Writing Grooves in Wierd time Signatures

[Afrokid]

What are some tips on writing bass grooves in wierd time signatures. It seems everything i write tends to be 4/4 or some other standard time signature, and im trying to vary it up a little bit.

[Nashrakh]

Listen to what these "weird time signatures" sound like.

You probably keep writing stuff in familiar signatures because you are, uh, most familiar with these and they feel natural to you.

So listen to some odd time stuff or, if your metronome's able to do that, set your metronome to some odd time and just listen to how this time sig feels. Maybe you can clap your hands to it our even play along simple stuff.

[Jerose]

Yeah I agree with Nashrakh. My advice would be to listen to a lot of stuff that's in weird time signatures and get used to feeling it. The easiest ones to find are usually 6/8, 9/8, 5/4 and 7/8. Once you can feel what they sound like and can play in them decently, then your brain will automatically start coming up with stuff that fits.

Either that or come up with a cool 4/4 line and add or subtract a beat and see where it lands you. Sometimes its a crapshoot whether it sounds really cool or just really wrong.

[BassChuck]

Get your ear in another place. Listen to a lot of 'World Music'. Listen to classical (sure, not a lot in odd time sigs, but a different sound) Keep expanding the horizons.

[chicagodoubler]

Like Trilok told me: "do the math!"

Most of our odd meters are just combinations of 2 and 3.

5= 3+2 or 2+3
7= 3+2+2, 2+3+2, or 2+2+3

etc...

If you have a sequencer or drum machine, just try putting these in as accents in a loop and start playing simple rhythms on a root. In garage band you can just set your loop points to the number of beats you want. Not always pretty, but it works.

Greek music is where it's at for this stuff, also Zappa (Joe's Garage,) even Dave Brubeck.

[-Sam-]

often an easier way to get you head around the 2+3=5 thing. is tho think of times in Longs and Shorts, for eg. 5 is Long (3) Short (2) Long (3). and then you can double that so 5/4 can become 10/8 which can be Long Long Short Short, or Long Short Long Short, or any combination. Everytime signature can be divided up like this and can still be thought of simply. This is how a lot of "folk" or tradition/gypsy music is thought of.

[-Sam-]

Also, learn traditional dances. The greeks are great as are the hungarians.

[TL5]

You could utilize Konokol counting to create your basic rhythm.
provided you know the groove in advance this can really help creating the line and staying in the odd meter.

[TOOL460002]

Originally Posted by chicagodoubler

Most of our odd meters are just combinations of 2 and 3.

ya- thats pretty much the bottom line there.

however- you need to hear odd stuff (tool/rush/a million others)- play that- and then youll slowly start to feel normal playing abnormal time signatures.

as has been said- 5 and 7 are fairly natural feeling- as far as the odd stuff goes. and 12 is just 3 4s or 4 3s- or a 5 and a 7 and,........... ya- many possibilities- keep at it.

[HaVIC5]

Originally Posted by BassChuck

Get your ear in another place. Listen to a lot of 'World Music'. Listen to classical (sure, not a lot in odd time sigs, but a different sound) Keep expanding the horizons.

Depends on what you define as "classical".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSyoi0EGYBw

[Sir Mudkip]

As a recommendation- Do a bit of study on Anton Reicha (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anton_Reicha). Anton Reicha was a classical (romantic era) composer who experimented writing his pieces in odd time signatures. He wrote some pieces with a different time signatures for each bar. I know he didn't write the style you probably want to write in, but he may give you some interesting inspiration.

[Broadbent]

Originally Posted by chicagodoubler

Like Trilok told me: "do the math!"

Most of our odd meters are just combinations of 2 and 3.

5= 3+2 or 2+3
7= 3+2+2, 2+3+2, or 2+2+3

etc...

If you have a sequencer or drum machine, just try putting these in as accents in a loop and start playing simple rhythms on a root. In garage band you can just set your loop points to the number of beats you want. Not always pretty, but it works.

Greek music is where it's at for this stuff, also Zappa (Joe's Garage,) even Dave Brubeck.

This is great advice. Listen to this guy. Subdivide, and then you want to put the accents on the ones.

[Bruce Lindfield]

Originally Posted by chicagodoubler

Like Trilok told me: "do the math!"

Most of our odd meters are just combinations of 2 and 3.

5= 3+2 or 2+3
7= 3+2+2, 2+3+2, or 2+2+3

etc...

If you have a sequencer or drum machine, just try putting these in as accents in a loop and start playing simple rhythms on a root. In garage band you can just set your loop points to the number of beats you want. Not always pretty, but it works.

Greek music is where it's at for this stuff, also Zappa (Joe's Garage,) even Dave Brubeck.

Yes a sequencer or programme or sophisticated drum machine can be helpful...?

I remember being a given a groove in 15/4 and I got my microcomposer to do it by programming 5 bars of 3/4 and sort of tying across the barlines....

[Phil Smith]

Originally Posted by Afrokid

What are some tips on writing bass grooves in wierd time signatures. It seems everything i write tends to be 4/4 or some other standard time signature, and im trying to vary it up a little bit.

I think you need to feel the rhythm in that time signature in order to write something for said time signature.

[Zombbg4]

Something that you should consider is to not write somthing in an odd time for the sake of it being in an odd time signature. One of the things Victor does well (among others) is create grooving lines that don't sound totally weird, example: if your unmusical parent,friend ect...doesn't notice the strange time, you've done a good job.