Rhythm
Sun, 23 Jun 2024 06:49:46 GMT — Properties
Properties
| Key | Value |
|---|---|
| Identifier | rhythm |
| Name | Rhythm |
| Type | Topic |
| Creation timestamp | Sun, 23 Jun 2024 06:49:46 GMT |
| Modification timestamp | Wed, 03 Jul 2024 06:46:16 GMT |
- Tempo: Refers to the speed at which a piece of music is played.
- Beats per Minute (BPM): A specific numerical measurement of tempo, indicating how many beats occur in one minute
- Bar (also known as a "measure"): A segment of time defined by a given number of beats, each of which is represented by a particular note value
- Down-beat vs. normal beat, e.g., with 4 beats, the first beat is the down-beat of the bar and the remaining 3 beats are just normal beats
- Time signature specifies how many beats are in each measure (or bar) and what note value constitutes one beat
- For example, in a 4/4 time signature:
- A whole note equals 4 beats (fills the entire bar)
- A half note equals 2 beats (two half notes fill the bar)
- A quarter note equals 1 beat (four quarter notes fill the bar)
- For example, in a 4/4 time signature:
- Phrases are made up of "measures" (typically 4 to 8)
Instruments (Drums)
- Kick: Also called a bass drum, an acoustic kick is struck by a pedal with a beater attached, and is played by the drummer's foot. Electronic versions of this sound are sometimes made to sustain much longer than the relatively short sound produced by a physical drum.
- Clap: This is the sound of one or more people clapping their hands. Today, electronic, stylized versions of this sound (like the one used here) are much more common than actual recordings of handclaps.
- Snare: A snare drum is struck with a drum stick, and produces a short, bright sound. A set of wires (called snares) is stretched across a drum head at the bottom of the drum. The vibration of the bottom drum head against the snares produces the drum's characteristic "cracking" tone.
- Closed Hat and Open Hat: These are two different sounds created by an instrument called the hihat. Hihats are a pair of small cymbals mounted on a stand. The top cymbal is attached to a rod that is raised and lowered with a foot pedal. Hihats are "closed" when the drummer's foot is down, which presses the cymbals together. They are "open" when the drummer's foot is raised and the cymbals are not touching.
Notes
Sun, 23 Jun 2024 07:13:49 GMT
Practice
Put on a song, count along with it, and pick an element whose rhythm you want to decipher, like a line of the melody or a bar of the drum beat. Notate that part's rhythm within the 16th note count: 1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a (rhythm syllables). Note that the part may be longer than one bar, or that the song may have more or fewer than four beats to a bar.
Sun, 23 Jun 2024 07:14:14 GMT
Example beat grid
Beat grid (H = Hat, S = Snare, K = Kick):
| 1 | e | + | a | 2 | e | + | a | 3 | e | + | a | 4 | e | + | a | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| S | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| K | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Sat, 29 Jun 2024 04:42:19 GMT
Calculate the number of measures (bars)
You can calculate the number of measures (bars) per minute as follows:
- Determine the number of beats per measure: In a 4/4 time signature, there are 4 beats per measure.
- Calculate the number of measures per minute: If there are 60 beats in a minute and each measure has 4 beats, you divide the total beats per minute by the beats per measure: number of measures per minute = 60 beats per minute / 4 beats per measure = 15 measures per minute
So, at 60 BPM with a 4/4 time signature, there would be 15 measures (bars) in one minute.