Chapter 2: Rhythm and Meter: Musical Time
Study Plan
Key Points
- Rhythm is what moves music forward in time.
- Meter, marked off in measures, organizes the beats in music.
- Measures often begin with a strong downbeat.
- Simple meters—duple, triple, and quadruple—are the most common.
- Compound meters subdivide each beat into three, rather than two, subbeats.
- Rhythmic complexities occur with upbeats, offbeats, syncopation, and polyrhythm.
- Additive meters are used in some world musics.
- Some music is nonmetric or has an obscured pulse.
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