Polyrhythm polymetrik BANDCOACH

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suchenderxxx

New member
Hello members and hello Bandcoach,

maybe some1 from you can show me how Polyrhythm and polymetrik is working? Is this a common technique used in hip hop? I would like to learn more about it but i dont understand the terms 5/8 or 8/12 or 3/4 can some1 explain it to me?

Thanks
 
Poly- is a Latin root word many meaning many or different

Rhythm means the combination of durations including sounds and silences into repeatable ideas.

Meter means the grouping of durations into measures or bars of the same length (same total number of durations or beats)

So

Poly-rhythm many rhythms at the same time. This can include cross-rhythms, which are a special case of poly-meter in that they shift between simple and compound meter whilst maintaining a single time signature.

Poly-meter many meters at the same time.

Time signatures indicate two key aspects of metrical and durational structure.

  • How many in the grouping
  • What type of beat is the base value

We can have any number on the top part of a time signature. We are generally limited to the following numbers on the bottom of a time signature:
1 - the whole note or semi-breve
2 - the half note or minim
4 - the quarter note or crotchet
8 - the 8th note or quaver
16 - the 16th note or semi-quaver
32 - the 32nd note or demi-semi-quaver
64 - the 64th note or hemi-demi-semi-quaver
128 - the 128th note or semi-hemi-demi-semi-quaver

We generally only see 2, 4 or 8 as the bottom number in pop music.

All meters can be classified as being one of Duple (2) or Triple (3) or Quadruple (4) or asymmetrical combinations of Duple and Triple time (can be broken into sub-groups of 2's and 3's).

We also have what are referred to as Simple meters and Compound meters.

A Simple meter divides the beat into two even parts and all subsequent sub-divisions are also factors of 2.

A Compound meter divides the beat into three even parts initially and then subdivides each of these by factors of 2.

This suggest that the beats for Simple and Compound meters are different, which they are.

Simple meters have the beat as a simple duration.

Compound meters have the beat as a dotted duration.

So a Simple Quadruple meter is

4
4

The beat is the quarter note/crotchet and is divided into 2 equal 8ths/quavers and so on.

A Compound Quadruple meter is

12
8

The beat is the dotted quarter note/dotted crotchet and is divided into 3 equal 8ths/quavers and then in to 2 equal 16ths/semi-quavers and so on.


I'll come back in the morning with some musical and notational examples.
 
thank you for your answer. will read it in the evening and start experimenting. some examples would be great, so i can visually see how this works.

one question, if i get it right, so its always one part a triplet rhythm in the polyrhythm? or i am wrong?


thanks again!
 
There are no prerequisites in what can and can't be used in a poly-rhythm, so triplets are not necessarily part of a poly-rhythm - they may be, but they do not have to be.
 
Bandcoach thank you

THANK YOU BANCOACH

i got it now. my gf is playing bass and accordian for years and after she read your post she could show me what you have posted. And i got it now!

You Doing great Job here! And are one of the people here they have great knowledge!

Cheers
 
Welcome....

Now some examples of polyrhythm

Here is a small drumline playing a polyrhythmic idea - the idea can be heard by listening to all parts, not just one.

[mp3]http://www.bandcoach.org/fp/audio/polyrhythmsDrums.mp3[/mp3]


Now the same rhythms but applied to the start of Wind Quintet

[mp3]http://www.bandcoach.org/fp/audio/polyrhythms.mp3[/mp3]

If you follow each part through you can see that it has a different rhythmic line, even though some of the ideas are duplicated for musical unity in the Flute and Oboe lines.

polyrhythmsConcert.png


Finally the drums and wind quintet together.

[mp3]http://www.bandcoach.org/fp/audio/polyrhythmsJoint.mp3[/mp3]
 
Forgive my Ignorance But:
I alawys thought PolyRythm's was a term invented by Frank Zappa.
Where 2 musical parts are played and the way the notes interact produces a dominant Line that is not actually played by either Part.
 
No, Zappa coined the term Xenochrony for that technique meaning strange synchrony. It is from an article he gave to guitar player or guitar world in the 70's/80's and is requoted in the liner notes for the three album set "Shut up and play yer guitar", "Shut and play yer guitar some more", "Return of the son of shut up n play yer guitar"
 
bandcoach said:
No, Zappa coined the term Xenochrony for that technique meaning strange synchrony. It is from an article he gave to guitar player or guitar world in the 70's/80's and is requoted in the liner notes for the three album set "Shut up and play yer guitar", "Shut and play yer guitar some more", "Return of the son of shut up n play yer guitar"
Click to expand...

Thanks
I think thats where I saw it.
At the time was just starting out as a musician and my Brothers mate who was a pretty good guitarist shoved a guitar magazine at me and said read this. At the time it was way over my head.
I'd like to reread the article as the therory behind it would make sense now.
 
Not much too it really, it was about taking different recordings of different instruments, possibly in different tempos, but definitely in different time signatures and combining them to make new works.

So a bassline in 11/8 against a keyboard in 3/4 against some brass lines in 4/4 and a guitar solo in 15/16 and some drums that are wandering between two or more time signatures like 5/8 and 7/8 might get joined together to make a new piece. What Zappa did say was that the polyrhythmic nature of such combinations made it more interesting than anything he could have deliberately set out to compose....
 
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