Physics-first music theory

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Notation Layer

PhizMusic uses an existing notation family: the chromatic grid used by Dodeka and DAW piano roll editors. The vertical axis is pitch (12 equal rows per octave), the horizontal axis is time. This representation is isomorphic: the same interval always has the same visual distance, and transposition is a geometric shift instead of a spelling problem.

🎯 Simple version: Instead of the confusing 5-line staff with sharps and flats, we use a grid: 12 rows (one per note), time going left to right. Like a piano keyboard unrolled. Any pattern looks the same no matter where you start.

Core Representation: Chromatic Grid

The notation layer has two axes:

For one octave, the rows are:

Step Syllable Row meaning
0 Do Base row of cycle
1 Ka +1 step
2 Re +2 steps
3 Xo +3 steps
4 Mi +4 steps
5 Fa +5 steps
6 Hu +6 steps
7 So +7 steps
8 Bi +8 steps
9 La +9 steps
10 Ve +10 steps
11 Si +11 steps

Octave index gives absolute position (for example, Do4, Ka4, … Si4, then Do5).

Why This Is Better for Pattern Reasoning

Traditional 5-line staff notation is tied to a 7-letter spelling system (A-B-C-D-E-F-G) with accidentals and enharmonic aliases. The chromatic grid removes that indirection.

Key consequences:

  1. Transposition is translation: add a constant step to every note, and the shape stays identical.
  2. Intervals are visual invariants: the 7-step-interval always looks like 7 rows, everywhere.
  3. Rhythm is explicit geometry: duration is literal horizontal length.
  4. No enharmonic ambiguity: each step has one canonical identity.

This directly matches PhizMusic arithmetic from naming-system.md, intervals.md, and scales.md.

Dodeka and Piano Roll: Two Faces of the Same Geometry

Dodeka

Dodeka (Jacques-Daniel Rochat) is a chromatic notation system that assigns one unique syllable to each chromatic step and uses a compact 4-line staff layout with alternating note positions. It keeps interval geometry consistent while staying readable for score-like notation.

PhizMusic uses Dodeka’s naming and chromatic-equality philosophy, with explicit attribution to the original system: https://dodekamusic.com/.

Piano Roll

Piano roll notation originates from mechanical player-piano media and became the dominant representation in modern DAWs. It has three formal properties that align with PhizMusic:

Because of these properties, piano roll is the de facto analysis and production view in electronic music, film scoring workflows, and MIDI editing.

Continuous Log-Frequency Overlay

The chromatic grid is the discrete base layer. For tuning systems that are not locked to 12-TET (just intonation, microtonal inflection, blue-note bends), PhizMusic adds a conceptual overlay:

This preserves two goals at once:

  1. Discrete compositional structure (step-combos, scales, progressions)
  2. Continuous intonation detail (real performance frequencies)

In equation form:

pitch position = discrete_step + cent_offset/100

where cent_offset can be positive or negative relative to the 12-TET row.

Psychoacoustics Connection

Human pitch perception is approximately logarithmic: equal ratios feel like equal steps. A chromatic grid with equal vertical spacing per step better matches this perceptual structure than diatonic staff spacing, where visual distances depend on notation spelling conventions.

So the notation layer is not just simpler; it is also closer to how the auditory system organizes pitch categories.

Notation Toggle

Translation Table

PhizMusic Western Other Systems
Chromatic grid notation Piano roll (closest equivalent) Dodeka chromatic staff
Step row Semitone row MIDI note lane
Shape-preserving transposition Transpose up/down by interval Pattern shift in sequencer
Continuous log-frequency overlay Microtonal pitch bend layer Cents deviation display

Connections