But the real view is that the colors reflect not only the individual instrument’s range but also the intensity of the instrument’s sound as it’s played up the overtone series. The simplistic view is that the chart follows the keys of the piano scale wise. Eight colors are used with the lowest pitches colored Purple and the highest, White. The bottom A is 1, and the highest C is 88. The chart is organized by the 88 keys of the piano with each key numbered. In his own words, the Spectratone System of Orchestration is, “a colorgraphic exposition of tone-color combinations and balance as practiced in modern orchestration.” And the companion booklet, which is only a series of 8.5 x 11 sheets folded sideways and held together with two staples, he called The Spectratone System of Orchestration.ĭon’t be put off by the quaint name, because what Arthur created, which has daily practical use for both live and electronic scoring, and mixing, is nothing less than the Rosetta Stone of orchestration. He called his colorized chart, the Spectratone Chart. He titled the booklet/chart combination with a pseudo-scientific name that while sounding right for 1943, today sounds more like something you’d use to pick the right paint color for your home at Lowes. And it’s that combination that merits our attention. He taught at the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music which later became Cal Arts.īut Arthur also created a booklet and a colorized chart. He also helped create ASMAC.Īrthur was also an educator and wrote numerous books, including, for 1926, the definitive guide to dance band arranging called Arranging For the Modern Dance Orchestra. Throughout his career, he was music director at several studios and in 1947 organized the Santa Monica Civic Symphony which he conducted. In 1929, he became head of the music department at MGM. He was nominated four times for an Oscar. Arthur Lange was a songwriter, composer, orchestrator and conductor who came out of Tin Pan Alley.
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February 2023
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