Questions tagged [polyrhythm]

Polyrhythm is the simultaneous use of two or more conflicting rhythms, that are not readily perceived as deriving from one another, or as simple manifestations of the same meter.

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How to count polyrhythms on the drum set?

I've been playing drumset for over 20 years. What I'm trying to do is play 3/4/5/6 where one limb (arm or leg) will be 3/8 time, one limb will be 4/4 time, one limb will be 5/4 time, and the last ...
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6 votes
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How should I approach getting used to a wonky syncopation?

Disclaimer My question is part general, and part specific, because I'm having a hard time with a specific song, but my question is on how to approach the more general problem. Background I'm learning ...
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2 answers
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Beat subdivisions?

Sorry, I saw this two days ago but when I tried to find the article back I forgot the title. But I managed to copy and save the excerpt. What is this "Sub-beats are regular beats of duration less ...
1 vote
1 answer
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Help with the rhythm of Chopin's C major prelude

The time signature is 2/8, and the piece is played with triplets but then at bar 17 the top triplet is replaced with a quintuplet with stretto marked above. I am a bit confused how to play this. What ...
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4 votes
2 answers
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How to "hear" polyrhythms?

I've ben playing drums for about 22 years now and am quite capable around the kit. I've been working on some more complex polyrhythmic stuff, like 9/8 grooves with 7/8 or 5/8 ostinatos on the hats/...
1 vote
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Accents (destabilizing rhythm) Justin Kauflin [closed]

In this video at 2:10 Justin Kauflin plays these accented chords and I really cannot figure out exactly what the rhythm is. Can anybody hear what he is doing?
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2 votes
1 answer
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What's so special about the rhythm in Le Youth: Colour [closed]

I was struck by the unusual rhythm in this song that played in a Spotify playlist. A friend mentioned it as well and we couldn't figure out what was going on in terms of rhythmic pattern. I played the ...
2 votes
2 answers
120 views

What does "three on four, five on seven, etc" mean?

I kinda know they have something to do with polyrhythms, but most search results on google tell me the time signature 3/4 instead of more detail on what that phrase translates to in music.. Is 3 on 4 ...
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10 votes
2 answers
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What is it called when a sequence of notes lands on a different beat every measure?

Meshuggah does this a lot, where they will have say a 5 note sequence in 4/4. It will look like this if each note is given a number: 1234|5123|4512|3451|2345|1..
5 votes
3 answers
625 views

What is the name of this rhythm? (embedded 4:3 polyrhythm)

What's the name of this rhythm? There's an embedded 4:3 polyrhythm, where the two voices will arrive together on beats 1 and 4 of each bar. It reminds me of a clave (2:3), but it's not.
2 votes
1 answer
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concerning irregular tuplets

An n-tuplet is a division of a given pulse in n even parts; hence, a quintuplet is playing 5 notes in the space of one, usually a quarter note, as a 13-tuplet is dividing a note in 13 even parts. What ...
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3 answers
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Electronic music and layering of rhythms

A very common (indeed ubiquitous) technique in electronic music involves the layering of loops of different lengths on top of each other. Consider the following DnB track: https://www.beatport.com/...
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4 votes
2 answers
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Counting 2+3 and 4 over a beat of 4 at the same time

I'm rearranging a piece of mine from 12/8 to 4/4. This works pretty fine for the harmony since those were arpeggiated chords, 4 groups of 3. But I notice the melody is rather complicated to transfer ...
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3 answers
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What is rhythmic counterpoint?

Apparently, poly-meter creates "rhythmic" counterpoint. What does this mean? Nothing online shows anything. What are other effects of poly-meter?
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2 answers
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Is there a "rhythmic/groove center", just like there is a "tonal center"?

In tonal harmony, we found that listeners often have a clear senes of tonal center and want to go back to it. Does the same exist for rhythm? Can a composer mess around with rhythm (going off standard ...
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2 votes
3 answers
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How should I play six-against-four rhythm on the piano? [duplicate]

The left and right hand notes do not line up together, so is it safe to say that I should play them separately and not together? The piece in question is called Musique pour la tristesse de xion.
1 vote
2 answers
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How to practice unstable "wonky" beats on guitar without drums

Lately I've been getting into "wonky" music, a subgenre of electronic music known primarily for its off-kilter or “unstable” beats, as well as its eclectic blend of genres including hip hop, ...
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1 answer
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Technical analysis of rhythm in Sofi Needs a Ladder

I apologize for the subject of my rhythm analysis--many of you are likely to turn your noses up, but... Deadmou5 has a song "Sofi Needs A Ladder" and I'm trying to understand the rhythmic elements ...
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6 votes
1 answer
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How would you derive accurate tempos if you have a clock with a second hand but no metronome?

Imagine I'm in a room that's silent apart from a clock whose second hand moves with an audible tick. If I watch the second hand of the clock and clap every time it moves, I'll be clapping at 60 bpm. ...
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1 vote
1 answer
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Polyrhythmic clash, how to get rid of the rhythmic dissonance without losing the polyrhythm?

So I'm midway through composing a movement of a suite I am working on and I have reached this section that is primarily triplets. It starts off as a solo violin, and then later, more instruments are ...
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-1 votes
2 answers
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Flume - "Helix" Drop Polyrhythmic or Not

I keep reading online that the drop to Flume’s song "Helix" is polyrhythmic; however, I am unable to hear it. Is there polyrhythm, and if so, what is the pattern?
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1 vote
1 answer
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How to make sustained polyrhythms easier to play?

I know that a lot of it simply comes down to lots and lots of practice. But in a piece like Chopin's Fantasie Impromptu, I will eventually reach a point where I can play the left hand with no mistakes ...
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4 votes
4 answers
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How to play this rhythm in Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata? as a 4/3 polyrythm or as 6/16?

First of all, I apologize if I do not get it right with the terminology. In this sonata of Beethoven in bar 6, there is the 3/8 being played and then at the 4rth 3/8 part, the melody enters above - ...
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28 votes
6 answers
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Tapping 3 times on one leg and 4 times on another leg in 4 beats. What is it called and how to do it?

I'm new to the "music scene". Well, at least the more technical parts of it. In ninth grade, our music teacher taught us how to do a tapping/drumming thing where we tap 3 times on one leg and 4 times ...
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How to recognise polyrhythm in a piece

I came across a part I found really interesting and quite challenging to my piano level in the piece Arabesque No.1 in E major by Claude Debussy, where both hands seems to not follow the same time ...
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2 votes
0 answers
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What are these kinds of rhythms called? [duplicate]

I've noticed that these kinds of rhythms seem to be extremely common in popular music: X: 1 M: 4/4 L: 1/16 K: C c3c3c2 c3c3c2|c3c3c3c3c2c2| The example in the first bar appears to be a 2 over 3 ...
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1 answer
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How to play fantasie impromptu by Chopin? [closed]

I can play Chopin's fantasie impromptu at low tempo, but I'm having trouble when increasing the tempo. My fingers don't move smoothly over 130 bpm and some notes get skipped automatically and ...
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1 vote
2 answers
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how to line up these notes, the 4 over the 3 [duplicate]

I imagine the F and D would be played together but what about the others? (2 Cs and a B flat in the group of 4 and the A and C of the triplet).
2 votes
1 answer
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What is a seven-thirtieth note in Henry Cowell 's music theory?

On page 100 in Henry Cowell's book (PDF here) there is an explanation centered around C-C# (C#) contained with in a whole note has four and two-seveths vibrations per second and it will be found ...
1 vote
1 answer
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Composition of Cowell's "rhythmic key changes"

I'm currently reading Henry Cowell's New Musical Resources and On page 98, Section 6,(TEMPO) in part 2 (RHYTHM), is a paragraph of for instances. Directly, I'm grappling with the SECOND FOR INSTANCE ....
2 votes
1 answer
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Nested polyrhythms

In my research on polyrhythms I have discovered the term "nested polyrhythm" with regard to some of Frank Zappa's works. I have not been able to find a clear definition of it or any examples. Would ...
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4 votes
2 answers
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How can I count 17 against 3 polyrhythm?

Somewhat related to my earlier question: Phrase to help count 3 groups of 17? How can I count a 17 against 3 polyrhythm (to help me play it)? Here's a little sound file I made of it in FL Studio ...
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2 votes
5 answers
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How to count polyrhythm 3 against 4 in common time?

Polyrhythm 4:3 in 3/4 meter can be "inverted" to 3:4 in 4/4 meter, like this... ...the notation is easy enough to write, because we can use tuplets to gloss over the division problem. Converting ...
3 votes
1 answer
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What’s going on with the rhythm in the first half of Spiral Staircase by Luke Vibert

I assume this is some sort of polyrhythm but my brain refuses to be able to count it. Can someone shed some light on whats going on? The song in question:
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9 votes
1 answer
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Unifying/Formalizing the ideas of cross-rhythm, polyrhythm and hypermeter

I am interested in the notions of polyrhythm, cross-rhythm, and hypermeter, including acquiring more mathematically based concepts that can aid in quality music production. I have done extensive ...
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5 votes
5 answers
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How to play this passage precisely?

I have got trouble playing this passage with both hands. I can play the hands separately, but can't join them together. I have tried really slowing it down, but the rhythm is too complicated for me to ...
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1 vote
1 answer
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Accelerando in poly-tempo

The question is - does accelerando used in parts with different tempo? How to rhythmically align them after that / during that? (Without accelerando it would be enough to keep parts tempo at some ...
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3 votes
1 answer
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measures numeration in polymetre

In polymetre and/or poly-tempo music, measures count in staves may be unequal. How measures should be numerated? Each stave have separate numeration?
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2 answers
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What is a correct sequence of notes in Chopin Prelude in F# Minor, Op. 28 No. 8, played slowly, both hands?

What is a correct sequence of notes in Chopin's Prelude #8 when playing slowly? How should 32nds be played against a triplet of 16ths plus and 8th? It seems that there are no together played notes in ...
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1 answer
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How to count odd tuplets?

When I first learned how to play music I learned how to play the drums, and thus rhythm was the first thing I knew about music. I still feel like it was best to learn rhythm before pitch, melody, ...
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7 votes
4 answers
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What is the difference between syncopation and poly-rhythm?

My understand is that syncopation works in the same time signature, but polyrhythm introduces a new time signature. For example: Syncopation would be when a piece is in 4/4 and the lead soloist ...
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1 vote
1 answer
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Why if tons of polyphony are not necessary, many brands claim that to more polyphony better samples (sounds)?

It's true. Hundred times I heard about the polyphony is gravital to experience top end sounds in professional keyboards. It is not only a matter of how many keys you are playing at the same time but, ...
2 votes
1 answer
490 views

How do 'meter' and 'rhythm' affect the choice of 'Polymeter' and 'Polyrhythm'?

I use chevrons (⟨⟩) to denote the concept behind the word. [ Source :] Meter is the rhythmic structure of the music. For example, a piece of music could be in 4/4 meter, which is a strong-weak-medium-...
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7 votes
10 answers
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How should I practice the piano piece Fantaisie-Impromptu?

It has always been a childhood dream of mine to play well the piano piece Fantaisie-Impromptu. Unfortunately, I was not able to learn the piece with my piano teacher while I was learning the piano. ...
0 votes
1 answer
951 views

How to determine the time signature of a polyrhythm with two parts?

The band Meshuggah has a straightforward approach to polyrhythms. There's also a base which is 4/4 and then some other count which plays N times then repeats exactly on the 1 of the base. it'll be ...
4 votes
3 answers
1k views

Is "Polyrhythm" a melodic principle?

Wikipedia defines polyrhythm as “the simultaneous use of two or more conflicting rhythms” and reports “Sub-Saharan instruments are constructed in a variety of ways to generate polyrhythmic melodies. ...
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9 votes
3 answers
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Learn music with odd rhythms

I've always had problems with tuplets (3/2, 4/3, etc), until I was taught this nifty trick: subdivide the total duration (4 quartuplets, 3 triplets, etc) by the least common multiple (12, for 4/3) ...
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14 votes
3 answers
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Triplets against twos in Bach's music

I was reading up on tuplets and polyrhythms because I was having trouble playing some of Bach's keyboard works containing three-against-two rhythms. Then I found something interesting: (...) It is ...
1 vote
1 answer
1k views

Fitting melodies to beats!

OK, need a head's up so I can practice this: the basic technique for fitting a tune to a beat. Take, for example, Red Red Wine. UB40 did it as a reggae song. I've heard it as a blues ballad, a pop ...
4 votes
1 answer
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What are best practices surrounding polymetric music notation?

I'm writing a piece that has a 13/16 ostinato in it. However, the melodies aren't going to make any effort to have their downbeats line up with the ostinato. What are the best practices regarding ...
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