Subdivision
Our focus in most of this chapter will be on memorizing/internalizing some of the most common rhythmic cells used in music. But what do we do when presented with something unfamiliar and complicated? The answer: “subdividing,” or using additional reference points within (shorter than) the beat to figure out what’s going on.
Subdividing is useful in both reading and listening to music. (It may also be useful in improvisation, but because improvisation is typically done spontaneously, there may not be enough time to stop and ponder subdivisions.) When listening, we can replay the music in our heads, perhaps slowing it down, while subdividing to figure out what’s going on. When reading music, we can use subdivisions to figure out exactly where to place certain notes in time.
The most common approach to subdivision is to use the main divisions of the beat as reference points. We can do this in a few ways, but especially at first, we encourage you to use physical motion to track these points in time. For example, you might tap two fingers in succession to keep track of the beat divisions of a simple meter, or three fingers in succession to keep track of the beat divisions of a compound meter. Tapping a surface, with a little more emphasis on the beat than on its other divisions, may also be effective. See what works for you. Just make sure, as you think in divisions of the beat, that you don’t lose track of the beat itself.
Some people also track subdivision through a system of syllables called “rhythmic solmization.” There are quite a few different systems of rhythmic solmization, and each of works differently: some focus on note values, others track where things happen within the meter. Because the approach of this chapter is primarily oriented towards relating to meter, we will give takadimi syllables as well as a hybrid system that uses “1 ee and a” for simple meter and “1 la li” for compound meter; we’ll call this latter system simply “Counting Numbers.”
If this doesn’t make sense, an internet search for “counting rhythms through subdivision” will bring up some helpful advice, both videos and websites.
Once you’re able to locate the divisions of the beat, we then pay attention to exactly when notes happen with reference to these points in time.
Activity: Listening for subdivisions
Goal: Practice slowing down music in your head and keeping track of subdivisions.
Instructions:
- Listen to a song from the playlist below and determine its meter, focusing particularly on the relationship between beat and division.
- Once you’ve figured out the meter, return to the first phrase and listen through, keeping track of the beat. If you can, memorize that first phrase.
- Listen through the first phrase again, either aloud or playing it back in your head, now keeping track of the subdivisions. (Hearing it in your head allows you to slow it down, which can help with subdividing.)
- Work through the melody and determine, within each beat, which subd