The Fragrant Tress

The Fragrant Tress is a form of music used during marches and military engagements originally devised by the goblin Smunstu Seducewallows. The form guides musicians during improvised performances. The music is played on a olsmu, one to six zare and a usku. The musical voices bring melody, counterpoint and rhythm. The entire performance should feel mournful and is moderately paced. The melody has phrases of varied length, while the counterpoint has short phrases throughout the form. Chords, seldom-used, are sparse -- intervals and single pitches are favored. It is performed without preference for a scale and in the kabu rhythm.

• The olsmu always provides the rhythm and is to fade into silence.
• Each zare always does the main melody and is to be in whispered undertones.
• The usku always does the counterpoint melody and is to be very loud.
• The Fragrant Tress has the following structure: a verse and a chorus all repeated one times.
• In the verse, the usku ranges from the raucous low register to the shrill middle register.
• In the chorus, the usku covers its entire range from the raucous low register to the strident high register.
• The kabu rhythm is made from two patterns: the zak (considered the primary) and the ustrok. The patterns are to be played over the same period of time, concluding together regardless of beat number.
• The zak rhythm is a single line with thirty-one beats divided into three bars in a 8-12-11 pattern. The beat is stressed as follows:
• | x ! - x'- - - x | X x - - x - - x x x x x | - - x`- - - x - - - - |
• where ! marks the primary accent, X marks an accented beat, ` marks a beat as early, ' marks a beat as late, x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.
• The ustrok rhythm is a single line with twenty-three beats divided into two bars in a 11-12 pattern. The beat is stressed as follows:
• | x - x - x - X x'- - - | x - x x - x ! x - x x x |
• where ! marks the primary accent, X marks an accented beat, ' marks a beat as late, x is a beat, - is silent and | indicates a bar.

Events

• In late summer of 171, The Fragrant Tress was created by the goblin Smunstu Seducewallows in Lushflags