Subdivision & syncopation

Splitting beats, dots, offbeats

% One unit is a sixteenth here, so a beat is '_4'. Theme walks one
% note to a beat and stops open on 5; Close repeats its first bar and
% takes the tail down to 1 instead.
 
bpm 120
instrument pluck
meter 4
unit 1/4
key d harm
 
Theme ::= | 5 _4 6 _4 5 _4 4 _4 |
          | 3 _4 4 _4 5 _8      |
Close ::= | 5 _4 6 _4 5 _4 4 _4 |
          | 3 _4 2 _4 1 _8      |
 
Theme Close
 
 
% Duration marks do the dividing: '_4' is one note to the beat, '_2'
% two, a bare unit four. Turn says its four notes at all three speeds,
% twice over at the fastest; Run holds sixteenths for a whole bar and
% then a third lower.
 
Turn ::= 5 6 5 4
Run  ::= 5 6 5 4 3 4 5 6 5 4 3 2 1 2 3 4
 
Turn _4 Turn _2 Turn*2
Run Run@~-2 Close
 
 
% A dot is half again: the eighth is '_2', so the dotted eighth is
% '_3', and '+2' reaches the same three units by adding instead of
% scaling. Lilt is Theme's line in dotted pairs: the same eight
% beats, a long-short pair on every one but the last.
 
assert 5 _3 == 5 +2
 
Lilt ::= | 5 _3 6 5 _3 4 3 _3 4 5 _3 6 |
         | 5 _3 4 3 _3 2 1 _3 2 1 _4   |
 
Lilt Lilt@~2 Lilt Close
 
 
% Syncopation is an accent the division never asked for. Bass cuts
% the bar 3+3+2 eighths, so its middle note falls halfway through beat
% 2, between two beats and on neither, while the kit keeps eight
% honest eighths above it.
 
Bass<bass> ::= .1 _6 .5 _6 .1 _4
Kit  ::= {hat*8 _2, kick _6 kick _6 snare _4}
 
{Bass*4, Kit*4}
{Theme, Bass*2, Kit*2}
{Close, Bass*2, Kit*2}
 
 
% The other syncopation is early. Off sounds its chords on the second
% half of every beat, and Push is Theme's own notes entering half a
% beat before the bar; the last note gives back the two units the
% entry borrowed, so Push still measures two bars.
 
Off  ::= - _2 5Dia _2 - _2 5Dia _2 - _2 1Dia _2 - _2 1Dia _2
Push ::= - _2 5 _4 6 _4 5 _4 4 _4 3 _4 4 _4 5 _6
 
{Push, Off*2, Kit*2}
{Close, Off*2, Kit*2}
 
 
% All of it in order, on the beat, divided, dotted over the 3+3+2
% bass, pushed early against the offbeat chords, and home:
 
Theme Close
Turn _4 Turn _2 Turn*2 Run Run@~-2
{Lilt, Bass*2, Kit*2}
{Lilt@~2, Bass*2, Kit*2}
{Push, Off*2, Kit*2}
{Close, Bass*2, Kit*2}
1Dia _16

% One unit is a sixteenth here, so a beat is '_4'. Theme walks one
% note to a beat and stops open on 5; Close repeats its first bar and
% takes the tail down to 1 instead.

bpm 120
instrument pluck
meter 4
unit 1/4
key d harm

Theme ::= | 5 _4 6 _4 5 _4 4 _4 |
          | 3 _4 4 _4 5 _8      |
Close ::= | 5 _4 6 _4 5 _4 4 _4 |
          | 3 _4 2 _4 1 _8      |

Theme Close

% Duration marks do the dividing: '_4' is one note to the beat, '_2'
% two, a bare unit four. Turn says its four notes at all three speeds,
% twice over at the fastest; Run holds sixteenths for a whole bar and
% then a third lower.

Turn ::= 5 6 5 4
Run  ::= 5 6 5 4 3 4 5 6 5 4 3 2 1 2 3 4

Turn _4 Turn _2 Turn*2
Run Run@~-2 Close

% A dot is half again: the eighth is '_2', so the dotted eighth is
% '_3', and '+2' reaches the same three units by adding instead of
% scaling. Lilt is Theme's line in dotted pairs: the same eight
% beats, a long-short pair on every one but the last.

assert 5 _3 == 5 +2

Lilt ::= | 5 _3 6 5 _3 4 3 _3 4 5 _3 6 |
         | 5 _3 4 3 _3 2 1 _3 2 1 _4   |

Lilt Lilt@~2 Lilt Close

% Syncopation is an accent the division never asked for. Bass cuts
% the bar 3+3+2 eighths, so its middle note falls halfway through beat
% 2, between two beats and on neither, while the kit keeps eight
% honest eighths above it.

Bass<bass> ::= .1 _6 .5 _6 .1 _4
Kit  ::= {hat*8 _2, kick _6 kick _6 snare _4}

{Bass*4, Kit*4}
{Theme, Bass*2, Kit*2}
{Close, Bass*2, Kit*2}

% The other syncopation is early. Off sounds its chords on the second
% half of every beat, and Push is Theme's own notes entering half a
% beat before the bar; the last note gives back the two units the
% entry borrowed, so Push still measures two bars.

Off  ::= - _2 5Dia _2 - _2 5Dia _2 - _2 1Dia _2 - _2 1Dia _2
Push ::= - _2 5 _4 6 _4 5 _4 4 _4 3 _4 4 _4 5 _6

{Push, Off*2, Kit*2}
{Close, Off*2, Kit*2}

% All of it in order, on the beat, divided, dotted over the 3+3+2
% bass, pushed early against the offbeat chords, and home:

Theme Close
Turn _4 Turn _2 Turn*2 Run Run@~-2
{Lilt, Bass*2, Kit*2}
{Lilt@~2, Bass*2, Kit*2}
{Push, Off*2, Kit*2}
{Close, Bass*2, Kit*2}
1Dia _16

running…edit it and it re-runs as you type

Subdivision & syncopation · Rhythm