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hickster9
- FB Fan -

USA
98 Posts

Posted - 04/27/2007 :  09:46:27  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
This isn't specific to FB, but I figure the musician-types likely to be browsing in this section can help me...

I am curious if anyone can help me to "hear" different time signatures. In college, I seemed to be able to hear them in my classical appreciation classes, but that was a long time ago, in a galaxy, far, far away...er, I digress.

I gather that most stuff is 4/4, but can somebody suggest songs that are of different meter that I can contrast? Or even a place in one song where the signature varies?

Obviously you can tell I am not a musician, merely a listener. But, I'm a math geek and love patterns, so this appeals to me!




I like cows, they go moo when they eat

2Strings
- FB Fan -

United Kingdom
50 Posts

Posted - 04/27/2007 :  09:55:04  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Tool are a good band to listen to if you want to hear some very strange time signatures. Undertow or Lateralus would be my album suggestions. Particularly on Lateralus there are some songs which change several times.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDlC7oG_2W4

Edited by - 2Strings on 04/27/2007 09:58:46
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hammerhands
* Dog in the Sand *

Canada
1594 Posts

Posted - 04/27/2007 :  11:45:02  Show Profile  Visit hammerhands's Homepage  Reply with Quote
Often you may just feel that something odd is going on, and very often it slips by quite unnoticed like in the verse of The Beatles - All You Need Is Love for example.

The Fastman/Raiderman album is full of this stuff.
http://forum.frankblack.net/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=16487

If you listen to Oh My Golly! back on Surfer Rosa, in the chorus you can hear ...Rosa, Oh, Rosa (something happens) Rosa...

Edited by - hammerhands on 04/28/2007 01:00:59
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ProverbialCereal
- FB TabMaster -

USA
2953 Posts

Posted - 04/28/2007 :  00:02:23  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Dave Brubeck's album "Time Out."
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pixiestu
> Teenager of the Year <

United Kingdom
2564 Posts

Posted - 04/28/2007 :  05:07:22  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
I'd be interested in a list of FB/Pixies songs which have unusual time signatures. There are songs which I can tell aren't 4/4, but I can't tell the actual time. I'm rubbish with stuff like this.


"The arc of triumph"
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PixieSteve
> Teenager of the Year <

Poland
4698 Posts

Posted - 04/28/2007 :  06:43:34  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
i'm not very good at naming time sigs either. like when i can count to 8 i'm not sure if it's just two lots of 4/4, or if i'm counting eighth notes, so it's 8/8 or something. 3s and 6s confuse me too. anyway,easy way to contrast regular and irregular time sigs is all my ghosts...

at 1:43ish when he does the "i was driving through the valley floor" section... the first four lines you can count to 8 for each (probably 2x 4/4). then the second lot of four lines, with the oooh backgorund vocals, they are only 7 each (probably 7/4).


"I'm such a a news nerd." - Carl

Edited by - PixieSteve on 04/28/2007 06:46:36
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50 Pence
= Cult of Ray =

United Kingdom
284 Posts

Posted - 04/28/2007 :  09:13:42  Show Profile  Visit 50 Pence's Homepage  Reply with Quote
Captain Beefheart and Zappa are good 'ear' workouts....if your into that transcription and stuff.

Blats
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pixiestu
> Teenager of the Year <

United Kingdom
2564 Posts

Posted - 04/28/2007 :  14:23:01  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Yeah, I noticed that about All My Ghosts the first time I tried to play along with it. Although I knew there was something different (like playing 7 instead of 8) I didn't quite know how it would be described, musically.


"The arc of triumph"
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tisasawath
= Cult of Ray =

Wallis and Futuna Islands
783 Posts

Posted - 04/29/2007 :  06:57:15  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
check out the time signature "countdown" in california bound chorus

for some juicy time signatures listen to traditional macedonian music, they even joke that the children there don't learn to count the usual way 1,2,3,4..., but 1,2,1,2,1,2,3 and such rhythms

some contemporary examples

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLhHFpVlru0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3c4MQa0BNrc

and here's one of those 1-2-3,1-2,1-2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFlrkdIXr3A

-----
AAAAWWWWWRRRIIGGHHTTTTT !! !

Edited by - tisasawath on 04/29/2007 07:08:35
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Behind the Mule
- FB Fan -

9 Posts

Posted - 04/29/2007 :  12:07:02  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
There are a lot off cool examples of time signature changes in FB songs.

All My Ghosts is a good one: the verses and choruses are for the most part in 4/4, but half way through the bridge ("And I found among the pictures there...") the measures start alternating between 4/4 and 3/4. In 3/4 the value of a quarter note stays the same, there's just one fewer per measure than 4/4.

When Will Happiness Find Me Again is a good example of 6/8. ONE two three FOUR five six - all the way through.

Another Velvet Nightmare starts in 4/4, switches to 6/8, then back to 4/4.

FB said in Havalina the drum part is in 4/4, but the guitars play in 6/4. Plenty of weird things going on in that song.

Pan American Highway has a really unusual time signature, but I won't begin to guess.

Hope that helps,
Scott
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hickster9
- FB Fan -

USA
98 Posts

Posted - 05/07/2007 :  09:17:36  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Ah, I think I get it now...thanks for the great suggestions gang.

I definitely can hear the distinct changes now, but how the heck do I tell what it has shifted to (ie from 4/4 to 6/8)? Do I need to be a musician for that? Just sit there and count beats per measure?






I like cows, they go moo when they eat
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