EXCERPT

The course of study presented in this book assumes that the reader has intermediate to advanced knowledge of music. With any course of study questions arise, therefore Muse-eek presents a forum where relevant questions will be answered by the author. Please visit the publisher's website at first and check the FAQ section for this book to see if your question has already been answered. If not, use the form on the website to e-mail your questions.

Volume One of Contemporary Rhythms looks at the notation methods of contemporary music. Composers in the last 100 years have departed from the traditional method of notating rhythms. This in turn has created a situtation where you may find a rhythm you know but you don't recognize it because of the notation used. Obviously, it is important to learn to recognize these alternative notations to improve your sight reading ability.

Although some of the notations presented for rhythms in this book are unusual it is important that you familiarize yourself with these alternate notation methods. Let's first take a quick look at how this modern notation differs from traditional.

The imaginary bar line is commonly used to divide music in 4/4 into two equal groups. If you look at example 1 you will see that it is difficult to see where the 3rd beat of the measure begins. In example 4 an imaginary bar line has been added making the beginning of the 3rd beat clear.