New Mexico State University

Microtheme on Rhythm and Melody

Joseph Seth Zamora

An Introduction to World Music, Jazz, and Music Research, MUS 202

Dr. Fred Bugbee

Due Thursday September 17, 2015

Rhythm is the organization and division of sounds and silences in time. Throughout

cultures around the world, rhythm is organized and expressed in many different ways. In western

music, rhythm is organized into groups of two, three, or four. However, in other cultures, these

groups can become more complex. For example, northern India’s classical music can be

groupings as high as 108 beat divisions, although a 16-beat division, called tala, is more

common. Rhythms get even more complex in the music from the West African tribes. These

ensembles in the tribes consist of drums each playing different rhythms creating this

polyrhythmic feel. Uneven rhythms or swing rhythm is seen primarily in Jazz music with group

of notes with a long note and a shorter note with an accent. Finally, free rhythms can be seen I

Japanese Shakuhachi music. Rhythm is controlled with a solo performer’s breath creating an

organic, free rhythm.

Melody is defined as a linear succession of pitches. Many variations in melodic

composition are seen among various cultures. In Western Music, there are twelve defined

pitches. Composers determine these pitches and rhythms beforehand and notate it so performers

can then recreate the piece. In the Maqam style in the Middle East, melodies are based on

various groupings of notes similar to western musical scales. However, these scales contain

microtones or fractions of tones. In performance, the melodies are slightly bent from definite

pitches to microtones creating a type of ornament. Ornamentation is also common in traditional

Irish music. Performers are given a set melody and are allowed to slightly modify this in order to

create a different melodic figure each time the melody is heard. In the classical musical tradition

in Northern India, Ragas are used to create melodies. Each raga has its own rules and moods.

These ragas, like western music, have 12 defined pitches. A tonic is established and from there,

only certain notes can proceed it, which is also dependent on the Raga.