Getting Rhythm

GETTING RHYTHM

Getting Rhythm makes up a 3rd of the three most important elements in music. The other two are melody and harmony. It’s important to
talk a little about what rhythm actually means. There are many
different definitions of what rhythm is. Getting Rhythm is most often
recognized as the main beat of a song.

Some people listen to different aspects of music. For example
someone might hear the bass in a song, or someone might only hear
the guitar. If there is a singer, then that’s usually what most
people will hear first. Because I am a pianist, when I listen to
music I hear the piano, if there is one. Some people like to
listen to the beat or the rhythm of any song they listen to.

When you dance to music you’ll be dancing to the beat of the song.
So even if don’t know it you are dancing to the rhythm of the song.
The rhythm of music is the beat behind the music that you might not
always immediately notice. However this is what drives you to move
your body or tap your foot when you listen to a song.

The instruments that are used to make the beat and create rhythm
are called percussion instruments. There is actually a huge
variety of these instruments but the most common of all percussion
instruments is the drum kit. The drum kit is used most often in
popular music but you can see it everywhere. When someone is
studying rhythm they usually start on a drum kit and then from
there they might specialize.

There are different types of rhythm. You sometimes may hear
someone talking about western rhythms and eastern rhythms. What
they are talking about has to do with what kind of percussion
instruments that are being used and the kinds of rhythmical
patterns.

Rhythmical patterns refer to the way a beat is played and what kind
of variation might occur in the beat. Where the instruments and
rhythmical pattern originate from is usually what defines a rhythm
in this context. Western rhythms are usually American or European
and Eastern rhythms are usually Middle Eastern or Asian. African
rhythms are often talked about also and like the others African
rhythms have unique aspects to it.

Learning rhythm is very important and when it comes to playing in a
band situation or anytime you’re playing with other musician’s
rhythm become especially critical. This is because when everyone’s
playing together the instruments won’t match up and the music won’t
sound good if everyone doesn’t play the same rhythm. So as
pianists it’s important to learn some of the principles of rhythm
and learn to play in time and play along to a beat. A piano uses
rhythm as well as harmony and melody. In this respect piano is
quite unique. Many instruments are usually confined to only one or
two of these aspects.

Learning to play the piano is not a small undertaking. Factor
rhythm into to your practice and think about beat that would go
behind what you are playing. Imagine a drummer playing along with
you keeping time and helping with the rhythm of the song. This will
go a long way to improving your playing.

 Mail this post