Beat (rhythm)
Beat is the English name for the beat in a piece of music that represents a beat in the meter (basic beat ). In pop music , “beat” in the broader sense denotes a pronounced rhythm .
If stressed and unstressed beats are repeated over and over again according to the same pattern, we speak of beat . If all beats are equally stressed or unstressed, it is a basic beat or a meter, such as the beats of a metronome. The existence of the basic beat is the prerequisite for other rhythmic-metric characteristics such as
- Upbeat (roughly "blow up"): see prelude .
- Downbeat : corresponding to the downward movement of the arm downwards at the first beat in most beat figures , the first beat of a measure or the emphasis on the “one” .
- Backbeat : Emphasis on the even, actually unstressed beats of an even bar,i.e. the second and fourth beatsin 4 ⁄ 4 beats. Example: rock and roll , disco
- Offbeat : any position between the beats. In 2 / 4 - stroke , for example, the second and fourth quaver off-beats, the 2nd, 4th, 6th and 8th sixteenth is called Double Time Offbeat referred. Example: salsa rhythms , reggae , punk .
- Afterbeat : a counter accent to the second and fourth beat, it creates tension.
Beats per minute are equivalent to MM (" Mälzel's Metronome "). In traditional African music , the beat is a point of reference in time, a metric center within the various meters of the individual musicians. The beat is often not played explicitly, but dance steps take place on the beat and it is clapped along for clarity. Beat is thus the main rhythmic accent of a piece of music that is followed rather strictly (in waltzes or blues ) or intermediate strokes are dragged out (in rock music ) or driven forward (style characteristic of jazz , especially in swing ). Even if the rhythm section pauses as planned within a song ( stop time chorus , cadence ), the beatcontinues inaudibly and is made clear by physical movements (kicking your feet, swinging along).