Steeplechase

In what is now an Olympic track event, the first steeplechases were horse races that consisted of participants racing from one steeple to the next. Church steeples were used as guides due to their high visibility. Inevitably, many obstacles were encountered along the way. Steeplechase is an up-tempo, energetic piece that pays tribute to these wild races.

 Steeplechase features a melody based upon the mixolydian mode—essentially a major scale with a lowered seventh degree. Coincidentally, Charlie Parker’s bebop tune of the same name begins with a riff that also features the lowered seventh scale degree!