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"I got rhythm, I got music. . ." —IRA GERSHWIN

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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