In my next life, I am going to be a musician! ;)

I know OF the pentatonic scale, but don't know ABOUT it. Will wait for clues.

Cynthia

I'm in the dark on this one:(.

Annette

Ahhh, the dark is a good place to be, Annette! Here is the song I was speaking of.....

Here is a link that might be useful: Chilly Gonzales

Has to do with ninjas? (Ninja music on link, ninjas wear black and come around at night-heehee). Still lost.

Cynthia

lol.

Think about the WORD......and early(ish) American history.

Nancy.

Penta...meaning 5 notes; not making the leap to early American history

I know that this is one of rock guitar music fundamentals. Also used in teaching children music, such as Orff.

Anything to do with Salem, Massachusetts?

Cynthia

Yes, Bobbie - you amaze me!! Also in guitar and bagpipe music, oddly enough.

{{gwi:611905}}

Not as far back as Salem....

Nancy.

Are we talking pentecostal here? Probably not --- it's not spelled with an a.
TM

Not picking up on any clues. *sigh*. Will check tomorrow for the answer.

Cynthia

No, I thought this would be easy - not pentecostal, but religious, and amazing. 2 + 3 = 5 The pentatonic scale means five tones or notes. Look at the picture again.

Nancy.

I see 5 black keys.

Annette

Penta

Why do I find myself humming Amazing Grace.

Annette

Not amazing enough---no idea what the answer is. Pentagon and religion makes me think of pentagram and Wicca, not really musically relevant.

I'm not seeing the clue in the photo. Five black keys..that can't be it as the guy in the video mostly played white keys and the title was White Keys.

I am officially stumped.

My son plays guitar though these days is more into folk music. I played around with guitar for awhile.

The Orff Method of music instruction was very popular with many of my friends and a frequent topic of discussion when we gathered for our monthly bread baking group.

{{gwi:611907}}

This is me.

TM

The Slave Scale is that what you're looking for? Pieces that are played on the black keys.

Annette

OT, Nancy I'm going to try emailing you through GW, see if it gets through, and if you would try emailing me through GW. I don't think it's working :(.

Annette

Ooooops that's not going to work, you don't have one on your members page.

Ahhh Annette, at least I got one person there, yes the Slave Scale....maybe better clues next time. This is controversial, and I find it quite fascinating. A pentatonic scale is a musical scale or mode with five notes per octave in contrast to a heptatonic (seven note) scale such as the major scale and minor scale. Pentatonic scales are very common and are found all over the world. However, to listen to renowned American Winton Phipps says all Negro spirituals can be played with just 'the black notes' on the piano. That the black notes are black is not related in any way to African people!. Hmmmm....Freeborn John says, ' you don't need a piano at ALL to play a pentatonic scale. It can be played on a guitar or a flute or any number of other instruments that do not have either black or white notes.'

Not only THAT but the pentatonic scale (meaning 'five tones') can be found across Europe, Asia and Africa and is extremely common in Celtic and English folk music. It is no way exclusively Africans or unique to slaves.

In Scottish music, the pentatonic scale is very common. The Great Highland bagpipe scale is considered three interlaced pentatonic scales. This is especially true for Piobaireachd which typically uses one of the pentatonic scales out of the nine possible notes. It also features in Irish traditional music, either purely or almost so. The minor pentatonic is used in Appalachian folk music. Blackfoot music most often uses anhemitonic tetratonic or pentatonic scales.

But people believed this myth, to the point that Winton Phipps (born in the Caribbean, raised in Canada, educated in the American South) was interviewed on 60 Minutes. No whiff of question in Mr Phipps about the veracity of this story. EMI has blocked much of the YouTube content here in Canada - you may be able to get some in the US, not sure. I have included a fuzzy link below!! But many spiritual can be played on only the black notes. It is a beautiful scale. Phipps also has romanticized the story of Amazing Grace, and I found that interesting. Read the story if you have time. Words and music only came together after the death of John Newton , who wrote the lyrics.

So, it was a wobbly trail, maybe too wobbly. But myth mixes with fact every day, especially in music. For Annette:

Thanks for playing - see you all next week. Happy boating, TM - I'd love to see a pic, too.

Nancy.

Here is a link that might be useful: Winton Phipps

Actually, I didn't get the answer on my own, I asked a friend so she deserves the stars not me.

Annette

So, the black keys are the pentatonic scale? Interesting. Your link with the music played only on the white keys threw me-not that I was close anyway. I have heard that about the slave gospel music though.

Oh well. Love learning something new!

TM, congrats on the new boat. Added my good wishes at the end of the Saturday trivia, but probably too late. Here goes...wishing you calm seas and fair winds.

Cynthia

When I was a boy I used to use the black keys on our old piano to make what I thought was Chinese-sounding music. It turns out that I was on to something, as Chinese music is apparently based on a pentatonic scale. Of course, if you can play something on the black keys, you can transpose it up or down the keyboard and play the same thing on just white keys, though it will be in a different pentatonic key.

Never heard of the slave scale, though. Very interesting.

Thanks for the good wishes on my new boat. DW took a picture when we were out in it, but it doesn't show the boat at all --- just me. I wouldn't want to inflict that on anyone, so here is a shot of it on its trailer. You can see the trees are starting to look a little fall-ish up here.

{{gwi:611910}}

Oh, that will be SO much fun TM! It is a beautiful boat. I bet your wife's picture of you is wonderful, but I understand your reluctance to post it here. Next pic should be the fresh fish in the frying pan!

TM, hope you see this. Got thinking about it today:

Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams;
the islands and bays are for sportsmen.

Hope you enjoy!!

Nancy.

Nice one TM, you're going to have some great times out in it. We are expecting to see some of those fish you catch.

Annette

Nice looking boat. I can see you enjoying a summer morning on the lake fishing for walleye, perch, Northern, bass, sculpin, spotted handfish?

Especially the last two, Bobbie. :-)