modifications

--Steve Mann, 2004

Minor changes to popular songs:

The introspective soul-searching nature of the hydraulophone, and its ability to achieve a continuously flowing melancholy sound, inspires a re-thinking of popular songs, leading me to a work I call "minor revisions", "minor modifications", or "minor changes".

Fade out fade out little star in A-minor:

Am       Am       Dm     Am
Fade out fade out little star

Dm    Am     Emajor Am
now i wonder if you are

Am  Dm       Am       Emajor
up above the world so high

Am       Dm         Am      Emajor
when the clouds are drawing nigh

Am       Am       Dm     Am
Fade out fade out little star

Dm    Am     Emajor Am
now i wonder if you are
(now i wonder if you really are)
You can listen to the song as played on another instrument I invented ---- the "andantephone":

(in a minor key under the weight of adults; traditional major key version when played by children)

Below I have written the song out in the key of E-minor, using a new notation I call "Fluid Music Notation".

Proprietary Document Format (PDF)
IDRAW PostScript (what it was originally drawn in)

Note the new musical notation that tries to capture the expressive capabilities of the hydraulophone.

Time signature: since all notes of the hydraulphone are always sounding to some degree when the water is whistling through the instrument, notes have no beginning or ending, so there is no such thing as a half note, quarter note, etc.. Instead, a more general idea of a beat time-period, "T", is introduced, so for example, 2/T denotes two beats during each time period (i.e. each bar or measure of music is 2T).

Note also the intertwining of harmony and melody (we call this "harmelody").

Baa Baa sheople

(Sing to your children, to the tune of Baa, Baa, Black Sheep)
Arranged in a minor key, S. Mann, 2004
(using 3 chords: Aminor, Dminor, and Emajor)

Am          Am                Dm            Am
BAA  baa    SHEE-eople,       HAVE  you any CASH;

Dm          Am                E             Am
YES  sir,   YES sir,   a      THREE bag     STASH;

Am          Dm                Am            E      Am
ONE for my  COUNTry    and    ONE   for my  STATE; and

Am          Dm                Am    E       Am
ONE for the LITTle boy with a HIGH  tax     RATE.

Proprietary Document Format (PDF)
idraw source file (what it was drawn in)
Further explanation and text.

This example illusrates the use of "Hole note" notation for hydraulophone.

It is simpler, but it is also less expressive than fluid music notation.

However, in many situations it is sufficient to capture some (not all) of the hydraulphone's expressivity in a simpler notation.

If you're sad (or scared) and you know it:

          Am                             Eminor
If you're sad and you know it, shed some tears,
          Em is still sounding           Am
If you're sad and you know it, shed some tears,
          Dm with both hands             Am with both hands
If you're SAD and you know it,  and you  REALLY want to show it,
          Em with both hands             Am
If you're sad and you know it, shed some tears.

          Am                              Emajor 
If you're scared and you know it, run and hide
          E is still sounding             Am
If you're scared and you know it, run and hide
          Dm with both hands                 Am with both hands
If you're SCARED and you know it, and you're too afraid to show it,
          E with both hands               Am..... E..... A 
If you're scared and you know it, run and hide.
End with Picardy's Third (Tierce de Picardie)

Mark the barline with some "fluidiation" where Em is still sounding.

Note the differences between the "sad" verse, where the dominant chord is Eminor, and the "scared" verse where the dominant chord is Emajor.

Row Row Row

Am
Row row row your boat, gently down the stream
Carefully, carefully, carefully, carefully,
Life is not a dream;
Dm                    Am
L-i-fe is NOT what it seems.
(or L-i-fe's a really bad dream)

Itsy Bitsy (Eency Weency) Spider:

       Am           (Am)         Emajor            Am
   the ITSy  bitsy   SPIder went UP   the   water  SPOUT;
       Am           (Am)         Dm                Am
       DOWN came the RAIN   and  WASHED the spider OUT;
       Am           (Am)         Emajor            Am
       UP  came the  SUN   and   DRIED up all the  RAIN,
       Am           (Am)         Emajor            Am
so the ITSy  bitsy   SPIDER went UP   the   spout aGAIN.
To be continued... (more songs will be added here)