7 Tips on using Rhythm for your songwriting

Rhythm for me is not only a beat. It beholds a feel for the song, and a tempo to determine if that all fits together. And I am going to keep it simple at first. There are so many possibilities of how to time rhythm, that alone is years of study. Most of the songs however, have a 4/4 time signature. I'll keep to that and do some extra dividing in that time signature. Okay ready?
And a 1 & 2 & 3 & 4!

Tip 1 on Rhythm: The basics of rhythm.

Learn how to count your music and keep the intended rhythm.
When you know how to count in music, it will help you in every aspect of making music. As a musician, but definitely as a songwriter too. Keeping the rhythm as straight as possible, means not speeding up or slowing down. Unless you intend to do that in your song. But even when slowing down or speeding up is intended, you need to practice this.

To start with practicing counting, I'll start with the basics.
So, 4 counts is a bar. Every count is a quarter note. 4 quarter notes become a bar. Full circle here, right? On to the next step.

Hold it: If music was that simple, you wouldn't need much more tips.

In the picture above you can see in the column on the left side:
Pitch | Instrument | Snap Drum and a blue line with 3.2 | 3.3 | 3.4 Drum | 4
It is 1 bar starting at 3 and ends at 4, making it 1 measured bar.

C1 | Bass drum (kick) | 1/16 and a total of 16 diamond shapes.
When I solo play this in a example in a D.A.W. I'll get a very fast playing bass drum sound. Mostly used in Hardrock and Metal music, although not throughout the whole song. I am just making sure that you know a little bit more about what genre it could be useful in. More about that in my next blog on Genre.

C#1 | Side Stick | 1/8 and a total of 8 diamond shapes.
8 is half of 16, right. You do not have to be a mathematician to know this, right?

D1 | Acoustic Snare | ¼ and a total of 4 diamond shapes

D#1 | Hand Clap | ½ and 2 diamond shapes

E1 | Electric Snare |1/1 and 1 diamond shape

I am sticking to a 4/4 rhythm, but you can imagine that there are many more time signatures to play around with. Also, when using different kinds of drums, you'll get more different possibilities in sounds too. I limited the sounds to these 5 instruments as an example, nothing more.

In some D.A.W.'s you use a piano roll, and then it could look like below.

You can see that all notes are now the precise length of the divided count. You can use shorter notes when you want. Find out how your D.A.W. works and what it does to change the length of the notes.

Tip 2 on Rhythm: Start counting.

To make a rhythmic sequence (pattern) you have to see what it brings. Using a rhythmic instrument like drums or percussion, can make it a bit easier. When you are not used to playing that, clapping or tapping can help you out to start with.
Practice:
Start counting 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 in a tempo that is slow.
Tap or clap along with every count.
Keep on counting and see if you can just tap (or clap) on the 1 and 3.

Did you get that?
Change it to clap only on 2 and 4. You got that, right?

Now challenge yourself by tapping on 1 and 4.
When you got that, change to 2 and 3.
Are you making small mistakes? That's okay, keep on trying these until you can do this perfect. All the time when you practice this.
Would you like to challenge yourself even more?
Cool, but remember to have fun with it.

Now take a piece of paper. Write down 4 bars and in every bar put down the numbers 1 - 2 - 3 – 4.
In the first bar, you circle the numbers 1 and 3.
In the second bar you circle the number 2 and 4.
The third bar circle 1 and 4 and the last bar 2 and 3.

Start counting and only tap on the circled numbers while you count all numbers out loud. When you played it slow and made no mistakes, speed it up a bit. And after playing without mistakes, speed it up again. You can use a metronome at some point to help you stay in the same speed, or a simple drumbeat.

Let me know in the comments, on how it went and at what speed you lost the control of tapping the sequence without mistakes.

After you have done this exercise, you can switch it up and make up your own sequences. You can repeat some numbers and leave out others, make it longer by adding bars and different sequences. I wouldn't mind seeing examples of what you created, so let me know what you have made by commenting down below.
Also, I'll get back to this tip later in the bonus part of the blog.
Did you know you can read sheet music in the same way, by starting doing the counting part first? Do not worry about notes and scales. Just do the tapping a bit for now.

Tip 3 on Rhythm:
​What instrument?

A good question. Do all instruments play rhythmic? The answers is.........

Yes, al instruments play rhythmic parts in a song. The answer is 99.99% correct. The 0.01% that is different, means that there could be a sound in a song, that isn't started or finished on the 'beat', but has an intuitive feel. Can you put it in a beat? Yes, you could alter the tempo so it matches the beat at some point. I think this is pointless, when that sound is only there to add something to the song that isn't rhythmically intended.

But in most songs, all instruments have a rhythmic purpose and should be played with the right feel to the beat. You'll notice when it is not 100% in the same time with other instruments.
Still no answer on what instrument is best use for being rhythmically. Percussive like drums and percussion, next would be bass guitar, next piano, keyboard and guitar.

You know what, you choose it yourself. Every instrument can have a rhythmical purpose, when it plays that. And at some point you want all instruments to play the same rhythmic sequence. And in another part, some start to play long notes and some short notes. Some play a slow melody with only short notes and long rests, and another plays long notes in another melody. The same with chords and its progressions. Does it sound confusing, only reading this and not precisely knowing how to do it.

When you like, I can help you out. You can book a Free Co Creation Call with me. We will do this or any other tip you would like to learn more about, while having me helping you achieve that.

When a musician is in a zone, and plays with all he knows, he moves not only his fingers and hands. His upper body moves with the music forward, sideways and back. Probably with the rhythmic feel of his playing. Or on a beat, to keep his tempo and momentum in 'tha groove' or 'Pocket'.

Tip 4 on Rhythm: Quick or slow?

Depending on what instrument you have decided on. The chords you have chosen, the lyrics you have written and its melody, or other melodies you came up with, you can switch it up and find out what works for you.

What works for your song. And by changing it and see how that feels to you, you'll discover new possibilities. Maybe you have heard it before, or you'll find a melody that sounds almost the same as a song you really like.
You never tried to find that melody, but now you are stumbling upon that cool melody, because you are just playing with your own creativity.

Use it as an homage to your favorite song and see if anyone else would notice that line. You can create new friends with that. When someone likes the same song, you might even share more songs. Who knows, you'll get a longtime fan and friend.

But I deviate from the topic. Should you play quick or slow? Answer 3 questions:
1- What tempo are you using?
2- What instrument should play long and slow notes or chords?
3- What emotion should you get from playing this part?
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And every song has its own answers. The rule of thumb here is: The quicker you play rhythmically, the higher the feel for excitement will become. Find that what you want to accomplish in your song, its story, the melody and the chord progression. All is a puzzle and by finding the right match, pieces come together. Ow, and vice versa, the slower you play........ (finish my sentence)
​
When you can't finish my sentence, you can book a Free Co Creation Call with me. I will help you 1 on 1 with this in a song where you feel you could use this cleared up.

Tip 5 on Rhythm: Emotions?!?

n my blog on Melody, I have given you 2 extra pictures with examples of what emotions different tones basically give, when hearing 1 note. Also, when using an interval between two notes. When playing quick or slow you can also evoke emotions, But it doesn't work all the time, when only playing quick or slow. You have to find a way to build up to that emotion.

Example: When playing a ballad, this is most of the time slowly played, with long notes in chords and melody lines. But it is not all the song, most parts yes, but there are some parts that are rhythmically slower, or even stops and/or buildups to a quicker played feel.
If you want more tense emotions in your music, use that as a starting point.

This picture has 2 bars with a C chords (guitar). First bar a long C and the second bar 2 short moments. When played very slow, it creates a more easy flow and feel. When you push the tempo, it starts a bit to pulse the rhythmical feel for the song.

When you compare these two pictures, you should notice the shift in the last chord. I moved it 1/8th. With that, it became an upbeat. I did not explain this part yet, but it has to do with tip 2 in this blog. Just move it around. Without you knowing the technical term, it isn't blocking you from creating. ;-) 
​I'll explain a bit more in the bonus part of this blog.

Tip 6 on Rhythm: Can you dance?

It is an honest question, can you dance? Let me know in the comments. But for music, most of us, would love to dance to music. Some music isn't made to dance to, you now probably think. WRONG. All music is made to express yourself, even with small body movements.

When music feels slow, your instinct will want to move your body gently from side to side. When music is played fast, your body wants to move fast with that. The movement can be called dance. You just didn't learn steps that is called a dance.

When a musician is in a zone, and plays with all he knows, he moves not only his fingers and hands. His upper body moves with the music forward, sideways and back. Probably with the rhythmic feel of his playing. Or on a beat, to keep his tempo and momentum in 'tha groove'.

Picture a guitar player in a solo. Who do you know that can keep a straight face, and stands perfectly still throughout the whole solo, and gives you a feeling that wants to make you scream along to, shout to him or her to cheer him on? I would like to see a video of that performance. And if you can show me a video like that, I'll give you a chance to record and mix 1 song with me for *free*.
(*traveling and hospitality not included in this free arrangement)

Okay, back to the 'dance' part. Depending on the 'dance' head bopping or tapping a foot or hand, comes from a drive that the music makes you feel. When just looking at 'Disco' the kick determent the feel. A tempo around 120 bpm (average) and 'four on the floor' by the bass drum, and a snare of hand clap on 2 and 4 set the mood and people found it really cool to dance with that rhythm. In House music the tempo went up a bit and the average is set between 124 and 128 bpm. B.T.W. This doesn't mean, when it is lower or higher, it isn't that genre. There are many genres and possibilities. And when the notation isn't in 4/4 it really changes perspective.

Warren Huart and Steve Magiori, have written hundreds of songs and worked together very quick. The speed and experience was overwhelming at times.

Tip 7 on Rhythm: How do the Pro's do it?

Every Pro has a different approach on how to set the right speed for a song. But I think they start with a melody or chords, and feel if that brings what they are working towards.

A few weeks ago, I sat in with a few other Produce Like A Pro Academy members. We have created a song in 4 hours, from a song idea that Warren Huart had. Mainly some chords to start out with in a rhythmic feel that suited together. Not having a clue where it would lead to, he and Steve Magiori build on that idea. At first, we just followed what they were doing, but they asked for some creative instruments add-ons, like horns, guitar and bass.
Enthusiastic other members and I contributed, trying to follow what they created. Warren and Steve, have written hundreds of songs and worked together very quick. The speed and experience was overwhelming at times. I hardly managed, but I got half of the bass part for the song in. Another member already had a verse bass part.
I mainly took away from this experience, that it takes time to learn to make songs to start with.........
Also, taking decisions and sticking with the decisions. Experience is helpful in making the right ones, but it takes time and stamina to get to that point.

Another example is with my band Awash. We start off with the chords, melody and some basic lyrics. Mostly brought in by our singer. And we play along with that. When we get the feel, the singer starts to give feedback with extra information. Like where he feels it is too fast, or too slow. And we start puzzling with all instruments. We all have our instrument and focus on that first. When we get the hang of the basics of the song and feel, I discuss with the drummer and the next rhythmical instrument on how we can improve on the feel of the song by going through the structure. What is played in the intro, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, bridge and outro. (when the part is in the song, of course)

I listen to what they want to achieve, but challenge them with alternatives and get challenged by them in return, to get my bass lines to fit in too. And then we keep on adding and chipping away on the different parts until we are satisfied with what we came up with. Also, melodies, counterparts, chord progression changes and the tempo changes throughout this whole process. We have had songs that went from 88 bpm, to 117 bpm and are now played at 102 bpm or 97 bpm. Or even higher, of even just not finished because what we thought of, never felt 100% completed. It is not thrown away, but has had 3 different versions and style approaches. From ballad like to danceable upbeat feel.

Sometimes we also do a sort of jam, with the same intention. And work from there.

Bonus tip

It is now time to start working on these tips from this blog and all previous blogs. And putting them together. See which tips work out for you, and which tips don't (for now). Remember to have fun with this, and take time to grow the skills that you need to get your song and its story across. Do not fall in to the trap, that everything should be super profi. Just see if you can get your point made. And if someone who really plays that instrument, can make it sound better. Keep communicating with that person, give them feedback and bring your point across, in every way possible. Make strange sounds come out of your throat, dance it, make arm gestures, make silly face expressions. Do something and have fun doing this with each other.

Now in Tip 2 I said I'll come back on this in the bonus part.
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You took a piece of paper: Write down 4 bars and in every bar put down the numbers 1 - 2 - 3 – 4. You can repeat it like this, but you can extend it in two ways. Instead of 4 bars, you write 8 or 16 bars like below

| 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - |


| 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - |


| 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - |


| 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - | 1 - 2 - 3 – 4 - |

Now every number and dash has become and eight note. You can count it as
| 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and |

The 'and' can be used to tap to too. Making it harder to achieve in high tempo's to get it right. To show you I have put a x where you should tap. See if you can play along.

| x - 2 - x – 4 - | 1 - x - 3 – x - | x - 2 - 3 – x - | 1 - x - x – 4 - |


| x - 2 x 3 – x - | x - 2 x x – 4 - | x - x - 3 x 4 - | 1 x 2 x 3 - x - |


| 1 - x - 3 x 4 x | x - 2 x 3 – x - | 1 - x - 3 x 4 - | x - 2 x 3 – x - |


| 1 - x - 3 x 4 - | x – 2 x 3 – x - | x - 2 x 3 – x - | 1 - x – 3 x 4 - |

And when you divide it again, so eight counts become 16 counts, it will become harder as well. And so on. But I'll leave it like this for now, otherwise you might become crazy. Mhuuaahahaaa.

The second one was in Tip 5: downbeat and upbeat.

You have been playing with this in the exercise above here. But in words, the downbeats are 1 | 2 | 3 | 4. The dashes represent the upbeat (between the bars) You can find the best feel of upbeats in reggae music. (my personal opinion, but feel free to share your music in the comments below) :-) You practice by counting 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – and tapping on the dashes.

If you found this helpful, or have more in dept questions on the tips, you can book a Free Co Creation Call with me at any time, or comment below.

Thank you for reading this.