3 Tips for playing a difficult groove
The piece I will be using is called Atmaca (which means the Raven in Turkish), it’s a rich, complex and soulful piece from the Turkish Gypsy music tradition.
Learning a rhythm is very much about listening, putting it into your body , and then playing it.
Here are my 3 tips for learning this 9/8 groove efficiently:
1. Listen to the melody
2. Listen to the drum groove
3. Count and sing out loud the groove
It seems so simple!
We’re going to listen really slowly so that we have enough time to process the information we’re listening to.
1. Listen to the melody, try to identify the accents in the music.
Listen to the first melody from 0:08-0:23 in the video below. As the melody is really fast, remember that you can use YouTube’s built-in slow down option in the Settings -> Playback Speed. While you’re listening, pay attention to the accents – the accents will help you understand the subdivision of this 9/8 meter.
I’ve determined that the subdivision here is: 4+3+2
2. Listen to the drum groove and identify what it’s doing
Now listen from 0:23-0:37 to the next melody. In this song we have a pretty dominant drum groove, which gives a lot of insight into the subdivision.
I’ve determined that the drum groove is doing a half time on the A
3. Count the groove out loud, dance it out, do whatever you need to do to get it in your system
Now that you’ve heard the music, and didactictly understood the breakdown of the rhythm, you need to FEEL this rhythm, and what better way to feel it than saying it outloud and moving it out. You’ve got the notes above, let’s start singing the melody and tapping out the eight notes.
After you can sing it, it’ll be a lot easier to play it.
So let’s try playing it, use the notes above!
Recap: Today we learned to listen to the melodic line and the drum groove, and how to identify the accents in the music to help us figure out the subdivision. We counted the groove out, and played it!
I hope this video has inspired you to explore this piece more.
