What is a riff?

A riff is basically a passage, or a group of bars. Enter Sandmans main line is a riff. Another One Bites The Dust by Queen is a famous "riff".



Merls

 

riff/lick/chop...they're all basically a "line" which as Merls said a group of bars or are group of notes that sound sweet


-Jon

heh...at first,I thought a riff was a part of a guitar

 

A repeated phrase though, that's important. It's not really a riff if you only play it once

 

My definitions would be:

Chops - demonstrations of the technical mastery of a particular technique

Licks - short musical phrases. A particular musician may have certain 'licks' that they play and adapt again and again and this forms an important part of their 'signature' sound

Riffs - a short musical phrase that is repeated, maintaining the same form (set of intervallic relationships) even when moved to a different starting point. It may either be played strictly or varied to some extent while still maintaining a distinctive 'flavour'

Therefore, in order to demonstrate my 16 note finger funk chops, I might lay down an intense riff to establish the groove and then spice it up with a variety of different licks at the end of each phrase.

However - and this is an important point - the terms are very flexible. Even if you know what you mean when you use the words, avoid assuming that someone else means exactly the same thing.

Wulf

 

These entries should be in the Oxford English Dictionary.

 

That costs money to access online - but the Cambridge Dictionary has the following :


(from Cambridge Dictionary of American English)

riff
noun [C]
(in popular music) a simple tune that is used as a pattern for creating more complicated musical patterns

 

I prefer Merriam Webster though :

Main Entry: 1riff
Pronunciation: 'rif
Function: noun
Etymology: probably by shortening & alteration from refrain
Date: 1935
1 : an ostinato phrase (as in jazz) typically supporting a solo improvisation; also : a piece based on such a phrase
2 : a short succinct usually witty comment; also : BIT, ROUTINE

 

Got a good reason for taking the easy way out.

"Day Tripper" is one of the most classic riffs ever.

 

Another one would be "Smoke On The Water" (the guitar riff, of course, since the bass is only pumpin' 8th notes).