I Am a Pianist and This is How Musicians Study and Understand Time

    It would be hard to find a medium more linked to time than music-since what is music but sound that occurs over a defined duration of time? Of course, most music has an even more complicated relationship with time since nearly every piece displays rhythm. But what exactly is rhythm and how do musicians study and learn rhythm?

    Rhythm in music can most easily be described as the organization of sound through time and is defined through specific symbols within the score. These symbols tell us everything from the duration of notes to the durations of silence between notes. And with a time signature, we are told how many beats will occur in a measure and what note duration will receive the beat. With this rhythmic vocabulary, we are able to understand and construct infinite rhythmic patterns that can range from the very simple to the mind-numbingly complex!

    We learn to read music, and rhythmic notation, from our very first lessons but also begin at that moment to create an internal metronome. A metronome is a device that creates a *click*  at different beats per minutes (bpm) to help us maintain even tempos. This device can be helpful but also extremely hurtful to musicians, particularly for the young musician. It's very easy to become reliant on such a device and therefore neglect developing ones internal metronome. Over reliance to the metronome is easily heard in the robotic playing of performers addicted to metronome practice and also observed through their inability to sight read. Also, as music becomes more complicated, the metronome can only provide so much help such as when learning polyrhythms.

 

   So then how do we develop an internal beat and not become a slave to the metronome? The answer is multifold and begins in the very first music lesson. First, the student must learn to internalize the beat. This is most easily achieved by having them identify their own heart beat and then practice tapping to their heart beat. This will teach them to follow a pattern and to feel the pattern. You can eventually move to counting and clapping simple rhythms after introducing rhythmic note reading. This allows the student to use all learning modalities-kinesthetic, visual, and aural. Listening to pieces and identifying the beat is a simple and fun game to play with students. Eventually they will start subconsciously identifying beats, time signatures, and rhythmic patterns whenever they are exposed to music.

    

    As music becomes more difficult, a player must become increasingly fast at pattern recognition. This is true for both the notes and  rhythm. Memorizing and exposure to many different rhythmic patterns is integral for a developing musician. This quick pattern recognition can also be learned through specific rhythmic exercises:

    

      There is no limit for one's rhythmic abilities and this is evidenced by the ever increasing rhythmic demands made by modern composers. The demands of rhythm will continue to follow beginners and professional musicians alike. Thus, we are constantly learning to readjust our internal metronomes.