Music Appreciation: RHYTHM

measure

Notation of a measure is indicated by two vertical lines on the the staff, showing the beginning and end of the measure. Another name for measures is "bars" because the vertical lines look like bars. The amount of beats you can fit in the measure is determined by the time signature - the two numbers at the beginning of the song. Let's say our measure can have three beats. Any combination of notes and rests can go in there, as long as they total three beats.

duple meter

ONE two ONE two ONE two Haydn, Symphony No. 94 in G major, second movement Try conducting it wit a conductor on youtube.

triple meter

ONE two three ONE two three ONE two three or ONE and two and three and... Brahms: A German Requiem, fourth movement.

quadruple meter/ common time

ONE two three four ONE two three four, with the three being a little stronger than two and four, ...or not. Moazart: Eine Kleine Nachtmusick, first movement

Changing meter

That's right, someone could right a song starting with two beats per measure, and in the middle, switch to three beats per measure.

downbeat

The downbeat is the first beat in a measure when it is accented (this happens most of the time in music), and is shown by the conductor doing a strong down stroke with his baton.That means, if you have a note to play on the first beat of the song, or the measure, play when his stroke hits bottom.

meter

The number of beats in the measure, the placement of accents within the measure, and the way each beat in a measure is divided into smaller parts. Example: Let's write a song with three beats per measure, and a quarter note gets one beat. Let's indicate that to the musicians by writing a 3 on top of a 4 at the beginning of the song. Let's accent the first beat of each measure, so that it sound louder than the others. Why? It's a waltz, and the dancers have to hear the accented first beat of each measure to dance well.

metrical patterns

The overall effect of the measures, one after another, creating a regular pattern of accented and non-accented notes. The conductor usually shows this by changing the direction of his baton strokes, and following a pattern . If there are four beats in each measure, you will see the conductor's strokes go down, in, out, up = 1,2,3,4. If the 1, the first beat, is supposed to be the accented beat, his stroke will be more powerful.

How would you create rhythmic excitement in music?

The use of syncopation as in jazz.

accented beat

a beat that is stronger than others. The conductor usually shows this by an exaggerated stroke of his baton.

metronome

a device used to help you feel the beat when you play, and keep your beat steady. You can set how fast or slow you want to go, by choosing how many beats per minute. (60 beats per minute is slow, 175 bpm is fast).

Additive meter

a grouping of irregular numbers of beats in a measure that add up to a larger overall metric pattern. Listen to 10 beat Indian music, grouping the 10 beats into 2 +3 +2 +3

compound meters

a meter in which each beat of the measure divides naturally into three equal parts. That is, each beat contains a triple pulse. The top number in the time signature will be 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 24, etc. Compound meters are written with a time signature that shows the number of divisions of beats in each measure as opposed to the number of beats. Compound time is associated with "lilting" and dance-like qualities. Folk dances often use compound time. Many Baroque dances are often in compound time: some gigues, the courante, and sometimes the passepied and the siciliana. ONE two three FOUR five six ONE two three FOUR... Jacquet de la Guerr: Suite No. 1, 2nd Gigue

Upbeat

an unaccented pulse preceding a downbeat. The conductor will show this by a short, quick up sweep of the baton, before the down stroke indicating the downbeat. The word "and" is spoken for the upbeats here: and 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and... Sometimes you play on the upbeat, and it is emphasized. Sometimes the conductor gives you a little upbeat stroke before the big downbeat stroke to get your attention. He's ready. Are you?

homorhythmic example

hymns

Nonmetric or Veiled Pulse

music that moves without any strong beat or sense of meter - no pattern of strong and soft beats. Early Gregorian chants seem to float without a sense of beat or meter. Veiled pulse - Debussy: Prelude to "The Afternoon of a Faun".

rhythm

organizes movement of notes in time; refers to the length, or duration of individual notes in a piece of music.

beat

the regular pulsation heardor silently sensed in most Western styles of music. The conductor usually shows this by a stroke of his baton.

Polyrhythm

the simultaneous use of two rhythmic patterns that conflict. EXAMPLE: two against three... group one: ONE two ONE two group two: ONE two three ONE two three Found in African cultures, jazz, and rock. Listen to "Ligeti: Disorder, from Etudes for Piano or Uganda drumming

tempo

the speed of the beats in music. It is indicated by Italian words, or by a number in beats per minute at the beginning of a piece of music.

simple meters

when measures are each composed of an even number of beats. (duple meter, or quadruple meter) ( the above are simple meters)

syncopation

when the emphasis is not on the beats (numbers) , but on the upbeat (and). It could be an isolated event in the music, or a pattern, or all the "and"s could be emphasized. It could also occur when the emphasis is not on the downbeat (1), but on a usually weaker beat ( the 2, or the 3, etc.) Listen to Joplin: Maple Leaf Rag.