The Sweet Satin

The Sweet Satin is a form of music used during marches and military engagements originating in The Lilac of Praise. The form guides musicians during improvised performances. A singer recites The Festive Lens while the music is played on three imama and a enotho. The musical voices bring melody and counterpoint. The entire performance should be made expressively. The melody has short phrases, while the counterpoint has mid-length phrases throughout the form. Never more than an interval sounds at once. Throughout, when possible, performers are to glide from note to note and play arpeggios.

• The singer always does the main melody and plays staccato.
• Each imama always does the counterpoint melody.
• The enotho always does the counterpoint melody.
• The Sweet Satin has a well-defined multi-passage structure: a lengthy introduction, a passage and an additional lengthy passage and a coda.
• The introduction is very slow, and it is to be in whispered undertones. The singer's voice covers its entire range, each of the imama covers its entire range from the rippling low register to the muddy high register and the enotho stays in the slicing low register. The passage is performed using the aratha scale and in the oma rhythm. The passage should be performed using rapid runs.
• The first simple passage gradually slows as it comes to an end, and it is to be in whispered undertones. The singer's voice covers its entire range, each of the imama stays in the rippling low register and the enotho covers its entire range from the slicing low register to the buzzy high register. The passage is performed using the lari scale and in free rhythm. The passage should be performed using mordents and rapid runs.
• The second simple passage is fast, and it is to be very soft. The singer's voice ranges from the low register to the middle register, each of the imama ranges from the strident middle register to the muddy high register and the enotho covers its entire range from the slicing low register to the buzzy high register. The passage is performed using the yaniye scale and in the efeye rhythm.
• The coda is extremely fast, and it is to be in whispered undertones. The singer's voice stays in the middle register, each of the imama ranges from the rippling low register to the strident middle register and the enotho stays in the slicing low register. The passage is performed using the atho scale and in the lebeyu rhythm.
• Scales are constructed from twelve notes spaced evenly throughout the octave. The tonic note is a fixed tone passed from teacher to student. After a scale is constructed, the root note of chords are named. The names are imeri (spoken im) and thuna (thu).
• The aratha hexatonic scale is thought of as joined chords spanning a perfect fifth and a perfect fourth. These chords are named aro and fela.
• The aro tetrachord is the 1st, the 2nd, the 3rd and the 8th degrees of the semitone octave scale.
• The fela tetrachord is the 8th, the 9th, the 12th and the 13th (completing the octave) degrees of the semitone octave scale.
• The lari heptatonic scale is thought of as joined chords spanning a perfect fifth and a perfect fourth. These chords are named thili and fela.
• The thili pentachord is the 1st, the 3rd, the 4th, the 6th and the 8th degrees of the semitone octave scale.
• The yaniye scale is thought of as joined chords spanning a perfect fifth and a perfect fourth. These chords are named ifife and fena.
• The ifife trichord is the 1st, the 3rd and the 8th degrees of the semitone octave scale.
• The fena trichord is the 8th, the 9th and the 13th (completing the octave) degrees of the semitone octave scale.
• The atho hexatonic scale is thought of as joined chords spanning a perfect fifth and a perfect fourth. These chords are named thili and aweme.
• The aweme trichord is the 8th, the 10th and the 13th (completing the octave) degrees of the semitone octave scale.
• The rhythm system is fundamentally polymetric. There are always multiple rhythm lines, and the beats are always played together, even if one rhythm line completes (and then repeats) before the other is finished. The rhythm lines are thought of as one, without a primary-subordinate relationship, though individual lines can be named.
• The oma rhythm is a single line with two beats. The beat is stressed as follows:
• | x - |
• where x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.
• The efeye rhythm is made from two patterns: the mathuva (considered the primary) and the mamo. As stated above, they are to be played in polymeter.
• The mathuva rhythm is a single line with four beats divided into two bars in a 2-2 pattern. The beats are named bulifo (spoken bu) and ada (ad). The beat is stressed as follows:
• | - x | x - |
• where x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.
• The mamo rhythm is a single line with two beats. The beat is stressed as follows:
• | - x |
• where x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.
• The lebeyu rhythm is made from two patterns: the arazi and the mathuva. As stated above, they are to be played in polymeter.
• The arazi rhythm is a single line with sixteen beats divided into two bars in a 8-8 pattern. The beats are named fidale (spoken fi), tarathe (ta), cuthefi (cu), cede (ce), otoga (ot), dinade (di), ele (el) and timafi (ti). The beat is stressed as follows:
• | x X x x x - - x | - - - - - x - - |
• where X marks an accented beat, x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.

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