Music Theory: Rhythm and Meter Exam Review

Rhythm and Meter Concepts

• Absolute Tempo: Represents a specific tempo retained in long-term memory.
• Accent: Highlights certain musical elements that the composer intended to emphasize.
• Beat: Acts as an underlying rhythmic pulse that organizes music.
• BPM (Beats Per Minute): Quantifies the tempo by measuring beats within one minute.
• Compound Meter: Divides beats into three equal parts, commonly seen in time signatures like 6/8, 9/8, and 12/8.
• Duple Meter: Characterized by two beats per measure, with time signatures like 2/4 and 2/2.

Advanced Organizational Rhythms

• Entrainment: Refers to the synchronization of mental and physical rhythms with musical beats.
• Hypermeter: Describes a higher-level metrical structure that exists beyond individual measures.
• Inter-onset Interval (IOI): Measures the time interval between the onset of consecutive notes.
• Maximal Pulse Salience: The most prominent beat that stands out in the music.
• Measure: A time segment distinguished by a set number of beats.

Rhythm and Performance Dynamics

• Meter: Defines how beats are grouped and divided within the music.
• Metric Malleability: The ability of musical passages to adapt to various metric contexts.
• Pulse: Represents a sequence of consistent and equivalent stimuli that partition time into equal units.
• Rhythm: The sequence of long and short notes that creates the musical flow.

Listener and Performance Interaction

• Selective Attention: The listener's choice of which musical elements to focus on.
• Simple Meter: Involves beats divided into two equal parts, fostering straightforward rhythmic structures.
• Spontaneous Tempo: A personal natural pace, instinctively tapped without external influences.
• Stress: The dynamic enhancement of a beat, which can occur on both accented and unaccented notes.

Auditory Processing

• Subjective Rhythmization: The listener's natural inclination to perceive and impose rhythm.
• Synchronization: The rhythmic alignment of timing between various musical elements.
• Syncopation: A rhythmic emphasis that occurs off the expected strong beats, creating an unexpected feel.
• Tempo: The overall speed or rate at which the music is played.
• Temporal Invariant: Describes events that repeat at consistent intervals.
• Time Signature: The notation indicating the number and type of beats in a measure.
• Triple Meter: Features three groups of beats per measure, often creating a distinct rhythmic feel.