"Counting rhythm" redirects here. For other uses, see Counting rhyme.
In music, counting is a system of regularly occurring sounds that serve to assist with the performance or audition of music by allowing the easy identification of the beat. Commonly, this involves verbally counting the beats in each measure as they occur, whether there be 2 beats, 3 beats, 4 beats, or even 5 beats. In addition to helping to normalize the time taken up by each beat, counting allows easier identification of the beats that are stressed. Counting is most commonly used with rhythm (often to decipher a difficult rhythm) and form and often involves subdivision.
The method involving numbers may be termed count chant, "to identify it as a unique instructional process."[1]
Example of "count chant" method
In lieu of simply counting the beats of a measure, other systems can be used which may be more appropriate to the particular piece of music. Depending on the tempo, the divisions of a beat may be vocalized as well (for slower times), or skipping numbers altogether (for faster times). As an alternative to counting, a metronome can be used to accomplish the same function.
Triple meter, such as 3 4, is often counted 1 2 3, while compound meter, such as 6 8, is often counted in two and subdivided "One-and-ah-Two-and-ah"[2] but may be articulated as "One-la-lee-Two-la-lee".[2] For each subdivision employed a new syllable is used. For example, sixteenth notes in 4 4 are counted 1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a, using numbers for the quarter note, "&" for the eighth note, and "e" and "a" for the sixteenth note level. Triplets may be counted "1 tri ple 2 tri ple 3 tri ple 4 tri ple" and sixteenth note triplets "1 la li + la li 2 la li + la li".[3] Quarter note triplets, due to their different rhythmic feel, may be articulated differently as "1 dra git 3 dra git".[3]
Rather than numbers or nonsense syllables, a random word may be assigned to a rhythm to clearly count each beat. An example is with a triplet, so that a triplet subdivision is often counted "tri-pl-et".[4] The Kodály Method uses "Ta" for quarter notes and "Ti-Ti" for eighth notes. For sextuplets simply say triplet twice (see Sextuplet rhythm.png), while quintuplets may be articulated as "un-i-vers-i-ty", or other five-syllable words such as "hip-po-pot-a-mus".[4] In some approaches, "rote-before-note",[5] the fractional definitions of notes are not taught to children until after they are able to perform syllable or phrase-based versions of these rhythms.[6]
"However the counting may be syllabized, the important skill is to keep the pulse steady and the division exact."[2]
There are various ways to count rhythm, from simple numbers to counting syllables to beat placement syllables.
Here are a few examples.
Numbers systems
Numbers
Ultimately, musicians count using numbers, “ands” and vowel sounds. Downbeats within a measure are called 1, 2, 3… Upbeats are represented with a plus sign and are called “and” (i.e. 1 + 2 +), and further subdivisions receive the sounds “ee” and “uh” (i.e. 1 e + a 2 e + a). Musicians do not agree on what to call triplets: some simply say the word triplet (“trip-a-let”), or another three-syllable word (like pineapple or elephant) with an antepenultimate accent. Some use numbers along with the word triplet (i.e. “1-trip-let”). Still others have devised sounds like “ah-lee” or “la-li” added after the number (i.e. 1-la-li, 2-la-li or 1-tee-duh, 2-tee-duh).
Example
The folk song lyric "This Old Man, he played one, he played knick-knack on my thumb, with a knick-knack paddy whack, give my dog a bone, this old man came rolling home" in 2 4 time would be said, "one and two one and two one and two and one and two and uh one and two ee and one ee and uh two one and two and one and two."
1 e and uh 2 e and uh 3 e and uh 4 e and uh
Traditional American system
Counts the beat number on the tactus, & on the half beat, and n-e-&-a for four sixteenth notes, n-&-a for a triplet or three eighth notes in compound meter, where n is the beat number.[7]
Eastman system
The beat numbers are used for the tactus, te for the half beat, and n-ti-te-ta for four sixteenths. Triplets or three eighth notes in compound meter are n-la-li and six sixteenth notes in compound meter is n-ta-la-ta-li-ta.[7]
Froseth system
Counting system using n-ne, n-ta-ne-ta, n-na-ni, and n-ta-na-ta-ni-ta. All three systems have internal consistency for all divisions of the beat except the tactus, which changes according to the beat number.[7]
Syllables systems
Syllables systems are categorized as "Beat Function Systems" - when the tactus (pulse) has certain syllable A, and the half-beat is always certain syllable B, regardless of how the rest of the measure is filled out.[8]
French system
The "Galin-Paris-Chevé system" or French "Time-Names system", originally used French words. Toward the middle of the 19th century the American musician Lowell Mason (affectionately named the "Father of Music Education") adapted the French Time-Names system for use in the United States, and instead of using the French names of the notes, he replaced these with a system that identified the value of each note within a meter and the measure.[9]
The beat is always called ta. In simple meters, the division and subdivision are always ta-di and ta-ka-di-mi. Any note value can be the beat, depending on the time signature. In compound meters (wherein the beat is generally notated with dotted notes), the division and subdivision are always ta-ki-da and ta-va-ki-di-da-ma.
The note value does not receive a particular name; the note’s position within the beat gets the name. This system allows children to internalize a steady beat and to naturally discover the subdivisions of beat, similar to the down-ee-up-ee system.
Example
The folk song lyric
"This Old Man, he played one, he played knick-knack on my thumb, with a
knick-knack paddy whack, give my dog a bone, this old man came rolling home"
would be said,
"tadi ta tadi ta tadi tadi tadi tadimi
tadi takadi takadimi ta tadi tadi tadi ta."
Examples of simple meter rhythms (Takadimi)
Whole Note = ta-a-a-a
Half Note = Ta-a
Quarter Note = Ta
Two Eighth Notes = Ta-Di
Four Sixteenth Notes = Ta-Ka-Di-Mi
Eighth Rest + Eighth Note = X-Di
Eighth Note + Two Sixteenth Notes = Taaa-Di-Mi
Two Sixteenth Notes + Eighth Note = Ta-Ka-Diii
Examples of compound meter rhythms (Takadimi)
Dotted Whole Note = Ta-a-a-a
Dotted Half Note = Ta-a
Dotted Quarter Note = Ta
Three Eighth Notes Beamed Together = Ta-Ki-Da
Eighth Note + Eighth Rest + Eighth Note = Ta-X-Da
Six Sixteenth Notes = Ta-Va-Ki-Di-Da-Ma
Eighth Note + Four Sixteenth Notes = Ta-aa-Ki-Di-Da-Ma
Four Sixteenth Notes + Eighth Note = Ta-Va-Ki-Di-Da-aa
Two Sixteenth Notes + Eighth Note + Two Sixteenth Notes = Ta-Va-Ki-ii-Da-Ma
Takatiki
This is a beat-function system used by some Kodály teachers that was developed by Laurdella Foulkes-Levy, and was designed to be easier to say than Gordon's system or the Takadimi system while still honoring the beat-function. The beat is said as "Ta" in both duple and triple meters, but the beat divisions are performed differently between the two meters. The "t" consonant always falls on the main beat and beat division, and the "k" consonant is always when the beat divides again. Alternating "t" and "k" in quick succession is easy to say, as they fall on two different parts of the tongue, making it very easy to say these syllables at a fast tempo (much like tonguing on recorder or flute). It is also a logical system since it always alternates between the same two consonants.
Duple meter
Whole Note: Ta-a-a-a (no added accent on each beat)
2 Sixteenth Notes and 1 Eighth Note: Tika-Ti / Tiri-Ti
1 Eighth Note and 2 Sixteenths: Ti-Tika / Ti-Tiri
This system allows the value of each note to be clearly represented no matter its placement within the beat/measure
Example
The folk songlyric "This Old Man, he played one, he played knick-knack on my thumb, with a knick-knack paddy whack, give my dog a bone, this old man came rolling home" would be said, "titi ta titi ta titi titi titi ti-tiri titi tiriti tiritiri ta titi titi titi ta"
Down-ee up-ee
Beats are down, up-beats are up, subdivisions are “ee”
but… need more info!
Example
The folk song lyric "This Old Man, he played one, he played knick-knack on my thumb, with a knick-knack paddy whack, give my dog a bone, this old man came rolling home" would be said, "down up down down up down down up down up down up down up-ee down up down-ee-up down-ee-up-ee down down up down up down up down."
Orff rhythm syllables don't have a specified system. Often, they'll encourage teachers to use whatever they prefer, and many choose to use the Kodaly syllable system.[10] Outside of this, Orff teachers will often use a language-based model in which the rhythms are replaced with a word which matches the number of sounds in the rhythm. For example, two paired eighth notes may become "Jackie" or "Apple." Often, a teacher will stick with a theme and encourage students to create their own words within said theme.[11] Examples include:
1 2 Nokes, Mark (2009). However, when voiced "tri-pl-et" sounds as "tri-plet"; ergo, an extra sound added to the word triplet can be more effective and truly a three syllable word -- "tri-pa-let". Modern Guitar Method: A Practical Approach, p.35. ISBN0-9822533-2-X.
↑ "Effects of Rote versus Note Presentations on Rhythm Learning and Retention", p. 118, Patricia K. Shehan, Journal of Research in Music Education, Vol. 35, No. 2 (Summer, 1987), pp. 117-126.
↑ Gordon (1971) and Bebeau (1982), cited in "A Comparison of Syllabic Methods for Improving Rhythm Literacy", p. 222, Bernadette Colley, Journal of Research in Music Education, Vol. 35, No. 4 (Winter, 1987), pp. 221–235.
A time signature is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type are contained in each measure (bar). The time signature indicates the meter of a musical movement at the bar level.
In music, metre or meter refers to regularly recurring patterns and accents such as bars and beats. Unlike rhythm, metric onsets are not necessarily sounded, but are nevertheless implied by the performer and expected by the listener.
Polyrhythm is the simultaneous use of two or more rhythms that are not readily perceived as deriving from one another, or as simple manifestations of the same meter. The rhythmic layers may be the basis of an entire piece of music (cross-rhythm), or a momentary section. Polyrhythms can be distinguished from irrational rhythms, which can occur within the context of a single part; polyrhythms require at least two rhythms to be played concurrently, one of which is typically an irrational rhythm. Concurrently in this context means within the same rhythmic cycle. The underlying pulse, whether explicit or implicit can be considered one of the concurrent rhythms. For example, the son clave is poly-rhythmic because its 3 section suggests a different meter from the pulse of the entire pattern.
In music and music theory, the beat is the basic unit of time, the pulse, of the mensural level. The beat is often defined as the rhythm listeners would tap their toes to when listening to a piece of music, or the numbers a musician counts while performing, though in practice this may be technically incorrect. In popular use, beat can refer to a variety of related concepts, including pulse, tempo, meter, specific rhythms, and groove.
In music, a tuplet is "any rhythm that involves dividing the beat into a different number of equal subdivisions from that usually permitted by the time-signature " This is indicated by a number, or sometimes two indicating the fraction involved. The notes involved are also often grouped with a bracket or a slur.
In Western musical notation, a dotted note is a note with a small dot written after it. In modern practice, the first dot increases the duration of the basic note by half of its original value. This means that a dotted note is equivalent to writing the basic note tied to a note of half the value – for instance, a dotted half note is equivalent to a half note tied to a quarter note. Subsequent dots add progressively halved value, as shown in the example to the right.
In music, notes inégales is a performance practice, mainly from the Baroque and Classical music eras, in which some notes with equal written time values are performed with unequal durations, usually as alternating long and short. The practice was especially prevalent in France in the 17th and 18th centuries, with appearances in other European countries at the same time. It reappeared as the standard performance practice in the 20th century in jazz. The phrase notes inégales means "unequal notes" in French.
A drum beat or drum pattern is a rhythmic pattern, or repeated rhythm establishing the meter and groove through the pulse and subdivision, played on drum kits and other percussion instruments. As such a "beat" consists of multiple drum strokes occurring over multiple musical beats while the term "drum beat" may also refer to a single drum stroke which may occupy more or less time than the current pulse. Many drum beats define or are characteristic of specific music genres.
The Arban Method, titled with some variation over the years as Arban's World Renowned Method for the Cornet and Arban's Complete Celebrated Method for the Cornet, is a complete pedagogical method for students of trumpet, cornet, and other brass instruments. The original edition was written and composed by Jean-Baptiste Arban (1825-1889) and published in Paris by Léon Escudier in 1864. It was reissued by multiple publishers, with notable revisions made by Thomas H. Rollinson published in 1879 by J.W. Pepper; Edwin Franko Goldman, published in 1893 by Carl Fischer; and Claude Gordon, published in 1982 also by Carl Fischer. It contains hundreds of exercises ranging from basic to advanced compositions, with later editions also including a selection of popular themes as solos and duets by various composers, and several original compositions by Arban including his famous arrangement of Carnival of Venice.
Japanese Braille is the braille script of the Japanese language. It is based on the original braille script, though the connection is tenuous. In Japanese it is known as tenji (点字), literally "dot characters". It transcribes Japanese more or less as it would be written in the hiragana or katakana syllabaries, without any provision for writing kanji.
The Japanese Sign Language syllabary is a system of manual kana used as part of Japanese Sign Language (JSL). It is a signary of 45 signs and 4 diacritics representing the phonetic syllables of the Japanese language. Signs are distinguished both in the direction they point, and in whether the palm faces the viewer or the signer. For example, the manual syllables na, ni, ha are all made with the first two fingers of the hand extended straight, but for na the fingers point down, for ni across the body, and for ha toward the viewer. The signs for te and ho are both an open flat hand, but in te the palm faces the viewer, and in ho it faces away.
The pakhavaj is a barrel-shaped, two-headed drum, originating from the Indian subcontinent, the oldest version of double sided drums and its descendants are mridangam of Southern India and kendang of Maritime Southeast Asia and other South Asian double-headed drums. Its older forms were made with clay.
The Kodály method, also referred to as the Kodály concept, is an approach to music education developed in Hungary during the mid-twentieth century by Zoltán Kodály. His philosophy of education served as inspiration for the method, which was then developed over a number of years by his associates. In 2016, the method was inscribed as an item of UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.
In popular music, half-time is a type of meter and tempo that alters the rhythmic feel by essentially doubling the tempo resolution or metric division/level in comparison to common-time. Thus, two measures of 4 4 approximate a single measure of 8 8, while a single measure of 4/4 emulates 2/2. Half-time is not to be confused with alla breve or odd time. Though notes usually get the same value relative to the tempo, the way the beats are divided is altered. While much music typically has a backbeat on quarter note (crotchet) beats two and four, half time would increase the interval between backbeats to double, thus making it hit on beats three and seven, or the third beat of each measure :
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4
Konnakol is the art of performing percussion syllables vocally in South Indian Carnatic music. Konnakol is the spoken component of solkattu, which refers to a combination of konnakol syllables spoken while simultaneously counting the tala (meter) with the hand. It is comparable in some respects to bol in Hindustani music, but allows the composition, performance or communication of rhythms. A similar concept in Hindustani classical music is called padhant.
In music, the term swing has two main uses. Colloquially, it is used to describe the propulsive quality or "feel" of a rhythm, especially when the music prompts a visceral response such as foot-tapping or head-nodding. This sense can also be called "groove".
Yakshagana Tala, is a rhythmical pattern in Yakshagana that is determined by a composition called Yakshagana Padya. Tala also decides how a composition is enacted by dancers. It is similar to Tala in other forms of Indian music, but is structurally different from them. Each composition is set to one or more talas, and as a composition is rendered by Himmela, the percussion artist(s) play supporting the dance performance. Tala is maintained by the singer using a pair of finger bells.
Takadimi is a system devised by Richard Hoffman, William Pelto, and John W. White in 1996 in order to teach rhythm skills. Takadimi, while utilizing rhythmic symbols borrowed from classical South Indian carnatic music, differentiates itself from this method by focusing the syllables on meter and western tonal rhythm. Takadimi is based on the use of specific syllables at certain places within a beat. Takadimi is used in classrooms from elementary level up through the collegiate level. It meets National Content Standard 5 by teaching both reading and notating music.
Count singing is a choral rehearsal technique that involves singing the correct pitches, but replacing the lyrics with each note's position within a measure. In 4 4 time, this would mean a sequence of quarter notes would be sung as "one two three four" rather than their actual lyrics. Count singing was developed and used extensively by Robert Shaw, and much of its current popularity can be traced back to Shaw through directors who worked with him.
Lyric setting is the process in songwriting of placing textual content (lyrics) in the context of musical rhythm, in which the lyrical meter and musical rhythm are in proper alignment as to preserve the natural shape of the language and promote prosody.
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