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11.  Invariance  relations  and  set  symmetry.

 

When  sets  are  transposed  (Tn)  or  inverted  and  transposed  (TnI),  their  pc  content  may

Completely  change.  Transposing  set  [3,5,6,9]  up  by  5  semitones  (T5)  yields  set
[8,10,11,2].  This  new  set  shares  none  of  its  pcs  with  [3,5,6,9];;  it  is  wholly  variant  from
[3,5,6,9].  Likewise  T1I  of  [3,5,6,9]  yields  set  [4,7,8,10],  also  completely  variant  from  the
original  set.

Partly  change.  T3  of  [3,5,6,9]  yields  set  [6,8,9,0],  preserving  pcs  6  and  9.  T10I  of
[3,5,6,9]  yields  set  [1,4,5,7],  this  time  preserving  just  pc  5.  Both  of  these  new  sets  are
partly  invariant  from  the  original  set  (though  they  vary  completely  from  each  other).

Remain  completely  the  same.  Both  T0  (of  course)  and  T6  of  set  [2,3,8,9]  yield
[2,3,8,9]  again.  And  both  T5I  and  T11I  of  [2,3,8,9]  return  those  same  four  pcs.  Set
[2,3,8,9]  happens  to  remain  wholly  invariant  under  these  four  operations.

Composers  often  appear  to  make  use  of  variance  and  invariance  properties  among  sets  of
the  same  class.  For  instance,  partial  pc  invariance  among  sets  can  be  a  marker  that  certain
pcs  (the  invariant  ones)  are  being  stressed  or  made  salient  or  that  these  pcs  are  acting  as
links  among  different  sets.  Conversely,  a  composer  can  avoid  unwanted  stress  on  pcs  by
making  sure  that  pc  content  changes  among  different  sets.

(You've  long  ago  experienced  the  concrete  effects  of  controlled  pc  invariance.  Sets  of  class
7-­35  (013568T)-­-­the  diatonic  scale  class-­-­preserve  6  of  their  7  pcs  under  T5  and  T7,  that  is,
when  transposed  by  a  perfect  4th  or  perfect  5th.  That's  why  in  tonal  music  the  subdominant
and  dominant  keys  are  so  closely  related  to  the  tonic  key.)

Symmetry
Complete  invariance  among  sets  is  a  marker  of  a  set  class's  inherent  symmetry:  the  more
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aspects  of  symmetry  a  set's  intervallic  arrangement  possesses,  the  more  times  it  will  display
complete  invariance  when  transposed  or  inverted.  We  can  illustrate  this  fact  by  looking  at
some  sets  on  the  12-­pc  clockface.  In  Example  9-­1  are  displayed  (in  red)  sets  representing
classes  3-­9  (027)  and  two  tetrachords,  4-­9  (0167)  and  4-­28  (0369).

Example  9-­1.

a.  set  3-­9  [0,2,7] b.  set  4-­9  [0,1,6,7]) c.  set  4-­28  [0,3,6,9]

a.  Notice  the  interval  pattern  of  trichord  [0,2,7]  as  we  travel  fully  around  the  clockface.  If
we  begin  and  end  at  pc  7,  we  can  arrange  this  pattern  symmetrically:  5  -­  2  -­  5.  Now,
this  pattern  does  not  allow  set  [0,2,7]  to  be  transposed  (rotated  about  the  clock)  and  still
comprise  pcs  0,  2,  and  7.  So  it's  only  invariant  under  the  static  case  of  transposition  T0.
The  red  line,  however,  reveals  that  this  set  does  has  an  axis  of  inversional  symmetry;;
notice  that  the  line  splits  the  clockface  into  two  mirror  images.  The  set  can  be  inverted
("flipped")  about  this  axis  and  retain  the  same  pcs.  Sure  enough,  T2I  of  [0,2,7]  is  [0,2,7].
Since  any  set  in  class  3-­9  will  be  invariant  with  an  inverted  version  of  itself,  there  are
only  twelve,  instead  of  twenty-­four,  distinct  sets  in  this  class.

b.  Sets  of  class  4-­9  show  more  symmetry.  First  of  all,  its  repeated  interval  pattern  around
the  clockface,  1  -­  5  -­  1  -­  5,  means  that  it  can  be  transposed  invariantly.  We  can  see  that
if  set  [0,1,6,7]  is  rotated  half-­way  around  the  clockface  (that  is,  operation  T6),  it  will
remain  invariant.  Furthermore,  its  two  axes  of  inversional  symmetry  indicate  that  at  two
inverted  levels,  (T1I  and  T7I),  the  set  will  again  be  [0,1,6,7].  With  four  invariant  versions
of  this  pretty  symmetrical  set,  there  are  but  six,  rather  than  twenty-­four,  distinct  sets  in
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class  4-­9  (0167).

c.  Tetrachord  4-­28  (familiar  as  the  diminished-­seventh  chord)  is  more  symmetrical  still.  It
has  an  extremely  regular  interval  pattern  around  the  clockface:  3  -­  3  -­  3  -­  3.  Four
different  rotations  of  [0,3,6,9]-­-­T0,  T3,  T6,  and  T9-­-­will  return  the  same  pcs.  And  the  four
inversional-­axis  lines  tell  us  that  four  inverted  forms-­-­T0I,  T3I,  T6I,  and  T9I-­-­are  also
invariant.  So  we  have  eight  invariant  versions  and  only  three  distinct  sets  in  class  4-­28,
a  fact  that  you  probably  already  knew  about  the  diminished-­seventh  chord.

Remember  that  the  fourth  column  in  our  table  of  pc  set  classes  cites  information  about  the
number  of  Tn  levels  (always  at  least  T0)  and  TnI  levels  at  which  sets  in  each  class  remain
invariant.  Any  number  above  "1,  0"  in  this  column  indicates  some  degree  of  intervallic
symmetry.

It  is  clear  that,  as  they  grappled  with  composing  outside  of  the  systematic  underpinnings  of
tonality,  many  early  20th-­century  composers  gravitated  towards  symmetrical  properties  (and
not  just  in  pitch  structure)  to  give  coherence  to  their  compositions.  Hence  the  popularity  with
these  composers  of  such  highly  symmetrical  set  classes  as  the  whole-­tone  scale,  class  6-­35
(02468T),  and  the  octatonic  scale,  class  8-­28  (0134679T).

Determining  invariance
You  may  need  at  times  to  find  out  just  how  many  pcs  in  a  set  will  remain  invariant  under
different  levels  of  transposition  or  inversion.  Here  are  some  math  shortcuts  to  help  you.
These  shortcuts  are  based  on  the  intervallic  relations  within  and  among  sets.  To  save  space,
we'll  just  learn  the  shortcuts;;  later  you  can  try  figuring  out  their  rationale  (it's  a  great  cure  for
insomnia).

Invariance  under  Tn

This  one  is  simple:  just  use  a  set's  interval-­class  vector,  available  in  the  table  of  pc  set-­
classes.  The  number  of  pcs  that  will  remain  invariant  when  a  set  is  transposed  by  n
semitones  is  the  same  as  the  entry  for  n's  interval  class  in  the  vector,  except  for  ic  6,  where  it
is  double  the  entry.  For  example,  let's  try  set  [3,5,6,9]  a  set  of  class  4-­12  (0236).  The  table
tells  us  that  the  ic  vector  for  this  class  is  112101.

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Notice  that  this  set  contains  just  one  interval  of  ic  1.  If,  then,  you  transpose  [3.5.6.9]  by
either  T1  or  T11,  just  one  pc  should  remain  invariant.  Well,  T1  of  [3,5,6,9]  is  [4,6,7,10].
T11  of  [3,5,6,9]  is  [2,4,5,8].

The  ic  vector  contains  no  entries  for  ic  5.  T5  of  [3,5,6,9]  is  the  wholly  variant  [8,10,11,2].
T7  of  [3,5,6,9]  is  [10,0,1,4].

The  ic  vector  entury  again  contains  just  one  entry  for  ic  6.  T6  of  [3,5,6,9]  is  [9,11,0,3]  as
pcs  3  and  9  map  onto  each  other.

So  we  can  use  the  ic  vector  for  any  set  to  determine  how  it  will  behave  when  transposed.

Invariance  under  TnI

It's  possible  to  construct  vectors  that  can  tell  us  about  invariance  under  TnI  levels,  but  they
are  a  bother  to  use.  Much  easier  is  to  construct  an  invariance  matrix  for  the  set  you're
examining.  Below  is  such  a  matrix  for  set  [3,5,6,9].

(matrix TnI)
(matrix Tn)
  3 5 6 9
3 5 6 9
3 6 8 9 0 9 0 2 3 6
5 8 10 11 2 7 10 0 1 4
6 9 11 0 3
6 9 11 0 3
3 6 8 9 0
9 0 2 3 6

As  in  the  example,  we  construct  a  matrix  by

writing  out  the  set  along  the  top  and  along  the  left  side.
adding  all  the  pairs  of  numbers  (in  mod  12)  to  fill  in  the  matrix.

The  number  of  times  any  number  n  appears  inside  the  matrix  is  the  number  of  pcs  that
remain  invariant  under  TnI.  Moreover,  following  each  matrix  number  back  to  the  sides  tell  us

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which  numbers  map  onto  each  other  in  the  TnI  operation.

In  our  matrix,  for  example,  number  10  appears  just  once  in  the  matrix,  as  the  sum  of  5+5.
T10I  of  [3,5,6,9]  is  set  [1,4,5,7],  retaining  just  pc  5.  However,  number  11  appears  twice  in  the
matrix,  as  the  sum  of  5+6  and  of  6+5.  T11I  of  [3,5,6,9]  is  [2,5,6,8],  mapping  pcs  5  and  6  onto
each  other.

  3 5 6 9                                     3 5 6 9
3 6 8 9 0                                   3 6 8 9 0
5 8 10 11 2                                   5 8 10 11 2
6 9 11 0 3                                   6 9 11 0 3
9 0 2 3 6                                   9 0 2 3 6

Even  constructing  matrixes  is  a  bit  tedious,  of  course,  so  you  can  let  the  computer  do  it  for
you.  Jay  Tomlin's  set  calculator,  listed  on  the  Other  Sources  page  of  this  guide,  will  construct
invariance  matrixes  for  inversion  as  well  as  for  transposition.

   Exercise  11-­1.  Invariance  under  Tn

   Exercise  11-­2.  Invariance  under  TnI

   Exercise  11-­3.  Set  symmetry

Key  concepts  on  this  page:

variance  and  invariance  under  Tn  and

TnI
set  symmetry
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