Can't read this, help?

[wishface]

I'm trying to learn to sight read at present, but the top measure (starting at the end of bar 1) I cannot parse at all.

It's from SIght Reading For Bass by Josquin De Pres. I don't have the audio because I've been working from a version someone (probably illegally) uploaded to Scribd.

Is there any app that can program this? I cannot work that part out at all. The rest of it is ok.

Thanks

 

[Febs]

Here are the first two bars.

 

[BassChuck]

When trying to understand and/or play difficult rhythms like this, often it's best to mentally 'remove' the ties and do the rhythm, then put them back in. That way its very clear what notes are on the beat.
Also, its very informative to keep a basic subdivision of the beat going on in your head (or metronome). This example has 1/16 notes as a subdivision, so, at a slow tempo, thinking of the quarter notes as four pulses, the 1/8 notes as 2 pulses and the 1/16 as one is also a helpful way of understanding the rhythm at a slow tempo before you speed it up to performance tempo.

 

[Groove Master]

One thing I suggest to my students is to take out the ties at first. The most difficult part in those kind of rhythms is the lack of downbeats. So by reading without ties at first it will help to understand where all those syncopations fall.

 

[mambo4]

I would remove the ties and replace the end note of a tie with rests as well.
and, of course, slow down until I nailed it.

When I was weaker on 16th note subdivisions, one thing I would do to help me parse complex rhythms was "up -rez" them to 8th notes. I helped remove some of the mental overload a complex 16th note syncopation might cause.

 

[wishface]

Here are the first two bars.

Thanks very much, that helps

 

[wishface]

Thanks for all the replies. I think I've been doing pretty well with this book so far, but that has really stumped me. I still haven't quite got it.

I've been practicing with a metronome. COunting in my head just leaves me out of breath. Using an independent pulse is much easier.