Time Signatures
…an indication of rhythm following a clef, generally expressed as a fraction with the denominator defining the beat as a division of a semibreve and the numerator giving the number of beats in each bar.
All is fine…or is it? Time signature is simply a fraction…til you delve a little deeper…and think beyond the habits of mind and conventions that make music inherently conservative.
George Crumb nailed the problem by using this form of time signature (see more for the graphic to display).
You cant call it an Eighth Note when the bar is divided into 5…its a fifth note…but some people persist in using the terminology of an eighth note no matter how many of of those notes are in the bar!
This doesnt apply only to 5 beat bars…its anything outside of 4 beat bars…An ‘Eighth’ note in 3|4 is a sixth note! Calling it a quaver gets around this but there is still the terminology issue…that is kinda old and stodgey!
George Crumb went straight to the point…elegantly taking the incorrect maths and the exlusive terminololy out!
5 of these
……in each bar
Crumb got around the conservative latin based terminology, and the mathematically incorrect ‘1/8’ note (or quarter note or 16ths (or whatever) with its inherent bias towards 4 beat bars…by simply putting the note as it appears as the denominator in the time signature…
So…
At Symmetrical Drumming, Drum lessons Canberra, I teach the ‘latin’ terms but prefer the ‘Crumbian’ approach.
George Crumb…musical thinker par excellence … Symmetrical Drumming in Canberra salutes you!
Rhythm head-on!
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Hear you soon
Mark