There’s a common saying — “it’s always darkest before the dawn”. This fitted the modes I used, and inspired my choice of title for this improvised piece of music. Selenicereus grandiflorus is a night-flowering cactus, also known as Queen of the Night, named after the Greek moon goddess Selene. Each flower only opens for a single night in a year, and only at night, and it is known for its intoxicating, sweet vanilla and orange-blossom scent. It reminds us that beauty can exist in darkness, and even fleeting joy is real. It reminds us to cherish those rare moments when everything feels right, and to wait patiently for the next ones. It also represents resilience due to its ability to survive and even blossom in harsh, bleak conditions. The cactus is often thorny and unremarkable for much of the year, before the rare, beautiful white flowers appear. It flowers and fades before the dawn, reminding us not only of the impermanence of perfection and beauty, but also the impermanence of suffering — nothing lasts forever — which aligns with the saying “it’s always darkest before the dawn” — the darkest moments will pass.
In Ancient Greek mythology, Selene is the personification of the moon and represents (among other things) light within darkness — like the moon at night. In this piece of music, I felt that there was light within darkness, as I started in A Phrygian, which is one of the darkest modes of the major scale (the Locrian mode is usually considered the darkest), creating a nocturnal feel. There were glimmers of light in the major quality supertonic chord which appeared a few times, and also in the movement to the higher register with fast broken chordal/arpeggiated textures.
Then I modulated to G Lydian, which is the brightest of the modes of the major scale, due to its sharpened 4th degree which provides further lift on top of the already bright major 3rd. The Lydian mode can be very ethereal, unsettled, and fragile — representing the fleeting nature of the beauty of the night blooming flower; as well as the almost magical appearance of the silvery moonlight.
Next I modulated back to A Phrygian, and near the end there was a sequence of very low register fast broken chords, which felt like the darkest part of the night just before dawn, which then became a hint of light in the sky as the fast broken chords moved higher again in pitch just as the music closed.
Throughout this piece of music, the texture alternated between fast broken chord patterns in both hands, and melody in the right hand with accompaniment in the left hand. The right hand melody was characterised by a frequently offbeat rhythm, which gave the effect of a heartbeat that is slightly out of sync with the world — a private, internal, nocturnal rhythm that persists even when the Common Clock of the daytime has stopped.
Modes – Notes and Parent Scales
| Modes | Notes of the Mode | Parent Scale | Mode Degree |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Phrygian | A – B♭ – C – D – E – F – G | F major | 3rd mode of major scale |
| G Lydian | G – A – B – C♯ – D – E – F♯ | D major | 4th mode of major scale |
Interval Formulas
A Phrygian
1 – ♭2 – ♭3 – 4 – 5 – ♭6 – ♭7
G Lydian
1 – 2 – 3 – ♯4 – 5 – 6 – 7
Further Reading and Listening
Complete Guide to Modes of the Major, Melodic Minor, and Harmonic Minor Scales
