![Polyrhythm](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Polyrhythm.png)
Polyrhythm is the simultaneous use of two or more
rhythm
Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular recu ...
s that are not readily perceived as deriving from one another, or as simple manifestations of the same meter. The rhythmic layers may be the basis of an entire piece of music (
cross-rhythm
In music, a cross-beat or cross-rhythm is a specific form of polyrhythm. The term ''cross rhythm '' was introduced in 1934 by the musicologist Arthur Morris Jones (1889–1980). It refers to when the rhythmic conflict found in polyrhythms is the ...
), or a momentary section. Polyrhythms can be distinguished from
irrational rhythm
In music, a tuplet (also irrational rhythm or groupings, artificial division or groupings, abnormal divisions, irregular rhythm, gruppetto, extra-metric groupings, or, rarely, contrametric rhythm) is "any rhythm that involves dividing the beat i ...
s, which can occur within the context of a single
part
Part, parts or PART may refer to:
People
*Armi Pärt (born 1991), Estonian handballer
* Arvo Pärt (born 1935), Estonian classical composer
*Brian Part (born 1962), American child actor
*Dealtry Charles Part (1882–1961), sheriff (1926–1927) a ...
; polyrhythms require at least two rhythms to be played concurrently, one of which is typically an irrational rhythm. Concurrently in this context means within the same rhythmic cycle. The underlying pulse, whether explicit or implicit can be considered one of the concurrent rhythms. For example, the
son clave
The clave (; ) is a rhythmic pattern used as a tool for meter (music), temporal organization in Afro-Cuban music, Cuban music. In Spanish, ''clave'' literally means key, clef, code, or keystone. It is present in a variety of genres such as Abaku ...
is poly-rhythmic because its 3 section suggests a different meter from the pulse of the entire pattern.
In western art music
In some
European art music
Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" als ...
, polyrhythm periodically contradicts the prevailing meter. For example, in
Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...
's opera ''
Don Giovanni
''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; Vienna (1788) title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanis ...
'', two orchestras are heard playing together in different metres ( and ):
They are later joined by a third band, playing in time.
Polyrhythm is heard near the opening of
Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...
's
Symphony No. 3. (See also
syncopation
In music, syncopation is a variety of rhythms played together to make a piece of music, making part or all of a tune or piece of music off-beat. More simply, syncopation is "a disturbance or interruption of the regular flow of rhythm": a "place ...
.)
It is a particularly common feature of the music of
Brahms
Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped with ...
. Writing about the
Violin Sonata in G major, Op. 78,
Jan Swafford
Jan Swafford (born September 10, 1946) is an American author and composer. He earned his Bachelor of Arts '' magna cum laude'' from Harvard College and his M.M.A. and D.M.A. from the Yale School of Music. His teachers included Earl Kim at Harvard, ...
(1997, p. 456) says "In the first movement Brahms plays elaborate games with the phrasing, switching the stresses of the meter back and forth between and , or superimposing both in violin and piano. These ideas gather at the climax at measure 235, with the layering of phrases making an effect that perhaps during the 19th century only Brahms could have conceived."
In "The Snow Is Dancing" from his ''
Children's Corner
''Children's Corner'', L. 113, is a six-movement suite for solo piano by Claude Debussy. It was published by Durand in 1908, and was first performed by Harold Bauer in Paris on 18 December that year. In 1911, an orchestration by André Caple ...
'' suite,
Debussy
(Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influential composers of the ...
introduces a melody "on a static, repeated B-flat, cast in triplet-division cross rhythms which offset this stratum independently of the sixteenth notes comprising the two dancing-snowflake lines below it." "In this section great attention to the exactitude of rhythms is demanded by the polyrhythmic superposition of pedals,
ostinato
In music, an ostinato (; derived from Italian word for ''stubborn'', compare English ''obstinate'') is a motif or phrase that persistently repeats in the same musical voice, frequently in the same pitch. Well-known ostinato-based pieces include ...
, and melody."
Hemiola
Concerning the use of a two-over-three (2:3)
hemiola
In music, hemiola (also hemiolia) is the ratio 3:2. The equivalent Latin term is sesquialtera. In rhythm, ''hemiola'' refers to three beats of equal value in the time normally occupied by two beats. In pitch, ''hemiola'' refers to the interval of ...
in Beethoven's
String Quartet No. 6, Ernest Walker states, "The vigorously effective
Scherzo
A scherzo (, , ; plural scherzos or scherzi), in western classical music, is a short composition – sometimes a movement from a larger work such as a symphony or a sonata. The precise definition has varied over the years, but scherzo often ref ...
is in time, but with a curiously persistent
cross-rhythm
In music, a cross-beat or cross-rhythm is a specific form of polyrhythm. The term ''cross rhythm '' was introduced in 1934 by the musicologist Arthur Morris Jones (1889–1980). It refers to when the rhythmic conflict found in polyrhythms is the ...
that does its best to persuade us that it is really in ."
Polyrhythm, not polymeter
The illusion of simultaneous and , suggests
polymeter
In music, metre ( Commonwealth spelling) or meter (American spelling) refers to regularly recurring patterns and accents such as bars and beats. Unlike rhythm, metric onsets are not necessarily sounded, but are nevertheless implied by the perfo ...
:
triple meter
Triple metre (or Am. triple meter, also known as triple time) is a musical metre characterized by a ''primary'' division of 3 beats to the bar, usually indicated by 3 (simple) or 9 (compound) in the upper figure of the time signature, with , , ...
combined with
compound duple meter.
However, the two beat schemes interact within a metric hierarchy (a single meter). The triple beats are primary and the duple beats are secondary; the duple beats are
cross-beat
In music, a cross-beat or cross-rhythm is a specific form of polyrhythm. The term ''cross rhythm '' was introduced in 1934 by the musicologist Arthur Morris Jones (1889–1980). It refers to when the rhythmic conflict found in polyrhythms is the ...
s within a triple beat scheme.
Composite hemiola
The four-note
ostinato
In music, an ostinato (; derived from Italian word for ''stubborn'', compare English ''obstinate'') is a motif or phrase that persistently repeats in the same musical voice, frequently in the same pitch. Well-known ostinato-based pieces include ...
pattern of
Mykola Leontovych
Mykola Dmytrovych Leontovych (23 January 1921; ua, Микола Дмитрович Леонтович, link=no (); also Leontovich) was a Ukrainian composer, conductor, ethnomusicologist and teacher. His music was inspired by the Ukrainian ...
's "
Carol of the Bells
"Carol of the Bells" is a popular Christmas carol, with music by Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych in 1914 and lyrics by Peter J. Wilhousky. The song is based on the Ukrainian folk chant " Shchedryk". The music is in the public domain; Wil ...
" (the first measure below) is the composite of the two-against-three
hemiola
In music, hemiola (also hemiolia) is the ratio 3:2. The equivalent Latin term is sesquialtera. In rhythm, ''hemiola'' refers to three beats of equal value in the time normally occupied by two beats. In pitch, ''hemiola'' refers to the interval of ...
(the second measure).
Another example of polyrhythm can be found in measures 64 and 65 of the first movement of
Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...
's
Piano Sonata No. 12. Three evenly-spaced sets of three attack-points span two measures.
Cross-rhythm
Cross-rhythm
In music, a cross-beat or cross-rhythm is a specific form of polyrhythm. The term ''cross rhythm '' was introduced in 1934 by the musicologist Arthur Morris Jones (1889–1980). It refers to when the rhythmic conflict found in polyrhythms is the ...
refers to systemic polyrhythm. The ''Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music'' defines it as “The Regular shift of some beats in a metric pattern to points ahead of or behind their normal positions.” The finale of
Brahms
Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped with ...
Symphony No. 2 features a powerful passage where the prevailing metre of four beats to the bar becomes disrupted. Here is the passage as notated in the score:
![Brahms Symphony No](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/Brahms_Symphony_No._2%2C_finale%2C_bars_126-142.png)
Here is the same passage re-barred to clarify how the ear may actually experience the changing metres: “Polyrhythms run through Brahms’s music like an obsessive-compulsive streak...For Brahms, subdividing a measure of time into different units and layering different patterns on top of one another seemed to be almost a compulsion — as well as a compositional device and an engine of expression. ”
Another straightforward example of a cross-rhythm is 3 evenly spaced notes against 2 (3:2), also known as a
hemiola
In music, hemiola (also hemiolia) is the ratio 3:2. The equivalent Latin term is sesquialtera. In rhythm, ''hemiola'' refers to three beats of equal value in the time normally occupied by two beats. In pitch, ''hemiola'' refers to the interval of ...
. Two simple and common ways to express this pattern in standard western musical notation would be 3 quarter notes over 2 dotted quarter notes within one bar of time, quarter note triplets over 2 quarter notes within one bar of time. Other cross-rhythms are 4:3 (with 4 dotted eighth notes over 3 quarter notes within a bar of time as an example in standard western musical notation), 5:2, 5:3, 5:4, etc.
![Polyrhythm 4 ll 5](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Polyrhythm_4_ll_5.svg)
In auditory processing, rhythms are perceived as pitches once they have been sufficiently sped up. Furthermore, intervals of rhythms are perceived as intervals of pitch once sufficiently sped up. As such, there is a parallel between cross-rhythms and
musical intervals: in an audible frequency range, the 2:3 ratio produces the musical interval of a
perfect fifth
In music theory, a perfect fifth is the Interval (music), musical interval corresponding to a pair of pitch (music), pitches with a frequency ratio of 3:2, or very nearly so.
In classical music from Western culture, a fifth is the interval fro ...
, the 3:4 ratio produces a
perfect fourth
A fourth is a musical interval encompassing four staff positions in the music notation of Western culture, and a perfect fourth () is the fourth spanning five semitones (half steps, or half tones). For example, the ascending interval from C to ...
, and the 4:5 ratio produces a
major third
In classical music, a third is a musical interval encompassing three staff positions (see Interval number for more details), and the major third () is a third spanning four semitones. Forte, Allen (1979). ''Tonal Harmony in Concept and P ...
. All these
interval ratio
In music, an interval ratio is a ratio of the frequencies of the pitches in a musical interval. For example, a just perfect fifth (for example C to G) is 3:2 (), 1.5, and may be approximated by an equal tempered perfect fifth () which is 27 ...
s are found in the
harmonic series. These are called harmonic polyrhythms.
Sub-Saharan African music traditions
Comparing European and Sub-Saharan African meter
In traditional European ("Western") rhythms, the most fundamental parts typically emphasize the primary beats. By contrast, in rhythms of sub-Saharan African origin, the most fundamental parts typically emphasize the secondary beats. This often causes the uninitiated ear to misinterpret the secondary beats as the primary beats, and to hear the true primary beats as cross-beats. In other words, the musical "background" and "foreground" may mistakenly be heard and felt in reverse—Peñalosa (2009: 21)
The generating principle
In non-Saharan
African music traditions, cross-rhythm is the generating principle; the meter is in a permanent state of contradiction. Cross-rhythm was first explained as the basis of non-Saharan rhythm in lectures by C.K. Ladzekpo and the writings of David Locke.
From the philosophical perspective of the African musician, cross-beats can symbolize the challenging moments or emotional stress we all encounter. Playing cross-beats while fully grounded in the main beats, prepares one for maintaining a life-purpose while dealing with life's challenges. Many non-Saharan languages do not have a word for ''rhythm'', or even ''music''. From the African viewpoint, the rhythms represent the very fabric of life itself; they are an embodiment of the people, symbolizing interdependence in human relationships—Peñalosa (2009: 21).
At the center of a core of rhythmic traditions within which the composer conveys his ideas is the technique of cross-rhythm. The technique of cross-rhythm is a simultaneous use of contrasting rhythmic patterns within the same scheme of accents or meter
The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its prefi ...
... By the very nature of the desired resultant rhythm, the main beat scheme cannot be separated from the secondary beat scheme. It is the interplay of the two elements that produces the cross-rhythmic texture—Ladzekpo (1995).
Eugene Novotney observes: "The 3:2 relationship (and
tspermutations) is the foundation of most typical polyrhythmic textures found in West African musics." 3:2 is the ''generative'' or ''theoretic form'' of non-Saharan rhythmic principles.
Victor Kofi Agawu
Victor Kofi Agawu (born 28 September 1956) is a Ghanaian musicologist and music theorist. He often publishes as V. Kofi Agawu and specializes in musical semiotics and ethnomusicology. He is a Distinguished Professor at the Graduate Center, CUN ...
succinctly states, "
heresultant
:2rhythm holds the key to understanding... there is no independence here, because 2 and 3 belong to a single Gestalt."
The two beat schemes interact within the hierarchy of a single meter. The duple beats are primary and the triple beats are secondary. The example below shows the African 3:2 cross-rhythm within its proper metric structure.
The music of African
xylophone
The xylophone (; ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets. Like the glockenspiel (which uses metal bars), the xylophone essentially consists of a set of tuned wooden keys arranged in the ...
s, such as the
balafon
The balafon is a gourd-resonated xylophone, a type of struck idiophone. It is closely associated with the neighbouring Mandé, Senoufo and Gur peoples of West Africa, particularly the Guinean branch of the Mandinka ethnic group, but is now ...
and
gyil
The balafon is a gourd-resonated xylophone, a type of struck idiophone. It is closely associated with the neighbouring Mandé, Senoufo and Gur peoples of West Africa, particularly the Guinean branch of the Mandinka ethnic group, but is now ...
, is often based on cross-rhythm. In the following example, a Ghanaian gyil sounds a 3:2-based
ostinato
In music, an ostinato (; derived from Italian word for ''stubborn'', compare English ''obstinate'') is a motif or phrase that persistently repeats in the same musical voice, frequently in the same pitch. Well-known ostinato-based pieces include ...
melody. The left hand (lower notes) sounds the two main beats, while the right hand (upper notes) sounds the three cross-beats. The cross-beats are written as quarter-notes for visual emphasis.
The following notated example is from the
kushaura In Shona music, the kushaura is the leading part. Compare with the kutsinhira part.
The kushaura can be thought of being the first part, with the kutsinhira usually being a beat behind, within a cycle of 12 beats. However, this is not always the ...
part of the traditional
mbira
Mbira ( ) are a family of musical instruments, traditional to the Shona people of Zimbabwe. They consist of a wooden board (often fitted with a resonator) with attached staggered metal tines, played by holding the instrument in the hands and p ...
piece "Nhema Mussasa". The mbira is a
lamellophone
A lamellophone (also lamellaphone or linguaphone) is a member of the family of musical instruments that makes its sound by a thin vibrating plate called a lamella or tongue, which is fixed at one end and has the other end free. When the musician ...
. The left hand plays the ostinato bass line while the right hand plays the upper melody. The composite melody is an embellishment of the 3:2 cross-rhythm.
Adaptive instruments
Sub-Saharan instruments are constructed in a variety of ways to generate polyrhythmic melodies. Some instruments organize the pitches in a uniquely divided alternate array, not in the straight linear
bass to
treble structure that is so common to many western instruments such as the
piano
The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...
,
harp
The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orche ...
, or
marimba
The marimba () is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars that are struck by mallets. Below each bar is a resonator pipe that amplifies particular harmonics of its sound. Compared to the xylophone, the timbre ...
.
Lamellophone
A lamellophone (also lamellaphone or linguaphone) is a member of the family of musical instruments that makes its sound by a thin vibrating plate called a lamella or tongue, which is fixed at one end and has the other end free. When the musician ...
s including
mbira
Mbira ( ) are a family of musical instruments, traditional to the Shona people of Zimbabwe. They consist of a wooden board (often fitted with a resonator) with attached staggered metal tines, played by holding the instrument in the hands and p ...
, mbila, mbira huru, mbira njari, mbira nyunga, marimba, karimba,
kalimba
Mbira ( ) are a family of musical instruments, traditional to the Shona people of Zimbabwe. They consist of a wooden board (often fitted with a resonator) with attached staggered metal tines, played by holding the instrument in the hands and pl ...
, likembe, and okeme. This family of instruments are found in several forms indigenous to different regions of Africa and most often have equal tonal ranges for right and left hands. The
kalimba
Mbira ( ) are a family of musical instruments, traditional to the Shona people of Zimbabwe. They consist of a wooden board (often fitted with a resonator) with attached staggered metal tines, played by holding the instrument in the hands and pl ...
is a modern version of these instruments originated by the pioneer ethnomusicologist
Hugh Tracey
Hugh Travers Tracey was an English ethnomusicologist. He and his wife collected and archived music from Southern and Central Africa. From the 1920s through the 1970s, Tracey made over 35,000 recordings of African folk music. He popularized the mbi ...
in the early 20th century which has over the years gained worldwide popularity.
Chordophone
String instruments, stringed instruments, or chordophones are musical instruments that produce sound from vibrating strings when a performer plays or sounds the strings in some manner.
Musicians play some string instruments by plucking the st ...
s, such as the West African
kora, and doussn'gouni, part of the
harp-lute
The harp lute, or dital harp, is a musical instrument that combines features of harp and lute and to increase its compass of the latter. It was invented in 1795 by Edward Light., (though an earlier form is shown in the "'' Garden of Earthly Delig ...
family of instruments, also have this African separated double tonal array structure.
Another instrument, the
Marovany
The marovany (formerly spelled marouvane) is a suitcase shaped, wooden, type of box zither from Madagascar, used in Malagasy music. It is strung on both sides with metal strings. The player plucks the strings with both hands, often with rapid alt ...
from Madagascar is a double sided box zither which also employs this divided tonal structure.
Trough zither
Trough zithers are a group of African stringed instruments or chordophones whose members resemble wooden bowls, pans, platters, or shallow gutters with strings stretched across the opening. A type of zither, the instruments may be quiet, dependin ...
s also have the ability to play polyrhythms.
The
Gravikord
The Gravikord is a 24 string electric double bridge-harp invented by Robert Grawi in 1984, which is closely related to both the West African kora and the mbira. It was designed to employ a separated double tonal array structure making it possibl ...
is a new American instrument closely related to both the African kora and the kalimba was created in the latter 20th century to also exploit this adaptive principle in a modern electro-acoustic instrument.
On these instruments, one hand of the musician is not primarily in the bass nor the other primarily in the treble, but both hands can play freely across the entire tonal range of the instrument. Also, the fingers of each hand can play separate independent rhythmic patterns, and these can easily cross over each other from treble to bass and back, either smoothly or with varying amounts of
syncopation
In music, syncopation is a variety of rhythms played together to make a piece of music, making part or all of a tune or piece of music off-beat. More simply, syncopation is "a disturbance or interruption of the regular flow of rhythm": a "place ...
. This can all be done within the same tight tonal range, without the left and right hand fingers ever physically encountering each other. These simple rhythms will interact musically to produce complex cross rhythms including repeating on beat/
off beat pattern shifts that would be very difficult to create by any other means. This characteristically African structure allows often simple playing techniques to combine with each other to produce polyrhythmic music.
Jazz
3:2 cross-rhythm
Polyrhythm is a staple of modern
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
. Although not as common, use of systemic
cross-rhythm
In music, a cross-beat or cross-rhythm is a specific form of polyrhythm. The term ''cross rhythm '' was introduced in 1934 by the musicologist Arthur Morris Jones (1889–1980). It refers to when the rhythmic conflict found in polyrhythms is the ...
is also found in jazz. In 1959,
Mongo Santamaria
Mongo may refer to:
Geography Africa
* Mongo, Chad, a Sahel city
* Apostolic Vicariate of Mongo (Roman Catholic missionary jurisdiction)
* Mongo, Sierra Leone, a chiefdom
* Mongo River (Little Scarces River), Guinea and Sierra Leone, a tributa ...
recorded "
Afro Blue
"Afro Blue" is a jazz standard composed by Mongo Santamaría.
Santamaria version
Mongo Santamaria recorded his composition "Afro Blue" in 1959 when playing with the Cal Tjader Sextet. The first recorded performance was on April 20, 1959, at th ...
", the first jazz standard built upon a typical African 6:4 cross-rhythm (two cycles of 3:2). The song begins with the bass repeatedly playing 6 cross-beats per each measure of (6:4). The following example shows the original
ostinato
In music, an ostinato (; derived from Italian word for ''stubborn'', compare English ''obstinate'') is a motif or phrase that persistently repeats in the same musical voice, frequently in the same pitch. Well-known ostinato-based pieces include ...
"Afro Blue" bass line. The cross noteheads indicate the main
beats.
2:3 cross-rhythm
The famous jazz drummer
Elvin Jones
Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era.
Most famously a member of John Coltrane's quartet, with whom he recorded from late 1960 to late 1965, Jones appeared on such widely celebrate ...
took the opposite approach, superimposing two cross-beats over every measure of a jazz waltz (2:3). This swung is perhaps the most common example of overt cross-rhythm in jazz. In 1963
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist
The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of br ...
recorded "Afro Blue" with Elvin Jones on drums. Coltrane reversed the metric hierarchy of Santamaria's composition, performing it instead in swing (2:3).
In popular music
Nigerian percussion master
Babatunde Olatunji
Michael Babatunde Olatunji (April 7, 1927 – April 6, 2003) was a Nigerian drummer, educator, social activist, and recording artist.
Early life
Olatunji was born in the village of Ajido, near Badagry, Lagos State, in southwestern Niger ...
arrived on the American music scene in 1959 with his album ''
Drums of Passion
''Drums of Passion'' is an album produced by Babatunde Olatunji, a percussionist from Nigeria, in 1960. It was the first recording to popularize African music in the West, becoming immensely successful and selling over five million copies. In 200 ...
'', which was a collection of traditional
Nigerian
Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...
music for percussion and chanting. The album stayed on the charts for two years and had a profound impact on jazz and American popular music. Trained in the
Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...
sakara style of drumming, Olatunji would have a major impact on Western popular music. He went on to teach, collaborate and record with numerous jazz and rock artists, including
Airto Moreira
Airto Guimorvan Moreira (born August 5, 1941) is a Brazilian jazz drummer and percussionist. He is married to jazz singer Flora Purim, and their daughter Diana Moreira is also a singer. Coming to prominence in the late 1960s as a member of the ...
,
Carlos Santana
Carlos Humberto Santana Barragán (; born July 20, 1947) is an American guitarist who rose to fame in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band Santana, which pioneered a fusion of Rock and roll and Latin American jazz. Its sound featured ...
and
Mickey Hart
Mickey Hart (born Michael Steven Hartman, September 11, 1943) is an American percussionist. He is best known as one of the two drummers of the rock band Grateful Dead. He was a member of the Grateful Dead from September 1967 until February 19 ...
of the
Grateful Dead
The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...
. Olatunji reached his greatest popularity during the height of the
Black Arts Movement
The Black Arts Movement (BAM) was an African American-led art movement that was active during the 1960s and 1970s. Through activism and art, BAM created new cultural institutions and conveyed a message of black pride. The movement expanded from ...
of the 1960s and 1970s.
Afro-Cuban music Music of African heritage in Cuba derives from the musical traditions of the many ethnic groups from different parts of West Africa that were brought to Cuba as slaves between the 16th and 19th centuries. Members of some of these groups formed thei ...
makes extensive use of polyrhythms.
Cuban Rumba
Rumba is a secular genre of Cuban music involving dance, percussion, and song. It originated in the northern regions of Cuba, mainly in urban Havana and Matanzas, during the late 19th century. It is based on African music and dance traditions, ...
uses 3-based and 2-based rhythms at the same time. For example, the lead drummer (playing the
quinto) might play in , while the rest of the ensemble keeps playing .
Afro-Cuban
Afro-Cubans or Black Cubans are Cubans of West African ancestry. The term ''Afro-Cuban'' can also refer to historical or cultural elements in Cuba thought to emanate from this community and the combining of native African and other cultural ele ...
''conguero'', or
conga
The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest). ...
player,
Mongo Santamaría
Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría Rodríguez (April 7, 1917 – February 1, 2003) was a Cuban percussionist and bandleader who spent most of his career in the United States. Primarily a conga drummer, Santamaría was a leading figure in the pachanga and ...
was another percussionist whose polyrhythmic virtuosity helped transform both jazz and popular music. Santamaria fused Afro-Latin rhythms with
R&B and jazz as a bandleader in the 1950s, and was featured in the 1994 album ''
Buena Vista Social Club
Buena Vista Social Club is an ensemble of Cuban musicians established in 1996. The project was organized by World Circuit executive Nick Gold, produced by American guitarist Ry Cooder and directed by Juan de Marcos González. They named the gr ...
'', which was the inspiration for
the like-titled documentary released five years later.
Another form of polyrhythmic music is south Indian classical
Carnatic music
Carnatic music, known as or in the Dravidian languages, South Indian languages, is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, an ...
. A kind of rhythmic
solfege called
konnakol is used as a tool to construct highly complex polyrhythms and to divide each beat of a pulse into various subdivisions, with the emphasised beat shifting from beat cycle to beat cycle.
Common polyrhythms found in jazz are 3:2, which manifests as the quarter-note triplet; 2:3, usually in the form of dotted-quarter notes against quarter notes; 4:3, played as dotted-eighth notes against quarter notes (this one demands some technical proficiency to perform accurately, and was not at all common in jazz before
Tony Williams used it when playing with
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...
); and finally time against , which along with 2:3 was used famously by
Elvin Jones
Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era.
Most famously a member of John Coltrane's quartet, with whom he recorded from late 1960 to late 1965, Jones appeared on such widely celebrate ...
and
McCoy Tyner
Alfred McCoy Tyner (December 11, 1938March 6, 2020) was an American jazz piano, jazz pianist and composer known for his work with the John Coltrane Quartet (from 1960 to 1965) and his long solo career afterwards. He was an NEA Jazz Masters, NEA ...
playing with
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist
The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of br ...
.
Frank Zappa
Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...
, especially towards the end of his career, experimented with complex polyrhythms, such as 11:17, and even nested polyrhythms (see "
The Black Page
"The Black Page #1" is a piece by American composer Frank Zappa known for being extraordinarily difficult to play. Originally written for the drum kit and melodic percussion (as "The Black Page Drum Solo"), the piece was later rearranged in several ...
" for an example). The
metal
A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...
bands
Mudvayne
Mudvayne is an American heavy metal band formed in Peoria, Illinois in 1996. Known for their sonic experimentation, face and body paint, masks and uniforms, the band has sold over six million records worldwide, including nearly three millio ...
,
Nothingface,
Threat Signal
Threat Signal is a Canadian heavy metal band from Hamilton, Ontario. The band has had numerous lineup changes, with only Jon Howard remaining from the original incarnation. Their music is often classified as metalcore, melodic death metal, groo ...
,
Lamb of God
Lamb of God ( el, Ἀμνὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ, Amnòs toû Theoû; la, Agnus Dei, ) is a title for Jesus that appears in the Gospel of John. It appears at John 1:29, where John the Baptist sees Jesus and exclaims, "Behold the Lamb of God wh ...
, also use polyrhythms in their music. Contemporary
progressive metal
Progressive metal (sometimes shortened to prog metal) is a broad :Fusion music genres, fusion music genre melding heavy metal music, heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified electric guitar, guitar-driven s ...
bands such as
Meshuggah
Meshuggah () is a Swedish extreme metal band formed in Umeå in 1985. Originally, the band's name was Metallien. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist Jens Kidman, guitarists Fredrik Thordendal and Mårten Hagström, drummer Tomas ...
,
Gojira,
Periphery
Periphery or peripheral may refer to:
Music
*Periphery (band), American progressive metal band
* ''Periphery'' (album), released in 2010 by Periphery
* "Periphery", a song from Fiona Apple's album '' The Idler Wheel...''
Gaming and entertainm ...
,
Textures,
TesseracT
In geometry, a tesseract is the four-dimensional analogue of the cube; the tesseract is to the cube as the cube is to the square. Just as the surface of the cube consists of six square faces, the hypersurface of the tesseract consists of eig ...
,
Tool
A tool is an object that can extend an individual's ability to modify features of the surrounding environment or help them accomplish a particular task. Although many animals use simple tools, only human beings, whose use of stone tools dates ba ...
,
Animals as Leaders
Animals as Leaders is an American instrumental progressive metal band from Washington, D.C. It currently consists of guitarists Tosin Abasi and Javier Reyes and drummer Matt Garstka, having been formed by Abasi in 2007. They are a prominent band ...
,
Between the Buried and Me
Between the Buried and Me, often abbreviated as BTBAM, is an American progressive metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina. Formed in 2000, the band consists of Tommy Giles Rogers Jr. (lead vocals, keyboards), Paul Waggoner (lead guitar, backing ...
and
Dream Theater
Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 under the name Majesty by John Petrucci, John Myung and Mike Portnoy while they attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. They subsequently dropped out of the ...
also incorporate polyrhythms in their music, and polyrhythms have also been increasingly heard in technical metal bands such as
Ion Dissonance
Ion Dissonance is a Canadian mathcore band from Montreal, Quebec. They are known for their technical style, which switched to a more groove based style with the release of their 2007 album ''Minus the Herd''.
In total, the group have released ...
,
The Dillinger Escape Plan
The Dillinger Escape Plan was an American metalcore band. The band was formed in 1997 in Morris Plains, New Jersey by guitarist Ben Weinman, bassist Adam Doll, vocalist Dimitri Minakakis, and drummer Chris Pennie. The band's use of odd time sign ...
,
Necrophagist
Necrophagist was a German technical death metal band founded and fronted by guitarist and vocalist Muhammed Suiçmez. The band used baroque music-influenced compositions paired with extreme metal drumming.
The name originates from the Greek ro ...
,
Candiria
Candiria are an American progressive metal band from Brooklyn, New York. Formed in 1992, the band was part of the second wave of New York hardcore, but subsequently expanded its performance to also play jazz, hip hop and progressive rock.
The ...
,
The Contortionist
The Contortionist is an American progressive metal band from Indianapolis, Indiana. Formed in 2007, the band consists of guitarists Robby Baca and Cameron Maynard, drummer Joey Baca, vocalist Mike Lessard, bassist Jordan Eberhardt, and keyboard ...
and
Textures. Much minimalism, minimalist and totalism (music), totalist music makes extensive use of polyrhythms. Henry Cowell and Conlon Nancarrow created music with yet more complex polytempo and using irrational numbers like pi, :e (mathematical constant), ''e''.
Peter Magadini's album ''Polyrhythm'', with musicians Peter Magadini, George Duke, David Young, and Don Menza, features different polyrhythmic themes on each of the six songs.
#Doin' Time and a Half: Has the polyrhythmic theme of 6 over 4.
#Five For Barbara: Has the polyrhythmic theme of 5 over 4.
#The Modulator: The beginning tempo modulates to two times faster and then modulates back to two times slower.
#Seventy Fourth Ave: Has the polyrhythmic theme of 7 over 4.
#Samba de Rollins: Includes a drum solo based on 3 over 4.
#Midnight Bolero: In , has a continuous interlude of 2 over 3 and then 4 over 3.
King Crimson used polyrhythms extensively in their 1981 album Discipline (King Crimson album), ''Discipline''. Above all Bill Bruford used polyrhythmic drumming throughout his career.
The band Queen (band), Queen used polyrhythm in their 1974 song "Queen II#"The March of the Black Queen", The March of the Black Queen" with and time signatures.
Talking Heads' ''Remain in Light'' used dense polyrhythms throughout the album, most notably on the song "The Great Curve".
Megadeth frequently tends to use polyrhythm in its drumming, notably from songs such as "Sleepwalker" or the ending of "My Last Words", which are both played in 2:3.
Carbon Based Lifeforms have a song named "''Polyrytmi''", Finnish language, Finnish for "polyrhythm", on their album Interloper (album), Interloper. This song indeed does use polyrhythms in its melody.
Aphex Twin makes extensive use of polyrhythms in his electronic compositions.
Japanese girl group Perfume (Japanese band), Perfume made use of the technique in their single, appropriately titled "Polyrhythm (song), Polyrhythm", included on their second album Game (Perfume album), Game. The bridge of the song incorporates , in the vocals, common time () and in the drums.
The Britney Spears single "Till the World Ends" (released March 2011) uses a 4:3 cross-rhythm in its hook.
The outro of the song "Animals" from the album ''The 2nd Law'' by the band Muse (band), Muse uses and time signatures for the guitar and drums respectively.
The Aaliyah song "Quit Hatin" uses against in the chorus.
The Japanese idol group 3776 makes use of polyrhythm in a number of their songs, most notably on their 2014 mini-album "Love Letter (3776 album), Love Letter", which features five songs that all include several rhythmic references to the number 3776. A secret track on the album has the group's leader, Ide Chiyono, explain some of the uses of polyrhythm to the listener.
The National (band), The National song "Fake Empire" uses a 4 over 3 polyrhythm.
The Cars' song "Touch and Go (The Cars song), Touch and Go" has a rhythm in the drum and bass and a rhythm in the keys and vocals.
Harpist and pop folk musician Joanna Newsom is known for the use of polyrhythms on her albums ''The Milk-Eyed Mender'' and ''Ys (Joanna Newsom album), Ys''.
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, King Gizzard used polyrhythms extensively in their album ''Polygondwanaland'' and throughout their discography.
In Vietnam, bolero songs are composed with
Examples
The following is an example of a 3 against 2 polyrhythm, given in time unit box system (TUBS) notation; each box represents a fixed unit of time; time progresses from the left of the diagram to the right. It is in bad form to teach a student to play 3:2 polyrhythms as simply quarter note, eighth note, eighth note, quarter note. The proper way is to establish sound bases for both the quarter-notes, and the triplet-quarters, and then to layer them upon each other, forming multiple rhythms. Beats are indicated with an X; rests are indicated with a blank.
:
A common memory aid to help with the 3 against 2 polyrhythm is that it has the same rhythm as the phrase "not difficult"; the simultaneous beats occur on the word "not"; the second and third of the triple beat land on "dif" and "cult", respectively. The second 2-beat lands on the "fi" in "difficult". Try saying "not difficult" over and over in time with the sound file above. This will emphasize the "3 side" of the 3 against 2 feel. Now try saying the phrase "not a problem", stressing the syllables "not" and "prob-". This will emphasize the "2 side" of the 3 against 2 feel. More phrases with the same rhythm are "cold cup of tea", "four funny frogs", "come, if you please", and "Carol of the Bells, ring, Christmas bells".
:
![Music cross-rhythm, cold cup of tea](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Music_cross-rhythm%2C_cold_cup_of_tea.PNG)
Similar phrases for the 4 against 3 polyrhythm are "pass the golden butter"
or "pass the goddamn butter"
[Sep 2007. ''Guitar World'', p.102. Vol. 28, No. 9. ISSN 1045-6295.] and "what atrocious weather" (or "what a load of rubbish" in British English); the 4 against 3 polyrhythm is shown below.
:
As can be seen from above, the counting for polyrhythms is determined by the Least common multiple, lowest common multiple, so if one wishes to count 2 against 3, one needs to count a total of 6 beats, as lcm(2,3) = 6 (
''1''2''3''4''5''6 and
''1''23''4''56). However this is only useful for very simple polyrhythms, or for getting a feel for more complex ones, as the total number of beats rises quickly. To count 4 against 5, for example, requires a total of 20 beats, and counting thus slows the tempo considerably. However some players, such as Indian Classical Music, classical Indian musicians, can intuitively play high polyrhythms such as 7 against 8.
Polyrhythms are quite common in late Romantic Music and 20th-century classical music. Works for keyboard often set odd rhythms against one another in separate hands. A good example is in the soloist's cadenza in Grieg's Piano Concerto (Grieg), Concerto in A Minor; the left hand plays arpeggios of seven notes to a beat; the right hand plays an ostinato of eight notes per beat while also playing the melody in octaves, which uses whole notes, dotted eighth notes, and triplets.
Other instances occur often in Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 (Rachmaninoff), Piano Concerto No. 2. The piano arpeggios that constitute much of the soloist's material in the first movement often have anywhere from four to eleven notes per beat. In the last movement, the piano's opening run, marked 'quasi glissando', fits 52 notes into the space of one Bar (music), measure, making for a glissando-like effect while keeping the mood of the music. Other instances in this movement include a scale that juxtaposes ten notes in the right hand against four in the left, and one of the main themes in the piano, which imposes an eighth-note melody on a triplet harmony.
List of basic polyrhythms
See also
* Beat (acoustics) – another example of the same effect (mathematically), but with two continuous waves rather than a hit of the instrument only at every peak and trough of either wave.
* Euclidean rhythm
* Ewe music
References
Sources
*
Further reading
* Peter Magadini (1993). ''Polyrhythms for the Drumset''. . [Study in polymetric independence for drummers.]
* Peter Magadini (2001). ''The Musician's Guide to Polyrhythms''. . [Polyrhythm reference book.]
External links
Superimposed Subdivisions (Polyrhythm Hell)– An article by Heikki Malmberg
* C.K. Ladzekpo'
Novotney, Eugene D. (1998) "The Three Against Two Relationship as the Foundation of Timelines in West African Musics", PhD thesis. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois. an article on polyrhythms and the African drumming tradition
– Article by Steve Vai on polyrhythms
More polyrhythms
An athenaCL netTool for on-line, web-based MIDI polyrhythm generation
polygnomeA polyrhythmic metronome application for Linux
Polyrhythm experiments using Improvisor and AudioCubespolymathAnother on-line, web-based MIDI polyrhythm generation tool which uses symbolic input
Polyrhythm Lessons Information on applying polyrhythms on the guitar
Post on triplets and duplets in West African music
Metronome for Rhythms and Multi-Beat PolyrhythmsAudio clips of many polyrhythms
Video clips of many polyrhythms like the ones used to illustrate this article
4 different time signatures polymeter example of 4 layer time signatures (2:4, 3:8, 5:16 & 7:8) played by Denny AJD simultaneously on a drumset.
Polyrhythms ...an Introduction Peter Magadinivia YouTube
Drum Solo with Metric Modulations – Peter Magadini (2006) from the Hal Leonard DVD ''Jazz Drums''The 26 Official Polyrhythm Rudiments (2012) ''Modern Drummer Magazine''– Pete Magadini
{{Rhythm and meter
Jazz techniques
Modernism (music)
Rhythm and meter
Articles containing video clips
Jazz terminology