Within each chapter the reader will find:
• Rhythmic Vocabulary: these are commonly used 1-bar rhythmic phrases, to be repeated as a “loop” or “vamp”.
• Exercises.
• Permutations: these are permutations of the bars from previous Exercises.
• Complementary Rhythmic Vocabulary: Same as the Rhythmic Vocabulary, but using 2-bar phrases.
• Complementary Exercises: these tend to be a bit more challenging than the original Exercises.
• Complementary Permutations: Permutations of the Complementary Exercises.
• Fill in the blanks: On these pages, students should come up with some rhythms of their own to fill in blank bars, then practice the whole page.
• Fill in the blanks – Supplementary: Same as Fill in the Blanks, only two bars are to be filled per line.
Use of a metronome is strongly encouraged. There are many ways to use a metronome, and the intermediate student should become familiar and comfortable with each. Using a metronome only on beat 1, 2, 3 or 4 in a 4/4 bar are a few challenging and fun variations.
There are multiple electronic devices and metronomes that have built-in rhythms, like clave, loops, etc. Using these options as your metronome is a more musical (and challenging) approach, but should be reserved for those students who have already become proficient with the standard metronome.
Remember to take the time to understand each new rhythm that is presented. Work only on a small amount of material at time. Make sure you have assimilated the rhythms completely before moving on. By working patiently, you will soon become a better musician. When you improve your sense of rhythm, your overall playing improves, and you are able to concentrate on other aspects of musical performance.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1: Quarter note, Half note, Quarter rest
Chapter 2: Half rest
Chapter 3: Whole note, Whole rest
Chapter 4: Eighth notes
Chapter 5: The Tie
Chapter 6: The Dot
Chapter 7: It's all about upbeats and downbeats
Chapter 8: Syncopation
Chapter 9: Triplets
Chapter 10: Sixteenth notes
Chapter 11: 6/8 Time
Also available in paperback on
amazon.com
