Guitar Time Signature Instructional Video, Part. 4- The Bottom Number

[taylordguitar]

Can u explain this: some songs i listen two the tempo is fast and there is a " break down" and i try to count the drum beat . The snare lands on beat three counting in eighth notes like one and two and ... but if i count the same song in quarter notes the snare lands on beat two so which time siginature is the song actually in? 4/4 or those other weird ones

[Drawthemoral]

@taylordguitar Well, I would have to hear the break down in question, but as a general rule, breakdowns are still in 4/4 or 8/8. Most likely, a breakdown will be roughly half of the beats per minute of the rest of the song. For example, lets say a heavy song is in 4/4 at 160bpm. When the breakdown hits, most likely, they would go to 80bpm in 4/4. You'll know when it's an odd time signature because when you try to count it in 4/4, it won't work at all.

[taylordguitar]

Why does all this time stuff matter cause when i play my guitar i just play and dont really think of time?

[Drawthemoral]

@taylordguitar, Well, I would say that you actually DO think of time when you play...but you play the one that you have practiced the most...most likely, 4/4. You don't have to learn any of this stuff if you don't want to. It's something that expands your vocabulary of music. In fact, it's very similar to language. You can speak English on a practical level, and people will understand you just fine...but when you learn a more complex vocabulary, you expand what you are capable of expressing.

[roddy123451]

And that is how music is taught !!!!!!!!! good job

[Drawthemoral]

@roddy123451 Thanks for the kind words.

[Abidee]

No lesson on polyrhythms? :(

[Dangerousheresy]

Wicked videos dude, wish you did them all the time :-)

[312chicagoadam]

Great presentation! A+ for you!

[SodomyWOO]

Is there a similar program to Dr. Betotte for windows?

[Drawthemoral]

I'm sure there are several. Google search "Metronome software for windows" and it should give you several hits.

[ChucksNoblet]

Why do you count 2 2 3 4 5 instead of 1 2 3 4 5?

[Drawthemoral]

Good question. Each time you count through a set of numbers in the time signature, it's called a "bar." so when you are counting through a song you simply replace each "1" in the count with the number of the bar you are on. Bar 1 would be "1, 2, 3, 4" then bar two would be "2, 2, 3, 4" and so on. It's just a way of keeping track of several bars of a particlar song.

[DragonX28]

Great lesson!!!

I understand it a lot more now than I used too!!!

Thanks.

[asleepMS2]

im not sure who explained to me that it was like an inch on a ruler and the quarter notes are a 1/4 inch.

this was just as easy to understand. thanks.

[fr618]

This was very very helpful, thanx for this great lesson!

Looking forward to the polyrhythm one ;-)

[Drawthemoral]

Thanks a lot! I've started on the polyrhythm video...I've just been really busy lately. I promise, it's coming soon.

[jch31384]

ok so if a quarter note is a quarter of a whole note, and a whole is equal to four beats in 4/4 time. if your playing in odd time is a whole note still 4 beats or would it then refer to the duration of any given measure your playing?

[Drawthemoral]

Yes, a whole note is based on the time signature, so in 5, and whole note would be 5 beats.

[soittotaiteilija]

The thing I'd want out of this program is the ability to synthesize an odd number at the bottom. Something like 7/9 or 14/17. I've been doing this in my head, and been writing like this, so I know it's possible. I just need a drum machine/metronome that can actually do it!

[element1988]

bring on the polyrythms woo

[rainingbricks]

very helpful man..looking forward to your polyrhythms video.

[m4tthewk]

Awesome videos man! Looking forward to future installments.

[hesquivel65]

wow, thanks man. I never really understood this stuff until I saw these videos.

[Drawthemoral]

Thanks for checking it out. I'm glad it helped.

[marcoslnobrega]

Great videos, i couldn't leave without saying it. Thanks

[Drawthemoral]

Thank you very much for watching.

[hrulz15]

does 4/8 sound the same as 8/8?..great vids anyway

[Drawthemoral]

Yes. It would sound the same tempo wise, except that the measures would only be 4 beats long instead of 8.

[G3fanatic]

Thanks. Thats what I though but wasn't sure.

[G3fanatic]

Another quick question. How do you know that a song like Blue Rondo a la Turk is in 9/8. I don't know how people figure that out.

Thanks again

[Drawthemoral]

The simplest way to describe would be to listen for the chord changes...or listen to where the rhythm "resets." This mainly works for songs, or sections of songs where the time signature is consistent for several measures. So you listen from the first beat of the song, or the first measure of the odd time, and start counting until you hear the rhythm naturally cycle around or at a chord change. So when you count, don't go back to 1 UNTIL you hear one of those two things. This should help you.

[Drawthemoral]

And let's say you count, and you hear a chord change on 3 consistently. So you think it's 3/4. Now you need to listen to the overall phrases, to see if the whole rhythm recycles on 3, or if it recycles on 6 or 9. If the whole rhythm recycles on a higher number, even though the chord changes happen on 3, then it's probably written in the higher number.

[whoatemyhummus]

Yeah complex music is mean. You should check out suppers ready by genesis complex music at it,s best!

[Drawthemoral]

Great song from a great band. That's definitely the early side of prog.

[G3fanatic]

I was wondering if you can explain what really defines measures. Correct me if I'm wrong but say you have 3/4, you would count 3 quarter notes before the next measure but what if you simply put the 1st quarter note from the next measure in this one, wouldn't you get 4/4. I'm kinda puzzled as to what really defines where the measure begins and ends?

Thanks

[Drawthemoral]

Yes, you had it right on the first one. The top number defines where the measure begins and ends. If you take beat one of the 2nd measure in your example and put it there, you would (in theory) end up with a measure of 4, and then a measure of 2. In 3/4, you only have 3 beats to work with. So it's not like everything is 4/4, and then for odd times, you just choose to count to a certain number. The chord changes, and all of the instruments are actually only playing 3 quarter notes per measure.

[Drawthemoral]

Here's another way to look at it. Let's say you have two of the shortest songs in the world at 2 measures each. One song is in 3, the other is in 4. The song in 3 would physically only have a total of 6 beats. The song in 4 would have 8 total beats in it. If they were being played at the same tempo, the song in 4 would be longer. Now, just take that concept and apply it to an actual song. Is that a little clearer?

[G3fanatic]

Well done. Thanks

p.s. And I agree with you about complex music

[Drawthemoral]

Thank you. Hey, everyone's got their opinion...but I like complex music because for me, you have to grow in order to "get it." The more you grow, the more you get. That constant challenge and growth is what is so attractive about it to me. I'm obviously not alone when I say that I want to keep perfecting my art. And that means never becoming stagnant.

Thanks for taking the time to watch.

[whoatemyhummus]

Sup bro hey I really enjoyed your vid rock on. A bit of a question. Why do you think 4/4 is such a more popular time signature then odd times?

Rock on peace.

[Drawthemoral]

I guess the simple answer is because it's easy. We musicians are a passionate crowd, and we study what we love. But the average person likes music, and they want to listen to something that makes sense to them. They like what they can relate to, and most find it difficult to relate to something foreign. Most people just want to turn on a song that makes them feel good, not something that makes them think. That's why "musicians" who play 3 chords make millions while virtuosos go unnoticed.

[Drawthemoral]

And don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with simplicity! I think all music has some value (you just have to search harder for the value in some more than others).

I'm drawn to more complex music because I like to think about the music I listen to, and to really let it take me to another place. Most (not all) simple music doesn't really do that for me. But if I meet a guy spilling his heart over G, C, D...then I support him, because that's the beauty in art. Everyone sees it differently!

[standardkeyboard]

Drawthemoral, thank you so much for the tutorial. Now I really learned it! However I was smiling coz you seemed being mixed up and forgot your script. lol. again thanks a lot. I've subscribe to your vids.

[Drawthemoral]

Thank you for watching! And actually, I don't have a script...so if I REALLY screw up, then I'll do another take...but I usually do the videos on the fly. I'll organize my thoughts, and then do a take. So you're getting the real me talking, errors and all...not a script.

[paulbateman]

Great vid. Very cool that you help people understand this subject

[asyluminhouse]

Awesome dude!!.. thanks a lot.. finally understood the concept :).... \m/