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This is the story of the ship, The Pythagoras, which uses the power of perfectly tuned fifths to hop from dimension to dimension. Alas, it can never return to its home key due to the Pythagorean Comma. (The octaves will forever be out of tune due to the Captain's insistence on these Absolutely Perfect Fifths.)

Mary Crowell wrote her first draft of this song in 2007 and revised it several times--most notably in 2017 and 2020. At present it is not on any albums, and there are no immediate plans to do a studio recording of the song.

Mary recorded video clips on her iPhone and then edited them using Final Cut Pro. The piano (an Essex) was recorded with a small marimba microphone, cord draped across a boom stand, and Mary recorded her vocals on a Shure Beta 58A and edited her sound in Logic Pro X before syncing them up with the video.

Mary is deeply grateful to her patrons on Patreon, and this music video and others like it are made possible by their generosity.

lyrics

Ship of Songs
Copyright 2007, 2017, 2020 by Mary Crowell

Gm Bb Dm
Tear tracks of light mark the passing of stars
Gm Am D7
Traveled by this ship of song,
Gm C Gm
Echoing notes hummed by Venus and Mars.
Gm D7 Gm
Melody moves us along.

Gm Bb Dm
Braving the way as we fly toward the sun
Gm A D7
Pythagoras—the ship— it draws near,
Gm C Gm
Dancing to counterpoint two against one
Gm D7 Gm
Played by the heavenly spheres.

Chorus:
C Gm
“Pythagoras will you come back round at last?”
C Gm D
I ask the Starlight in my room streaking past.
Eb7 Gm
“We won’t change our tuning,” the captain has said
Gm F Gm
So, we will all spiral round fifths ‘til we’re dead.

Gm Bb Dm
Time we have captured in rests on the score,
Gm F D7
Space in our vibrating strings.
Gm C Gm
There is no engine, no folding, no door.
Gm D7 Gm
Perfection has powered the thing.


Bridge:
Bb Gm
We move among modes—each tonality kissed
Bb Gm
And moored as a node—no relatives missed
D7 Gm
We asked for our octaves. The captain chose fifths.
D7 Gm
The Comma of legend is sadly no myth.
C Eb [pause]
The Pythagoras cannot come home.

Gm Bb Dm
Watch the conductor, yes, follow their cues.
Gm A D7
Play it just like we rehearsed,
Gm C Gm
Music our method and Kepler our muse,
Gm D7 Gm
Sounding a new universe.


Chorus

Gm Bb Dm
Temperament Tuning will never be scored.
Gm A D
Sing now in harmonies tight,
Gm C Gm
Summing the cosmos with one power chord
Gm D7 Gm
Or ratios will rend us this night!


Gm Bb Dm
Adjust all the frequencies carefully now;
Gm A D7
The many should sound as the one –
Gm C Gm
A cadence authentic, perfection, a bow.
Gm D7 Gm
But the journey will never be done.

Chorus [X2]

credits

from Mary Crowell's Patreon: Year Six, released June 10, 2023
Vocals, Piano, and Mixing/Recording by Mary Crowell

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Mary Crowell Athens, Alabama

Mary Crowell is a singer/songwriter and piano teacher who loves mythology and playing Dungeons & Dragons.
Her Patreon is here: www.patreon.com/DrMaryCCrowell
She may be seen at science fiction and filk conventions performing and accompanying concerts on piano and occasionally clarinet.
Scattering Seeds on the Pomegranate Tour is her third solo album and is a mythic musical journey! ... more

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