Essential Rhythmic ConceptsFor the Serious Musician

A guide to necessary, advanced, and often under-studiedrhythmic concepts from a world music perspective.

Written byJake Jamieson

LetterfromtheAuthor

Thisbookwascreatedtohelpallseriousmusiciansachievebetterrhythmicclarityandunderstanding.Asaneducator,IfeelthatthereisagenerallackofrhythmiceducationinK‐12publicschoolsanduniversitycurriculum.Weover‐emphasizemelodiceartraininganddeemphasizerhythmiceartrainingasifrhythmweresecondaryinstatustomelody.Aseriousmusicianwillrecognizethatmelodyandrhythmareinherentlyintertwinedandonlythroughpatientdevelopmentofrhythmicconceptscanyourmelodicunderstandingtrulybegintoblossom.

Asadrummerandpercussionist,theseideasarecomingfrommyownexperiencestudyingworldandpopularmusicstyles,includingGhanaianAgbekor,IndianClassicalmusic,Cubansonandmambo,Afrobeat,Flamenco,Jazz,Funk,andBrazilianpopular,samba,andfolkloricstyles.Myaimforthisbookisnottoteachtheserhythms,buttodrawideasfromthesedeeptraditionsthatwillapplytotheapproachofanymusician.Therefore,Iamnotwritingabookjustfordrummers,butamtryingtoharnesstheknowledgethatIhavegainedasapercussionistandmaketheseconceptsapplicableforallmusicians.Ihaveconstructedsimpleexercisesthatbuildincomplexitytohelpanyinstrumentalisttoachievebettertime,rhythmiccreativity,phraseawareness,developmentofrhythmicideas,andthefreedomtoplayaroundthebeat,movingfluidlythroughthemeasure.

Ihopethattheseexercisesareusefulandthattheychallengeyoutothinkinnewandinsightfulways.Ifyougetstuckwithanyoneexerciseputthebookdownfortenminutesanddoanotheractivityandthencomebacktotheexercisewithacleanslateandcalmmind.Asyoufaceeachexercise,choosetoseethechallengeasawallandinsteadofrunningfullspeedintothewallagainandagain,takeaminutetostepbackandbreathe.Fromasafedistance,youcanthenexaminethewallandfindawayaroundit,ratherthanstraightthroughit.Iwishyouthebestofluckinyoureffortstobreakdownallofyourrhythmicwallsandtobecomethebestmusicianthatyouaimtobe.

JakeJamieson

TableofContents

Chapter1:StopLookingatYourWatch!StartInternalizingTime!

‐Learntomakefriendswithyourmetronomesothatgoodtimebecomessecondnature.Thischaptershowsyouuniquewaystoapproachlifeandmusicwithgoodtimeinmind.

Chapter2:FeelingExtendedPhrases

‐Usethischaptertohelpyoufeellongerphrasesofbeats,whilestillfeelingfreetoplayyourmusicalphraseswithlengthsofyourchoosingwithinthoselargerphrases.

Chapter3:ShiftingGears

‐InthischapterIexplaintheSouthIndianclassical“Jati”system,whichsimplifiesthecountingofcomplexsubdivisions.TheJatisystemisthenutilizedinexerciseswhichforcethemusiciantoswitchfluidlybetweeneighthnotes,triplets,sixteenthnotes,quintuplets,andsoon.

Chapter4:AccentedPulsesOverSubdivisions

‐Here,IbuildoffofthefoundationestablishedinChapter3andexplorevariousaccentgroupingsinmultiplesubdivisions.

Chapter5:ApplyingGroupingstoMusicalSituations

‐InthischapterIhaveprovidedaseriesofetudesthatutilizetheskillslearnedinChapter4.Thissectionallowsthemusiciantounderstandhowtomusicallyandcreativelyapplytheseconceptsinusefulways.

Chapter6:UtilizingVariousNoteGroupingswhileSwitchingSubdivisions

‐ThischaptercombinestheideasdevelopedinChapters3and4andtakesthemonestepfurthersothattheexercisesnowswitchbetweensubdivisions.Notonlywillyouhavetoplayvariousaccentgroupings,butalsoyouwilllearntodosowhileeffortlesslyswitchingbetweensubdivisions.

Chapter7:DeconstructingOurAccentGroupings

‐Inthischapter,theexercisesbuildoffofthoseinChapter6andbegintotakenotesoutofthesubdivisions,forcingyoutotrulyinternalizethesubdivisionsandallowingyoutomovebeyondplayingallthenotestobeingabletoplaythespaces.

Chapter8:ShootingArrows

‐Thischapterremovesthecrutchofconstantsubdivisionandwillforceyoutounderstandwherespecificpartialsofthesubdivisionsfallwithoutthehelpofaconstantdownbeatpulse.

Chapter9:DemystifyingPolyrhythms

‐Basedonthefoundationlaidoutinthepreviouschapters,thischapterrevealstheeasewithwhichanymusiciancanlearncomplexpolyrhythms.Theexercisesmathematicallybreakdownsimpleandcomplexpolyrhythmsandthenencouragethereadertointernalizethemtobreakawayfromtherigidityofthemathematics.

Chapter10:PlayinginOddTimeSignatures‐UsingtherhythmicgroupingsestablishedinChapter4,thischapterbreaksdownoddtimesignatureswithasimpleapproachsothateventhemostcomplextimesignaturecanbefeltinanaccessiblefashion.

Chapter11:InvertingYourConceptionofTime‐Thischapterwillpushthereaders’mentalcapabilitiesastheyareforcedtomanipulatehowtheythinkaboutmetronomictime.

Chapter12:IndianRhythmicMathematics‐HereIdiscusssimpleandcomplexmathematicformulasinternalizedbyIndianmusicianstohelpthereaderexpandtheirrhythmicconceptstoalevelofgreatercontrolandcomplexity.

Chapter1:Stoplookingatyourwatch!StartInternalizingTime!

Thesteadybeatoftempoisthemostbasicrhythmofanycomposition.Therefore,Iwishtospendsometimeonthesubjectofinternalizingtime.Withoutafunctioningamountofthisskill,thechaptersthat

followwillbeoflittleuse.

Hopefullyyouhavebeentaughttopracticewithametronomeforthemajorityofyourmusicalcareer.Ifnotnowistheperfecttimetostart.

Forthosewisemusicianswhohavebeencontinuallypracticingwithametronome,thepurposeofthischapteristohelpyouinternalize

metronomictimesothatyoucanfreeyourselffromthinkingaboutthetimeandincreaseyourabilitytofeelthetime.

Wewanttogettothepointwheresteadytimebecomeseffortless.Theseexercisesaredesignedtogetyouthinkingandactingoutsideofthebox,sopleaseputyouregoasideandbe

opentoanewapproach.

1.Togetstarted,gofindyourmetronome,setitinfrontofyou,andletitrunat100beatsperminutewhileyoufinishreadythisparagraph.Don’tfocusonthemetronome,butletthepulsingsinkintoyourears.Everytimeyouplayyourinstrument,thetimeshouldfeeljustascomfortableaswhenyouarereadingthissentence.Thecomfortresidesinyourabilitytofeelthetime,yetplaywhateveryouchoose.Wedividethebeatsintoevenpulses,becauseitismathematicallyeasytocomprehend,itfacilitatestheprocessofplayingwithothers,anditiseasytonotate.WhatIhopethatyouachieveisthefreedomtobreakawayfromthesemathematicalsubdivisions.Thisbookisstructuredtohelpyoufeelgroundedinyourmetronomictimeandyourcomprehensionofmathematicalrhythms,butinitsconstruction,thethoroughnessofthisbookisgearedtofreeyoufrommetronomictimetofeelasthoughyoucanplaywhateveryouchooseandstillbeacutelyawareofthepulseandtheyourplaceintheformofthemusic.

2.Leavingthemetronomeon,begintocountaloudin4/4time(i.e.“one,two,three,four”).Gogetaglassofwaterandcontinuetocountalong.Ifyouneedtogettheglassandwaterinadifferentroom,takethemetronomealongwithyouandcontinuetocount.

Drinkthewaterandcountinyourheadasyoudoso.After,comeandproceedtonumberthree.

3.Thistime,continuecountingaloud,butleavethemetronomeinthisroomandgointoadifferentroomwhereyoucannothearthemetronome.Inthatotherroom,countoutafour‐barphrase(i.e.“one,two,three,four”repeatedfourtimes)

Comebackintotheroomwiththemetronomeandseeifyouarestillintimewithit.Throughthisprocess,youareslowlytrainingyourselftointernalizethetimebypullingawayfromit.

4.Now,wearegoingtokeepthemetronomeat100beatsperminute,butnowcontrolthevolume(complexmetronomescanprograminthispattern)sothatyouonlyheareveryotherbeat.Donotwatchthemetronomeifithasamovingarmonitsscreen,continuetocountaloud,andseehowwellyoucanstayintime.

5.Buildingoffoftheideastartedinnumberfour,wecannowcontrolthemetronomeinavarietyofwaysthatwillstrengthenourtime.Startwiththemetronomeonlyproducingsoundonthefirstbeatofthemeasure,thenonlythefirstbeatofthefour‐barphrase.Anothergreatexerciseistohaveitproducesoundforfourbeatsandthenbesilentforfourbeats.

6.Whileyoucookyournextmeal,turnthemetronomeoninthekitchento80beatsperminute.Letyourbodymovenaturallyfirstandjustletthepulsesfillthekitchen.Mostlikely,yourmovementswillfallintotimewiththemetronome.Challengeyourselfandtrycookinganentiremealwhereallofyourmovementsareintimewiththemetronome.

7.Thenexttimeyoupickupyourmp3playertolistentomusicontherun,pickupyourmetronomeinstead.

IfindthatifIleaveametronomeonwhileIamdoinganactivityunrelatedtomusic,likecooking,walking,orexercising,musicalideaswillinevitablypourintomyheadinlargepartbecauseofthe

steadypulseofthemetronome.

FreeingYourselffromTime

1.Turnthemetronomeonto100beatsperminute.Sayaloud,“Iwillnotplayintimetoday.”

Howmanybeatsdidittakeyoutosaythat?Ifyouhavenoclue,gobackandsayitaloudagainwhilecountingthebeats.

2.Saythesentenceagain,butnowmakeitfitintofourbeats.

You’llnoticethatthereareeighthsyllables,soifyouevenlyspacethemoutyouwillbeplayingeighthnotes.

3.Repeatthesentencesothatitfallsevenlyintothreebeatsandsayitfourtimesinarow.Worrylessabouthowitexactlyfallsandinsteadjustfocusonrepeatingthesentencesoitflowsevenlyfromyourmouth.

Belowisamathematicalrepresentationofhowtoevenlyspreadthephraseoverthreebeats,ifyouareinterested.Iputthishereonlyforthecuriousmusicians.Ifyouarehavingtroublewiththeconceptofspreadingthephraseoverthreebeats,donotfocusonthisgraphicrepresentation.Instead,focusonevenlydistributingyourwords,butnotstressingaboutsayingitpreciselyintime.

4.Repeatthesentencealoudsothatitfallsintotwobeats.

5.Nowrepeatthesentencein7beats,9beats,11beats,and33beats.

Focusonevenspacingofthewordssothattheyfallevenlyandspreadoutovertheentiredurationofthenotesbeingcounted.

Thekeyisthatyouaresocomfortablesayingthesentencethatyoucankeeptrackofanynumberofbeatswhilesayingthephraseandstillcomebacktothedownbeatofyourchoice.

6.Pickupyourinstrument,pickaneight‐notemelody,andrepeatstepsonethroughfiveusingthemelodyinplaceofthesentence.

7.Nowallowyourselftostrayfromthemelodyyouhavecreated,butstillhaveyourfocusbeprimarilyonthemetronomicpulse.Makesureyouarecountinginyourhead,butflowoverthebeatandexperimentwithelongatingandshorteningyourphrasessoastomanipulatearoundthetime.

Thepurposeofthissequenceofexercisesistofreeyourself

fromneedingtofeellockedintothetime,butstillmaintainingaconfidentawarenessofwherethetimeis.

Chapter6:UtilizingVariousNoteGroupingswhileSwitchingSubdivisions

Section1:ConstantAccentPulseswithShiftingSubdivisions

Ifweapplythemini‐melodiescreatedinChapter4totheseexercises,wecanreallystarttohavesomefun.Hopefullythosemini‐melodiesarefamiliar

enoughnowtobeabletoplaythemwithoutmythought,makingtheshiftingoftimetheprimaryconcern.Ifnot,takesometimetoreviewthemorsimplifythem(youcanalwaysjuststayononepitchuntiltheexercisesbecomemore

comfortable).

A1.Two‐noteGroupings:Easier‐

MoreDifficult‐

Goal:Toexperimentwithphraseswhichmovefluidlyover

thebeatandchangeinrhythm.

InthischapteryouwillneedtoconnectyourabilitytoshiftgearsfromChapter3andyourabilitytoplayvariousaccentgroupingsfrom

Chapter4.Takeeachetudeslowlyandbreakdownindividualphrasesthatgiveyoutrouble.

Utilizeourstrategyoffirstplaytherhythmonallonepitch,thenon

thenotesofthescale,thenonanypitchesthatyouchoose.

A2.Three‐noteGroupings:Easier‐

MoreDifficult‐

A3.Four‐noteGroupings:Easier‐

MoreDifficult‐

A4.Five‐noteGroupings:Easier‐

MoreDifficult‐

A5.Six‐noteGroupings:Easier‐

MoreDifficult‐

A6.Seven‐noteGroupings:Easier‐

MoreDifficult‐

Section2:MixedAccentedPulsesandSubdivisions

A.Two‐note,Three‐note,andFour‐noteAccentGroupings:

B.Five‐note,Six‐note,andSeven‐noteAccentGroupings:

C.AllNoteGroupings:

AbouttheAuthor

JakeJamiesonisaneducatorandperformerondrumset,percussion,andtabla.HereceivedhisB.A.andM.A.fromUCLAinEthnomusicology,WorldMusic,

inJuneof2010.HeisbasedinLosAngeleswhereheteachesandperformsregularlyinavarietyofmusicstylesandvenues.

www.jakejamieson.com www.myspace.com/jamiesonjake

Contact:jamiesonjake@gmail.com