Four On The Floor Polyrythm

12 years ago i discovered polyrhythm online via a steve vai article titled tempomental.

Four on the floor polyrythm.

The right hand on the small floor tom voices the five layer starting between the first and second quintuplet partials and the left hand voices the two layer between the second and third quintuplets of each beat. Https bit ly 2zfwzoo if you re curious what polyrhythm sounds like you can skip to the example at 13 02. The four on the floor mindset can be difficult to escape but every musician and composer can benefit from a study of rhythm that includes a wider variety of time signatures and rhythms. For demonstration purposes we notated the basic pulse on the bass drum line from the sheet music below.

Adding one beat to each of the above we get a 4 3 polyrhythm. Audio example of 4 3 polyrhythm. Example 5 features a two measure quarter note beat followed by the polyrhythmic groove from example 3. This pattern represents a 2 against 3 polyrhythm but on a larger scale.

I just made a detailed and fast paced video on how this rhythm works and how we can practice it both ways by treating the 3 beat as dominant or the 4 beat as dominant. Use y as the number of counts over which you ll play the polyrhythm before its various rhythms line up on the following count 1. So when you add the hands and feet together you will get two different layers of polyrhythms happening at the same time. It s best to practice it again with a metronome using an exercise such as this one.

This will help you to embody precise rhythmic control. A rhythm is the reoccurrence of a beat and a polyrhythm is the combination of two or more rhythms. For example 3 evenly spaced beats against 2 4 against 3 and 5 against 3 are common polyrhythms but 4 against 2 is not because two divides four. Notice that each hand changes direction on the beat.

It blew my mind out and since then i ve spent a lot more time with the topic. While the hihat is only playing beats 2 4 the bass drum is playing dotted quarter notes in a cycle that last 3 measures of 4 4 time. 4 over 3 polyrhythm metronome the metronome is a mechanical or electrical instrument that makes repeated clicking sounds at an adjustable pace used for marking rhythm especially in practicing music. In a polyrhythm one reoccurring rhythm should not derive from the other.

But here is the clever bit. Since on a 3 over 4 polyrhythm y is 4 the polyrhythm will have to be played over four counts. Again practice with the metronome and eventually reverse hands playing 4 in the right against 3 in. The polyrhythm is played between an alternate small floor tom and a medium rack tom.

The next common polyrhythm is 3 against 4.