Episode 2 is about how to audiate and dictate pitched and non-pitched rhythmic patterns. Audiation is the ability to hear and comprehend music
Episode 2 is about how to audiate and dictate pitched and non-pitched rhythmic patterns. Audiation is the ability to hear and comprehend music (1:44) You need to develop your skills of reading patterns, and in addition to naming their individual values. We will practice rhythmic dictation, (3:45) while also addressing note values.(5:00)
Question of the day: What was significant about the order of rhythmic values listed in this podcast? (6:00)
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Hi and welcome to the APsolute Recap: Music Theory Edition. Today’s episode will recap Rhythmic Patterns
Lets Zoom out:
Unit #1 - Music Fundamentals
Topic - 1.8
Big idea - How to audiate and dictate pitched and non-pitched rhythmic patterns
We will review how to internalize rhythms through audiation and literacy. The majority of rhythmic figures found in music for this course include whole, dotted half, half, dotted quarter, quarter, eighth, sixteen notes and their corresponding rests. There are of course other figures not listed here. Their value in a measure will be determined by the time signature- but more on that later. You need to develop your skills of reading patterns, and in addition to naming their individual values.
Lets Zoom in:
You may be thinking, is this really a musician telling me I shouldn’t be as worried about naming note values in the beginning? Yes it is, and here is why you need to take this step first. Edwin Gordon and John Feierabend, both renowned music pedagogues, would insist on rote before note learning. This means that you have internalized hundreds, if not thousands of musical patterns before seeing how they are notated. It is a method that can be a little trickier when you have already had exposure to reading and performing music, but immensely valuable to any musician of all levels. It is one of the best ways to become proficient in audiation. Remember, audiation is the ability to hear and comprehend music. This means that when you listen, you can picture how the notes would be written, the overall form or structure, or even which chords are being used for harmony.
Here’s a practice example on rote before note learning. I know this may seem really silly, but to hear the rhythm without analizing in any other way, I’m going to sheep it. Echo after me: (neutral syllable first) now I will use the Gordon rhythmic syllables: du-de du-de du-de du-de, du du du--. (second half of Hot cross buns) Now externalize the pattern by clapping and saying the pattern, I’ll go first. Next, clap and say the rhythm after I sing the song, just as we practiced. You just did the rhythm for the end of the folk song “Hot Cross Buns.” When I sing this section, imagine how the rhythmic notes may be written. You may want to look at the music at this point to see what rhythm it is, but you can also practice dictation by trying to write it down first. There is no focus yet on organizing into measures, but you can put bar lines in afterwards. Without even using staff paper, jot down what rhythmic pattern it could be. Here it is again in sheep formation__ Notice which parts may be similar, which may be held longer, and so on. The answer is 8 eighth notes, two quarter notes and a half note. Alternatively with a different tempo and time signature, you could have heard it as 8 quarter notes, two half notes, and a whole note. Keep in mind that du-de traditionally is linked with two eighth notes.
To do more exercises like this on your own, choose familiar and with help from a study partner, unfamiliar songs. Folk songs are free in the public domain, and great practice for the exam. To practice by yourself, try to think of a song you grew up singing, such as the Alphabet song. Luckily, you have had a significant amount of exposure to the song, and perhaps don’t remember how the rhythm could be written down. Challenge yourself by saying the rhythm through sheeping it, counting it or speaking rhythm syllables- again this is without looking at any notation. Listen, sing or clap small sections of the song as many times as you need to. Then, after exposure to the patterns in the music, either look at the notation to practice clapping and saying the rhythm, or try writing it down first as a practice dictation.
This may make Edwin Gordon roll over in his grave, but we can pretend you’ve paused the podcast and gone to work on your audiating exercises and are ready to learn note values and names. Let’s go over the values of rhythms in different time signatures. Take for example, the dotted quarter note would be one and a half beats in 4/4 time. A dotted quarter note can be subdivided into three eighth notes. Therefore if dotted quarter notes were to be in 6/8 time, then it would be three beats. Remember, for any dotted note, you take the original note value without the dot and add half of the at value.
To recap……
Rhythm patterns can include whole, dotted half, half, dotted quarter, quarter, eighth, sixteen notes and their corresponding rests. Their value depends on the time signature. Audition is the ability to hear and comprehend music. The practice you need to do to prepare for dictation quizzes in this course which includes the rote before note method.
Coming up next on the Apsolute RecAP COURSE Edition: Simple & Compound Beat Division
Today’s Question of the day is about rhythmic values.
Question: What was significant about the order of rhythmic values listed in this podcast?