Season Six
Episode 129
Rhythm Systems: Ways to Speak and Count
This school year I am unable to sing with my students as a result of Covid so I’ve been spending a lot of time on rhythmic concepts. There are so many ways to count rhythms in music and reasons you might choose to use one system over another. It is not helpful for your students if you use multiple ways to count using several systems because they will get confused. That said, you may decide to use one system over several years with students from grades K-4 and then bridge your 5th or 6th graders into using the counting system that you know they will be using in middle school band, orchestra, or choir. This can be helpful if students are used to one counting system in elementary, but your middle school music directors use another system. Older students who are familiar with your system could benefit from having an introduction into the system they’ll be using in coming years in middle school. Or your middle school directors could be made aware of the system used in feeder elementary schools so that they know how to bridge the language of speaking rhythms in their classrooms. A little of both is helpful, but the goal is to help students speak rhythmically and understand how the notes relate.
I’m going to focus on four systems and share which system I am using this year and why (hint: it’s not the one I’ve used for years and I’m loving the success I’m seeing with students).
Rhythm System #1: Counting
I grew up using this system in piano lessons and find it a great way for students to understand time signatures, strong and weak beats, and where beat and subdivisions of the beat occur. For some students I’ve found that this really reinforces identifying the bar lines in the music so that they understand where the next beat one occurs. This system is best explained by sharing the rules that are followed to make it work.
In Meter of 4/4 - a simple meter:
1) A note that begins on the beat is called by the number of the beat. 1-2-3-4
2) A note that begins halfway between two beats is called “&” (pronounced and).
3) A note that begins on the second quarter of the beat is called “E.” (pronounced ee).
4) A note that begins on the fourth quarter of the beat is called “A.” (pronounced uh).
5) A note that begins on the second third of the beat or a division of the beat is called “trip-.”
6) A note that begins on the third third of a beat or a division of the beat is called “let.”
I’m not quite sure what else to call this system except counting and I’ve seen several websites call it the 1e&a system; though I’ve always just known it as the counting system. There is a similar system known as the Eastman Counting system. Both systems have similar rules, but with different syllables spoken on the divisions of the beat.
Rhythm System #2: Kodaly
This is a common system among elementary teachers and the system I have used for years on end. My students had good success in understanding how to read rhythms with the Kodaly system. Each note or combination of familiar note patterns is given an assigned syllable.
Quarter note - ta
Two Eighth notes - titi
Four sixteenth notes - tikatika or tiritiri
Half note - too
Whole note - toe
Patterns where you find one eighth note followed by a quarter note and then another eighth note would be spoken as syn-co-pa to show the syncopated rhythm and to help students see that combinations of notes can occur frequently. This system is wonderful for younger students. Many teachers that use this system also follow the sequencing and structure of the Kodaly-inspired way of teaching where they layeri each note or pattern over previous knowledge so that students have a lot of experience in speaking, writing, singing, and creating with the rhythms. I have found that oftentimes students begin to identify the notes by the syllable names rather than understanding their musical names. In other words - looking at a quarter note and calling it ‘ta’ but not knowing that it’s a quarter note. So beneficial for students to understand what the note actually is while understanding that ‘ta’ is just how we count that note.
Rhythm System #3: Gordon
This system was developed by Edwin Gordon and inspired by the work of James Froseth and Albert Blaser. The idea is that the syllables reflect where the beat lies and everything else comes from there. For example, Du always shows us where the beat lies. When it subdivides, the Du remains on the beat and we add ‘de.’ So two eighth notes would be spoken du-de. If we have four sounds on a beat (four sixteenth notes), we would speak it as du-ta-day-ta. In compound meters, we would speak Du on the beat still, but when we have three sounds to the beat we’d say “Du da di.”
Rhythm System #4: Takadimi
This past spring I attended two weeks of sessions with Dr. Carol Krueger online and my mind was blown as I engaged in rhythmic and melodic exercises. I loved what I experienced as I learned the Takadimi system and how it worked in helping to put together all of the things that I wanted my students to understand.
It’s similar to the Gordon system, but with different syllables. Ta is the syllable for each beat. When it subdivides, Ta remains on the beat and di is spoken on the second half of the beat. So two eighth notes would be spoken ta-di if the quarter note receives the beat. When we have four sounds on a beat we would say takadimi. In compound meters, we would speak ta-ka-di.
I chose to switch my middle school students over to this system because of the way I saw it work in the workshops I attended as I learned it. It just made so much sense. I love that my students are able to easily identify where the beat begins as a result of the Ta only being spoken on the beat. I love that my students are able to identify how many sounds are on each beat as a result of understanding where the beat occurs. I love that they can hear the divisions of each beat more easily. I also loved learning how to guide students in writing notation using a simple form of using slashes on lines of beats and then transferring that simplified notation into standard notation of music notes. I love
Even though I learned this system in the spring I didn’t make the switch with my students until the beginning of this year. I review the system that their elementary teacher uses with them (she does the Kodaly system) and then bridge it over to say “This is what you called in last year in fourth grade. In fifth grade, we’re going to call it this.” So far the students have moved with greater understanding and at a faster pace than any other year I’ve taught. And as they are writing and identifying rhythms, I’m making a conscious effort to be sure students understand the names of the notes and not just the syllable we speak when we see it. There’s always more I can do to help my students understand music and I just do my best to find the areas that need more strengthening and work to help them with it in clear and consistent ways.
No matter which system you choose to use, I encourage you to choose the system that works best for you and makes the most sense for you and to use it consistently. If you’re finding that your counting system isn’t working, see if it needs to be used more often in a consistent manner, at a slower pace, in a way that reviews well-known rhythms for a longer period of time before adding new material or if maybe it’s time to shift to another system. I don’t think one system is better than another - it’s just what is best for your students in your classroom and the needs that they have and then doing it consistently. Speaking the rhythms. Writing the rhythms. Improvising with the rhythms. Engaging with the rhythms through play and performing them on instruments. I hope this episode helped give you an overview of a few different counting systems and helps you see how each could work in your classroom.
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