Music Rhythm Series Course

This is part 2 of suggestions on how to use the Music Rhythm Series Course which is on sale for 1/3 of its usual price. I should point out that I created this series for MY OWN practice! Here is a brief history which should also give you plenty of ideas on how to use this series. From the Music Rhythm Series Course Rhythms Volumes 1-5 was a specific assignment given to me by my music guru Charlie Banacos. The assignment was to take the 9 basic rhythms on 4 metric levels and add rests and ties through all permutations of each rhythm. I augmented this assignment here, by also adding in all possible rhythms within a half, one or two measures. I entered this information into a computer rather than writing it out by hand. This made them available to you but also with midi files so you can check your accuracy. What does this accomplish?

By working with this you are dealing with every possible rhythm that can exist within a half, whole or two measures depending on the metric level. If you think about that it’s a very powerful exercise that will weed out any rhythms that are going to cause you problems, either when you are sight reading or when someone in your band wants you to play a specific rhythm.
Later on I realized I needed to change my right hand technique on guitar. Sight reading through these rhythms trains your forearm to recognize all these rhythms. Remember, your muscles learn rhythms so if for any reason you are changing your technique to use other muscles, you will need to train those muscles to play all common rhythms.
At the time there was no MetroDrone so I recorded a loop in “C” and played the rhythms on an “Ab” because I just couldn’t hear “b6” in a key center. It made a world of difference doing that. I’ve already prepared that for you with the Rhythms Volumes 6-12.
Again, all of these books come with midi files so you can test your accuracy at any tempo. I wish I had had that, back then…. But I did have the ear of Charlie Banacos checking every damn rhythm. 🙂

Music Rhythm Series Course Rhythms Books 6-12

Rhythms Volume 6-12 were created for multiple reasons:

I wanted to make sure I could perform odd groupings such as quintuplets, sextuplets and septuplets with a high degree of accuracy.
By reading through the odd grouping over a piece of music or a drum beat in 4/4 you are actually superimposing one time over another which is a common technique used in contemporary jazz and prog rock.
I added an ear training component because it allowed my students to work directly on notes that were causing them problems while they were working with one note ear training. It worked great for me and I’ve seen it work countless times with students. By the way it doesn’t mean you even have to learn the rhythms; it can be used solely as an ear training listening exercise.
I wanted to master my ability to sight read odd groupings and also used the “Beat Reading” exercise on one page of Rhythms Volumes 6-12 each day. That only takes maybe 10 minutes at the most to do. It made a huge difference in my reading skills.
I also extracted one or two measure rhythmic patterns, and applied them to real music such as the Jam Tracks or a jazz standard. I applied this as both a melodic and harmonic rhythm. Again, just 10 minutes a day yielded great results.

One last thing. A few questions have come in about what tempos folks should shoot for with Music Rhythm Series Course . Here is a synopsis:

Music Rhythm Series Course Practice Suggestions

Any exercise using eighth note rhythms i.e. Rhythms Volume One should be read as straight eighths and swung eighths. You should put the metronome (MetroDrone) on 2 and 4 for the swing and one and three for the straight eighths. You want to get these rhythms to a 1/2 note equals 120 BPM. That is as fast as you will usually see these rhythms used. Reaching that tempo requires multiple passes through the 120 page book and usually takes 3 to 6 months to complete. I encourage you to use the MetroDrone and place that beat only on the downbeat of the measure.
Please note that if you are using Rhythms Volume Four or Rhythms Volume Five which are in 3/4 time you can start with the metronome on every beat but switch to the metronome only on the downbeat as soon as you can.
Any exercise with sixteenth note rhythms i.e. Rhythms Volume Two should be read with straight eighths only. The metronome should be playing on the beat, though it would be much better if you used the MetroDrone or the files in The Big Metronome and placed the click only on every other beat or even the entire measure. The goal is 120 BPM for a quarter note. Again reaching that tempo requires multiple passes through the 120 page book and usually takes 3 to 6 months to complete.
Any exercise with thirty second notes i.e. Rhythms Volume Three should be read with straight eighths with the metronome on every beat. You goal is 60 BPM for a quarter note.
Rhythms Volumes 6-12 rhythms are usually not played that fast so as an estimate you could halve the goal tempos I’ve mentioned above.

One further clarification: I usually have a student work through Rhythm Primer, Rhythms Volume One and Rhythms Volume Two as their first assignments. This applies to musicians at any level. If they are a beginning student, Rhythm Primer is perfect. For a beginner the assignment in Rhythms Volume One and Rhythms Volume Two would be to learn only one measure per week. Finally, fast forward to the last few years, when I’ve been working on various applications of pitch class sets. I’m getting back into these books again to help me diversify the rhythms I use when soloing or comping with the various pitch class sets.

Conclusion

The Music Rhythm Series Course will transform your ability with rhythm and time. If you have some of the common problems musicians face with rhythm then this is truly the series you need. I’ve found through my 40 years of teaching that most musicians do not adequately prepare themselves when it comes to rhythms. This adverse affects their groove, feel and rhythmic accuracy when playing. Most musicians when deciding whether to play with someone are either consciously or unconsciously guided by how it “feels” to play with the person. Rhythm is the secret sauce that will put you in the right place within the time of the music and make you a much better and sought after musician.

Bruce Arnold Music Education Genealogy Chart

You might enjoy checking out the “Music Education Genealogy Chart” located on my artist’s site. You will clearly see the historic progression of pedagogy that is the basis for Muse Eek Publishing Products. Great musicians throughout history have been studying the ideas presented by Muse-eek.com which derives its content from a a lineage that stretches back to Scarlatti!

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