Clave
Hugo Alandette "Sabor A Melao"
The "Clave" rhythm is at the core of most Latin music. While it is a type of instrument, seen below, it is more importantly a rhythmic motor that ties instruments together in a way that is uncommon in most popular western music.
There are two basic types of Clave rhythms: "Son," and "Rhumba." Check out how they look on the board, and then we will listen to examples of both.
Basic Clave Examples
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Salsa-Appropriated Popular Songs
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Performers of Significance
Afro-Cuban Influence |
Mambo (1950's) |
1970's & Beyond |
Meter: Simple and Compound
METER: Meter is the rhythmic structure, the patterns of accents heard in regularly recurring measures of stressed and unstressed beats (arsis and thesis) at the frequency of the music's pulse. Simple and compound classifications result from the relationship between the counting pulse and the pulses that are faster than the counting pulse. In other words, it is a question of division: does each beat divide into two equal parts, or three equal parts. Meters that divide the beat into two equal parts are simple meters; meters that divide the beat into three equal parts are compound meters.
SIMPLE METER: Common examples of simple time signatures are 4/4, 3/4, 2/4, 3/8, 6/4, 4/2 and 2/2. Compound: In compound time signatures, the beat is broken down into two rhythms- a broader division with a faster pulse inside of the broader pulse.
COMPOUND METER: If the beat can't be broken into smaller pulses in a different meter, than it is simple. If you can divided the beat into three it is compound. If each measure is divided into two it is duple and if into three it is triple. Some people also label quadruple, while some consider it as two duples. Compound meters are written with a time signature that shows the number of divisions of beats in each measure as opposed to the number of beats. For example, compound duple (two beats, each divided into three) is written as a time signature with a numerator of six, for example, 6/8. Other compound meters include: 9/8; 12/8; 6/8;
SIMPLE METER: Common examples of simple time signatures are 4/4, 3/4, 2/4, 3/8, 6/4, 4/2 and 2/2. Compound: In compound time signatures, the beat is broken down into two rhythms- a broader division with a faster pulse inside of the broader pulse.
COMPOUND METER: If the beat can't be broken into smaller pulses in a different meter, than it is simple. If you can divided the beat into three it is compound. If each measure is divided into two it is duple and if into three it is triple. Some people also label quadruple, while some consider it as two duples. Compound meters are written with a time signature that shows the number of divisions of beats in each measure as opposed to the number of beats. For example, compound duple (two beats, each divided into three) is written as a time signature with a numerator of six, for example, 6/8. Other compound meters include: 9/8; 12/8; 6/8;
Meter Examples:
Simple Duple
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Simple Triple
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Compound Duple
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Compound Triple
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