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Rhythm in Music since 1900. Views from Theory and Practice

Daphne Leong and Jimmie LeBlanc

Le rythme dans la musique depuis 1900. Perspectives théoriques et pratiques

Daphne Leong and Jimmie LeBlanc

Meter in Contemporary Jazz. A Practitioner-Based Approach

Andres Orco
Jazz has a strong groove-based tradition that uses a stable meter and exhibits a significant degree of metric dissonance. Recently, the prevalence of metric multivalence stemming from conflicting acoustic signals has risen exponentially. This phenomenon, historically manifested between an improvisor’s solo and the piece’s repeating formal structure, has also become an aesthetic feature of the composition itself. In this essay, I highlight contemporary jazz pieces that afford listeners multiple metric interpretations and often lead to considerably different approaches to structure and groove. I propose an ecologically valid analysis that more closely aligns with the way practitioners approach the repertoire, and I demonstrate how these techniques build upon the Afro-diasporic and improvisational tradition of jazz. I contextualize these developments with an ethnographic study where I interviewed fifteen professional jazz musicians, uncovering consistent thought processes, musical training, and performance practices that appear foundational to develop an enculturated understanding of contemporary jazz.

Expressive Timing or Thematic Transformation? Onset Displacement in Performances of Jazz Standard Melodies

Sean R. Smither
The rhythms of jazz standard melodies are inherently flexible prototypes that are brought to life by jazz musicians using a variety of expressive transformations. I argue that these transformations fall under two closely related categories. The first, expressive timing, involves displacements of onsets that are so small—usually in the order of milliseconds—that they do not constitute a change in metric-hierarchic position; they fall below the level of syntax. Conversely, thematic transformation often involves displacing notes to a different metric position. In this paper, I contend that expressive timing and thematic transformation represent interrelated improvisational processes that are coordinated in performances of jazz standards. I connect these techniques to recent work on jazz ontology and referents, arguing that the ambiguous relationships between these transformational categories is the result of the ontological flexibility of jazz tune melodies. I ultimately argue that both techniques become involved in an ongoing give-and-take as the improvisational process unfolds.

Rhythmic Regularity Beyond Meter and Isochrony

Jason Yust
Classical meter theory, derived from European, notation-based musical practice, requires notionally absolute isochrony. This article proposes a more flexible concept of rhythmic frequencies (or periodicities) represented by continuous functions over time, and develops rhythmic theory from it that is more global in scope. A rhythm is a good fit to a given frequency if its onsets are close to peaks of one of these functions, without having to precisely coincide. This provides some useful tools for understanding properties of rhythms and how different rhythms interact, including the rhythmic spectrum which shows all the frequencies present in a rhythm. Maximally even rhythms like the African standard pattern and tamborim rhythm of samba, are those which maximize a given frequency for a given grid, and often function as basic rhythms (e.g. “timelines” or claves) in many musical traditions, as do other rhythms, like the “Bo Diddley” rhythm and Clave Son, with strong representation of a single frequency. When rhythms expressing nearby frequencies are combined, they interact to produce slow phase shifts over longer cycles, a feature of timeline rhythms, and also more complex isorhythmic designs in, for example, the late music of György Ligeti, and recent jazz compositions by Dave King and Miles Okazaki.

Finding a Fingerprint. Microtiming and Tempo Variability in Five Renowned Rock Drummers

David S. Carter and Ralf von Appen
In this article, we analyze microtiming and tempo variability in the music of five renowned rock drummers: Ringo Starr, Mitch Mitchell, Stewart Copeland, Phil Rudd, and Meg White. Using the applications Moises and Sonic Visualiser, we isolated the drum stems of 79 studio and live recordings and determined exact quarter-note positions in backbeat patterns. We used metrics such as the normalized absolute deviation beat sum, average beat coefficient of variation, and tempo coefficient of variation in order to capture these drummers’ distinctive “fingerprints.” We found that Starr showed a propensity for delayed backbeats and slowing down, Copeland a tendency for early backbeats, Rudd steadiness without a click track, and Mitchell and White a propensity towards wide variability in timing and tempo. The results of this exploratory study suggest that drumming characteristics are shaped not only by personal style but also by broader historical trends.

“Dream Away the Time”. Metric Play in Benjamin Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Aidan McGartland
This article examines how meter serves as a key compositional device in Benjamin Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1960), employed in strikingly idiosyncratic ways. Borrowing Leccia’s (2024) notion of “play” as an analytical metaphor, I explore Britten’s diverse metric types and techniques through representative excerpts. Drawing on the metric theories of Lerdahl and Jackendoff (1983) and Rothstein (1989), alongside key Britten scholarship by Rupprecht (2001), I adapt multiple analytical approaches to account for the opera’s stylistic mélange. Four main findings emerge. First, each of the three character groups (fairies, lovers, and rustics) possesses a distinct musical characterisation, including through meter. Second, Britten employs a variety of meters and hypermeters, often integrating irregular rhythms within the larger structure. Third, he manipulates meter and hypermeter to establish models before deviating, typically for narrative effect. Finally, hypermeter interacts with grouping to generate tonal phrases and static atonal hypermetric units.

Paradigmatic Analysis and the Performance of Xenakis’s Solo Percussion Music

Fabrice Marandola
This article explores the application of paradigmatic analysis as a practical tool for performers to deepen their understanding and interpretation of Iannis Xenakis’s solo percussion works, particularly Psappha (1975) and Rebonds (1987-1989). Drawing from personal experience and analytical methods developed by Nicolas Ruwet and Simha Arom, I demonstrate how segmenting musical material based on repetition and marks such as accentuation, timbre, and durations can enhance the learning process and inform interpretative decisions. The study emphasizes the value of performer-driven analysis in navigating Xenakis’s complex rhythmic and structural designs. Through detailed examples, I illustrate how paradigmatic analysis can reveal underlying patterns, support memory retention, and inspire creative performance strategies. Ultimately, I advocate for a flexible, evolving analytical practice that aligns with the interpretive needs of musicians engaging with contemporary percussion repertoire.

Thoughts on “Onelessness”

Miles Okazaki
These field notes describe a situation where the members of an ensemble have conflicting views on the rhythmic orientation of the material, including the time signature and the beginning of the time cycle. One argument presented is that these conflicts can be productive for producing rhythmic tension and dynamism. The example discussed is a rhythmic figure that the composer has made to intentionally create two opposing and equally valid interpretations of the rhythmic flow within the band. The video examples show this groove evolving over time, and demonstrate a form of ensemble playing where there is no absolute tempo or time signature, but the group is still synchronized, executing detailed contrapuntal information, and functioning creatively.

Rhythmic Self-Entrainment. A Panacea

Jacqueline Leclair
This article proposes rhythmic self-entrainment (RSE)—commonly referred to as “subdividing”—as a possible solution for the types of malaise many post-secondary music students experience during daily music practice: frustration, mindlessness, excessive stress, and anxiety. While RSE is traditionally taught to help students improve musically, this article shows how it could also be implemented as an effective method for improving mental health. Considering the context of rising mental health crises that affect post-secondary students worldwide, improvements in music student mental health are urgently needed. Necessarily speculative in nature, this article examines RSE through the lenses of various musical, psychological, and philosophical disciplines, and explains how RSE offers the potential to profoundly improve music student mental health.

Meter as a Prism. Interpreting a Theme in Sibelius’s Violin Concerto

Daphne Leong
The lyrical second theme in the first movement of Sibelius’s Violin Concerto presents a metric conundrum: it is notated and barred in two distinct ways. One measure of 6/4 in the exposition corresponds to two measures of 2/2 in the recapitulation. This essay in multimedia modular format explores the meaning of the metric distinction, considering 1904 and 1905 versions of the concerto and Sibelius’s correspondence; performances and performing editions; and form and meter, tempo notated and performed, and elements of resolution. A shift in metric ground, change in the way tempo is slowed down, and homecomings in key, rhythm, and instrumental color all point to a recapitulatory second theme that flows differently—more spaciously and freely—than its expository twin.

Pressing Rhythms and Korean Percussion Music

Richard Cohn
Jeff Pressing identified a group of seven jazz scale-classes that lack [0, 1, 2] subsets, but any added note would create a [0, 1, 2] subset. This article introduces Pressing rhythms in 12-beat cycles, which lack three consecutive onsets, but to which an added onset would create a three-onset run. The seven Pressing rhythm classes are prominent in p’ungmul, a genre of South Korean ensemble drumming that has been extensively researched by Nathan Hesselink. Juxtaposition of Pressing rhythms exploits the close parallelisms between them, with incremental one-onset changes akin to parsimonious voice leading between scales or chords.

Post-Quantization and Glitch in the Music of Nicole Lizée. Nicole Lizée in Conversation with Ben Duinker

Ben Duinker
Award-winning composer and video artist Nicole Lizée creates new music inspired by an eclectic mix of influences including the earliest MTV videos, turntablism, rave culture, Hitchcock, Kubrick, Alexander McQueen, thrash metal, early video game culture, 1960s psychedelia, and 1960s modernism. She is fascinated by the glitches made by outmoded and well-worn technology and captures these glitches, notates them and integrates them into live performance.As a percussionist and chamber musician, I’ve had the pleasure of commissioning, touring and recording Lizée’s music, as well as performing it alongside her. Often synced to films created by the composer herself, Lizée’s compositions require devoted and sustained engagement from performers. This engagement rewards musicians and audiences alike by facilitating a deeper connection with the music––its crafting of the experience of time and stewardship of adrenaline and energy. Lizée gave a keynote address at the second Rhythm in 20th Century Music Conference at McGill University, her alma mater, in September 2023. This interview reflects and elaborates on that talk.

Lizée’s Katana of Choice (2014/2016): Ben Reimer, drumkit, with soundtrack and film

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Conference Report / AAWM Special Topics Symposium 2023. Theoretical, Analytical, and Cognitive Approaches to Rhythm and Meter in World Musics

Tiffany Nicely
The study of temporality in world musics raises several questions regarding how music is organized and perceived. The proliferation of theories and points of view to arise in the past two decades attests to the importance of and interest in topics related to this field. The Analytical Approaches to World Musics Special Topics Symposium on Theoretical, Analytical, and Cognitive Approaches to Rhythm and Meter in World Musics brought together forty scholars with fresh approaches to this field. This online conference took place over four days in June 2023. Co-chaired by Lina Tabak and the author of this report, the symposium featured six paper sessions, a special session planned by the organizing committee, a panel discussion organized by the program committee, a book dialogue, and a keynote by Daniel Avorgbedor. Presenters affiliated with six continents took part. The symposium was co-sponsored by the Analytical Approaches to World Musics Journal, the CUNY Graduate Center, the Barry S. Brook Center for Music Research and Documentation (CUNY), and the International Foundation for the Theory and Analysis of World Musics (IFTAWM).

Conference Report on Música Analítica 2023. Interdisciplinary Approaches to Musical Time

José Oliveira Martins
Música Analítica 2023, held at the University of Coimbra, brought together an international and interdisciplinary community to examine musical time as a multifaceted analytical, perceptual, and cultural phenomenon. Across keynotes, plenaries, and twelve thematic sessions, scholars from music theory, cognitive science, ethnomusicology, performance, philosophy, and related fields explored how time is structured, experienced, and conceptualized in diverse musical practices. Discussions ranged from microtiming, polyrhythm, and temporal cognition to historical, cross-cultural, and technological perspectives. Serving as a conceptual precursor to the ERA Chair project MusicAnalytica, the conference articulated a forward-looking framework for musical time as a transdisciplinary research nexus.

Binômes interartistiques. L’impact du théâtre et de la danse sur les méthodes de création musicale de Georges Aperghis et Thierry De Mey

Krystina Marcoux and Isabelle Héroux
Few studies have examined the direct influence of dance or theater on the methods of musical creation among composers collaborating closely within these artistic disciplines. In George Aperghis’s case, research has often focused on his treatment of voice or text, while studies on Thierry De Mey have examined his work for film or dance. Yet their respective collaborations with Antoine Vitez and Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, and the impact of these interactions on their creative processes remain largely underexplored. This article employs a dual documentary and analytical approach to fill this gap, drawing on interviews, archival research, and a comparison of the productions Jojo (1990) and Simplexity (2016). The findings show that improvisation, fragmentation, tension, and the performers’ active role are recurring practices, confirmed by examining other works. Ultimately, the interdisciplinarity generated by these collaborations significantly reshapes the compositional strategies of both Aperghis and De Mey.

Charles Koechlin, Portraits musicaux 1909-1949. Textes rassemblés, présentés et annotés par Liouba Bouscant, préface de Michel Duchesneau, Paris, Vrin, 2025, 384 pages

Arthur Skoric

Une synthèse réussie pour un grand public / Les musiciens et le pouvoir en France. De Lully à Boulez par Maryvonne de Saint Pulgent, Paris, Gallimard, 2025, 534 pages

Danick Trottier

Faites vos jeux ! La vie musicale dans les casinos français (XIXe-XXe siècle), dirigé par Martin Guerpin et Étienne Jardin, Arles/Venise, Actes Sud/Palazzetto Bru Zane, 2024, 548 pages

Mathilde Veilleux