Topic: The Tristan Chord Variations by Drvg Cvltvre

hey guys. been working on a new project the last couple of months. I dont know if any of you know anything about the famous Tristan Chord?

The Tristan chord is a chord made up of the notes F, B, D♯ and G♯. More generally, it can be any chord that consists of these same intervals: augmented fourth, augmented sixth, and augmented ninth above a root. It is so named as it is heard in the opening phrase of Richard Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde as part of the leitmotif relating to Tristan. What distinguishes the chord is its unusual relationship to the implied key of its surroundings. At the time Tristan und Isolde was first heard (1865), the chord was considered innovative, disorienting, and daring. Musicians of the twentieth century often identify the chord as a starting point for the modernist disintegration of tonality.

My personal journey with this combination of notes started of age 11, watching tv in my pajamas, waiting for a movie to begin on German television and catching a glimpse of a live version of the opera 'Tristan und Isolde', the chord sounded a bit like metal. as in metal bands. at the time I was listening to stuff like Venom and Voivod and the dark tone of the chord totally stuck with me. It took me another couple of years to find out what opera it was and another couple to actually play the chord myself on the guitar.

Since Lars von Trier dropped his slomo masterpiece Melancholia, which uses the same soundclip of the Tristan Chord many many times, I kind of got into it again, now also reading all the theory involved. I decided to do a small project around the chord. Trying to come up with 8 different tracks that use the chord and try to resolve it's content in a different way. The Tristan chord is eerie sounding, hence making it perfect for my Drvg Cvltvre stuff as well. Almost all the tracks are rhythmic, but two of them dont have any beats. I tried to make them all have a beat, but that just didnt work when I was microeditting the chord on 'Variation VII' for instance. I hope you enjoy this. It'll be on a CD soon.

check it out here:

http://soundcloud.com/drvgcvltvre/sets/ … iations-1/

Re: The Tristan Chord Variations by Drvg Cvltvre

vincentkoreman wrote:

that just didnt work when I was microeditting the chord on 'Variation VII' for instance

I can imagine  lol

some interesting stuff there.

Re: The Tristan Chord Variations by Drvg Cvltvre

you rock vince, love it

Vlam Aan

Re: The Tristan Chord Variations by Drvg Cvltvre

Yeah, very good! Beautiful work.
This chord sounds monstrous. Very metal indeed  smile
The Variation II is great! Congrats on your music, man. I really dig it.