Rhythm and Meter

Rhythm

Introduction

  • Has to do with organization of sound and time

Pulse and Tempo

  • Pulse/ beat: Regular pulsation or beating of music

  • Tempo: Speed at which the beat moves

    • Largo: Very Slow (40-60BPM)

    • Adagio: Slow (60-76BPM)

    • Andante: Walking pace (76-106BPM)

    • Moderato: Moderate (106-120)

    • Allegro: Fast (120-168BPM)

    • Vivace: Quick (140-168BPM)

    • Presto: Very fast (168-200BPM)

Note Values and rests

  • Stems that point up are always on the right; down=left

  • Flats on on right side of stem and point toward the note head

  • Whole and half rests should only fill half the staff space

    • Whole points down

    • Half points up

Dots

  • The value of a doted note is equal to its original duration plus one-half pf that duration

Ties

  • Ties combine the durations of the pitches they connect

  • Ties can only join notes of the same pitch

  • Ties should be drawn from note head to note head

Meter

Introduction

  • Meter: The recurring pattern of strong and weak pulses

  • Duple Meter: Every other beat is emphasized (Strong-Weak) pattern

  • Triple Meter: Emphasize the first of every 3 beats (Strong-Weak-Weak) pattern

  • Quadruple Meter: First of every two beats emphasized (Strong-Weak-Strong-Weak) pattern

Time Signatures

  • In Simple Meters..:

    • Top number indicates the number of beats per measure

    • Only possible top numbers are 2 (Duple meter), 3 (Triple meter), and 4 (quadruple)

    • Bottom number indicates the note value of the beat

 Examples

Two-Two meter (2/2)

  • Top number indicates two beats in a measure (Duple meter)

  • Bottom number indicates that the beat is a half note

  • There are two half-note beats in every measure

Three-Four meter (3/4)

  • Top number indicates there are three beats in a measure (Triple meter)

  • Bottom number indicates the beat is a quarter note

  • There are three quarter note beats in every measure

Four-Eight Meter (4/8)

  • Top number indicates four beats in a measure (quadruple meter)

  • Bottom number indicates the beat is an eighth note

  • There are four eigth-note beats in every measure

Beaming

  • Beams: Horizontal lines that join adjacent flagged notes

  • Only notes that belong to the same beat should normally be beamed together

  • The number of beams touching the stem determines the note value

Incomplete measures

  • Upbeat- The last beat in the immediately preceding bar

  • Downbeat- The first beat of the bar

  • Upbeat/pickup/ anacrusis- An incomplete measure at the beginning of the piece

  • When a piece begins with a pickup, the last measure must be an incomplete measure that makes up for rhythmic values missing from the pickup measure

Meter Types I:

Introduction

  • In simple meters, the beat is divided into two parts

  • In compound meters, the beat is divided into three parts

  • If top number is 2,3,4: Simple meter

  • If top number is 6,9,12: Compound meter

Simple Meters: 2/2    3/4    4/4         Compound Meters: 6/8    9/16    12/4

Irregular meters: 5/4    7/8    11/8

Simple Duple Meter

Two-Eight Meter (2/8)

  • Two beats per measure

  • Each beat represented by eighth note

  • Simple meter, therefore each eighth note beat can be divided into two sixteenth notes

Two-Four Meter (2/8)

  • Two beats per measure

  • Each beat represented by quarter note

  • Simple duple → Each quarter note can be divided into two eighth notes

Two-Two meter (2/2 or cut time)

  • Two beats per measure

  • Each measure represented by a half note

  • Each half note can be divided into two quarter notes

Simple triple Meter

  • Three beats per measure, each beat divided into two equal parts and subdivided into four equal parts

Three-Eight meter (3/8)

  • Three beats per measure

  • Each beat represented by eighth note

  • Simple triple= Each eighth note → two sixteenth