alocispepraluger102 Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/music_box/2013/07/the_most_beautiful_melody_in_the_world_is_it_gershwin_brahms_the_beatles.html " For now, I want to offer a small tour of some of the most beautiful and enduring melodies I happen to know, and talk about what makes them that way. Will we thereby find the eternal secret of great melody? Well, no. But it's one of those questions that can get you somewhere if you don't take it too seriously." for me----the opening of blue danube is way up there, with love walked in, and it never entered my mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Dolan Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 Blue Train Time Out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Head Man Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 My Foolish Heart Like Someone in Love Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillF Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 I've listened to so much jazz that I think in terms of beautiful changes, rather than melodies, so I'm nominating "Cherokee", "All the Things You Are" and "Body and Soul". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big gord Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 the most beautiful melody I ever heardgreensleevesdon't cry for me argentina,i also like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffcrom Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 People in Sorrow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 A favorite for sentimental pull and melodic arc/climax points, although "most beautiful" what does that mean i dont know what that means and oh yeah, this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfkdV6ZaEuM but there are so many anythat is beauty. "most beautiful" really i don't know about that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted O'Reilly Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 ......and it never entered my mind. Agreed. Bill Evans' Peace Piece rates highly, too... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 Are we talking "melodies" as "songs", or melodies as melodies that may or may not be conducive to "singing" (which is often what is meant by "melody", something "lyrical, something that can or would or maybe even should be sung). The original article seemed to lean towards the former, but some of the most beautiful melodies I've heard have come out of drummers, hand of kit and/or both. Another reason why "most beautiful" not sure what that really means. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Lark Ascending Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 (edited) I've listened to so much jazz that I think in terms of beautiful changes, rather than melodies, so I'm nominating "Cherokee", "All the Things You Are" and "Body and Soul".Even outside jazz I suspect a lot of what we think of as great melodies have their impact because of the harmonies. I've been a sucker for a good or unexpected chord change since I first started listening consciously to music (and probably before then). Example - at the end of the 1st movement of Vaughan Williams 6th Symphony this glowing, soaring melody appears that turns you to mush. Yet it's been thrown around the orchestra for the whole of the movement without anything like that effect - it's the way it's harmonised at the end that sees it suddenly emerge as a gorgeous melody. Edited July 31, 2013 by A Lark Ascending Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hardbopjazz Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 For me, Ellington's, In a Sentimental Mood should be included. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Magnificent Goldberg Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 Nice idea for a thread. I was playing 'La vie en rose' a few days ago and thought that this was one of the best I've heard. I'm a sucker for descending melody lines. But also 'Lamine Gueye' a song by Orchestre Baobab praising a prominent socialist politician. And also 'Nanfule' a traditional Mandinke song. There's a magical version by Maa Hawa Kouyate & Soundioulou Cissokho on vol 2 of 'Le couple royal de la musique traditionnelle' - I forget what label it's on but it doesn't matter; you can't get it. You might find a pirate K7 in West Africa somewhere - which is what I've got MG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Dolan Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 For me, Ellington's, In a Sentimental Mood should be included. I opened this thread with the sole intention of posting that. Good call. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillF Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 I've listened to so much jazz that I think in terms of beautiful changes, rather than melodies, so I'm nominating "Cherokee", "All the Things You Are" and "Body and Soul". Even outside jazz I suspect a lot of what we think of as great melodies have their impact because of the harmonies. I've been a sucker for a good or unexpected chord change since I first started listening consciously to music (and probably before then). Example - at the end of the 1st movement of Vaughan Williams 6th Symphony this glowing, soaring melody appears that turns you to mush. Yet it's been thrown around the orchestra for the whole of the movement without anything like that effect - it's the way it's harmonised at the end that sees it suddenly emerge as a gorgeous melody. I use the word "changes" in the jazz sense to mean chord sequence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul secor Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 For me a lot depends on who's singing or playing the song. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Reynolds Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 something Bev just listened to - if the world was a better place, the *famous* melodic line that is the centerpiece of Barry Guy's "Harmos" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim R Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 Articles like this generally lose me at some point. In this case, it was when he/she brought up "I Am The Walrus". But this sort of question can be futile even for each individual that's pondering it, assuming they're seriously interested in music. So, it not only comes down to personal preferences, but what happens to be deemed worthy of mentioning at any given point in time in one's life. At least for me. I'm a melody guy, and always have been. At any rate, just some favorites that come to mind at the moment: Ceora Autumn Nocturne While We're Young Detour Ahead Double Rainbow (Chovendo Na Roseira) A Time For Love The Shadow Of Your Smile Some Time Ago How Deep Is The Ocean The Dolphin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Dolan Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 It's funny. While I wouldn't consider I Am The Walrus a beautiful melody, I can dig the lurching, grinding factor involved. It's like sonic waves on the beach that just keep digging away in a rather sinister fashion. See: Born On a Bayou. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertoart Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 This is a quite beautiful McCartney melody. Yearning. Melancholy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LcSIS_h1gE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TedR Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 I always loved "Autumn in New York" whether played or sung. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alocispepraluger102 Posted July 31, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 ......and it never entered my mind. Agreed. Bill Evans' Peace Piece rates highly, too... how could i forget peace piece???? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alocispepraluger102 Posted July 31, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 I always loved "Autumn in New York" whether played or sung. check out the gorgeous a capella version by the singers unlimited. you can find it on spotify, among other places. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colinmce Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 "Day Dream" - Hodges "Angels" - Ayler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertoart Posted July 31, 2013 Report Share Posted July 31, 2013 Quiet Dawn - Archie Shepp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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