diminished scale / tension and release

In comparing the relative stability of the diminished color to either of the major or minor colors, they could perhaps be said to be artistic opposites? Opposites are said to "attract", do these colors seek each other? Let’s explore a bit and find out. Thinking "diminished tension" to "tonic stability", let's create tension with the diminished group of pitches and resolve to the major tonality. Example 1.

Can you feel and hear the tension which resolves near bar 3? Yes, cool. No, please try again. Better? Perhaps try again. So, do the "opposites" attract? The diminished color is eventually a very distinct and potentially powerful tension creating color. The major color is generally stable, providing a respite from musical tension. Here is the same idea as example 1 above now resolving to a dominant chord in a bluesy environment. Example 2.

Pretty smooth resolution eh? Of all of the colors created by our equal tempered system, the diminished sound and color could perhaps provide the strongest sense of artistic tension and tonal instability. The diminished color is unstable, has no real sense of tonic center and can quickly change not only the tonal center or key of the music, but it's tonality i.e., major / minor, as well. This next ideas runs the same C diminished idea into G major and G minor. Example 3.

Where does all the tension created by the diminished sound come from? Well, mainly from the quality of it's intervals. The unique minor third construction of the diminished color, when broken down to create the diminished scale, as done above, creates a series of tritone intervals. Here is a chart extracting the tension creating tritone intervals from the C diminished scale. Example 4.

C scale diminished pitches	C D Eb F Gb Ab A B C
pairing tritone intervals	C to Gb D to Ab Eb to A F to B

These multiple tritones if you will, are part of the basis of the diminished color and the essential tension-creating component. Let's look at the tritones created within the above grouping of pitches and hear the pitches. Coolness emerges in that the interval of a tritone splits the octave perfectly in half, thus the two pitches of the tritone interval are said to perfectly invert. Example 4a.

tritone pairings from within the diminished color

C to Gb

D to Ab

Eb to A

F to B

Holy tritones! Four possible tritone combinations in one scale! Wow, no wonder it’s so tense! As mentioned earlier, the diminished sound just might be the ultimate "passing" chord of all time, and with 4 pairs of tritones, it's no wonder eh? So, how potentially important is this diminished color to the creative artist? 

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