A ditonic scale is a musical

scale Scale or scales may refer to: Mathematics * Scale (descriptive set theory), an object defined on a set of points * Scale (ratio), the ratio of a linear dimension of a model to the corresponding dimension of the original * Scale factor, a number ...

or mode with two notes per

octave In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...

. This is in contrast to a heptatonic (seven-note) scale such as the major scale and minor scale, or a dodecatonic (chromatic 12-note ) scale, both common in modern Western music. Ethnomusicologist Bruno Nettl noted that ditonic scales were common in many parts of the world but often limited to specific music types, such as children's songs, with the exception of some tribal societies.

Distribution

Russia

The Cheremis ( Mari people) of Russia employ ditonic scales in children's songs, generally with the two notes a minor third apart. Nettl theorised that these ditonic songs may be a remnant of a more archaic form of music.

Peru

The Shipibo people of Amazonian Peru used ditonic scales in approximately 2.5% of their music. The ditonic was found "almost exclusively in the complex ostinato songs."

Vietnam

The ''

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'' folk poetry of Vietnam is sometimes sung in ditonic scales.

North America

Several ditonic scales were noted about the

Modoc Modoc may refer to: Ethnic groups *Modoc people, a Native American/First Nations people ** Modoc language **Modoc Tribe of Oklahoma, a federally recognized tribe of Modoc *Modoc War, the last armed resistance of the Modoc people in 1873 *The "Mo ...

and

Klamath tribes The Klamath Tribes, formerly the Klamath Indian Tribe of Oregon, are a federally recognized Native American Nation consisting of three Native American tribes who traditionally inhabited Southern Oregon and Northern California in the United Sta ...

of the North American West Coast, and are also found in the

Great Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...

in the rituals of the 1800s

Ghost Dance The Ghost Dance ( Caddo: Nanissáanah, also called the Ghost Dance of 1890) was a ceremony incorporated into numerous Native American belief systems. According to the teachings of the Northern Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka (renamed Jack Wil ...

religion. The scale was also used in the music of the

Shawnee The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...

India

The ditonic scale type is recognised in Indian music, and termed the ''Dvisvara'' ("two tone"), but ditonic scales are not recognised as

raga A ''raga'' or ''raag'' (; also ''raaga'' or ''ragam''; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. The ''rāga'' is a unique and central feature of the classical Indian music tradition, and as a ...

scales.

Nigeria

The ditonic is among the scale types employed in traditional

Nigerian music The music of Nigeria includes many kinds of folk and popular music, styles of folk music are related to the multitudes of ethnic groups in the country, each with their own techniques, instruments, and songs. Little is known about the country' ...

Maori

In a study carried out in 1969,

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noted that among the Maori tribes he surveyed, ditonic scales comprised 17% of the scales used.

References

{{Scales Musical scales