A-Z of Rhythm -For Beginers

[vignesh.vijay]

"Rhythm generally means a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions."[2] This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time can apply to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or frequency of anything from microseconds to millions of years."(source :Wikipedia)

Hi guys ,

Wanted to create a thread only for Rhythm and Rhythm related questions . This thread will be for people who are beginers just like me and want to learn more about the theory behind rhythm of a track . Someone please start off by throwing light on this and detailed analysis of rhythm in a track .


Thanks

[elnn]

No problem

[jancivil]

'rhythm' is not synonymous with 'regular', 'recurring', or 'periodicity', though.

it appears to be a commonly held notion.

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/501914/rhythm

"rhythm, in music, the placement of sounds in time.
...
Attempts to define rhythm in music have produced much disagreement, partly because rhythm has often been identified with one or more of its constituent, but not wholly separate, elements, such as accent, metre, and tempo.
...
Theories requiring "periodicity" as the sine qua non of rhythm are opposed by theories that include in it even nonrecurrent configurations of movement, as in prose or plainchant."

But never mind me, I'm trying to make myself get to sleep. You're probably interested in 'beats' and completely regulated rhythm. I don't know to what extent people are going to provide you detailed track analyses but good luck.

[KBSoundSmith]

"Rhythm generally means a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions."[2] This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time can apply to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or frequency of anything from microseconds to millions of years."(source :Wikipedia)

Hi guys ,

Wanted to create a thread only for Rhythm and Rhythm related questions . This thread will be for people who are beginers just like me and want to learn more about the theory behind rhythm of a track . Someone please start off by throwing light on this and detailed analysis of rhythm in a track .


Thanks

Not to burst your bubble, but information/experience/service of the type for which you are asking, I charge (as should any trained musician with an ounce of self-respect and professional pride).

I understand Internet culture encourages "get everything for free" thinking, but if you really want to learn, you need to find a teacher and be prepared to pay them for the value they provide. You'll probably get some answers in this thread, but if you are looking for anything beyond the superficial, prepare to be disappointed.

A couple things for you and others to reflect on:

1) I spent a great deal of time and money on my musical training (as have others)--why shouldn't an upcoming student seeking my aid (or someone else's) not show the same level of commitment?

2) Money is a gatekeeper. If you really want to learn, you'll find a way to pay. If you don't, then it's questionable whether you were ever truly serious about the study of music.

3) Music instructors are not charities. They teach for a living. Be willing to show their artistry and knowledge some respect, and demonstrate it in the form of money and commitment.

Now, I'm not coming down hard on you at all, and I certainly don't mean to come across that way if I have, but I have written what I have because I think your post demonstrates a rather unconscious and pernicious type of thinking (increasingly common today) that will hinder your musical and intellectual progress, so as a teacher, I feel ethically bound to say so.

But I won't leave you empty-handed on your rhythm question. So here's a little nugget for you to reflect upon: It makes very little sense whatsoever to consider rhythm without discussing its relationship to other musical elements at a given point of musical time (ie, of what is there a rhythm, and what is its nature?).

[ghettosynth]

"Rhythm generally means a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions."[2] This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time can apply to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or frequency of anything from microseconds to millions of years."(source :Wikipedia)

Hi guys ,

Wanted to create a thread only for Rhythm and Rhythm related questions . This thread will be for people who are beginers just like me and want to learn more about the theory behind rhythm of a track . Someone please start off by throwing light on this and detailed analysis of rhythm in a track .


Thanks

Two things:

1) Stop posting in color, full stop.

2) I think that you can probably get some of the non-regular theory readers to engage you, but the regulars are right, nobody's going to do a bunch of open ended work for you. Why don't YOU start by giving the sort of analysis of a loop or two. Give something to the forum other than "I'm creating a thread for you to discuss shit that I'm interested in."

[Sendy]

Rhythm is what prevents all the notes from going off at once.

[debra1rlo]

Well, I think we can say and agree with certainty that the "bow-chikka-wow-wow" rhythm is one commonly associated with pornography and it serves to underscore the loose but existentially taut rhythm of sexual intercourse.

[Tricky-Loops]

Tip:

"Beat Construction" by Eddie Bazil, Samplecraze:

http://www.samplecraze.com/product/beatconstruction

[ghettosynth]

Well, I think we can say and agree with certainty that the "bow-chikka-wow-wow" rhythm is one commonly associated with pornography and it serves to underscore the loose but existentially taut rhythm of sexual intercourse.

+1

[Hink]

"Rhythm generally means a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions."[2] This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time can apply to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or frequency of anything from microseconds to millions of years."(source :Wikipedia)

Hi guys ,

Wanted to create a thread only for Rhythm and Rhythm related questions . This thread will be for people who are beginers just like me and want to learn more about the theory behind rhythm of a track . Someone please start off by throwing light on this and detailed analysis of rhythm in a track .


Thanks

Not to burst your bubble, but information/experience/service of the type for which you are asking, I charge (as should any trained musician with an ounce of self-respect and professional pride).

I understand Internet culture encourages "get everything for free" thinking,

okay, that's enough for me...the best teacher teaches the student to learn on their own...but someone who's in it for the money is not worth a penny....they'll just keep dangling that carrot in front of the student....sounds like sour grapes to me because the internet is hurting your business...not to burst your bubble but that is what this forum is for. Not a place to pedal your teaching skills, not a place to say "look at me I'm better and smarter than you" it's a place for people to SHARE and learn...maybe you're in the wrong place

I apologize to the OP for the amount of arrogance you need to go through for your answers, I hope you find them...

[Monib]

+1

Check this out for Rhythm Programming:
http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/feb98/a ... rythm.html
Michael Miller - The Complete Idiot's Guide to Music Composition


Some notes I've taken so far...

Rhythm is basically what controls the pace of the music, the heartbeat. But Rhythms are multidimensional... I say you experiment with the different combinations.

1st Dimension -- Placement of Notes. More notes in a phrase, versus less notes.

2nd Dimension -- Length of Notes. Shorter vs Longer notes.

3rd Dimension -- Multiple Rhythms, try same same and opposite rhythms.

I won't write further into this, but you should experiment.

[Tricky-Loops]

Tip:

"Beat Construction" by Eddie Bazil, Samplecraze:

http://www.samplecraze.com/product/beatconstruction

That's why I've recommended "Beat Construction" by Eddie Bazil instead of making fun of the OP and his - admittedly very general - topic.

In my experience a good PRACTICAL book from an experienced producer can help more than battles about the appropriate definitions of rhythm and non-rhythm...

[KBSoundSmith]

"Rhythm generally means a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions."[2] This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time can apply to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or frequency of anything from microseconds to millions of years."(source :Wikipedia)

Hi guys ,

Wanted to create a thread only for Rhythm and Rhythm related questions . This thread will be for people who are beginers just like me and want to learn more about the theory behind rhythm of a track . Someone please start off by throwing light on this and detailed analysis of rhythm in a track .


Thanks

Not to burst your bubble, but information/experience/service of the type for which you are asking, I charge (as should any trained musician with an ounce of self-respect and professional pride).

I understand Internet culture encourages "get everything for free" thinking,

okay, that's enough for me...the best teacher teaches the student to learn on their own...but someone who's in it for the money is not worth a penny....they'll just keep dangling that carrot in front of the student....sounds like sour grapes to me because the internet is hurting your business...not to burst your bubble but that is what this forum is for. Not a place to pedal your teaching skills, not a place to say "look at me I'm better and smarter than you" it's a place for people to SHARE and learn...maybe you're in the wrong place

I apologize to the OP for the amount of arrogance you need to go through for your answers, I hope you find them...

Here's a long post, necessitated by my broken bullshit meter. For those of you want to skip me dealing with Hink and are interested in only some general, but good musical advice, skip to the numbered items at the bottom.

----------------------------------

I agree with you that someone who is in it only for the money isn't worth having as a teacher. This is why there were some teachers I stopped seeing. But there others who I sought, and continue working with as a student myself, because their insight is worth the investment. Seeking the advice of people more knowledgeable and experienced is one of the most important means of improvement--they will see things about you that you don't see, or are sometimes unwilling to see, and they can help you by nudging you in subtle directions. A good teacher will speed up the learning process by understanding what makes you tick and then either feeding that, challenging it, or whatever else is needed to help you understand at a deeper level. And one lesson with a truly great musician will teach far more than a year of scouring the Internet for free "tips and tutorials" on forums and youtube.

Too many people think today that they can get on the Internet, find a youtube video, a forum post, or whatever other kind of "tutorial" posted by someone unknown and use that as a means to:
1) avoid investing in themselves, monetarily or otherwise (ie, falsely believing they can circumvent established educational means, formal or informal)
2) outsource thinking, instead hoping that someone will do the work for them--that they will magically find THE ANSWER that will save them from deep thinking.

People expect all the knowledge of the world to be handed to them on a golden platter, chewed, swallowed, digested, and defecated for them as well. Frankly, the only arrogance being displayed is by those who want something for nothing. Having someone else do an analysis for you accomplishes nothing for you; the person who did the analysis reaped the benefits.

And where in my post did I ever say, or even by the largest stretch of the imagination imply, that learning on one's own isn't valuable, or suggest that a teacher is an almighty fount of knowledge? A teacher can't do the work for the student. A teacher can't compose a student's music. A teacher can't think for the student. Only the student can do the hard work necessary for their own growth. But a teacher can help a student clarify what work they should be doing and give suggestions about how one might try to do it, and this changes from student to student based upon their individual aptitudes.

As for "pedaling my teaching skills", "sour grapes about the internet hurting your business" and other such bullshit that you puked out into the ether, you don't a know a damned thing about the nature of my work, whether I'm self-employed, work for a music store, public or private school, K-12 or university, online or in a brick-and-mortar location--frankly, it seems to me that the only one to whom "sour grapes" likely applies is you, since you seem to so vehemently rail against someone espousing some level of belief in a formal education.

And there would be little point in "pedaling my teaching skills" to an internet forum. Even if my teaching is or should become the greatest in the world, and if every word I uttered or wrote were to be as valuable as gold, it would all be wasted on internet forums. People at forums have a tendency to work against their own interests, ironically enough (countermanding your charge against me, that I don't understand this place is about "sharing)--they pat each other on the back, encouraging each others' mediocrity, laziness, "expression," or other such vacuous bullshit, and when someone comes along and actually gives them good advice, they ignore it, criticize it, rail against it, take offense to it, etc. It's bewildering, and only frustrates those who have something to offer.

So to the OP or anyone who may be serious about trying to really understand musical ideas,I offer several suggestions to you:

1.) buy a book on music theory, and some books on rhythm, both theoretical and practical. If you want some reading suggestions, PM me. I guarantee you, searching for information by starting a forum topic is a waste of your time, and you will learn more, learn faster, and feel more fulfillment in what you learn if you don't beat around the bush and instead engage yourself with really solid material rather than the spotty, piece-meal non-sense you'll usually receive in a place like this. Upfront, buying the books will be more expensive than browsing online, but you will save significant amounts of time (likely years)by heeding my suggestion.

2.) Work through those books, and do so slowly. For each concept you come across, write a short section of music to ensure that the concept is being assimilated into your set of skills, rather than merely being "knowledge". The only real knowledge you will have is what you can apply--reading does not make you good at writing.

3.) When you learn a new concept and have tried writing with it, then listen to a lot of music, try to identify those concepts, see how they are used similarly/differently from what you attempted. Listen to multiple genres of music, classical, jazz, hip-hop, electronic, etc, because you'll have something to learn from each, and they will all use those concepts in different ways/at different levels of complexity.

4.) Go back to the concepts you have already learned; ie, after step 3, go back to step 2, rinse and repeat. Learning music is an iterative process.

5.) Learn to play an instrument, or at the very least, find some manner of physically manifesting the music--physically internalizing musical concepts is of the utmost importance, whether or not you ever plan on publicly performing.

6.) Find a teacher who you trust and can develop/have a rapport with. The benefits will be manifold.

7.) Establish a circle of people who you trust (and who ideally are better than you) to give you honest criticism. If what you wrote sucks, they should tell you that. But also make sure that they are friendly and supportive--you don't need to receive negative criticism; criticism properly understood should be about exposing your weaknesses and giving advice to help you address and overcome them.

8.) Write every day. It's better to spend five minutes writing a short melodic fragment or rhythmic motif than to spend any amount of time searching online for information at a forum. You WILL learn more, and the results will be a product of your own struggles and deepening critical thought.

9.) Write every day (no, the repetition wasn't an error). Choose a concept to emphasize, reflect on it, and write. Limit the number of concepts you work on at a time--it is better to spend a week on one concept rather than tackle three, four, ten, etc concepts in an hour. Be patient--musical understanding can't be rushed.

10.) Ignore Hink--I'm not saying that to spite him (her?) either. To your benefit, I called out bullshit, whether or not he/she can recognize it.

11.) Last, and Most Important: enjoy yourself. If you aren't trying to be a professional, that's fine--do what is fun. Depending upon how quickly/how in depth you want to learn, you can follow my advice to varying degrees of intensity. You don't have to have a Doctoral level of understanding to enjoy music--but the more you understand, the more you will enjoy.

[debra1rlo]

5.) Learn to play an instrument,

excellent advice

or at the very least, find some manner of physically manifesting the music

and you threw a bone to all the drummers, nice touch

[manducator]

If you are interested in electronic music, this is a great read or drum programming:

http://www.amazon.com/Composition-Compu ... 811&sr=1-2