Iāve been listening to more music lately than is my norm. Mindful listening as some like to call it.
Iāve always known that beat 1 is the most important of them all but itās quietly dawned on me that thereās something very special about it.
I focus on different instruments in the band and follow one for a while, then switch to another. When I listen to lead or melody the beat is still there but I may not be paying much attention to it. When I go back to listening to the beat, I immediately know where beat 1 is.
It depends on the song of course, but more often than not, beat 1 is the quietestā¦and the fun and games are on the other beats.
Beat 1ā¦ā¦itās solid, itās dependable, itās the granddaddy of them all!
It has its own unique soundā¦ā¦but now Iām struggling because sound is difficult to describe in words.
With out beat 1 there are no other beats to follow. Even if beat 1 isnāt the first note of an intro or piece of music with out it you couldnāt start.
Wow David, I think youāre going āDeepā here!!!
I havenāt given a whole lot of thought to Beat 1 - I havenāt been knee-deep inā¦ ummmmmā¦ letās just say fertilizer either!!! Either youāre onto something or you need some fume-free fresh air!!!
Sorry, sometimes I just canāt control the smart-aleck inside!!!
Seriously though, I do like the āfeelā of songs that start on beat 1 & not on another beatā¦ I guess I donāt really have enough music theory to understand why song donāt ALWAYS start on beat one. Beat 1 is pretty important for the militaryā¦ marching cadences start with 1ā¦ can you imagine the havoc if the sergeant started with a different number? Nobody would ever march in time!!!
Good thread idea! Iām interested to see what the Community has to say!
@CATMAN62
Hey Tod donāt panic! I get more than my fair share of fresh air!
Just to clarify, (@stitch) Iām not talking about the first beat of a song. I mean beat 1 in every bar. Itās special!
The reason I put the question is because itās musicians who create and define beat 1 and we are all learning to be musicians, so we need to create and define it as well.
In my simplistic view, I see beat 1 as so important because your brain has to organize the rhythm in some pattern and it is easier in groups of 4, 3, or 2 (or 2 groups of 3 as in 6:8). If you werenāt consistent in having a beat 1 then the songās rhythm would be more random and not be as enjoyable.
On a related topic, notice that the range of normal tempo from slow to fast is roughly the same as the range of slow to fast heart rates (roughly 50 - 150+). I donāt think it is a coincidence.
@SteveL_G99
I understand what youāre saying, Steve, but that is more about the maths or structure of the rhythm.
My question is about the distinctive, unmistakable SOUND of beat 1
Interesting question, but itās not clear to me what you mean by saying that beat 1 is the quietest. Do you mean how much stress is put on it? Also, IMO, beat 1 is defined by the composer/songwriter/bandleader, not the āmusiciansā. (Imagine a group - Iām not talking about free improvisation here - playing according to 5 different beats 1ā¦)
True, but I think that the structure of the rhythm has an impact on the sound. The band has a rhythmic pattern in their heads that they are all following so they can stay in a groove. If beat 1 is the quietest, it is probably because they are using a back beat rhythm. So the band is going to deemphasize the first beat That is not the whole answer you are looking for, but I think it is part of it.
Hmmā¦stressā¦now thatās interesting.
Can beat 1 be stressed without being accented?
Flexing time! Is that happening?
Itās almost as if beat1 is a little bit longer, stretched, but weāve caught up again by the time beat2 comes round.
It can be done on guitar by dragging the strum a little to make it longer.
When Iām tapping my foot, I seem to leave it down a tad longer on beat1
Orā¦maybe beat1 IS a fraction longer and the others a fraction shorter to compensate?
Maybe itās that beat1 is bassier, making it stand out?
Or maybe a combination of some, allā¦.or non of these things!
To me, accent = stress. Youāll often find that beat 1 sounds somewhat more powerful than the other beats, but any beat can be accented in a piece of music. As for the duration of the note(s) played on beat 1, there probably used to be more of a āhuman factorā when musicians only had their hands, mouths and feet to use instead of quantizing everything in a DAW. But itās absolutely possible to play something other than a quarter note on beat 1 as well.
This article might explain accented beats a little better:
I havenāt found very good videos on the topic but this one might be useful:
Ha ha! No wonder you couldnāt find much.
I put my question into Google and this JG Community topic was top of a very short list!
So maybe itās just me!
I donāt believe that though. Surely someone somewhere understands what I mean.
Yes, beat1 can be accented, but in many songs it isnāt and yet it still sounds distinctive.
Your video doesnāt really tell me much that I didnāt already know.
Interestingly though - when heās counting the rhythm, he always drags out the word āOneā making it longer even when heās not putting an accent on beat1.
āTwoā āThreeā and āFourā, by comparison, are more clipped.
When he puts an accent on beat3 he still drags āOneā but doesnāt drag āThreeā. He accents it by keeping it clipped and saying it louder.
When a band plays in the corner of a pub, the beat is laid down by the drums and bass and the rest play to it. Not a computer in sight! Musicians.
I think youāre confusing Tempo with Beat. The beat is written out by the composer as in 4/4, 3/4, 6/8 etc. The tempo that a song is played at(BPM Beats Per Minute) is laid out by the drummer.
The beats per bar stay the same no matter how fast or slow a song is played or how many notes are played in that measure
Hey David @BurnsRhythm, Iāve been trying to hear in my mindās ear what you observe. In your original comment, you suggest that you hear this ā¦ specialness ā¦ in most songs. Could you provide one or two songs along with descriptions of what sound youāre describing? And just as importantly, an example and description of a song where this does not occur?
Can you post some examples of familiar songs where this is true?
I ask because I just randomly played some of the songs Iāve worked on (in Moises, because it finds Beat 1 quite reliably), and did not find this to be the case.
For example, Wish You Were Here - the strongest beat is Beat 1ā¦at least to my ears.
The other songs I tried were similar.
Maybe it depends on the type of music you listen to?
@stitch
No Rick, I aināt confused.
The composer wonāt be there. The drummer has to lay down the correct beat (and tempo) for the song or itās not going to sound too good.
@judi@Tbushell Sultans Of Swing - no obvious accent on any beat but beat1 has itās own unique sound.
Eric Claptonās River Of Tears - itās in 6/8 with a heavy accent on beat 4. Beat 1 is fairly quiet, but again, it has itās own unique sound.
Ditto for Gary Mooreās Still Got The Blues
He takes a few liberties with his fantastic solos but he ALWAYS nails beat1
There arenāt any examples where beat1 isnāt special. Whether thereās a strong accent on 1 or not, itās always special.
