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Text Text!!!!
Danny Boy (Londonderry Air)
Dot Songs
The Dot Song is a notational system that depicts voiced chords
in a way where the ‘non-music reader’ can find these fairly
readily. But the Dot Song is not intended to be “read”, not as a
sight reader reads a piece of music.!!The main advantage of these
Dot Songs is that they force
you to look at the keyboard - on the page and down beneath you
(or at eye level if you’re a little person). And seeing the
keyboard IS an important part of learning to play tunes without
reading standard notation, seeing it for working out your own
arrangements of tunes.
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Copyright 2014 David Haynes and The Sudnow Method 2
PLEASE NOTE:!!The Dot Songs are intended to be a
transitional format, leading to your ability to use lead sheets
like the one shown to the right.!!
To that end, the keyboard diagrams in the following pages
contain the part of this lead sheet to which the diagrammed chords
correspond. !!You can use this sheet to help you get
an overall look at the entire song.!!If you have not yet
listened to the
Weekend Seminar section regarding doing your own voicing, some
of this (including the fraction notation on the diagrams) may not
be clear.!!You can play the dot songs without
using this sheet or thinking about the voicings but this does
help you get the more efficient skill of reading lead sheets.
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Danny Boy
Copyright 2014 David Haynes and The Sudnow Method
Danny Boy (Londonderry Air) Not all chords have explanatory
text. !
Chords 1& 2: A tight harmony, with rapidly changing chords.
Count first measure |... Fm7Bb7| with accent “1 and 2 and 3,
Oh-Dan-ny’’. !On beat 3, “Oh”, the left hand strikes its part. With
the upbeat that then follows, the right hand places its cluster
beneath melody note D, the left hand staying where it’s been. !Say
“Dan-ny” on the next beat, divided in half. Both hands into 2, and
you’ve got “Dan”. Play a single F with pinkie for “ny”. Or build a
voicing beneath the F too. The same left hand form, holding the b7
you just played, but moving from the C & Eb on “Dan” to b9, 3,
melody - “B, D, F” - for “ny” !Chord 4: There’s no fifth in chord
#4, despite the admonition to add them to minors, since minors use
little other coloration. I didn’t use a fifth since it’s a whole
step below the melody. In 30 percent of cases you can’t tolerate a
whole step; a half step is bad 95 percent of the time.
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5)
Comments/notes
3
Root b7 9 M(11)
!Dan- (Eb) !ny F
(2) Bb7 M
9 b7
Root 5 3 6 7 M(3)
!boy (G) !the F
(3) Eb M 7 6
3 5
Root b7 9 b3 M(6)
!pipes (G) !the C
(4) Bbm7 M
b3 9
b7
Root b7 9 b3 5 M(13)
!Oh (D) !!
(1) Fm7 M 5
b3 9
b7
!pipes (Bb) !are G
Root b7 b9 3 M(5)
(5) Eb7 M 3
b9 b7
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Danny Boy
Copyright 2014 David Haynes and The Sudnow Method
Chord 6: You can play clusters under each melody tone. By virtue
of the melodic shape here, this little downward passage almost asks
for one cluster per note. !First play the given 9 & 3 for F.
Then, pass through Eb, and when you get to C, play 7,9,M. “Why
isn’t a seventh in the first voicing, a major chord that should
have 6,7, and 9 all the time?” The melody is the 6th (F), and the
9th (Bb) is suggested, but there’s no 7 because I anticipated this
downward passage, where clusters change as you move. Not using a 7
with the first formation under F, then using it with the one
beneath C -this way you get a nice internal modification in sound,
which always makes for more interest. !Chord 8: There are two
possible locations for the left hand, and two very different
sounds. Compare this one with the Db7 in Chord 40 later on.
Comments/notes
4
Root 5 9 3 M(13)
!ca- (F) all Eb ing C
(6) Ab M 3
9 5
Root b7 b9 3 M(11)
!glen (G) !to Ab
(8) Db7 M 3
b9 b7
Root b7 5 b7 M(b3)
(9) Gm7 M
b7 5
b7
!glen (Bb) !and C
Root 5 9 b3 M(11)
!from (Eb) !!Strike L.H. first
(7) Abm7 M
b3 9
5
Root 5 7 9 3 M(5)
down (Bb) the G moun- Eb tain G
(10) Cm7 M 5
b3 9
b7
(6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
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Danny Boy
Copyright 2014 David Haynes and The Sudnow Method
Chord 12: Again the chance, as whenever things are slow, with
several notes per chord, to build clusters beneath a succession,
not just one voicing articulated when chord changes. !Embellish
melodies with chordal sounds all over, color them well, and the
orchestral palette is realized in one of its best ways. Take three
rising scale tones of this melody, “the summer’s” - D, Eb, and F,
the feeling of a Bb dominant established by b7th in LH. Build first
cluster as indicated- b9 (B), with D melody. On the next syllable,
the ‘sum’ of sum-mer’s, below the higher melody note, one step up
the scale, shift a bit. !The sounds change because your options
differ. Little harmonic melodies start to live in the interior of
the song. You play an Eb melody note now, and can’t play the 3rd of
the Bb7 chord, a D. You never play a 3rd when 11 is present.
Whenever holding on the 4th note of a scale over a dominant chord,
you’re in suspension. You play the Eb melody now, leave out 3, add
9, not b9. With 9 and 11 comes a common suspended feeling.
(11) (12) (13) (14) (15)
Comments/notes
5
!side (F) !
(11) F7 M
13 #11
3 b7
Root b7 3 #11 13 M(8)
!the (D) sum- Eb mer’s Ab
(12) Bb7 M
b9 b7
Root b7 b9 M(3)
!ros- (Bb) !es G
(15) Eb7 M 3
b9 b7
Root b7 b9 3 M(5)
(13) Eb M 7 6
3 5
!gone (G) !and F
Root 5 3 6 7 M(3)
!all (G) !the C
(14) Bbm7 M
b3 9
b7
Root b7 9 b3 M(13)
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Danny Boy
Copyright 2014 David Haynes and The Sudnow Method
Chord 16: Do the same as with #6, building successive descending
clusters for each of the three tones. !Chord 18: On the word “it’s”
(F), fill in b9 & 3. !Chords 19-22: A classic “turnaround”,
also called “the corner” of the tune, as when going to a repeat, or
in the final cycle toward resolution. !The denser use of four
chords is accomplished by changing on each beat, still ending on
Bb7 to resolve to Eb, the home base coming up (#23). !Build an Eb
staircase rising in fifths, and see G and C as the next steps after
F and Bb. !Four chords mean more harmonic movement. If cluster is
well voiced, you create an intricately winding feeling experienced
as greater lushness. !The voicing of each chord here is textbook.
Notice that #21 doesn’t lack a 9, which is the melody, thereby
freeing a finger which doubles b7 for more density. Also, play
another b9,3 cluster under F, the last note.
Comments/notes
6
(16) (17) (18) (19) (20)
!fa- (F) al- Eb ling C
(16) Ab M 3
9 5
Root 5 9 3 M(6)
(17) Abm7 M
b3 b7
Root b7 b3 M(b5)
!it’s (D) !Strike root first
!you (Eb) !it’s F
(18) Db7 M
b7
Root b7 M(9)
!you (G) !!
(19) G7 M
13 #11
3 b7
Root b7 3 #11 13 M(8)
!must (Ab) !Strike root first
(20) C7 M
#11 3
b9 b7
Root b7 b9 3 #11 M(#5)
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Danny Boy
Copyright 2014 David Haynes and The Sudnow Method
Chord 23: Low melody. With a major chord you’d expect a 9; But a
9 that low disturbs the balance. It’s a bit too much. So the fifth
is stuck in as “fill”. !Chord 24: Same as first chord in Misty,
with no b3 in the RH because the b3 beneath this melody note, a
4th, is close. If you can reach a b10 (F and the Ab an octave
higher) in the LH, use it. Use b3 and 9 as well. !Chords 25-26-27:
In both there are intervening notes to enrich, changing voicings
note by note. The real fun of the tune is #27 and its melody. Four
notes and a major chord. Lots of possibilities. I offer one
voicing, you can of course add others. !First, some folks have
trouble with the indicated voicing for D, since it’s a stretch. If
you can’t grab it, drop the bottom note, 3, just playing 6,9,M. The
major sound is implied. But try to grab the whole. !Then, for
“mer’s” (C), use #11,7,M (left to right), for “in” play 3,6,M, and
for the “the” go back to #11,7,M. !I never spoke of #11 for majors
(except in example 10 on page 55), but in this sequence it works.
Try it. Compare the sound it has against the usual rules.
Comments/notes
7
(21) (22) (23) (24) (25)
!But (Bb) !Strike root first
(24) Fm7 M 9
b7 5
b7Root 5 9 3 M(6)
(25) Bb7 M
13 3
b7
Root b7 3 13 M(9)
!come (C) !ye D
!I (Eb) !must F
(22) Bb7 M
9 b7
Root b7 9 M(11)
(21) Fm7 M
b7 5
b3 b7
Root b7 b3 5 b7 M(9)
!go (G) !and F
!bide (Eb) !
(23) Eb M 6 5
3 5
Root 5 3 5 6 M(8)
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Danny Boy
Copyright 2014 David Haynes and The Sudnow Method
!Chord 28: You might try building individuated clusters under
progression of tones for “me-a-dow”. I leave that one to you.
!Chord 29: I’ve changed the melody to accommodate a Dm7 G7 Cm7
progression, which helps the tune. The usual harmonization would be
simple, just back and forth between Eb and Ab, as in numbers 26,
27, and 28. I like the more extended harmony here. But to make it
work I had to violate the melody, and use a new tone, this “G”.
Feel free to do that, if you can bring it off tastefully. !Chord
30: Tricky. The melody note is the 4th, obliterating a 3rd, but you
get the implication of a dominant sound by the coloring I’ve given.
To make the sound more secure, while adding more variety, try
b7,b9,3 beneath “the” lyric, for the melody “D”. That, coming from
my G7, yields a nice sound.
Comments/notes
8
(26) (27) (28) (29) (30)
!back (Eb) !when D
(26) Eb M 6 3
9 5
Root 5 9 3 6 M(8)
!me- (Bb) a- G dow Eb
(28) Eb M 3 9
7 5
Root 5 7 9 3 M(5)
!sum- (D) mer’s C in Bb the C
(27) Ab M 9 6
3 5
Root 5 3 6 9 M(#11)
(29) Dm7 M 9
b7 5
8Root 8 5 b7 9 M(11)
!or (G) !Strike root first
(30) G7 M
b9 13
11 b7
Root b7 11 13 b9 M(11)
!when (C) !the D
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Copyright 2014 David Haynes and The Sudnow Method
Danny BoyChord 31: The minor 7th can’t take a 9 because the
melody is b3 - that rarely works. !Chord 32: This descent is
particularly nice: try these clusters for “hushed and-white with”
(reading L to R for each word, farthest to the right is the melody
note) - “hushed” -F,Bb,D; “and” - Eb,Ab,C; “white” - Db,Gb,Bb;
“with” - Bb,Eb,G. Analyze these clusters and you’ll see each melody
note is treated as the 3rd of a major triad (1,3,5) with its 5th
and root below the third. Playing melody notes as 3rds of such
so-called “inverted” major triads creates a neat suspension. !Chord
33: Something less than the fullest voicing without b9 or #11. Flat
9 wouldn’t work. It’s too dark. But #11 could. Why leave it out?
Now and then a thinner texture can be relief. !Chord 34: Hasn’t a
b9 or #11 either, but with three Bb’s in melody I’d be inclined to
shift the colors under each one. I’d do that by lowering the 13th a
half step on each next note, playing what would be called +5 with
“I’ll”, then the 5th with “be”, as this finger drops in half steps.
“Inner voice movement” that’s called, often with voices moving in
half steps. Try descending the 13th. !Chord35: Presents as high a
melody locale as you’ll find. The melody is the 3rd, which I
usually double to lower the right hand, compensating for a high
melody (which also explains a high placement of Eb root). Playing 9
and b3 might be hard with smaller hands, since it’s awkward in this
setting. If you can’t handle it, play a b7th in RH instead of 9,
doubling that tone only because you can’t do better. !!
Comments/notes
9
(31) (32) (33) (34) (35)
!val- (Eb) !ley’s D
(31) Cm7 M
b7 5
b3 b7
Root b7 b3 5 b7 M(b3)
!hushed (D) and C white Bb with G
(32) Ab M 9 6
3 5
Root 5 3 6 9 M(#11)
(34) Bb7 M
13 3
b7Root b7 3 13 M(8)
!Yes (Bb) I’ll Bb be Bb !Strike root first
(35) Eb M
13 3
b7Root b7 3 13 M(3)
!here (G) !in D
!snow (F) !
(33) F7 M
13 3
b7Root b7 3 13 M(8)
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Copyright 2014 David Haynes and The Sudnow Method
Danny Boy
Chord 36-37: The first is a garden variety minor seventh chord,
with b3, 9 and 5 present. And 37 is a well formed dominant, which
gets all the coloration it can, with all three color tones present
because the melody note is the 13th. !Chord 38: Again, treat this
with multiple clusters. After my suggestion (which leaves out 7
because it’s an upcoming melody note that’s otherwise difficult to
play), pass over G, a single note, and settle into 7,9,3,M for
“...dow” (Eb).
Comments/notes
10
(36) (37) (38) (39) (40)
!sun- (F) !light Eb
(36) Bbm7 M
b3 9
5 b7
Root b7 5 9 b3 M(5)
!sha- (Bb) a- G dow Eb
(38) Ab M 6
3 5
Root 5 3 6 M(9)
!or (C) !in Eb
(37) Eb7 M
#11 3
b9 b7
Root b7 b9 3 #11 M(13)
(39) Abm7 M
b3 9
b7Root b7 9 b3 M(b5)
!Oh (D) !Strike root first
(40) Db7 M
b7 13
3 5
Root 5 3 13 b7 M(9)
!Dan- (Eb) !ny F
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Danny Boy
Copyright 2014 David Haynes and The Sudnow Method
Chords 41-44: The selfsame harmony as above, but with more
chords. And the melody is different. Still it’s by the book, each
chord voiced in accordance with the rules. Chord 41 uses #11 and
13, not b9, because of the size of the reach and the sound of a
dissonant b9 with the melody. !Chord 42: This doesn’t use a 13th
since it’s a half step beneath the melody, and that dictates the
remaining voices. !Chord 43: Clear choice. If you use the b9 (a bit
rough for some tastes), you can’t keep the #11 and 13 without using
up all five fingers, which is clearly too tough here.
Comments/notes
11
!boy (G) !oh C
(41) G7 M
13 #11
3 b7
Root b7 3 #11 13 M(8)
!boy (F) !I Eb
(43) F7 M
13 #11
3 b7
Root b7 3 #11 13 M(8)
!Dan- (Bb) !ny G !
(42) C7 M
#11 3
b9 b7
Root b7 b9 3 #11 M(b7)
(44) Bb7 M
b7
Root b7 M(9)
!love (C) !you D
(45) Eb M 6 5
3 5
Root b7 11 13 b9 M(11)
!so. (Eb) !!
(41) (42) (43) (44) (45)