Time Signatures. Counting and Confusion

Shodai

Blues Junior
This second one is a different concept. He is saying to use phrases of different lengths, not that they are different number of beats in the same measure. So when he talks about 4 over 3, the phrases get "out of sync" and then after 12 beats they are back in sync again.

He starts out by showing you polymeter, or two instruments playing in different time signatures at the same time, which is one way to establish a polyrhythmic pattern, but if you watch it to the end he brings it all back to polyrhythms.

It's not about the number of beats, but how to divide the beats into different subdivisions so that different subdivisions fill the same amount of time.

In a measure of 4/4 there are only 4 beats. In that space you can fit 4 quarter notes, 8 8th notes, 16 sixteenth notes, or 32 thirty-second notes. But those are only the even subdivisions. You can also fit three quarter note triplets, 12 eighth not triplets, and of course many other subdivisions, like fives, and sevens.

Polyrhythms happen when the same measure of time has rhythmic patterns that don't align, but do fill the same space.

Drummers use it more as an individual application to the instrument. With guitar you see it more as as guitar part played against another instrument.

4 over 3,and 5 over 4 are some of favorite to play as a drummer.
 
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