Mark Henderson answered
The word rhythm means a repeated pattern of sounds and silences. In musical terms this is usually referred to as the beat of a song.
The beat requires a regular sequence of short duration pulses and sharp changes in dynamics. For this reason the most suitable instruments to provide a beat to the song are from the percussion family.
The beat is also the backbone of the song, and provides the basis for the rest of the instruments to work from. Western music is usually structured in beats of four, and the structure of a rhythm is defined by a time signature.
The contrasting nature of rhythm means that we are able to memorize it easily. The rhythm is the succession of those strong and weak elements and the repetition of this pattern provides a hook for the song.
The strong and weak elements of a rhythm are known respectively as the "upbeat" and "downbeat" or "on" and "off" beat. For example in a 4/4 time signature the beat would sound like: One and two and three and four and. The numbers refer to the "on" and the "ands" refer to the "off" beat.
Tempo is the measure of how quickly a beat is played. This is measured in beats per minute (bpm). For example, 60 bpm means one beat per second. Tempo dictates the pace of the rhythm and may change throughout an arrangement.
The beat requires a regular sequence of short duration pulses and sharp changes in dynamics. For this reason the most suitable instruments to provide a beat to the song are from the percussion family.
The beat is also the backbone of the song, and provides the basis for the rest of the instruments to work from. Western music is usually structured in beats of four, and the structure of a rhythm is defined by a time signature.
The contrasting nature of rhythm means that we are able to memorize it easily. The rhythm is the succession of those strong and weak elements and the repetition of this pattern provides a hook for the song.
The strong and weak elements of a rhythm are known respectively as the "upbeat" and "downbeat" or "on" and "off" beat. For example in a 4/4 time signature the beat would sound like: One and two and three and four and. The numbers refer to the "on" and the "ands" refer to the "off" beat.
Tempo is the measure of how quickly a beat is played. This is measured in beats per minute (bpm). For example, 60 bpm means one beat per second. Tempo dictates the pace of the rhythm and may change throughout an arrangement.
