Early Downhome Blues

About This App

This interactive tool lets you explore the pitch transition network from Jeff Todd Titon's influential book Early Downhome Blues: A Musical and Cultural Analysis (Figure 64).

The Network

Titon analyzed early blues recordings and mapped how melodies move between notes. This network captures those patterns, including:

• Quarter-tones — The "blue third" (E quarter-flat) sits between E♭ and E
• Sink note — C4 is the only resolution point with no outgoing paths
• Hub note — G4 connects to the most destinations (6 notes)

How to Use

• Click notes on the staff or in the Paths box to navigate
• Random picks a random valid next note
• Drone toggles sustained notes; check "Inflect" to bend them with the melody
• MIDI Output sends notes to external instruments (set pitch bend to ±2 semitones)

Reference

Titon, Jeff Todd. Early Downhome Blues: A Musical and Cultural Analysis. 2nd ed., University of North Carolina Press, 1994.