All Windows/Play, Rhythms and Bounce/Beats/Beats volumes and times (Ctrl 76)
From Bounce Metronome
Next: Opts for Pitch Tracer (Count Waves) and -> Beats
Controls Common to Many Windows
Screen Shot (More)
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This is what you get in the More version of this window (you use the More button to show it).
Beats volumes and times
Adjust the amount of the lilt or swing, or adjust individual beats...
Lets you adjust individual beats by hand. That's the only feature available here for Bounce Metronome Basic. The swing and lilt options are available for the other metronomes.
For a more natural feel or practice Jazz rhythms, Scottish folk music etc...
How to use this window
Select the part you want to adjust at the top or the window. Then you can either use the bar chart graphics to adjust the timing and volume of individual beats, or use the slider to set the amount of lilt or swing.
To play a rhythm with swing, normally you will swing the part which plays the shorter beats (most beats to the measure), and set the other parts to a gentle lilt or a lilt of 100% for no lilt.
For instance in the 4/4 preset with two subdivisions, the automatic choice is to swing part 2 (which plays 8 beats to the measure). In the 6/8 preset you swing part 1 (which plays the 6 beats to the measure).
Sometimes you may want to lilt or swing several parts simultaneously. To do that unselect Swing part with most beats only.
Swung notes
Swung notes are a feature of many types of music. Notes are played alternately longer and shorter than usual though normally notated all the same length. See the wikipedia article on Swung Note. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swung_note
Types of music that use swung notes include jazz, Celtic music, some dance and country music, and early music particularly France from the middle of the 16th century to late 18th century.
For the early music use (notes inégal) see
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notes_in%C3%A9gales
and the Dolmetsch site on notes inégal
http://www.dolmetsch.com/musictheory20.htm#egal
For the precursors much earlier in the Ars Antiqua rhythmic modes:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhythmic_mode
Gentle Lilt
nearly all types of music the beats in a bar are uneven in a subtle way. You notice this especially if you compare it with computer generated music with the notes all exactly the same length. Varying the beat with a gentle lilt makes the music much more natural sounding and it is likely to be easier to play along with.
See for instance: chapter " Microtiming studies" in thesis by Vijay Iyer at Berkeley university here:
http://archive.cnmat.berkeley.edu/People/Vijay/06.%20Microtiming%20Studies.html
So, if you find it easier to play along with other musicians than a metronome, it may well be because you are used to playing with a lilt and can't adjust your playing to the strict clock like beat of a metronome. This gentle lilt in your playing is something good, to foster. So when you do metronome practice, it is good if you can adjust the metronome to play a lilt :-) (unless you need to play a clock-like strict beat for some reason for a particular piece say).
To do this in Bounce Metronome Pro, just use the gentler settings for swing, such as Gentle lilt. You may also want to unselect "Swing parts with most beats only". This lets you apply a bit of lilt to all the parts in the rhythm, e.g. do the four beats of 4/4 with a lilt to them - a gradual change of timing through the bar. You probably only want a small amount of lilt for this. Then you could use a larger amount of swing if you want to swing quavers subdivisions of each beat.
Amount of swing
With swung notes, you can feel that the beats are uneven in a more noticeable way than a gentle lilt. The second beat in a pair is normally faster than the first.
The amount of swing can vary. So for instance you can have a light swing with the beats in a ratio of 3:2 or a hard swing of 3:1 or a medium swing of 2:1. Or the swing can be in between those amounts, it's not a fixed thing that it has to be 2:1 for instance.
A medium swing has the same timing as a triplet crotchet followed by a triplet quaver (UK crotchet followed by quaver). However it isn't really a triplet rhythm - the second note you would expect in a triplet is missing. It is usually notated as a pair of quavers - understood to be played with a "swing feel".
You can set any of these amounts of swing in Bounce Metronome Pro by adjusting the slider.
" Triplet Swing" - really a swung duplet with triplet timing
The medium swing is also called a triplet swing because of the triplet timing. But it isn't really in compound time because of the missing second note. It is a beat with two subdivisions with an uneven rhythm. So, it is really, more accurately, a swung duplet with a triplet timing.
Jigs are played with Swung Triplets (not to be confused with triplet swing
Sometimes though you get true swung triplets - I mean triplets of three notes played with a swung feel to them, as in jigs in Scottish Folk Music. So in those, you have three different note lengths there rather than just the two note lengths of ordinary swing. The usual two numbers such as 2:1 for a medium swing aren't enough to specify the amount of swing of a swung triplet.
To find out more about the swing rhythm for jigs in Celtic music see Jigs: Trickier than you probably think
http://www.rogermillington.com/siamsa/brosteve/tricky.html
There are different ways to play the swung triplets of a jig. For a discussion thread see:
http://www.thesession.org/discussions/display/12135/comments
Indeed there are many more ways you could play a triplet, with three notes - you could choose any note to be the shortest, then any other note to be the longest, giving six possibilities (L M S, L S M, M L S, S L M, S M L, M S L), and that's not taking account of all the subtle variations in timing within each of those options.
However, one natural and straightforward way is inspired by the way a drum stick behaves if you drop it lightly on the drum. It plays several subdivisions one after another each faster than the previous one, followed by a slightly longer beat to raise the drum stick for the next beat. You get the same rhythm if you drop a bouncing ball from a height. So that's the L S M option. That is exactly how it's played in the various styles of jig rhythm - whether that's a coincidence or not I don't know.
So that's how it's done in Bounce Metronome Pro. So you play the first beat a bit slower than usual, and the next beat a bit faster. That's followed by a medium length beat to raise the drum stick before the next series of bounces. So - just like the way you play the rhythm in a Celtic Jig.
Another subtlety about Jigs is that they are often played with the second triplet in the 6/8 slightly faster than the first so with a very slightly uneven step. Hardly noticeable, but if you listen carefully you hear it.
Also the bars vary in timing too with a lilt - again if you lisen carefully, the first bar may be normal speed, second bar a little faster, third back to normal, fourth a bit slower than the first, the tempo varying very slightly in waves like that. That's common in many styles of music but perhaps a little more noticeable in Celtic music.
Swung notes with four or more subdivisions
When you have four or more subdivisions, then Bounce Metronome Pro does it in the same way, each beat is played faster than the previous one, like the bounces of a bouncing ball or drum stick. So in a four subdivisions swing, the first note is slower than normal, then the next one is a little faster, the third note is the fastest of all, then followed by a slower note again for the lift of the drum stick before the next main beat.
Of course there are many other types of rhythm or "grooves" with uneven timings. Or you may want to vary the swing in subtle ways in the bar.
If that's what you need, you can also set the timings of the beats individually or tap out a rhythm for the bar yourself.
' (single quote) Play this part for one Seed (Alt + ')
Play the musical seed. To play lower freq. and slower use SHIFT, ALT or both...
You can also use CTRL + click on this button to configure how the notes are played, such as whether it should play at a constant tempo or depend on the tempo of the tune.
SHIFT+ play simulates playing a recording at half speed, so reduces the freq by an octave, and plays each note for twice as long as normal. Similarly ALT + play reduces the frequency by two octaves, at quarter speed, and BOTH TOGETHER reduce it by three octaves, at eighth speed.
This is particularly useful for the Audio Pitch Tracer task - as you can use Shift and Alt to slow down and change the pitch of the recording in the same way.
So use e.g. SHIFT + play for both seed and recording, to compare the transcribed seed with the original at the same lower pitch and slower speed. Or ALT or ALT + SHIFT similarly. Especially useful for high pitched quickly changing sounds like bird song.
' (single quote) Play this part for one Seed
Left click on a note to change its volume, right click to change timing...
volumes
To change the volume of a note just click on it. There is no need to drag though it does no harm.
timings
To change the timing, right click. This changes the position of the nearest note boundary to the click.
So to make a note shorter, right click on the line to the right of the note. To change the start time of the note, right click on the line to its left.
You can drag if you like. Dragging the notes seems to be the most intuitive approach for the note timings perhaps.
Zoom in
If the seed has many notes, or has some sections with many short notes in a short space of time, you may need to zoom in on part of the seed to see it in detail.
To do that, hold down the ALT key and drag over the area of interest. This will bring it up in a new window which you can then use to edit it just as you do for the original.
Melody Seed numbers
LEFT CLICK to change the melody seed numbers - which changes the melody for the tune, RIGHT CLICK to change timing...
This adjusts the seed numbers. These have to be whole numbers - show the grid (an option in the More version of this window) if you want to see how many steps there are - the grid has lines every three seed notes.
The vertical scale in this picture changes as you use larger numbers.
To add higher numbers, click above the highest note in your seed. The picture will auto re-scale if needed to show your new number. Similarly for lower numbers click below the lowest note.
To see the effect of your actions on the seed numbers themselves,have the Beats As Text (Ctrl + 77) window open at the same time.
Zoom in
If the seed has many notes, or has some sections with many short notes in a short space of time, you may need to zoom in on part of the seed to see it in detail.
To do that, hold down the ALT key and drag over the area of interest. This will bring it up in a new window which you can then use to edit it just as you do for the original.
Gentle lilt (Alt + G)
Gentle lilt with the shorter beat 85% of the longer beat
Strong lilt (Alt + O)
Stronger lilt with the shorter beat 75% of the longer beat
Light swing (Alt + L)
A light swing has the pairs of beats in the ratio 3 : 2...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swing_%28music%29
Medium swing (Alt + M)
A medium swing has the pairs of beats in the ratio 2 : 1.
..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swing_%28music%29
Hard swing (Alt + H)
A hard swing has the pairs of beats in the ratio 3 : 1...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swing_%28music%29
Lilt or swing to (Alt + W)
For a more natural feel or practice Jazz rhythms, Scottish folk music etc...
I'll start by going through some typical ways to use this feature for a quick start. Scroll down if new to swing or lilt to find out more about them - see http://www.robertinventor.com/wiki/swung_notes.htm further down this page - also later in this page you can find out more about how the swing is implemeneted in Bounce Metronome.
Some typical ways to use this feature
Swing
You can use this to practise swing rhythms such as for Jazz. To do that you set up a rhythm with two subdivisions of each beat - and then as you adjust the swing, the first beat in each pair of subdivisions gets longer and the second beat shorter.
Lilt
Or you can use this to add a gentle lilt to the rhythm as a whole. You can use it like this with a rhythm without subdivisions such as 4/4. Just switch this on but set the slider to a small amount towards the left of the range. This will make the beats in the bar slightly uneven and more natural sounding which you may find helps with practice.
Scottish Jigs and other swung 6/8
If you use this option with compound time rhythms like 6/8 then the triplets get swung. In a triplet swing then the first beat is long, second beat is shorter third beat is between the first two in duration. It's similar rhythm to a triple stroke buzz roll on a drum - the triplet beats get shorter and shorter - then there's a slight pause before start of the next triplet just like the (very slight) pause you get as the drummer lifts the drum stick between buzz rolls - not really a pause - just a gap that is a bit longer than the gap between the last two strokes of the buzz roll.
Buzz rolls
You can also use this option with rhythms with more than 3 subdivisions of each beat. Each one will be played like a buzz roll on a drum of the same number of beats. Again you can use this with a hard swing for an n-tuplet version of the scottich swung triplet or for a buzz roll effect - or with a gentle lilt just to make the n-tuplets a bit uneven in an interesting way. If you want a buzz roll effect with 4 or more subdivisions, make sure you switch off the "Shuffle - Auto pulse as 2 subdivisions if possible" option in Swing and Auto Accents - Preferences (Ctrl + 232)
Swing part with most beats only=
Normally you swing just one of the parts, most often the part with most subdivisions. But when musicians play, the beats themselves are also uneven slightly, as well as the subdivisions. To set up a rhythm like that then you can switch off "Swing part with most beats only" - also switch off "Swing all the same" both in Swing and Auto Accents - Preferences (Ctrl + 232).
Then you can set the swing or lilt independently for each part. You might set the subdivisions to a hard swing for instance, and the individual beats to a gentle lilt.
You can also adjust the timing of any individual beats by hand in Template:W - what you might do is set up the rhythm first using swing and lilt for all the parts - then listen to it and then micro-adjust the individual beats to your preference to get the rhythm you like.
The way of doing lilt here for more than two subdivisions is only one way of doing it..
Swung notes
Swung notes are a feature of many types of music. Notes are played alternately longer and shorter than usual though normally notated all the same length. See the wikipedia article on Swung Note. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swung_note
Types of music that use swung notes include jazz, Celtic music, some dance and country music, and early music particularly France from the middle of the 16th century to late 18th century.
the early music use (notes inégal) see
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notes_in%C3%A9gales
and the Dolmetsch site on notes inégal
http://www.dolmetsch.com/musictheory20.htm#egal
For the precursors much earlier in the Ars Antiqua rhythmic modes:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhythmic_mode
Gentle Lilt
In nearly all types of music the beats in a bar are uneven in a subtle way. You notice this especially if you compare it with computer generated music with the notes all exactly the same length. Varying the beat with a gentle lilt makes the music much more natural sounding and it is likely to be easier to play along with.
So, if you find it easier to play along with other musicians than a metronome, it may well be because you are used to playing with a lilt and can't adjust your playing to the strict clock like beat of a metronome. This gentle lilt in your playing is something good, to foster. So when you do metronome practice, it is good if you can adjust the metronome to play a lilt :-) (unless you need to play a clock-like strict beat for some reason for a particular piece say).
To do this in Bounce Metronome Pro, just use the gentler settings for swing, such as Gentle lilt. You may also want to unselect "Swing parts with most beats only". This lets you apply a bit of lilt to all the parts in the rhythm, e.g. do the four beats of 4/4 with a lilt to them - a gradual change of timing through the bar. You probably only want a small amount of lilt for this. Then you could use a larger amount of swing if you want to swing quavers subdivisions of each beat.
Amount of swing
With swung notes, you can feel that the beats are uneven in a more noticeable way than a gentle lilt. The second beat in a pair is normally faster than the first.
The amount of swing can vary. So for instance you can have a light swing with the beats in a ratio of 3:2 or a hard swing of 3:1 or a medium swing of 2:1. Or the swing can be in between those amounts, it's not a fixed thing that it has to be 2:1 for instance.
A medium swing has the same timing as a triplet crotchet followed by a triplet quaver (UK crotchet followed by quaver). However it isn't really a triplet rhythm - the second note you would expect in a triplet is missing. It is usually notated as a pair of quavers - understood to be played with a "swing feel".
You can set any of these amounts of swing in Bounce Metronome Pro by adjusting the slider.
" Triplet Swing" - really a swung duplet with triplet timing
The medium swing is also called a triplet swing because of the triplet timing. But it isn't really in compound time because of the missing second note. It is a beat with two subdivisions with an uneven rhythm. So, it is really, more accurately, a swung duplet with a triplet timing.
Jigs are played with Swung Triplets (not to be confused with triplet swing
Sometimes though you get true swung triplets - I mean triplets of three notes played with a swung feel to them, as in jigs in Scottish Folk Music. So in those, you have three different note lengths there rather than just the two note lengths of ordinary swing. The usual two numbers such as 2:1 for a medium swing aren't enough to specify the amount of swing of a swung triplet.
To find out more about the swing rhythm for jigs in Celtic music see Jigs: Trickier than you probably think
http://www.rogermillington.com/siamsa/brosteve/tricky.html
There are different ways to play the swung triplets of a jig. For a discussion thread see:
http://www.thesession.org/discussions/display/12135/comments
Indeed there are many more ways you could play a triplet, with three notes - you could choose any note to be the shortest, then any other note to be the longest, giving six possibilities (L M S, L S M, M L S, S L M, S M L, M S L), and that's not taking account of all the subtle variations in timing within each of those options.
However, one natural and straightforward way is inspired by the way a drum stick behaves if you drop it lightly on the drum. It plays several subdivisions one after another each faster than the previous one, followed by a slightly longer beat to raise the drum stick for the next beat. You get the same rhythm if you drop a bouncing ball from a height. So that's the L S M option. That is exactly how it's played in the various styles of jig rhythm - whether that's a coincidence or not I don't know.
So that's how it's done in Bounce Metronome Pro. So you play the first beat a bit slower than usual, and the next beat a bit faster. That's followed by a medium length beat to raise the drum stick before the next series of bounces. So - just like the way you play the rhythm in a Celtic Jig.
Another subtlety about Jigs is that they are often played with the second triplet in the 6/8 slightly faster than the first so with a very slightly uneven step. Hardly noticeable, but if you listen carefully you hear it.
Also the bars vary in timing too with a lilt - again if you lisen carefully, the first bar may be normal speed, second bar a little faster, third back to normal, fourth a bit slower than the first, the tempo varying very slightly in waves like that. That's common in many styles of music but perhaps a little more noticeable in Celtic music.
Swung notes with four or more subdivisions
When you have four or more subdivisions, then Bounce Metronome Pro does it in the same way, each beat is played faster than the previous one, like the bounces of a bouncing ball or drum stick. So in a four subdivisions swing, the first note is slower than normal, then the next one is a little faster, the third note is the fastest of all, then followed by a slower note again for the lift of the drum stick before the next main beat.
Of course there are many other types of rhythm or "grooves" with uneven timings. Or you may want to vary the swing in subtle ways in the bar.
If that's what you need, you can also set the timings of the beats individually or tap out a rhythm for the bar yourself.
Slider1
Move slider to adjust the amount of swing - OR click here then use LEFT and RIGHT keys, Page Up, Page Down, Home or End...
Lilt or swing to (Alt + W)
Length of last beat in swing as a percentage of the first beat...
This can be set independently for each part - for instance if you have split the main beat into subdivisions, you would normally set a larger amount of swing for the part which plays the subdivisions.
Let's take the example of the 4/4 preset with each beat split into two subdivisions. You might use a gentle lilt or no lilt at all for the first part with 4 beats to the bar, and a light, medium or hard swing for the second part, the one with 8 beats to a bar part.
With two beat swing, this is the second beat as a percentage of the first - normally. The very last beat in the bar may be larger than this if you have Adjust last beat in bar towards first selected.
For a swing of three or more beats, this is used for the shortest beat whichever it is
For a swing of three or more beats as in 6/8 etc, then this number is the shortest beat as a percentage of the first beat.
(Here read longest for shortest throughout, if you swing the beats in the opposite way from the way it is usually done, with the first beat in the pulse shortest of all).
Which is the shortest beat will depend on whether or not you select Adjust last beat in each pulse towards first by ...
How this works in detail
How this works depends on the number of beats in the pulse. Here the pulse means, the number of beats in each group of swung beats, which you can adjust by selecting the option Set metrical unit (pulse).
Often the shortest beat in the swing is the last beat in the pulse. But it can be the second last beat, if there are more than two beats in the pulse and you have the option Adjust last beat in each pulse towards first by ... selected.
As an example, with the three beats pulse of 6/8, 9/8 etc, if you have the option Adjust last beat in each pulse towards first by ... selected, this percentage is used for the length of the second beat in each group of three beats, instead of the third beat.
When you look at the numbers then remember this is the last beat AS A PERCENTAGE OF THE FIRST BEAT - so for instance if the first beat in the pulse is shown as 146% and the last as 73% then the last beat is 50% of the first beat.
Lilt or swing to - SPIN
Increase or decrease size of last beat in pulse as percentage of first beat in pulse
As a swing (Alt + S)
Length of first beat in pulse as a percentage...
It doesn't matter what number is used here exactly, what matters is the ratio between the first and the last beat in the swing.
So for instance a medium swing of 200% to 100% is the same here as a swing of 20% to 10%, and also the same as as swing of 2000% to 1000% or a swing of 100% to 50%
As a swing - SPIN
Increase or decrease swing amount for first beat in pulse
%
Length of last beat in swing as a percentage...
It doesn't matter what number is used here exactly, what matters is the ratio between the first and last beat in the swing.
So for instance a medium swing of 200% to 100% is the same here as a swing of 20% to 10%, and also the same as as swing of 2000% to 1000% or a swing of 100% to 50%.
The very last beat in the bar may be larger, if you have Adjust last beat in bar towards first selected.
For a swing of three or more beats, this is used for the shortest beat whichever it is
This is used for the shortest beat in the metrical unit (pulse), whichever that is. It's the second beat for a two beat pulse.
(Here read longest for shortest throughout, if you swing the beats in the opposite way from the way it is usually done, with the first beat in the pulse shortest of all).
For three or more beats, which is the shortest beat depends on whether or not you select Adjust last beat in each pulse towards first by ...
How this works in detail
How this works depends on the number of beats in the pulse. Here the pulse means, the number of beats in each group of swung beats, which you can adjust by selecting the option Set metrical unit (pulse).
Often the shortest beat in the swing is the last beat in the pulse. But it can be the second last beat, if there are more than two beats in the pulse and you have the option Adjust last beat in each pulse towards first by ... selected.
As an example, with the three beats pulse of 6/8, 9/8 etc, if you have the option Adjust last beat in each pulse towards first by ... selected, this percentage is used for the length of the second beat in each group of three beats, instead of the third beat.
When you look at the numbers then remember this is the last beat AS A PERCENTAGE OF THE FIRST BEAT - so for instance if the first beat in the pulse is shown as 146% and the last as 73% then the last beat is 50% of the first beat.
% - SPIN
Increase or decrease swing amount for last beat in pulse
Pulse for this part (Alt + E)
Shuffle - Auto pulse as 2 subdivisions if possible
Select this to always swing notes in alternating pairs if possible, e.g. for shuffle semiquavers...
This is option applies when the part has subdivisions - either a pulse you set for the part - or because it subdvides another part in the rhythm. Example: four subdivisions of crotchets (as semiquavers).
Doesn't apply to whole bar if there are no subdivisions - for that see Auto lilt bar as alternate beats.
Normally SELECTED for ordinary swing practice. You may want to try it unselected, e.g. for a subtle lilt to make the bar rhythm feel a bit more lively - or to practise "decaying bounces" type rhythms.
When SELECTED, then the notes are swung as alternately long then short, so long as the number of subdivisions is divisible by 2.
If you have three, or five, or some other odd number of beats, then the beats are still swung as triplets, quintuplets etc. since the number of subdivisions isn't divisible by 2 any more.
When UNSELECTED the notes are swung or lilted in larger groupings if necessary. E.g. when you have four subdivisions of each beat, then the four beats will be "swung" so that each beat is faster than the previous one following an exponential decay, like the times of the bounces of a bouncing ball.
Beats per bar (Alt + B)
Set Bar Sizes - for rhythms with two or more bars
Lets you split the rhythm into two or more measures - for beat number count, also for lilt or swing...
The beat count will start again at the start of each bar. Also the lilt or swing does as well, e.g. with option to adjust the up-beat switched on, will adjust the up beat for all of the measures.
beat count 1 2 3 etc starts at 1 again at each new bar, also swing or lilt treats it as a new bar
Set Bar Sizes - for rhythms with two or more bars
For additive rhythms, enter number of notes in each bar for the selected part e.g. 8 8, or 6 6 6, or 4 10 4 etc...
Example, if the part has 16 beats but you want to treat it as two measures each of 8 beats, then enter the bar sizes as
8 8
For 18 beats as three measures enter them as
6 6 6
and so on.
The numbers can vary in size so you can also do 18 beats as
4 10 4
etc.
These bar numbers count the beats for this part - whatever units they are (don't need to be crotchets). They also ignore any metrical pulse and pay no attention to whether the notes in this part are are subdivisions of the beats that make another part.
An example may help:
With 18 beats to this part, if you set a metrical pulse of 2 subdivisions and bar sizes 4 10 4 - the notes for this part get counted as
1 & 2 & 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 5 & 1 & 2 &
so that e.g. the 1 & 2 & is for the bar shown as 4 in the 4 10 4, and the 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 5 & is for the one shown as 10.
Make last beat in bar more like first, by
At the end of the bar to give the music a moment to breath...
Configured in Swing and Auto Accents - Preferences (Ctrl + 232).
This is something drummers do naturally, also conductors
At the end of the bar a conductor lifts the baton higher to show the position of the first beat of the next bar. A drummer about to play a loud beat may also lift the drum stick higher. This naturally can lead to a very slight increase in the length of the last beat in the bar - compared to what it would be if this wasn't done.
This is often quite subtle. Just enough to make the rhythm a bit soft and less "mechanical", not enough so that you really feel that the last beat is noticeably stretched in any way.
This can make the rhythm more natural and easier to play along with
Perhaps you'll notice this especially if you conduct to the rhythm, clap along, or beat a drum to the rhythm.
So - you may find the rhythm sounds more natural with this switched on. The last beat will probably still be shorter than the first beat in the bar but it is a little longer than it otherwise would be for the position in the bar.
The music may "breath" a bit more as a result. It may be easier to play along with the rhythm if you use this option, as it may make it more like the sort of rhythm a human player might play.
The last beat will still be shorter than the first beat, normally.
Make it more exaggerated, which you can do in Swing and Auto Accents - Preferences (Ctrl + 232), and you get something like the rhythm of a Viennese Waltz with a noticeable feeling of "lift" at the end of each bar.
You may want to combine this with a gentle Lilt
Try switching off Swing Part with most beats only - and then add a gentle lilt to some of the other parts, not just to the part with most beats in it - i.e. to the main beat as well as to any subdivisions.
Interesting reading on this topic
To find out more about some subtle rhythmic timing effects, see the chapter " Microtiming studies" in the thesis by Vijay Iyer at Berkeley university here:
http://archive.cnmat.berkeley.edu/People/Vijay/06.%20Microtiming%20Studies.html
Make last beat in bar more like first, by
Amount of adjustment of last beat of bar towards first...
It's 0% for no effect, 100% to make last beat same length as first.
Normally somewhere between 0 and 100 to adjust the last beat somewhat towards the first beat.
If greater than 100, last beat is longer than first. If negative, last beat is shortened even more than usual
Make last beat in bar more like first, by - SPIN
Increase or decrease amount of adjustment of shortest beat of bar towards first
Adjust last subdivision in each pulse towards first by
At the end of each pulse, to give the music a moment to breath...
This is something drummers do naturally, also conductors
If the conductor is beating subdivisions then the conductor lifts the baton higher before the stronger main beat. A drummer about to play a loud beat may also lift the drum stick higher. This naturally can lead to a very slight increase in the length of the last beat in the pulse - compared to what it would be if this wasn't done. This time adjustment can carry through even if the beat is actually played quietly.
This can make the rhythm more natural and easier to play along with
Perhaps that's especially so if you clap along, or beat a drum to the rhythm.
So - you may find the rhythm sounds more natural with this switched on. The last beat will probably still be shorter than the first beat in the pulse but it is a little longer than it otherwise would be.
The music may "breath" a bit more as a result. It may be easier to play along with the rhythm if you use this option, as it may make it more like the sort of rhythm a human player might play. It is a subtle effect, not a noticeable pause as such.
The last beat will still be shorter than the first beat, normally. If this amount is small it may still be the shortest beat of the bar - just a bit longer than it would otherwise be. If it is a larger amount, then the last beat may be longer than the second last beat of the pulse, and if it is larger than 100% the last beat may be the longest beat of the pulse.
Adjust last subdivision in each pulse towards first by
Amount of adjustment of shortest beat of pulse towards first...
It's 0% for no effect, 100% to make last beat same length as first.
Normally somewhere between 0 and 100 to adjust the last beat somewhat towards the first beat.
If greater than 100, last beat is longer than first. If negative, last beat is shortened even more than usual
Adjust last subdivision in each pulse towards first by - SPIN
Increase or decrease amount of adjustment of shortest beat of pulse towards first
Adjust last beats for volumes
Adjust volume of last beat of bar or pulse towards first beat like the times...
The idea is that when you tap out a rhythm, you may very well play the very last beat of a pulse slightly louder to help it to rebound higher.
Or, you may let it just fall at its natural volume.
Switch this on to adjust the last beat of the bar or pulse in the same way as the times.
What this does depends on whether you have Adjust last beat of bar or adjust last beat in each pulse selected.
If the last beat of the bar or pulse is slightly longer than it would be, then with this option, it is also slightly louder than it would be otherwise.
Auto Accents (Alt + C)
Varies volumes of the beats automatically. For notes in triplets or more notes, makes them gradually quieter, in the way a drumstick bounces if you let it fall loosely...
When lilted in pairs then the second beat is quieter than the first in each pair. When lilted in triplets or more than three notes, each beat is quieter than the previous one exactly in the way it happens with a bouncing ball or drumstick (exponential decay).
To get syncopation and Jazz type accents, set the amount of the auto accents larger than 100.
Automatic choice to lilt in pairs, triplets, or more notes
The automatic choice to lilt in pairs, triplets, or more notes depends on the reinforced beats.
For instance in the 6/8 preset the third beat is reinforced, as it is played in both of the first two parts. So this rhythm is lilted or swung as two triplets.
In 3/4 with each crotchet split into quavers, the second and fourth beats of the six beat part are reinforced. So this time, the six beats (of part 2) are lilted or swung in pairs.
In both of those examples the number of beats to the bar is the same, six beats for part 1.
You can override this by setting the metrical pulse yourself in Beats volumes and times (Ctrl + 76)
You can set any number as the metrical pulse and indeed, one can get interesting rhythms by using a pulse that doesn't match the rhythm, e.g. a metrical pulse of 4 in 6/8 or whatever.
Auto Accents
How low to make the volume of the last subdivision or last beat of pulse - as percentage of first beat volume. TIP - set this to over 100% to for syncopated (jazzy) rhythms
Auto Accents - SPIN
Increase or decrease Volume of last beat in pulse as a percentage of first beat
Accent
NORMAL ACCENTS at present - ON THE BEATS - with each click switches between normal accents and Jazz accents, then back again...
This button will be labelled Accent when the volume is set to normal accents, or Jazz if set to Jazz accents.
You can then press the button to switch between the two at any time. If set to normal accents, changes volume to 300 for Jazz accents. If set to Jazz accents, sets this to 50.
How this works is configured in {{w232]]
If you already have the desired type of accent you can use SHIFT + click on the button to set it to the preset value without switching the type of accent (saves need to click twice to get back to desired type of accent).
You need the volume to be over 100% for Jazz type accents between the main beats of the rhythm.
You need it to be below 100% for normal accents - emphasize first beat in each subdivision.
Beats As Text (Ctrl + 77)
Adjust individual beats as numbers - also in the PRO metronome - adjust the amount of the lilt or swing...
For a more natural feel and a more lively rhythm. Or with a stronger level of swing, use to practise rhythms that require swing, such as Jazz rhythms, Scottish folk music etc...
Swing and Auto Accents - Preferences (Ctrl + 232)
Configure how the swing and lilt is done...
So for instance, you may want to make the last beat of the bar a little longer. Performers often do this, the "up beat" leading into the first beat of the next bar is a bit longer, has a bit of slack to it, a moment of slight rest before the energetic start of the next bar.
It's not necessarily the longest beat in the bar, the first beat may be longer for instance, but just a bit longer than expected for its position in the bar, so e.g. a bar of four beats may go long, a bit shorter, a bit shorter again, then back to nearly as long as the first one.
So anyway this is a subtle effect, so you probably don't want it to be as strong as say swing, depending. But you can also combine this with swing as well, e.g. in four beats to the bar with two subdivisions, swing the 8 beat part for the subdivisions, and add a gentle lilt to the four beat part - to do that unselect the option to swing part with most beats only. You also need to unselect Shuffle, and then if necessary adjust the pulse for individual parts.
BTW interesting reference on microtiming in rhythm, chapter " Microtiming studies" in thesis by Vijay Iyer at Berkeley university here:
http://archive.cnmat.berkeley.edu/People/Vijay/06.%20Microtiming%20Studies.html
Beats - Set beat times and volumes individually (Ctrl + 31)
Set the beat times and volumes individually for each of the rhythms.
For pulse with 3 or more beats, lilt to
Choose which beat the swing slider sets the size for, for power rule fade...
Makes no difference to swing based on two subdivisions. Only when you swing in groups of 3 or more, and without the auto shuffle.
Example, suppose swing set to Medium swing - so 200 to 100, i.e. swing to 50% of first beat. This number here will tell you which beat needs to be 50% of the first. You can also see visually which one is 50% of first in Beats volumes and times (Ctrl + 76).
Preset value is 1 for second last beat.
So in e.g. 6/8 with 50% swing counted 1 & a 2 & a then the two & beats are 50% of the first beat. The "a"s are smaller than 50%.
Set pulse
Set a custom pulse - used for swing and auto accents...
When unselected, Bounce Metronome works out the pulse based on which beats in the rhythm are skipped or coincide with other beats. Also based on your settings in
Grid
Shows a line every three numbers, double line every 10...
It's done this way so that you can easily distinguish the numbers, but still can see the lines even if the seed numbers get quite large.
If the lines are very close together, zoom in on the region using Alt + drag.
For part: (Alt + A)
Choose which part to adjust the beats for
For part: - SPIN
Increase or decrease number of part to adjust the beats for
Skip simultaneous notes
Skips notes in the parts with most notes to make it easier to distinguish the instruments for the parts with fewer notes.
This is useful when each part plays a different instrument. Helps to make the bar beat and the main beats more distinctive in sound. Has a slightly syncopated feel to it as e.g. only the bar beat part plays the down beat.
Easiest way to hear how it works, just try it out.
HOW IT WORKS IN DETAIL WITH EXAMPLE
E.g. in 4/4 with 2 sub-beats.
if set to:
Part 1: 4 BEATS per bar - Low Conga
Part 2: 8 BEATS per bar - High Bongo
Part 3: 1 BEAT per bar - Low Wood Block
Then the preset with this switched OFF is to play the rhythm as
WCB B CB B CB B CB B
Where W is the Wood Block, C is Conga and B is Bongo and e.g. WCB means to play the Wood Block, Conga and Bongo simultaneously.
With this switched ON then you play the rhythm as
W B C B C B C B
So then e.g. the Wood Block is the only instrument to play the bar beat, and the Bongo skips all the main beats of the rhythm, more of a syncopated effect.
Next: Opts for Pitch Tracer (Count Waves) and -> Beats
Controls Common to Many Windows
