Fairy Tale

Musical

Example

Fairy Tale Secret

Score

Fairy Tale Music/

Score

Creating the Mood

Fairy tale music needs to be light, magical and almost mysterious. With just the right combination of instruments, melody and harmony, we can evoke fairy tale-like imagery. For this musical creation, simplicity is the key.

When we think of fairy tales, we think of stories meant for children. No instrument expresses childlike wonder better than the celesta. Its magical tinkling sound can make people of all ages feel like children. Listen to the celesta play this simple four bar part:

Melody and Harmony

While the celesta's light bell sound is quite magical, melody and harmony have a lot to do with creating our fairy tale sound. Let's listen again to just the first two bars:

A quick analysis of these bars reveals that we are spelling out a c minor chord, then most of a D Major chord, then most of a Db Major chord, and then most of a c minor chord:

This four chord progression helps to evoke a mysterious mood.