Unit 1 - Rhythm and Time

Unit 1: RHYTHM AND TIME

This unit will focus on some of the fundamental aspects of making music. The Science of Sound, how music is organized in time, keeping a steady beat, and how to transcribe rhythms that you hear will all be addressed during this unit.

The Science of Sound

In order to better understand sound and how it functions. We will begin this unit by researching the Science of how sound works.

Music Tech 101

ASSIGNMENT #1 QUIZ: THE SCIENCE OF SOUND - CLICK HERE FOR THE QUIZ

Organization of Musical Time

Music is organized in a variety of ways. The definitions and document below will be a great way to understand how music decorates time

- Beat - the pulse of the music
  1. Metronome: A device that plays a steady beat. We will practice keeping a beat with a metronome later.
  2. Tempo: Speed of the beat, measured in BPM (beats per minute).
- Meter
  1. Measure - group of beats
  2. Time signature - written as a fraction, tells us the number of beats and what type of note gets the beat.
- Subdivision
  1. Down beats - strong beats
  2. Subdivision - weak beats
- Rhythm
  1. Attack - beginning of the note
  2. Sustain - duration of the note
  3. Release - end of the note
  4. Rest - silence
  5. Syncopated - attack is on the upbeat or weak beat

organization+of+musical+time+.pdf

Document provided by The Shed

ASSIGNMENT #2 - Vocabulary Quiz - Here is the QUIZ

Steady Beat Test

Watch the video and perform the steady beat test! This will be a grade later, but you can practice as much as you want.

ASSIGNMENT #3 - For this grade you must perform the steady beat test by yourself for the instructor!

Steady Beat Test — The Shed

Steady Beat Practice

Tap the beat either by patting your leg with your hand or tapping your toe. This will first be done with a metronome.

Practice keeping a steady beat with the following VIDEO.

Steady Beat Practice

Use the video below to practice saying beats in time. This video doesn't have any drums playing so it will force you to listen closely to find the beat.

Mute Master - GAME

This activity is similar to musical chairs and is a great way to practice steady beat.

Pick a student to be the mute master.
Select pop/rock/country or any other popular music that has a steady beat.
Other students are instructed to keep a steady beat by patting their leg or tapping their toe.
After hitting play, the mute master will turn the volume off suddenly whenever they desire.
Other students should try to keep tapping the beat to see if they are in time with the music when the volume is turned back on.

Backbeat

Another great way to practice keeping a beat is by tapping the backbeat. The snare drum is normally the instrument on the drums that would play the backbeat.

In a measure with 4 beats, the back beat would be hit or tapped on beat 2 and 4
Listen to any song with a steady beat and practice tapping or clapping on beat 2 and 4

Subdivision

An equal division of the beat. Rhythms are all made from the same basic notes. The appearance of a note determines the length or value of that notes

Types of Subdivisions

Eighth Note

Division of 2

1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +

Divides the beat into two equal halves. Practice counting eighth notes while tapping your foot to the beat. The beat happens when your toes hit the ground and the "and" of the beat is when your toes go up.

Eighth Note Triplet

Division of 3

1 pl et 2 pl et 3 pl et 4 pl et

Divides the beat into 3 equal parts. This division can be difficult to feel evenly. Practice counting eighth notes while tapping your foot to the beat. The beat happens when your toes hit the ground and the "and" of the beat is when your toes go up.

Sixteenth Note

Division of 4

1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a

Divides the beat into 4 equal parts. This division can be difficult to feel evenly. Practice counting eighth notes while tapping your foot to the beat. The beat happens when your toes hit the ground and the "and" of the beat is when your toes go up.

Subdivision Practice

Practice subdivisions with the following 3 videos from The Shed

subdivision workout numbers — The Shed

Subdivision Assessment

This video will be used as an assessment of your ability to subdivide the beat. Practice as a group or alone, we will complete the test later on assignment #4

Subdivision Assessment — The Shed

Ear Training

Actively listen to the following songs and answer the questions for each

What subdivisions do you hear?
What subdivisions match up with the rappers flow?

Practice

Use the following subdivision workout sheet to practice saying subdivisions along with a backing track or metronome.

Subdivision practice.pdf

Subdivision Assessment — The Shed

Subdivision Assessment

Practice the following video as needed before completing the assessment on your own for a grade

ASSIGNMENT #4 - For this grade you must perform the subdivision assessment by yourself for the instructor!

Create your own subdivisions

Using the subdivisions we have discussed, write out your own subdivisions for the class to perform together. We will use the following backing track.

ASSIGNMENT #5 - You will be writing out your own subdivisions to for the whole class to practice. Write down or type out an 8 measure subdivision using the numbering system from The Shed.

Beat maps

Reading a Beat map

The following video from The Shed is a great representation of how to read a beat map. Follow the instructions on the video.

Beat Map Reading — The Shed

Beat Map Reading Examples

Use the following PDF and a metronome to practice clapping or playing different rhythms. Do this at a slower tempo and a faster tempo.

Beat+Map+Examples.pdf

Rhythmic Transcription

Rhythmic transcription is the ability to hear a piece of music and transcribe the rhythms that are within that piece of music. Listen to the following example from The Shed and get an understanding of how to transcribe rhythms. Use the beat map blanks to help write out the transcriptions.

ASSIGNMENT #6 - This grade will consist of transcribing all of the 3 recordings from The Shed. Printed copies of the rhythmic transcription blank will be provided, or you can download the PDF and edit the items.

Rhythmic+Transcription+Blank.pdf

Rhythmic Transcription — The Shed

Student Choice Rhythmic Transcription

Each student will find a popular song to transcribe the rhythm for. This song music be appropriate and we will demonstrate the rhythmic transcription with the rest of the class when finished. Use the beat map blank from above to transcribe your rhythm!

ASSIGNMENT #7 - details listed above! You must do at least 4 measures for this assignment.

Setup your Soundtrap account

At the conclusion of this unit we will set up our Sountrap accounts that we will use for the rest of the year. Please go back to the Music Production main tab to watch that tutorial video.

Music Production

Free resources for this class were acquired from the following places:

https://shedthemusic.com/music-technology-1

https://www.alfred.com/music-tech-101/

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