The word rhythm has a musical meaning. What is rhythm

Human life is a tireless movement in space and time. The harmony of this movement depends on how closely it matches or complements the movement of the environment.

The nature of things or the origin of rhythm

It just so happens that silent movement is extremely rare. The movement of a pendulum, the movement of a clock hand, the beating of the heart, the operation of a motor, the noise of leaves, the murmur of a stream, the change of seasons, day and night - each phenomenon has its own sound and a characteristic, well-recognized rhythmic organization.

A person, quenching his thirst for knowledge, is in a coordinate system, the center of which is himself. Initially, the child classifies the concepts of big-small, fast-slow in relation to his height and the rate of heart activity.

Gradually, comparisons of objects and phenomena with each other in a detached coordinate system become available, but the basics do not go into oblivion, but move to the level of subconscious regulation. Thus, it can be argued that the basis of life is a proportionate change in phenomena, actions, forms - the rhythm of life on a macro- and microscale, which plays a key role in the art of music.

Rhythmic organization of life and music

The word "rhythm" Greek origin and literally translated means proportionality. Rhythm in music is an orderly alternation of sounds of different durations, one of the main elements of expressiveness in the musical palette, since sounds without a rhythmic facet cannot form a melody.

Like poetry, music is an art that extends over time and has its own graphic system of notation. The main grapheme for recording sounds is the note - a conventional sign indicating the height and relative duration of the sound. It should be noted that the sound recording system that can be seen today was introduced into use only in the sixteenth century. Until this moment, the division of note durations occurred not into two parts, but into three. Over time, a difference in the color of the notes appeared (long sounds are white, and short sounds are black), and then “tails” appeared in the form of stems and flags.

In everyday life, a person often has to divide a whole into two halves or four equal parts, and sometimes into eight parts. This principle also applies to determining the duration of notes:

• whole note - has a white color and is a designation of a long sound;
• half note - the duration of the sound is half of the whole, it also has a white color, but it has a calm attached to it, which distinguishes it from the previous sign;
• quarter note - sounds only the fourth part of the whole note, is painted black and has a calm tone;
• eighth note - by analogy, it is the eighth part of the whole, black with a calm and one flag.

There is a smaller division of playing time and a larger one, but in order to understand the rhythmic organization, the given note durations are more than enough.

If we compare musical rhythms with a person’s daily rhythms, then we should decide on a frame of reference. Our lives are counted daily by ordinary clock hands. But the rhythmic life of a musical work depends on meter and tempo.

How to distinguish between rhythm, meter and tempo

On the Internet, the results of psychologists’ studies on human perception of shapeless blots are often cited. The scientists' findings suggest that human visual perception (like auditory perception) is based on already familiar images as a “template” and only after a “feeling of support” can it include the “representation” of a variety of other options. The role of support in music is played by meter - from the Greek “measure”.

Like breathing and heartbeat, the musical fabric is composed of tension (the strong beat) and release (the weak beat). Graphically, the musical meter is indicated by size (depicted as a fraction and indicates the number of beats of a certain duration from one strong beat to the next one). The role of rhythm in music is to create a unique image of the melody.

Triple meter, for example, in representations modern man associated with the waltz. In order not to confuse meter with rhythm, it is enough to do a simple exercise once: alternately tap the three-beat waltz meter with your feet (the first strong beat with the left foot, two weak beats with the right foot), and with your hands reproduce the rhythm of “Bolero” by Maurice Ravel.

This example once again emphasizes the importance of rhythm in music: the three-beat meter (associated by many listeners with a smooth waltz) ceases to be “white and fluffy” and, thanks to the rhythmic pattern, acquires rigidity and persistence.

When determining the tempo, everything is simpler, but there are also some nuances. In musical notation, everything related to tempo is indicated in Italian terms, and scrupulous composers set the value of the metronome at the beginning of the work.

A metronome is a device that helps determine the speed of performance using a scale on which you can set a different number of beats per minute. Sometimes, composers indicate the tempo in Russian, English, French, but despite this, the meaning remains the same.

Expanses of dotted rhythm

The graphic representation of the sound of music is not limited to the designation of foreign terms, notes, pauses, meter. There are also specific designations, such as a dot. A dot placed to the right of a note denotes nothing more than a dotted rhythm and lengthens the sound of the note by half. As for the characterological features of this rhythm, at a fast pace it carries the energy of impulse, pressure, persistence, and aspiration. As an example, we can consider “Montagues and Capulets” from S. S. Prokofiev’s ballet “Romeo and Juliet”.

The sound of a dotted rhythm at a medium tempo expresses other moods: doubt, thoughtfulness, fleeting impulse. This statement is well illustrated by the waltz “Sweet Dream” from P. Tchaikovsky’s “Children’s Album” or Frederic Chopin’s Prelude in E minor. The same composer used a dotted rhythm at a slow tempo to depict despair, hopelessness, and depression in the second movement of the piano sonata, better known as the Funeral March.

Territorial claims of syncopation

Syncopation is the name for rhythm in music. Its essence is to shift the emphasis from a strong fraction of a meter to a weak one (in other words, from inhalation to exhalation). A feeling of rhythmic interruption is created, which brings sharpness and tension to the musical palette. The term itself comes from a Greek word and means missing something. Many composers have taken advantage of the colorfulness of this rhythmic organization, and, depending on the meter and tempo of the work, this rhythm can greatly enrich the musical language.

For example, “Autumn Song” from the cycle “Seasons” by P.I. Tchaikovsky. Syncopation in this work is the seed from which the melody grows, maintaining the rhythm of “doubt”. Or P.I. Tchaikovsky's waltz in E-flat major: the tempo of the work is faster than in the previous version, so the syncopation conveys excitement and timid dreaminess. The role of syncopated rhythms in modern music will increase even more.

Such a mysterious swing

What is swing, and how does it differ from other rhythmic matrices? The name is derived from English word(literally translated - “swaying”). He became known thanks to the development of jazz music, in turn, jazz is the harmonious development and transformation of spirituals (the composition “Let's Return with Jesus” is very illustrative, but not performed by academic choirs).

It is worth noting that the “characteristic swaying” of the rhythmic pattern of Negro chants is persistently preserved in modern jazz creativity. To imagine the sound of swing, it is enough to imagine that the first of each pair of sounds played is played longer than the second, which is perceived by ear as a triplet. Since swing is a rhythmic matrix, the influence of tempo on its characterological features is also great. This is a fast, uncompromising version of Michael Buble's Spiderman Theme, and a soulful, one might say, “confessional” swing of Nina Simone - Feeling Good.

And such famous swing performers as Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington are able to convince the listener that the well-known composition “Caravan” cannot exist outside of swing.

It should be noted that swing is not something out of the ordinary, and as an example - the inimitable Louis Armstrong in the composition Go Down Moses. Rhythm in modern music is not limited only to the bottom matrix, it is multifaceted, and often the experiments of composers take on unimaginable reliefs.

Special rhythmic figures, like lace decoration in music

Special rhythmic figures include triplets, quartos, quintoles, etc. They come from dividing one share into an arbitrary number (3,4,5,6,7) of equal parts. In terms of playing time, these groups do not differ from the divided beat and have only one accent (this is always the first sound in the group).

The musical fabric acquires special color and atmosphere when several rhythmic figures are simultaneously played, which was masterfully used by George Enescu in the work “Romanian Rhapsody” in A major. However, we must not forget the role tempo plays in the perception of rhythm. The rhapsody uses tempos from moderate to fast, which colors the work in playful, sparkling, mesmerizing shades. The pianist and composer Ference Liszt (Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2, for example) masterfully used various rhythmic delights in his works.

As for slow and moderate tempos in the use of special rhythmic patterns and timing in music, in this case I would like to mention Frederic Chopin and his unsurpassed Nocturnes. For the Polish composer, rhythm in music is one of the main means of expression. The famous “Nocturne in A-flat major” is a vivid illustration of this statement.

Artistic colors of rhythm

It is quite obvious that rhythm is closely related to tempo, melody, and dynamics. However, it cannot be denied that rhythm in music is the fundamental principle and connecting thread between other expressive components.

A variety of rhythmic matrices, borrowed from previous generations, reigns in modern music. And it doesn’t matter what nationality the composer is, what rhythms and styles he prefers to use in his compositions - the valuable thing is that he communicates with the listener in a language he understands, describes familiar experiences and feelings.

Today in the Russian language there are a lot of concepts that are worth becoming familiar with. In this article we will talk about what rhythm is and what symbols are associated with it. There are a lot of definitions from different sources, but they all have the same meaning. Let's take a closer look at all the features of rhythm and give it a designation. The word "rhythm" today has several meanings, these are:

• Rhythm of life.
• Musical rhythm.
• Poetic rhythm.
• Biorhythm.

General concepts of rhythm

The word “rhythm” comes to us from the Greek language, where Rhytmos means regularity, consistency. We are accustomed to understanding rhythm as something measured, a natural alternation of certain elements, for example, movements, sounds.

Also with the help of rhythm we determine:

• Respiration rate.
• Change of season.
• Heartbeat.
• Pendulum swing and much more.

First of all, when we hear the word “rhythm”, music, dance and melodies appear in our minds. Musical rhythm is the alternation of long and short sounds in a certain order. When learning or composing this or that melody, musicians always pay attention to the rhythm. To do this, they can use a special device, a metronome. Music is characterized by its own rhythms, and they are completely different from the rhythms of life, movements and other things.

Rhythm in versification

Poetry has its own rhythms; here we can note such rhythmic units as:

• A line or phrase.
• Stop.
• Syllable.

There are also a lot of rhythms in nature, because our life consists of them. Rhythm can be called the change of day and night, the change of season or time. The human biorhythm is associated with natural rhythms. Many people are active during the day, but at night passivity predominates. It is not possible to judge general biorhythms, because they are strictly individual for each person. All this is connected with physiological processes. Each human biorhythm affects the activity, endurance and general condition of a person.

Each rhythm of life is determined by the way and way of life of a person. If a person is characterized by increased activity at night and passivity during the day, then his biorhythm is completely different from a person who is awake during the day. If you learn to determine your biorhythms correctly, you can improve your quality of life.

Form various rhythmic figures, which make up the total rhythmic pattern musical work. This rhythmic pattern is rhythm.

Rhythm is not tied to any absolute units of time; only relative note durations are specified in it (this note sounds 2 times longer than that one, and this one sounds 4 times shorter, etc.).

Rhythm, meter and tempo: differences

Graph paper

Rhythm, meter And pace- the concepts are different.

The meter defines a coordinate grid of strong and weak beats with equal distances between the beats. It can be imagined as graph paper, on which the smallest cell of the thinnest lines is the minimum duration in the work, thicker lines indicate beats, even thicker lines indicate relatively strong beats, and the thickest lines indicate strong beats.

Along the lines of this grid, you can draw rhythmic figures from segments of different lengths (notes of different durations). The figures may be completely different, but they will all be based on the lines of this grid.

The duration of notes can be specified in relative units (smallest cells): this sound is a segment 4 cells long, and this one is 2. These ratios will not change with changing the scale of the grid. The sequence of alternation of such segments is rhythm.

You can scale this grid using tempo, making the distances between lines longer or shorter. On a scale of “1 cell = 1 second,” the sound time of a note 2 cells long will be equal to 2 seconds. When the scale is reduced (the tempo is increased) by 2 times, the duration of the note in the same 2 segments will already be equal to 1 second.

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What is rhythm in music? We study and master rhythm.

Rhythm is a fundamental element in the performance of a piece of music. In this case, we can talk about the independence of rhythm from melody. Thus, each person could observe around him thousands of examples of separate existence, from the beating of the heart to percussion instruments that do not have a pitch component. There can practically be no melody without rhythm.

Regardless of the degree of professionalism, every musician must take into account the basics of rhythm, know specific terminology, and also be able to reproduce a piece or musical fragment in the proposed rhythm. This page explains the basic concepts and terminology necessary for practice.

Rhythm, duration and pauses

Let's look at what it is rhythm. A musical term represents a clear organization of music in time space. A structure is formed from a sequence of durations and pauses. The table shows the durations, as well as their designation.

Duration name	Notation when recording		Number of accountsfor one duration
	On the staff	Outside the staff
Whole			1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and
Half			1 and 2 and
Quarter			1 and
Eighth		or
Sixteenth		or	Half an eighth

There is a special table showing the relationship between the durations.

It is worth understanding such a concept as pause in musical rhythm. A pause is a period of time in music that is filled with silence. There are the following pause sizes:

1. A whole pause. The duration is equal to a whole note. Indicated by a black, filled rectangle above the third line of the staff.
2. Half pause. Equal to a half note. It is indicated by a black rectangle located on the third line of the staff.
3. A quarter rest is equivalent to a quarter. It is indicated figuratively on almost the entire staff.
4. The eighth pause is similar in duration to the eighth. The designation resembles capital letter"h".
5. The sixteenth pause is equal to the corresponding note. The length in the letter is similar to the previous one, the difference is that the tail is doubled.

It should be noted that some musicians perceive pauses as stops, as a result of which they stray from the general rhythmic outline. A pause is a sign of silence that plays a big role in the work. It is strongly recommended not to eat up pauses at the expense of another preceding note, lengthening its duration. Otherwise, the musical idea is lost. It is especially important to take this principle into account when playing in an orchestra, ensemble or group. After all, if pauses are not taken into account, then the sounds will overlap each other, creating a cacophony.

Basic terminology

Rhythm in professional music cannot do without such concepts as beat, meter, tempo and size.

• Meter represents a uniform alternation of accents in a piece of music.
• Tact is a unit of measurement of the meter, which is counted in notes or rests. In four-quarter time, the first note in a bar is a strong beat, the second is a weak beat, the third is relatively strong, and the fourth is weak. The measures are separated by a line. The work closes with a double bar.

• Size- two numbers, located one above the other, standing at the beginning of the staff. The top number shows the number of durations in a bar, and the bottom number shows which duration predominates. The designation is located after the key and key characters. It is noteworthy that the indicator is duplicated only once at the beginning of the work; on the following lines there is no need to indicate the size again. The exception is changing to a new one.

The picture shows the size 4/4 (four quarters)

Specifying quarter notes does not mean that only duration data will be used in the measure. Durations of different sizes can be used, but their sum should not exceed the size. Let's look at correct and incorrect examples.

It is worth considering that sizes can be simple, complex, mixed and variable.

The first simple group includes mainly two or three-beat sizes, in which there is only one emphasis on the strong beat. The most common sizes are two quarters, two half, two eighths, three quarters, three eighths and three half.

Complex meters appear when two simple ones merge; usually they have, in addition to the main emphasis on the strong beat, an additional relative one. IN this group includes: four quarters, six eighths, twelve eighths, six quarters, etc.

Mixed people constitute a special category. They are formed from the connection of several simple unequal sizes with each other. The group includes units such as five quarters, five eighths, as well as seven quarters and seven eighths.

Variable meter is characteristic primarily of folk music, primarily of Russian folk song. A striking example is the song “Vanya was sitting.”

The popular four-quarter size is depicted as a capital letter C, so do not be intimidated by this designation.

• Pace is a musical characteristic that determines the speed of performance of a musical instrument. Usually the tempo is placed at the beginning of the piece above the staff, and is written in Italian. There are three groups of slow, moderate and fast tempo designations. Depending on the value set, the piece may sound different. Usually the tempo is set on a special device called a metronome. How more value, the faster the tempo will be.

Additional signs

There are some notation signs that actively participate in the formation of rhythm. If two notes located at the same pitch level are linked, this means that the first sound must be maintained for the total amount of time. This is usually required to maintain grouping in complex sizes.

For example, let's take the size four quarters. It is complex and has one strong accent on the first beat, and one relatively strong one on the third beat. Thus, there should be notes on the first and third beats of the bar. To record the quarter, half and quarter rhythm, you must follow the basic grouping rules.

So if there is a dot after a note, then this increases its sound by exactly half. For example, a quarter note with a dot is equal in sound to a quarter note with an eighth note.

Often duration with a dot goes along with such a concept as dotted rhythm. The term denotes a rhythmic figure consisting of a duration with a dot and its logical conclusion. So the most common variations are dotted quarter and eighth, dotted eighth and sixteenth. Let's look at a musical example.

As you can see from the image, the dotted rhythm is used mainly on strong or relatively strong beats of the bar.

Another additional sign can be called fermata.

This musical sign indicates that the performer can sustain the note marked fermata for an unlimited amount of time.

Basic systems of rhythmic syllables

There is a special system of rhythmic syllables that helps in practice to learn how to correctly reproduce various durations. This system was invented in Hungary in the last century and is actively used in music schools in the first years of music education, when the rhythmic foundation is laid. So, there are the following rhythmology:

• Whole - Ta-a-a-a
• Half - Ta-a
• Quarter – Ta
• Eighth – Tee
• 2 sixteenth notes – Ti-ri
• Dotted rhythm: dotted quarter note and eighth note - ta-ai - ti.

Special rhythm syllables have also been developed to determine pauses:

• Whole - Pa-u-uz.
• Half - Pa-a
• Quarter note – Pa
• Eighth - pi

This perception of durations allows you to master even complex rhythmic figures several times faster and learn to quickly sight-read musical works.

Exercise No. 1. Mastering rhythmic syllables

Sing the melody in the suggested rhythm, using rhythm syllables.

Compare with the answer below:

Tips for quickly mastering rhythm and exercises

1. Daily practice. No matter how trivial it may be, but daily practice can lead you to good results. It is necessary to work on the rhythm for about half an hour a day to achieve a solid base.
2. The first time you should use a metronome. Tap the suggested rhythm on the table or piano lid. Set a slow tempo at first, from 40 to 60 beats, then move on to a more active tempo. Try to hit the strong beats straight away.
3. Use the rhythm syllable system.

It is worth considering that when playing the piano, two hands are involved in the work. In this case, the rhythm in each of the hands can be different; in order to work out the technique in advance, you need to do special exercises.

Exercises for alternately involving the right and left hands, creating a roll call. The top line is for the right hand, the bottom line is for the left. You need to tap the rhythm at an average tempo, at which you will not make mistakes. If errors or stops occur, you need to switch to a slower pace. You can tap on a table or on the top of a piano under a metronome.

№1

№2

More complex exercises are those in which rhythmic figures are beaten simultaneously with both hands.

№1

№2

If you want more exercises, we recommend that you get acquainted with Olga Berak’s textbook “School of Rhythm”. The manual is divided into several parts according to size. First there are two-lobed sizes, then there are three-lobed sizes.

Programs for self-control in studying

If a person tries to independently master the rhythm without professional help, then he needs to carry out control, which is achieved with the help of modern technologies. Exist special programs, in which you can test your own knowledge of rhythm.

Absolute pitch 2

This program has developed a special section “Rhythm”, in which you can find the following sections for mastering rhythmic figures:

• Theory. The category provides minimal basic information regarding rhythm, and you can also listen to how various durations sound over time.
• Reading. Using the metronome built into the application, you need to tap out the rhythm recorded above, without making mistakes.
• Dictation. It is necessary to correctly record the rhythmic pattern that you heard.
• Imitation. After listening to the rhythmic figures, you need to write them down correctly.

Each of the above sections has additional subdivisions into specific rhythmic figures. This allows for rhythmic perfection.

It is worth noting that there are a huge number of electronic metronomes on the Internet, which are in no way inferior to their real counterparts. They are quite easy to set up, and each person can independently tap out the rhythm in which he is going to perform a piece or piece of music.

On this page we introduced the basic terminology that will be useful to a beginning musician, and also gave the necessary exercises and recommendations for mastering the topic. The material will help you better understand the musical text, as well as quickly navigate and more accurately reproduce musical notation.

The temporal organization of music is one of the most changeable elements of music. The existence of rhythm in music allows us to draw analogies with other forms of art that use important element expressiveness.
Poetry played a major role in the formation of concepts and definitions of the rhythmic organization of music. For classical theory The meter is characterized by the use of definitions borrowed from the theory of versification. For example, the rhythmic organization of motives is represented in the form of iambic, trochee and amphibrach.
This interweaving of concepts is not accidental and arises from the need to somehow organize the most mysterious thing in the universe - time.
Unlike other elements (, etc.), the temporal organization of music has been studied very little and the knowledge that we can use to develop our musical abilities is conditional. This knowledge can only be used at the initial stage of training as an aid in mastering real, live music.
Usually time in music is represented by 4 main categories

You can also add to this list such a concept as agogics (from the Greek withdrawal, deviation) - slowdowns and accelerations that help reveal the meaning.
Each of these time categories is implemented differently in different styles of music. For example, in early jazz, meter did not play a big role, and the main importance was attached to a variety of rhythms and accents. In progressive rock and avant-garde, another trend can be found: the strengthening of the role of meter with
What is rhythm from a musical point of view?
Musical rhythm- this is the temporal and accentuated side of melody, harmony, texture, thematicity and all other elements of musical language. The word rhythm itself comes from the Greek word flow.

An important condition for understanding rhythm is the fact that the existence of rhythm is impossible separately from other elements of the musical fabric, such as harmony, etc. (except for percussion instruments, although there is texture there too).
Rhythm in music manifests itself both at the level of small units (durations) and at the level of large ones (parts of a form or a multi-part work).
There are two large systems of rhythm division that have become established in modern music:

1. Binary (binary)
2. Trinity
3. Special types of rhythmic division

I considered the binary, ternary, and division by 5 systems.
An interesting fact is that in the early days of the rhythmic division system, the norm was a division system of three, not two. Then binary supplanted trinity, and then they became equal.
Dividing system by 5, 7, 9, etc. was initially viewed as exotic and was used more intuitively than consciously (another confirmation of this is the formation of “non-transcribed” rhythms in the improvisations of modern masters). However, they gradually became a standard way to add variety to rhythmic figures.
Important elements characterizing rhythm are also: proportionality and repetition.
Commensurability of durations- a relative concept, depending on proximity or distance individual sounds according to their temporal significance. Thus, we can talk about the proximity or commensurability of a quarter and an eighth, a quarter and a half, a half and an eighth, all of them together with each other. It is much more difficult to talk about commensurability in the auditory perception of sixty-fourth and whole durations. That is, the commensurability must be “correct,” otherwise the result will be arrhythmic music (more on this in a separate article).

Try to imagine alternating a whole and a thirty-second. Hearing will not be able to organize a given rhythmic figure, since when perceiving rhythm it relies on repetition.
Of course, meter also plays a big role, since repetition may or may not coincide with it.

Durations longer than whole
In modern music, the standard of rhythm is whole duration, since its division gives all the others. However, what is often overlooked is the relativity of any type of duration. A whole note can last as long as an eighth note at a certain tempo. Conventionality in the designation of durations and reliance on the whole is a system that was formed not so long ago, but is very popular because it allows you to very quickly understand and structure a large number of rhythms without having to delve into the jungle. Durations such as longs and brevises (equal to two and four wholes) only complicate the perception and understanding of rhythm. As a rule, in a work 16 (18) multiple division is the maximum that is technically accessible to most performers, for this reason the use of large durations makes no sense.
Although mathematically there are an innumerable number of rhythmic figures, in practice they are usually formed in accordance with certain laws of internal organization.
What is rhythm organization?
Let's take two examples:

If you clap the first and second, you can easily notice that the first is much easier to perceive, since it has a certain periodicity in the alternation of long and short durations.
Thus, musical rhythm is made up of interconnected elements such as: repetition, organization, commensurability, etc.