This article originally appeared in the September 2015 issue of OPUS. This is the third article of a four-article series. Please note, this is revised and expanded from an earlier blog post.
The above comment came up on a Facebook page that I “liked”, and unfortunately this statement was made in a disparaging manner by one teacher, in regard to another teacher’s approach. I was disappointed in the path this conversation/discussion took by those subscribed to the Facebook page, partly because I am one of those teachers who does not teach my beginner students to count because I do want them to “feel” the beat.
When it comes to teaching any concept, the truth is the brain stores information, it does not produce understanding. The information stored in the brain is acquired through the senses. In other words, the brain simply retains what has been sent through the nervous system. The mind (psychological) then takes over and gives meaning to the information by proliferating synapses in the brain (biological). (Gordon, 2004). Think of the brain as the hard drive in a computer, and the mind as the software. Without the software, the information on the hard drive is useless, as it can’t be accessed. This is the same with the human body, with the brain being the hard drive and the senses being the software that provides the information to the brain. To understand rhythm, the body (senses) must experience it through movement, which then transmits the information to the brain. With time, one will audiate movement without actually moving.[1] Here is an example of audiating movement. Without moving your body or arm think of playing the D major scale, two octaves, with your right hand. Can you “feel” the movement as you are sitting still? If so, that is audiation of movement. In many incidences one can listen to a recording, or hear a piece of music in their mind (which incorporates facets of tonal and rhythm audiation), and even though one isn’t playing the piece, we can feel the motions that would be required to play that passage or piece. Personally, I experience this the most when driving, as my body is physically still, due to staying on the highway in avoidance of the ditches.
Generally, as teachers we teach the way we were taught, and most of us were directed to “count time” to understand rhythm. Often it was explained to us, and in turn we explain to our students, that in order to understand “time” we need to count the underlying pulses in music, which we call beats. Soon after the concept of time was established, we were taught (and in turn we teach our students) the note-value names that are superimposed on, and divide, “time” as indicated by the “time” signature. Unfortunately, a majority of students use numbers, but they utter them at the wrong time, causing inconsistent tempos, uncertain meter, and inaccurate rhythm.
There are many reasons why students have difficulty maintaining a consistent tempo, or in other words, have difficulty “keeping in time”. Contributing factors may be physical limitations, aptitude, or simply lack of motivation. However, once those are eliminated as factors, research has uncovered why the traditional approach to teaching musical time tends to be unproductive and it is because time is taught before most students have fully experienced space (Gordon, 2008).
“Musical time (tempo) must exist within the realm of space, but space can be experienced apart from musical time” (Gordon, 2004, p. 11). Students should physically experience space before they are introduced to the concept of musical time; as in tapping the foot or clapping their hands. For students to experience space, they need to explore space with their arms, legs, hands, and with their feet in stationary and locomotive actions. Associated with the issue that space must be experienced before it is combined with musical time, is the fact that space is best understood through continuous free-flowing movement. Once continuous movement becomes natural, musical time (establishing tempo) is superimposed on space, and the two become one (Gordon, 2004).
I spend a number of minutes in each lesson away from the piano giving students opportunity experience the space in rhythm and “between” the beats. So often we are worried about the beginning of the beats and spend all our energy in trying to make sure that the beginning of the beat is “on time”. Because of this, we tend to forget everything that occurs between the beginning of one beat, and the beginning of the next beat. Continuous movement activities allow students to feel the space “between” the macrobeats (big beats), to become aware of what is happening “after” the beginning of the macrobeat with the inclusion of the microbeats (small beats). We have all encountered a student who rushes the tempo or clips/shortens the length of a beat. The reason this happens is that the student is anticipating the beginning of the next beat, rather than feeling the space between the beats. They are not aware of or experiencing what is happening “after” the beginning, they are immediately trying to access the hard drive of the computer without the aid of software.
When we ask a student, “How long is a quarter note?” We often get the response, “One beat.” (Now, we all know that dependent on the “time” signature this may or may not be true. For the sake of this example, let’s say it is true.) When we ask, “How long is a quarter note?” we get the response, “One beat.” What would happen if we then asked, “How long is one beat?” I suspect the student may not have an answer, or perhaps answer saying, “The same as two eighth notes?” with the voice rising at the end as if posing a question. Rather, we should be asking, “Show me how long one beat is.” Now it needs to be stated, when we listen to music and when our students listen, we do not listen in isolated durations of whole notes, half notes, quarter notes, rather we listen to rhythm patterns with specific functions. We listen syntactically rather than phonologically. So rather than asking the student to show us how long one beat is, we should say, “Let’s feel/experience/sense this entire rhythm pattern.” And then model the movement for the child with them following us as we chant the rhythm pattern. Continuous motion, away from the piano, will allow the student to physically experience the length of one beat, or better yet, the rhythmic pattern/passage as a whole; as music is not made up of one beat but rather a series of rhythmic patterns. This continuous motion will express the space between the beats and rhythm patterns allowing students to experience the whole beat, not just the beginning of the beat. We need to encourage our students to move continuously while listening to music. Whether the music is recorded, or played by the teacher or classmate, it is important that they move continuously to the music. For example, we may ask them to move like a falling leaf, or to move as if they are swimming under water.
At the beginning, when teaching students rhythm, we should refrain from teaching students whole notes, half notes, quarter notes, etc. Rather allow them to learn about Macrobeats and microbeats in duple and triple metre and about beat function, rather than beat placement and the arithmetic value of individual notes. [2] By moving continuously to music and chanting rhythm patterns (not beat durations but rhythm patterns), students learn to “feel” the space of time. In my studio, all of this occurs in the lesson before we go to the piano. This may start by singing a simple song as we move with a continuous flowing motion, e.g. a leaf falling off a tree, or as if swimming under water. As Gordon (2004) states, “to realistically sense space, students must shed rigidity and self-consciousness, and most very young children do so naturally until they are forced to conform to society’s rules.” For older students, until they feel comfortable and realise the importance of continuous flow, and until they feel comfortable moving around the room, give them activities while seated in their chair, e.g. think of our backbone as a snake and move in an “s” shape. Then incorporate the movement of the arms, hands, and head, then the hips, but the concept is to feel and fill the space. As older students feel comfortable they will then move to standing activities and take advantage of moving in the entire space around them. As a side note, a very neat experience in attending the Gordon Institute of Music Learning (GIML) Conference in Chicago this summer was that every session of the conference began with a continuous flow activity to a song the presenter sung. Whether you were 20 or 80+ we all flowed with continuous motion, uninhibited. I have to say that I have never attended a music conference where so much “musicking” took place, from singing in four-part harmony in multimetric choral works, to moving like a snake, to performing vocal solo improvisations in Dorian mode. As we become comfortable with engaging continuous movement, so will our students.
Going back to the title of this article, if we want our students to “feel” the beat, we must take the time and teach them “how” to feel the beat. Believe it or not, this is more natural than we think. By using our physical symmetry and by being aware of how our brain processes music, we can proudly say, “I don’t teach my students to count because they learn how to experience the space.”
Endnotes:
[1] Audiation is hearing and comprehending in one’s mind the sound of music that may or may not be physically present. It is neither imitation nor memorization but rather based on comprehension. (Gordon, 2004).
[2] To read more on beat function vs. beat placement, and the use of rhythm patterns in developing a stronger rhythm aptitude in students, read my article “Developing Internal Rhythm within our Students” in the January 2015 issue of OPUS.
References:
Gordon, E.E. (2004). The aural/visual experience of music literacy: Reading & writing music notation. Chicago, IL: GIA.
Gordon, E. E. (2008). Clarity by comparison and relationship: A bedtime reader for music educators. Chicago, IL: GIA.
The above comment came up on a Facebook page that I “liked”, and unfortunately this statement was made in a disparaging manner by one teacher, in regard to another teacher’s approach. I was disappointed in the path this conversation/discussion took by those subscribed to the Facebook page, partly because I am one of those teachers who does not teach my beginner students to count because I do want them to “feel” the beat.
When it comes to teaching any concept, the truth is the brain stores information, it does not produce understanding. The information stored in the brain is acquired through the senses. In other words, the brain simply retains what has been sent through the nervous system. The mind (psychological) then takes over and gives meaning to the information by proliferating synapses in the brain (biological). (Gordon, 2004). Think of the brain as the hard drive in a computer, and the mind as the software. Without the software, the information on the hard drive is useless, as it can’t be accessed. This is the same with the human body, with the brain being the hard drive and the senses being the software that provides the information to the brain. To understand rhythm, the body (senses) must experience it through movement, which then transmits the information to the brain. With time, one will audiate movement without actually moving.[1] Here is an example of audiating movement. Without moving your body or arm think of playing the D major scale, two octaves, with your right hand. Can you “feel” the movement as you are sitting still? If so, that is audiation of movement. In many incidences one can listen to a recording, or hear a piece of music in their mind (which incorporates facets of tonal and rhythm audiation), and even though one isn’t playing the piece, we can feel the motions that would be required to play that passage or piece. Personally, I experience this the most when driving, as my body is physically still, due to staying on the highway in avoidance of the ditches.
Generally, as teachers we teach the way we were taught, and most of us were directed to “count time” to understand rhythm. Often it was explained to us, and in turn we explain to our students, that in order to understand “time” we need to count the underlying pulses in music, which we call beats. Soon after the concept of time was established, we were taught (and in turn we teach our students) the note-value names that are superimposed on, and divide, “time” as indicated by the “time” signature. Unfortunately, a majority of students use numbers, but they utter them at the wrong time, causing inconsistent tempos, uncertain meter, and inaccurate rhythm.
There are many reasons why students have difficulty maintaining a consistent tempo, or in other words, have difficulty “keeping in time”. Contributing factors may be physical limitations, aptitude, or simply lack of motivation. However, once those are eliminated as factors, research has uncovered why the traditional approach to teaching musical time tends to be unproductive and it is because time is taught before most students have fully experienced space (Gordon, 2008).
“Musical time (tempo) must exist within the realm of space, but space can be experienced apart from musical time” (Gordon, 2004, p. 11). Students should physically experience space before they are introduced to the concept of musical time; as in tapping the foot or clapping their hands. For students to experience space, they need to explore space with their arms, legs, hands, and with their feet in stationary and locomotive actions. Associated with the issue that space must be experienced before it is combined with musical time, is the fact that space is best understood through continuous free-flowing movement. Once continuous movement becomes natural, musical time (establishing tempo) is superimposed on space, and the two become one (Gordon, 2004).
I spend a number of minutes in each lesson away from the piano giving students opportunity experience the space in rhythm and “between” the beats. So often we are worried about the beginning of the beats and spend all our energy in trying to make sure that the beginning of the beat is “on time”. Because of this, we tend to forget everything that occurs between the beginning of one beat, and the beginning of the next beat. Continuous movement activities allow students to feel the space “between” the macrobeats (big beats), to become aware of what is happening “after” the beginning of the macrobeat with the inclusion of the microbeats (small beats). We have all encountered a student who rushes the tempo or clips/shortens the length of a beat. The reason this happens is that the student is anticipating the beginning of the next beat, rather than feeling the space between the beats. They are not aware of or experiencing what is happening “after” the beginning, they are immediately trying to access the hard drive of the computer without the aid of software.
When we ask a student, “How long is a quarter note?” We often get the response, “One beat.” (Now, we all know that dependent on the “time” signature this may or may not be true. For the sake of this example, let’s say it is true.) When we ask, “How long is a quarter note?” we get the response, “One beat.” What would happen if we then asked, “How long is one beat?” I suspect the student may not have an answer, or perhaps answer saying, “The same as two eighth notes?” with the voice rising at the end as if posing a question. Rather, we should be asking, “Show me how long one beat is.” Now it needs to be stated, when we listen to music and when our students listen, we do not listen in isolated durations of whole notes, half notes, quarter notes, rather we listen to rhythm patterns with specific functions. We listen syntactically rather than phonologically. So rather than asking the student to show us how long one beat is, we should say, “Let’s feel/experience/sense this entire rhythm pattern.” And then model the movement for the child with them following us as we chant the rhythm pattern. Continuous motion, away from the piano, will allow the student to physically experience the length of one beat, or better yet, the rhythmic pattern/passage as a whole; as music is not made up of one beat but rather a series of rhythmic patterns. This continuous motion will express the space between the beats and rhythm patterns allowing students to experience the whole beat, not just the beginning of the beat. We need to encourage our students to move continuously while listening to music. Whether the music is recorded, or played by the teacher or classmate, it is important that they move continuously to the music. For example, we may ask them to move like a falling leaf, or to move as if they are swimming under water.
At the beginning, when teaching students rhythm, we should refrain from teaching students whole notes, half notes, quarter notes, etc. Rather allow them to learn about Macrobeats and microbeats in duple and triple metre and about beat function, rather than beat placement and the arithmetic value of individual notes. [2] By moving continuously to music and chanting rhythm patterns (not beat durations but rhythm patterns), students learn to “feel” the space of time. In my studio, all of this occurs in the lesson before we go to the piano. This may start by singing a simple song as we move with a continuous flowing motion, e.g. a leaf falling off a tree, or as if swimming under water. As Gordon (2004) states, “to realistically sense space, students must shed rigidity and self-consciousness, and most very young children do so naturally until they are forced to conform to society’s rules.” For older students, until they feel comfortable and realise the importance of continuous flow, and until they feel comfortable moving around the room, give them activities while seated in their chair, e.g. think of our backbone as a snake and move in an “s” shape. Then incorporate the movement of the arms, hands, and head, then the hips, but the concept is to feel and fill the space. As older students feel comfortable they will then move to standing activities and take advantage of moving in the entire space around them. As a side note, a very neat experience in attending the Gordon Institute of Music Learning (GIML) Conference in Chicago this summer was that every session of the conference began with a continuous flow activity to a song the presenter sung. Whether you were 20 or 80+ we all flowed with continuous motion, uninhibited. I have to say that I have never attended a music conference where so much “musicking” took place, from singing in four-part harmony in multimetric choral works, to moving like a snake, to performing vocal solo improvisations in Dorian mode. As we become comfortable with engaging continuous movement, so will our students.
Going back to the title of this article, if we want our students to “feel” the beat, we must take the time and teach them “how” to feel the beat. Believe it or not, this is more natural than we think. By using our physical symmetry and by being aware of how our brain processes music, we can proudly say, “I don’t teach my students to count because they learn how to experience the space.”
Endnotes:
[1] Audiation is hearing and comprehending in one’s mind the sound of music that may or may not be physically present. It is neither imitation nor memorization but rather based on comprehension. (Gordon, 2004).
[2] To read more on beat function vs. beat placement, and the use of rhythm patterns in developing a stronger rhythm aptitude in students, read my article “Developing Internal Rhythm within our Students” in the January 2015 issue of OPUS.
References:
Gordon, E.E. (2004). The aural/visual experience of music literacy: Reading & writing music notation. Chicago, IL: GIA.
Gordon, E. E. (2008). Clarity by comparison and relationship: A bedtime reader for music educators. Chicago, IL: GIA.
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