Size in notes notation. Musical time signature

In this part of the book...

In this part, you will become familiar with what forms the basis of any music - rhythm. Here you will learn how to read various notes and pauses, understand how to count rhythm and determine musical meters, and become familiar with concepts such as tempo and dynamics. If music theory is new to you, then this is where you should start reading the book.

Chapter 4

Musical time signatures.
In this chapter...
> Staff
> Musical time signatures and how to determine them
>What is the difference between simple and complex dimensions
> What is tact

If you're afraid that you won't be able to figure out where you are in a long piece of music, then you have nothing to fear. The brilliant creators of musical notation also came up with a way to organize the avalanche of notes and pauses. Once you become familiar with the dimensions and structure of the staff, including the beats, all you have to do is learn how to keep time.

Meet the musical staff.

Notes and rests in music are written on rulers, which we call staves (or staves; you'll learn much more about staves and staves in Chapter 7). The staff consists of five parallel horizontal lines separated by four spaces (Fig. 4.1).

Treble and bass clefs

Notes and rests are written on the rulers and in the spaces of the staff. Which notes are located on specific lines and between them depends on which key is at the beginning of the staff. Take another look at Fig. 4.1. An elegant icon that vaguely resembles the Latin G is called a treble clef. On the right in Fig. 4.1 at the beginning of the camp there is an icon resembling the number 9, which is called the bass clef. The treble clef is for recording higher ones, and the bass clef is for recording lower ones. In music for some instruments, such as the piano, where both staves are used, the treble clef is drawn above the bass clef, resulting in a multi-line notation system, or piano stave. (In Chapter 7, you'll learn all about piano notation.)

Size designation

In musical notation, immediately after the key at the beginning of the staff, you will see two numbers located one above the other (three possible options are shown in Fig. 4.2).

Such a pair of numbers is called size, which, by the way, is the main character of this chapter. The size is set in order to tell the performer about two important things. S Number of counts in each measure. The top number in the time signature tells you the number of beats to be counted in each measure. If the top number is three, then there are three counts for each measure. S What share corresponds to one account. The bottom number in the time signature tells you how much time is on one count - most often it is an eighth or a fourth beat. If the bottom number is four, then one count is a quarter. If an eight is written below, then one count is equal to an eighth beat.

So you

A beat is the part of musical notation between two vertical lines, which cross the staff from the top to the bottom line. In musical notation, the measures come one after another, and the number of beats in each measure is determined by the top number in the notation of the musical signature. The first beat of each measure, on the count of "one", is strong. The top number in the time signature tells you how many beats there should be in a measure, as shown in Fig. 4.3.

As we found out in Chapters 2 and 3, when playing, keeping a constant count in your head is extremely important: the score determines the music that will be produced as a result. Correct counting is a key component in music. You must be so deeply imbued with the idea of ​​counting that you stop noticing how you count out fractions. Practice counting by beats - great way make sure you play the piece according to the rhythm the composer intended (see Chapter 2 for more on rhythms and counting).

The account according to the size resembles driving school. The instructor teaches you to constantly look at the road in front of you because your body (and the car) are moving where your gaze is directed. As you become an experienced driver, you don't even notice that your eyes are constantly focused on the stretch of road in front of you. When fiddling with the radio or talking to the person sitting next to you, you automatically concentrate on driving straight and not meandering all over the road - even if you are asked difficult questions or the disc refuses to be inserted into the player. The main thing is to train your consciousness, teach it to automatically follow the rhythm, and once you achieve this, you will no longer have to force yourself to count in your head - you will count automatically. There are two types of time signatures.
> Simple.
> Complex.

Simple sizes

Simple musical meters are easier to count, since the one-two count in a piece of music seems most natural to the listener and performer. A simple size does not satisfy four requirements.
1. Each score is divided into two equal components.
This rule is self-evident when applied to eighths and even smaller ones. In simple time, two eighths are always connected to each other by a crossbar called a rib, and the same goes for four sixteenths and eight thirty-seconds. (If you have two sixteenth notes and an eighth note that go on the same note, then those three notes are also connected by an edge.)
In other words, if there is more than one note on one count, then they are all always grouped together in such a way as to make up one count. In Fig. Figure 4.4 shows a diagram of the grouping of notes in a simple meter.
2. A note that goes on one count must be a note without dots.
When counting the rhythm of a song to yourself, you should count only the notes without dots, which can be divided into two equal durations. Usually this means quarters, but sometimes they can be half, whole or eighths. For example, in 4/4 time, silently counting the bar, you count: “One two three four” over and over, and in 3/4 time you count: “One two three, one two three.” If the size is 2/4, you need to count “one two”.
3. The top number is not divisible by 3 unless it is 3.
For example, 3/4 and 3/8 are considered simple time signatures, while 6/4,6/8 and 9/16 are considered complex time signatures. 4. The number of beats in each measure is the same.
All measures of the piece in simple time contain same number shares Once you get a feel for the time signature, you don't have to worry anymore: just make sure you play the notes rhythmically.

Measures and counting in simple time signature

Measures are designed specifically to help performers keep track of where they are in the piece and play in the correct time signature. In simple meter, it is in the bars that you can feel the true rhythm of the piece, even if you are just looking at the notation without playing the notes. In simple meter, the strong beat is always the first beat of each measure. This means that when you see a line like the one shown in Fig. 4.5, the rhythm is counted as follows: ONE two three four ONE two three four ONE two three four.

Recall that the bottom number 4 says that there are quarter beats per beat, and the top number 4 says that there are four counts in each measure - or four (and only four!) quarter beats.
Here are three examples of common simple sizes.
>>> 4/4 (four quarters). Widely used in popular classical music, rock music, jazz, country, as well as in styles such as blue grass, hip hop and house.
>>> 3/4 (three quarters). Used primarily in waltzes, but also in Western European and country ballads.
>>> 2/4 (two quarters). Used in polkas and marches
Instead of writing 4/4, some composers use the letter C to denote this meter. So if you see a C in place of the meter, then the piece is written in 4/4 time.
If the piece is 3/4 in size, as shown in Fig. 4.6, then you need to calculate it like this:

Now attention! If the time signature is 3/8, then one count corresponds to an eighth beat, as shown in Fig. 4.7.

Count the rhythm of the musical fragment shown in Fig. 4.8, you need this: ONE two three ONE two three ONE two three.
3/8 and 3/4 have almost the same rhythmic structure (in terms of rhythm counting), but since 3/8 features eighths rather than fourths, a piece in 3/8 must be played twice as fast as the pieces by 3/4, since an eighth beat is equal to half the duration of a quarter.
If the size is 2/2, then a half share goes to one count. And since the top number shows that the number of counts in a measure is two, there will be two half beats in each measure, as shown in Fig. 4.8.

Calculate the musical fragment shown in Fig. 4.8, you need this: ONE and TWO.
Meters with a "numerator" of 2 were widely used in medieval and even earlier music. The music of those times used a rhythmic structure called "minim", based on the rhythm of the human heart.

Learning to count in simple time

In this section, you can practice counting the rhythm (rather than reading the notes) shown in Fig. 4.9-4.13. When counting out loud, do not forget to stress the first beat.

Complex dimensions

Complex musical time signatures, as you might guess, are a little trickier than simple ones. Here short list rules that help you instantly determine whether a size is difficult.
1. The top number, if it is greater than three, is divisible by three.
Any size whose top number is 6,9,12,15, etc. is difficult. 3/4 and 3/8 are not compound time signatures because the top number is 3. The most common compound time signatures are 6/8, 9/8, and 12/8. See fig. 4.14, which shows an example of a complex size.

>>> 2. A quarter with a dot or three eighths will be included in one count.
>>>3. Each account is divided into three components.
Again, everything becomes obvious when we're talking about about eighths and smaller beats. In simple size there are two eighths and even quantities Sixteenth beats (2 or 4) are always connected by edges. In a complex measure, three eighths or six sixteenths are connected by ribs.
In Fig. Figure 4.15 shows a grouping of notes with a "base" of three, which is used in a compound time signature.

Measures and counting in complex time signature

The only significant difference between works written in simple and complex meters is that they sound differently, and this is felt by both the listener and the performer.
In a complex measure, not only the first beat of each measure is strong, as in a simple measure - a slightly weaker emphasis is also placed on each subsequent beat of the metronome. Thus, in each bar of a piece in 6/8 there are two clearly accented beats, in 9/8 there are three accented beats, in 12/8 there are four.
Two examples of complex musical meters.
>>> Time signature 6/8 is used in fast waltzes and Latin music of Mexican "mariachos".
>>>12/8 is used in 12-bar blues and doo-wop.
To determine the number of accented notes in each measure of a complex time signature, divide the top number by three. This will help you determine the tempo rhythm music performed and thus learn how to place accents. For example, in a piece in 6/8, you need to emphasize the first beat of each! long bar, but at the same time it is also slightly accentuated by the second group of eighths in the bar, as shown in Fig. 4.16.

So, the placement of accents in Fig. 4.16 will look like this: ONE two three FOUR five six ONE two three FOUR five six. If the size looks scary, such as 9/4, as shown in fig. 4.17, then you need to count the time signature (not notes!) like this:

Rhythm in simple meters piece of music can be broken down into two-part segments. In complex meters, the rhythm is divided into tripartite segments.

Learning to count in complex time

Using the examples in this section, you can practice counting the dimensions shown in Fig. 4.18-4.20. When counting out loud, remember to place a slight emphasis on the first beat and additional emphasis on the “pulse point,” which usually follows every third beat. (The added "-s" and capital letters are meant to emphasize the rhythmic pattern of some notes in the meter. We understand that this technique is not entirely scientific, but it will give you general idea about how to count beats in different sizes.)

Asymmetrical sizes

Asymmetrical meters (sometimes called compound or irregular) typically contain five or seven beats—as opposed to the traditional two-, three-, and four-part groupings of notes within measures that we have looked at so far.
Asymmetrical sizes are often found in traditional music different countries. They are widespread in both European and Eastern (in particular, Indian) popular and ethnic music.
When playing music in an asymmetrical meter, the score (and rhythm) sounds and feels slightly different than in music written in a simple or complex meter.
For example, in Fig. 4.21, the count is determined by the arrangement of the half beats in each measure, so that the emphasis is on the third beat in the first measure and on the fourth in the second.
In Fig. 4.22, the grouping of eighths shows where the accents should be placed - on the first eighth on each edge.
Music in 5/4, 5/8 and 5/16 time signatures is usually divided into two counts, either as two + three or three + two. The placement of accents does not have to be the same in all measures - only the number of beats in each measure is constant.

In Fig. 4-23 and 4.24 are shown musical phrases, written in sizes 7/4, 7/8 and 7/16. Remember that the emphasis changes from bar to bar.

It should be noted again that asymmetrical dimensions are considered irregular and difficult only from the point of view Western civilization. Irregular meters have been considered absolutely correct throughout the history of music throughout the world, including Ancient Greece and Persia; they can still be heard, for example in Bulgarian folk music. Many modern Western composers and groups - Steve Albini, Week, Dave Brubeck, June of 44, Andrew Lloyd Weber, Frank Zappa, Pink Floyd, Yo-Yo Ma, Bobby McFerrin and Stereolab - use asymmetrical time signatures in their music. An entire genre of rock music, the so-called "math rock", is built on the use of such composite time signatures as 7/8, 11/8, 13/8, etc., and its representatives strive to avoid the standard rock time signature 4/ 4.

The basis of the modern rhythmic system is the metrhythm. To understand this system great importance have such concepts as meter, beat and size.

Meter is a regular alternation of heavy and light (strong and weak) beats of equal duration.

The easiest way to understand meter is to pronounce a word. For example, if you pronounce the word music - music, you can hear that the accents are repeated at regular intervals. IN this word this interval is equal to three syllables mu-zy-ka_ mu-zy-ka. In music, this would be equivalent to a meter in three feet.

If you pronounce the word hand, the accents will be repeated after one syllable and a two-foot meter will be formed.

The emphasis on the first syllable is called the strong beat in music, and the rest are weak.

The distance from one strong beat to another is called a beat. Just as fractions of a meter, divided into strong and weak ones, form a beat, in turn, beats, thanks to the uniform alternation of heavy and light beats, can be combined into groups.

Meter, clock pulsation as a uniform system of time counting is in constant contradiction with phrasing, articulation, including mode-harmonic, linear sides, rhythmic and, and this contradiction is the norm in the music of the 17th-20th centuries.

Outside of metrical organization, rhythmic clarity cannot arise. The role of meter in rhythmic movement can be likened to the role of mode in pitch organization: strong beats correspond to the supporting, stable sounds of the mode, and weak beats and different durations of the rhythmic pattern correspond to unstable ones.

Just as a rhythmic pattern develops on the basis of a fret, a rhythmic pattern develops on the basis of a meter. Thus, meter and in music are practically inseparable from each other.


The top line is meter, the bottom line is meter.

The concept of meter is very close to the concept size. If the meter determines only bipartite or tripartite (I already wrote about this), then the size is a specification of the meter, that is, it connects the meter with a certain duration of the beats. Thus, the metrical base can be the same, but the duration of the beats can be different: they can be expressed in halves, quarters, eighths and other durations.

Size is indicated by two Arabic numerals, located vertically . The upper number of the size indicator indicates the number of metric shares, and the lower number indicates the multiple of each share.

Dimensions are divided into simple, complex homogeneous And complex mixed.

Simple sizes consist of one rhythmic foot, i.e. can only have two or three lobes. The most common sizes are 2/4.3/4.2/2.3/2, etc. In simple sizes, one strong beat is their main distinguishing property. The size 2/4 is typical for, and ¾ for the Waltz, and the Waltz can also be written in size 3/8 with more at a slow pace.

Complex uniform dimensions – are formed by gluing two, three or more identical simple sizes. Thus we get sizes 4/4.6/4.6/8.

Please note that in complex meters there are two or more rhythmic feet, i.e. In addition to the strong main lobe, another one is formed at the junction of the sizes - this lobe is called relatively strong. For example, in 4/4 time, the third beat is the gluing point of 2/4 time and therefore it is relatively strong. In 6/4 time, the 4th quarter will be relatively strong.

An important note applies to sizes 6/4 and 6/8. Sometimes these sizes are confused with simple ones, since outwardly they look the same:


The first measure presents an incorrect grouping of accents, since it can be reduced to a simple meter with a counting beat equal to half. This grouping tells us the meter is 3/2, which is simple. That is, for the correct determination of the size, the counting fraction is also important, which determines the frequency of changing rhythmic feet within a complex size. This can also be illustrated with the sizes 6/8 and 3/4:


Pay attention to the different rhythmic notation (grouping) - it is explained by the presence of a relatively strong beat in the first measure and the absence of one in the second.

Complex mixed sizes, as you probably already guessed, are formed by mixing unequal simple ones. For example, ¾ + 2/4 form the size 5/4. But also the size 2/4 + 3/4 form 5/4.

This duality characteristic complex heterogeneous sizes, which is very often played up by modern ones. How to determine which sizes are mixed? By accents and grouping. For example, famous topic Take Five is written like this:


From the recording it is clear that this is a combination of ¾ + 2/4. If we turn it in a mirror, we get reverse mixing.

Sizes 7/8, 11/8 and others are also formed. Distinctive feature of this size there is an uneven alternation of rhythmic feet.

In addition to those described above, variable meters are also found in music. A variable is a size with a changing number of counting parts.

If the alternation (change) of certain sizes in a work is carried out strictly systematically, then such a variable size is called periodic. In this case, at the beginning of the piece, the designations of both (or several) sizes are immediately set in accordance with the order of their alternation.

If the change of different sizes occurs only occasionally, that is, without a certain system, then this size is called non-periodic variable size. In this case, a designation of the newly arrived size is displayed inside the piece each time.

The system of variable meters is characteristic of the free meter of music of the 20th century, as opposed to the strictly classical meter of the previous three centuries.

It is also worth mentioning the organization of the meter without barlines and without time signature. As a rule, in such music the meter is a freely variable quantity practically inseparable from . And although the ratios of durations preserve such concepts as strong and weak share do not matter, which is typical of those already considered by me.

The theory of tact in the 20th century. has been replenished with an unconventional variety - the concept of unequal tact.

It came from Bulgaria, where they began to record samples in such bars folk songs and dancing. In an uneven beat, one beat is one and a half times longer than the other and is written as a note with a dot (“limping”). For adequate sound notation of such mixed measures, Bulgarian musicologists even offer numbers with fractions, for example, instead of 5/16, 7/16 - designations: 2 ½ /8 or 3 ½ /8.

New, non-beat forms of organization appeared in the 20th century, along with a free time meter. To the number the latest forms These include, in particular, rhythmic progressions and series based on the principle of temporal irregularity, aperiodicity, as opposed to the principles of tactometry.

While professional musicians and are able to memorize music by ear, most beginners will need to learn to read music. Understanding the principles of reading music is also important for dancers and can captivate the heart of the casual listener. First you need to learn to count musical rhythm or know how long to hold or play each note. It is also important to know what is time signature. This article describes standard principles for reading music using a 4/4 time signature.

Steps

Part 1

The concept of tact. Music is divided into measures, indicated by vertical bars. Notes in music are named according to how much time they occupy in a bar. Think of the beat as a pie that can be cut into quarters, halves, eighths, or a combination of different notes.

Learn basic musical notation. The names of the notes contain information about what part of the measure they occupy. To fully understand, you must know the basic meaning of “shares.” A whole note will take up an entire bar, half notes will take up half a bar.

• Quarter notes take up 1/4 of a bar.
• Eighth notes take up 1/8 of a bar.
• Sixteenth notes take up 1/16 of a bar.
• Notes can be combined to create one whole note, for example, one half note and two quarter notes last one full measure.

1. Try to keep the rhythm. If the rhythm is monotonous, try beating it with your heel and counting to four several times: 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4. Speed ​​is not as important here as maintaining the same amount of space between each strike. A metronome can be helpful in maintaining a steady rhythm.

   • Each complete cycle of counting 1-2-3-4 is equal to one beat.

2. Try counting the length of the base notes. Say or sing “la” while continuing to count the rhythm to yourself. A whole note will take up the entire measure, so start singing the note "A" on the first beat and hold it until you reach the fourth. You just sang a whole note.

   • Two half notes make up a full measure. Sing an "A" note for beats 1-2, then a new "A" note for beats 3-4.
   • Four quarter notes make up a full measure. Sing an "A" note for each beat you beat.

3. For smaller notes, add syllables. For eighth notes, you need to divide the bar into eight equal sections, although you will still only be hitting four beats per bar. Add the conjunction “and” between each beat: “1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and.” Practice until you get it right. Each word represents 1/8 of a note.

4. Point value. Sometimes in music there is a small dot right after the notes. This means that the length of the note should be increased by 50%.

   • A half note usually takes up two beats, but with a dot it increases to three beats.
   • A quarter note without a dot takes up one beat, while a quarter note with a dot takes up 1 1/2 beats.

5. Practice playing triplets. Triplet refers to a group of three notes that lasts one beat. It is quite problematic to perform them, since all the notes studied before had equal shares. Pronounce the syllables - this will help you master triplets.

   • Try hitting triplets, saying “1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th.”
   • Remember to keep the number beats consistent by using a metronome or foot taps.

6. Do it your way. Fermata is a musical notation that looks like a dot with an arc above the note. According to this symbol, you have the right to stretch the note as much as you like, regardless of musical rules.

   • If you are in an ensemble, then the duration of the note is determined by the conductor.
   • If you are performing solo, determine the most appropriate length in advance.
   • Listen to a recording of yourself playing if you're not sure how long to hold a note. This will give you insight into other artists' solutions, which will help you choose the best sound.

   Part 2

   Learn the time signature

   1. Determine the time signature. In the top left corner of the sheet music you will see some musical notation. The first character is called the "clef", which usually depends on the instrument on which the piece is played. Then there may be sharps or flats. But after them you should see two numbers arranged in a column. This is the time signature.

      • In the first part of this article we used the 4/4 time signature, which is indicated by two fours standing on top of each other.

Again on the topic of musical illiteracy....
Please advise me to listen to some songs where the drum part is played in 5/8 and 7/8 time signatures (like two songs) - I just can’t imagine how it sounds... even Gitra PRO didn’t help... unless It’s difficult to name popular compositions - so that you can easily get them online... thanks in advance!

30.07.06 16:54:51

My friend, prog can help you! I highly recommend Arena! Almost any song.

I also once had problems with odd sizes. I had to count out loud, which I never liked :) But after a couple of months of such training at 5/4, 7/8, 9/8 and others I feel quite good 8)

30.07.06 19:07:34

But the question arises... for example, take a 5/4 time signature: you need to count exactly one - two - three - four and then count five much faster than the previous speed, or simply try to “exactly place the count of five in the normal period for four”

30.07.06 20:14:33

Usually such complex sizes are “divided” into simpler ones: 5/4 is 3/4+2/4 or vice versa. Weikl generally suggests counting 5/4 as a quarter with a dot + a quarter with a dot + 2 quarters. By the way, Take Five sounds exactly like this (rhythmically).

30.07.06 22:26:29

I have a bass player friend who wanted to play together. He had one piece at 7/8 (we didn’t get to it) and one 5/8. Even in the musical phrase itself, it was more like 10/8. That is, like a full riff two measures of 5/8 were played, but the “reference” note of the second 5/8ths (out of 10) was not on the first beat (eighth), but on the second. That is, it’s like a one-two count, one-two-three, not rolled. Got out of the situation (not without the help of the bassist - he is a very good musician. Arranger and composer) and so a verbal rhythmic riff was invented. Like this “Ra-ha-sha-ga-tu-tum-Ka sha ga-ta”. It looks funny to the point of disgrace, but it helps very much. I highlighted the supporting notes (drums) in the riff in capital letters. And by the number of syllables it is clear that there are 10 of them. Thus, singing (with a melody, perhaps) this “nonsense”, we remain in size and we also don’t run away from the drum beats. So I suffered with this thing. He also comes up with such sophisticated bass riffs - the downbeat and the first - he has different things. True, as soon as it started to grow together, I had to part with it for certain subjective reasons.. Such a pun ....Eh, I liked his music.

31.07.06 17:20:17

Because you will be counting in 8th notes! After all, note durations do not include fifth notes; there are whole notes, second notes, fourth notes, eighth notes, sixteenth notes, and so on! On the right side is written the duration of the notes you will use to count, and on the left - the number of notes of this duration!
If I'm wrong, correct me!

31.07.06 18:04:31

Enik69, as if yes. Only the “counting book” is more musical than the numbers. And yet it’s texture is 10/8 and not 6+4. Well, this is a song you need to hear. (good :-) And that’s why I chose the “counting book” - because that it reflects precisely the rhythm of the drawing and not the cold numbers 10/8. Under these numbers a bunch of rhythms can be stored, but under my counting table there is only one. Moreover, the syllables “ra, ga, sha, etc.” they weren’t chosen out of the blue. They seem to show where and what drums to use. That is, the phrase “too tum” meant two eighth notes in a barrel. That is, it’s almost a pattern from a drum machine (damn, I came up with it, I read it myself and am amazed, is this really someone will understand :-)))
Well, the plus is that it’s just a convoy. And not a rigid drawing. You can change it right along the way. You just need to come up with (I call these counting rhymes “figures”) such a figure and, due to its dimension, it will not allow it to fall out of the shares (i.e. does not allow you to pass through the strong beat, which often happens in odd sizes)

Frekazoid, the denominator is four - this means the grid of recorded notes is in quarters. If 8-C, the grid is in eighths. That is, what kind of “potatoes” do you think within the framework of a bar. And quintuples have not yet been invented since the time of Bach. So 5/5 is nonsense. Actually what Chili P. said.

31.07.06 18:30:39

what immediately came to mind, in 7/4 time: Joe Satriani- Flavor Crystal 7, and in time 5/4 - Tool - The Grudge.

Chili_Pepper explained everything very well and clearly :)

And whenever I need to determine the size of a composition, I count the beats on my fingers)) It almost always helps. For example, if you hear that the rhythm is basically in 8s, then for each beat I bend my finger)) I count the number of “thrown out” fingers and the size is determined :))

01.08.06 09:31:10

Why can you only count from 1 to 5 with your fingers?
for example, if you count with one hand (I always do this), it will turn out like this:
Let's start with thumb, we count all 5 fingers 2 times, it turns out ten, and then the last beat is again on the big one? here's 11/8
:) it sounds more complicated than it looks...so easy to count.
By the way, 8th rhythms are better for me than 4...5/8, my favorite time signature, most likely because for me it is the simplest.

01.08.06 13:22:10

It is more difficult not with those works where the size is odd, but where it changes several times. There you really need to count all the shares.. How do you like this, for example:)

Introduction (4 volumes 4/4)
Topic I (8 volumes 4/4) + (7/16 + 2/4) + (7/16 + 4/16 + 5/15) + (2 volumes 7/16) + (17/16)
Repeat Theme I
Topic II (7 volumes 6/8) + (7/16) + (17/16)
Repeat Theme I
Repeat theme II
Repeat theme II (different texture 32mi)

I put the bars in brackets, because the accent is different instruments different, for example, 4/4 measures are an overlay of rhythms with 16 notes 3+3+3+3+4 (cello, mandolin) and 4+4+4+4 (guitar). The grouping of bars is given from the drummer's point of view :)

Bars 17/16 = 4+3+3+3+4
bars 7/16 = 4+3
measures 5/16 = 3+2

The work itself (Byzantium) is performed at a slow tempo, you can listen to it here:

03.08.06 01:38:19

no there's nothing there
But in general, if the change in size is due only to the desire to “be smart”, then this is in vain. IMHO the size should be determined by the melody. If it is such that it lies in an odd size, then it is musical.
We played a song where the verse was 4/4 and the chorus was 7/8. So the syllable size was simply such that you couldn’t sing it any other way.....
And the link is not working.

03.08.06 02:42:58

I envy people who find complex time signatures easy. A few years ago, a guitarist in my band came up with an interesting thing. We tried to play, but it just didn’t work. It took about twenty minutes to calculate the size, it turned out to be 13/16 (the same as 4/4 only without three sixteenths). They suffered and suffered and in the end they simply added the missing 3 sixteenths.

• Several lobes make up tact.
• The most first beat is strong(roughly one might say, the loudest, most accented). It is the limit of the tact.
• Main musical share- this is one-fourth ( quarter).

Look, this measure consists of four quarters:

You can listen to how it sounds in the file 4tact_4_4.mid. It contains 4 measures of four quarters. A strong beat is the beat of a bass drum (kick), and 3 weak beats are 3 cymbals.

Musical time signature- this is the number of beats in a bar.

This means we've just covered 4/4 (four-quarter) time. It is the most common in music. And here, listen to how the song “A grasshopper sat in the grass” fits this size (file Cuznetz.mid). Strong beats in the melody are also emphasized. There is one more joke in this song. It begins not with a strong beat, but with a weak beat (fourth). This kind of thing is called “due to tact.”

And to be more precise, “Grasshopper” does not begin exactly with the fourth beat. What should I do? Someone once upon a time suggested: “Shouldn’t we break a quarter (share) into two eighths, and an eighth, in turn, into 2 sixteenths”? In other words, the eighth is beaten twice as often. And imagine, everyone liked it. Look how simple it is.

You see, halves and whole ones have appeared. I marked the downbeat with black. She's always first. And "Grasshopper" begins with the eighth number 7.
And 1/16th can be divided ad infinitum. Although almost no one divides beyond 1/64.

A measure can contain not only 4, but also 3, 2, in short, any number of quarters or eighths, or any others. Dimensions that's why it's like that are called 4/4 (four quarters), 3/4 (three quarters), 6/8 (six eighths).

Now it’s easy to explain what tempo is.

Musical tempo - this is the number of sounding quarters per minute, in other words the speed of music performance.

In musical notation indicate musical tempo of the following types:
1) largo, largo(very slow and wide, 44-52 beats per minute);
2) adagio, adagio(slow, calm, 48-56 beats per minute);
3) andante, andante(tempo of a calm step, 58-72 beats per minute);
4) moderato, moderato(moderate, restrained, 80-96 beats per minute);
5) allegretto, allegretto(quite brisk, 92-108 beats per minute);
6) allegro, allegro(fast, 120-144 beats per minute);
7) vivace (vivo), vivace(fast, lively, 168-192 beats per minute);
8) presto, presto(very fast, 184-200 beats per minute).

Like almost all musical notation terms, these words are borrowed from the Italian language.