Modes and scales of Henan folk songs

It is very important to study the folk music of a region or a nation and know the application of modes and scales in its music in detail, because modes and scales are very important factors to supplement the musical characteristics of a nation or a region. According to the collected data of Henan folk songs, the five modes of public, upper, cross, right and Yu are all used in folk songs. The two modes of "Zheng and Gong" are the most. It can be said that Zheng and Gong Wei are the main features of Henan folk songs. Others, such as Shang mode and Jiao mode, are relatively few, and are only used in a few folk songs in some counties of Xinyang area. Feather mode is also rare in folk songs in plain areas. Mainly used in mountain folk songs, but also used in Henan folk songs, but the number is small.

The scales used in Henan folk songs are very rich. A large number of folk songs use pentatonic scale, and there are also six modal scales with "4" (or #4) or "le" (that is, 1 2 3 4 (or #4)56 or 123567) and seven modal scales with "4 and 7" all appear. However, the two tones of "4" and "7" in Henan seven-syllable scale are not very stable, and often wander between "4" and "#4" and "7" and "b7", that is, between the phonemes of ↑4 and ↓7. The seven-tone scales of "↑4" and "↓7" in Henan folk songs enrich and highlight the style and characteristics of Central Plains folk songs.