Rhythm and Pulse

The Pulse of a piece of music is like its heart beat - always steady.  The number of "heart beats" per minute gives us the speed of the piece.

Below is a metronome.  Depending on the placement of the weight, it beats at different speeds (tempo).

There are many different Italian terms used for different speeds.  The terms common to ballet are Allegro (lively and fast) as in Grand Allegro and Adagio (slow) as in Adage.

The Rhythm of the piece is a pattern of strong and weak beats (and silences) that are built on the pulse.  These beats are organised into bars.  Every bar starts with a strong beat.

The rhythm is notated using the following symbols  (notes) for specific numbers or divisions of beats.

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Whole note = 4 beats(semibreve) Ta-a-a-a

Half note = 2 beats (minims) Ta-a

Quarter note = 1 beat  (crotchets) Ta 

Eighth Note = half a beat (quavers) group of 2 = Ti-ti

Sixteenth note = quarter of a beat (semiquavers) group of 4 = Ti-ka-ti-ka

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Dotted Rhythm: Any of the above notes can be dotted which adds half as much again to its value.

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Time signatures indicate how many beats (the top number) and what type of beat (the bottom number) in each bar.

eg 2 quarter notes per bar or 3 half notes per bar or 4 eighth notes per bar

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Rhythms are created by using different note value combinations within each bar.  The sum of the note values  is the same as the top number in the time signature.

For example, 

a bar in 2 time could have combinations of note values that add up to 2 "ta" beats per bar.

           4

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Dances in Simple Duple Time

Simple Time - counted in "simple" beats (usually crotchet beats or "ta")

Simple duple (see chart in "Rhythm and Pulse" lesson) is most commonly

2
4   = 2 "ta" or crotchet beats per bar


Dances in Simple Duple Time
(Click on any of the dances below for more information)

Marches.  Strong weak Strong weak etc   Ta ta Ta ta etc
counted 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 etc up to 8     This is equivalent to 8 bars ( a phrase)

Example: March of the Toy Soldiers from The Nutcracker (Tchaikovsky)

Note that the conductor beats down on the strong beats and up on the weak beats

Discussion:  What ballet exercise would you use a march for?

Polkas  Strong and weak and Strong and weak and etc  Ti-ti ti-ti Ti-ti ti-ti etc for 8 bars

counted 1 a and a 2 a and a etc up to 8   OR 

             1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and etc

Example: Trisch Trasch Polka  (Strauss)

Discussion:  What ballet exercise would you use a polka for?

Tangos  

LONG short EV-en LONG short EV-en

Here is an example of dotted rhythm.  

Example : Habanera from Carmen (Bizet)

Discussion : What ballet exercise would you use a tango for?

Galops  Very similar to polkas

Example: Can Can (Offenbach)

Discussion:  What ballet exercise would you use a galop for?

Dances in Simple Triple Time

Simple Time


Simple Triple time ( see chart in "Rhythm and Pulse" lesson) is most commonly


3
4  = 3 "ta" or crotchet beats per bar

Waltzes  Strong weak weak Strong weak weak etc
counted  1 and a 2 and a 3 and a etc up to 8

Slow example: Slow Waltz from Sleeping Beauty

Fast example: Also from Sleeping Beauty

Landler:

Sarabande:  Strong weak weak-and Strong weak weak etc

Polonaise: 

Mazurka:

Bolero:

Minuet:

Dances in Simple Quadruple Time

Simple Quadruple time is 4 simple (usually crotchet or "ta" ) beats per bar.  Strong weak medium weak.

Examples of dances in simple quadruple time:

Czardas-lassu

Gavotte

Marches can also be in quadruple time.

Compound time and examples

Compound time is counted in dotted crotchet beats.  Every dotted beat is the equivalent of 3 quaver beats (ti-ka-ti)

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Compound Duple is 2 dotted crotchet beats per bar:  Strong-and-a weak-and-a OR Ti-ka-ti ti-ka-ti


  Barcarolle Example: Offenbach

Tarantella 

Marches can also be in compound time 

Example : Washington Post (Sousa)

Compound Triple

3 dotted crotchet beats per bar : Strong and a weak and a weak and a OR Ti-ka-ti ti-ka-ti ti-ka-ti

Corrente Example from Bach Partita No 1

Anacrusis

An anacrusis or upbeat occurs when a piece starts on a weak beat.

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Example:  Happy Birthday to you:  the first strong beat is on the syllable "birth".

Here is an example in simple triple time.  Listen for the first strong beat.

When counting a piece of music with an anacrusis, start with "and".

and 1 and 2 and etc

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The incomplete 'first' bar is rhythmically the final beats in the last bar.  So the final bar in a piece with an anacrusis will have fewer beats than suggested by its time signature (by the number of beats in the anacrusis).

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Triplet

A triplet is a group of three notes that fit into the time of two notes.  It effectively puts a compound beat into a simple time signature, and is said "Ti-ka-ti" .

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Triplets can also be 3 crotchets that fit into the time of 2 crotchets:

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Example in music:

Timeline: Ballet and Music Through the Ages

(Click on any of the composers below for more information)

Lully   Note that early ballets included opera.

Rameau (obviously the choreography is not of the same period!)

Beethoven Unfortunately, I couldn't find a video of the ballet.

Chopin This was not written as ballet music, but later arranged for the ballet "Les Sylphides"

Delibes Coppelia

Tchaikovsky Sleeping Beauty

Prokoviev Romeo and Juliet

Stravinsky Jeux des Cartes

Italian Terms and Definitions

Speeds or Tempi (How fast the music is played)


Grave - Very Slow
Largo, Lento - Slow
Larghetto - A little faster than Largo
Adagio - Moderately Slow
Andante - "Walking" Tempo
Andantino - A little faster than Andante
Allegretto - A little slower than Allegro
Allegro - Fast
Vivace - Lively
Presto - Very Fast
Prestissimo - Very Very Fast
Moderato - Moderate(ly)
Molto - Very
Accel., Accelerando - Gradually becoming faster
Rit., Ritardando - Gradually becoming slower

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Signs for staccato, staccatissimo and accent (or marcato)

Articulation (How the music is played)


Staccato- short and detached
Staccatissimo - very short and detached
Marcato - emphasised
Legato - smoothly connected
Pesante - heavily
Leggiero - lightly

Dynamics (How loud or soft the music should be played)

Pianissimo - very soft.
Piano - soft.
Mezzo piano - moderately soft
Mezzo forte - moderately loud. If no dynamic appears, mezzo-forte is assumed to be the dynamic level.
Forte - loud.
Fortissimo - very loud.
Sforzando - literally "forced", denotes an abrupt accent on a single sound or chord.
Crescendo - a gradual increase in volume.
Diminuendo (Also decrescendo) - a gradual decrease in volume.


There are many more terms describing how the music should be played emotionally.