are you born with good timing?

[pandaman37]

ive just been thinking, maybe perfect timing is something you have to be born with, kinda like perfect pitch.

i dont have great timing, but its never been a problem. and i work at it. but ive played with people.... just nothing. like no timing at all.

what do you think?

 

[whiteBASSIST]

Throw in a ton of hours of practicing with a metronome and I believe anybody can get a good sense of timing

 

[low2groove]

I was, but sad to say many aren't, including drummers who shouldn't be drummers let alone musicians.

Persaverance says something for them!

 

[Marty Forrer]

Drummers with timing that moves are my pet peeve too.

 

[slaps76]

I think some people are definitely born with more timing than others, but like whitebassist said, enough practice can make up for it. Everyone's different.

 

[walterw]

throw me in the "it takes practice like anything else" camp.

a berklee-grad keyboard player once described it best to me; he said it's not a "groove" at all, where you fall into it and it's hard to get out.

it's actually more like a "ridge", in that you have to jump up on it and work at keeping your balance to stay up there.

 

[oniman7]

I do believe certain people can be born with better timing. There are few non-musicians I know who have any decent sense of timing whatsoever. I believe everybody can learn much easier than they can learn pitch, although some people have more of a natural rhythm. I have decent timing, and finding a weird groove isn't usually a challenge for me, but like everyone else, if it's just me, my timing will fluctuate at least a little bit.

 

[worxforme]

I had to work at mine but I'm thankful everyone doesn't naturally have good rhythm.

My father's lack of rhythm is the reason I'm alive.

 

[fractiouslowend]

throw me in the "it takes practice like anything else" camp.

a berklee-grad keyboard player once described it best to me; he said it's not a "groove" at all, where you fall into it and it's hard to get out.

it's actually more like a "ridge", in that you have to jump up on it and work at keeping your balance to stay up there.

to me that seems like a very bad situation.
Groove = sitting comfortably in a slot
Ridge = Balancing precariously out in the open

I have no time to play with musicians who will be spending the entire time trying not to fall off

 

[oniman7]

throw me in the "it takes practice like anything else" camp.

a berklee-grad keyboard player once described it best to me; he said it's not a "groove" at all, where you fall into it and it's hard to get out.

it's actually more like a "ridge", in that you have to jump up on it and work at keeping your balance to stay up there.

I have to disagree as well. It should be more comfortable than a ridge. Maybe for that particular person it is, but for me, a groove always feels comfortable. It's not necessarily hard to get out, especially if I slip up bad, but it should be a comfortable place to lay. It's easy to feel the groove and know where you can go.

Now, if you're playing some of the stuff I listen to (like Protest the hero with their 11/16 and other crazy time signatures left and right), I could see how it could be a struggle. But I don't necessarily consider that a groove. And if it is, maybe it just need someone more experienced to fall into it and stay there comfortably.

 

[fractiouslowend]

exactly, a groove is something you 'fall into'
when you notice that you are no longer thinking about the music and just playing it, then you are in the groove / pocket / whatever.

 

[pandaman37]

yeah i feel like it can be learned. but i remember even when i was just starting out, i almost never had trouble staying in time with a song.

as for the groove, its a fine balance, and it takes a lot of work. but i think so many of us take our ability for granted. for example, ive been playing some sort of string instrument almost everyday for a little over two years now. having played so much, rhythm comes a whole lot easier now.

 

[avvie]

I think some people just don't have it, and have to be taught it every time they play. I say this because I play in one band where the guitarist can take something so extremely simple like "Give Me One Reason" and make it nearly totally unrecognizable when he begins the song..... EVERY TIME WE PLAY IT. I play in another where the guitarist can be very familiar with the song but puts the chord changes an eighth to a quarter behind the beat every time. It eventually gets fixed, but it makes me look like an a-hole because I refuse to continue playing something that sucks.

 

[Fassa Albrecht]

I think that whilst some people may have a natural advantage in being born with good timing, anyone can develop good timing with practice and time.

That said, I seem to have great timing!

Shame I can't ear-play too well...

 

[Slax]

I don't think I was. It was/is something I always try to work on constantly to get better.

 

[Funky Ghost]

I was blessed with good timing, a good ear and wicked dance moves

 

[Nev375]

Timing can be learned. I recommend a decent drum machine rather than a metronome. Encourage the student to listen carefully to the sound of each individual kick and compare it to other percussion sounds. Listen for the attack, the body and the decay of each sound.

Then, focus on the kick and try to match the attack of their bass notes to the attack of the kick.

 

[Aussie Player]

You can't have good timing unless you learn to relax and go with the music.
I like the American's use of the word "Groove" as it describes this very well.

Get into the groove. Once you do, you can more easily subdivide the beat and add your own self to the note selection, which is the ultimate demonstration of timing.

 

[tim0391]

I was one of the lucky ones.....

 

[JonahTheAmazing]

Timing can be improved. I don't think you are born with it, more developed into it. On the other hand, perfect pitch might be something you have or you don't. Both will get better with practice.