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| Site last updated . This particular page was created 16/11/2003 and last updated 28/08/2004 Site updates |
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Now that we've had some fun with the eight notes, let's go back to the beat for a moment.
There's no law that says you have to play all the beats in a bar. Somtimes it's enough with every other beat:
This is called the 1-3 rhythm because - well because you play on the 1st and 3rd beat of the bar.
One important point:
It's usually a good idea to keep your right hand moving steadily in tempo even if you don't actually hit all the beats.
Sometimes you can even play only the first beat of each bar:
This is the "stop rhythm" and it's more often used to add some variation within a piece than as a steady rhythm figure throughout the tune.
Damping
There are two ways to play the 1-3 rhythm. We can do it as above, or we can dampen the strings on the seacond and fourth beat:
Remember to keep your right hand going in a steady time. On the first beat you stroke the strings, on the second you hit them softly with your hand to stop the sound and so on.
Backbeat
Remember Chuck Berry's hit "Rock'n roll music?" One line of the lyrics is "It's got a backbeat you can't loose it."The backbeat (or 2-4 rhythm) is useful for much more than rock though. In irsh music we usally play it when we have some other instrument taking care of the first and third beat, but it can be effective on its own as well.
If you have the 1-3 rhtyhm with dampings down, the backbeat is easy. You just turn it around the other way:
Reggae rhythm
I know! This site is about Irish banjo music and we're getting way off topic.But just for the fun of it, try combining the 2-4 rhythm with eight note fills like this:
Instant reggae! :-)