A Kulcs

by Bodzsár Tamás

When we talk about "music theory", we usually think about pitch - intervals, scales, chords and keys - and indeed there is a great deal of material available covering these elements, but there is very little available on rhythm. In my book I introduce a rhythm system which has helped many of the most famous musicians to be successful, regardless of genre. What if you knew this system yourself and could use it to create better music? You will think about music theory in a whole new way, one that nobody has ever talked about before as far as I know. If you are confident with keys, chords, and scales, then get ready to have the same confidence in the world of rhythm.

Genres: Music

128 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2016

Reviews

[Sarah Martins · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a great analysis and revelation of the rhythmical system that is used by the most successful songwriters. Something I was completely unaware of, yet it's so obvious in hindsight. This theory gave a new dimension for how I think about music. If you are a songwriter or producer, this book is a must read!

[Steve Mirasol · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm reading this book for the third time. Not because it's hard to understand, but because it's so important, and I have learned a lot of interesting things about music and rhythm. I'm studying music for almost thirty years now but none of my music teachers or books ever approached music the way the author does. Honestly, this is a groundbraking idea in music theory.

[Ruud · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps new to many but given that I'm studying jazz, just about all the information was also present a century ago. At least the books I read from the 1950s and 1960s already speak of rhythms much as this book is rediscovering. Does this make the book irrelevant? I guess not since the older books are focused on other areas (jazz, a combination of African rhythms and Western harmony). Still, those infatuated with this book should continue searching for older books about rhythm and learn so much...

[Agnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book completely changed how I think about music and rhythm, it's a real eye opener.

[Andrew Palmer]

This sounds like the sort of book that can improve your songwriting, particularly for dance music where you need to stick to repetitive patterns. We often focus too much on words and melody but forget the underlying rhythmic structure. I would love to read this book!

[David Rubenstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read a number of books about music theory. They are all about harmony and harmonic progressions. This book is different. It is all about rhythm. I have always believed that it is rhythm that makes a song distinctive. This book shows why.

The author, Bodzsar Tamas, has analyzed the rhythm behind hundreds (thousands?) of Latin songs. He shows that most of these songs use a certain rhythm, called a son clave, or a slight variation. This book explains the rhythm, and then shows dozens of examples of popular songs that follow this rhythm, with small variations. Usually it is the percussion instruments that use the rhythm, but other instruments -- especially bass -- and vocals do, too.

And it's not just Latin songs. Tamas has shows that songs in a wide variety of styles and genres also follow his rhythm code. He shows a statistical analysis of the rhythms of thousands of songs; percussion beats are classified as occurring rarely, occasionally, and often.

I remember shopping at a keyboard store many years ago. A salesman told me that keyboard players (like me) are rhythmically illiterate. How right he was! The Rhythm Code might be second nature to a percussionist. But to me, it was a revelation. Now I see how to listen to understand rhythms. It might even help me in my composing!

[Alb85 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Il libro descrive brevemente un "sistema" (chiamato Rythm code dall'autore) per creare la parte di ritmo di una canzone.

Il sistema è sviluppato su 2 misure da 8 beat:

M M H L H M M H M M L H M M H M

dove L, M e H sono beat con rispettivamente basse, medie e alte probabilità di trovare uno stop, cioè una nota senza note nel beat seguente.

La pecca è che il sistema è troppo generale. Cosa significa probaliltà bassa? o alta?
Inoltre il sistema può comprendere uno o più strumenti assieme (e/o più piatti della batteria).

E' così generale che lo si potrebbe vedere applicato ad ogni canzone.

Il capitolo che dovrebbe essere il più importante, "Come usare il sistema per creare canzoni" è solo di due paginette. Il contenuto consiste in note che rafforzano il fatto che il sistema è generale:
- "Non tutti gli strumenti devono seguire il sistema"
- "Non vede necessariamente essere applicato a due misure"
- "Non tutte le barre devono seguire il sistema"

[Mary E · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you could sum up this book on one word it is this :Clave
Learning about clave rhythm. I would give this book two stars but because I couldn’t really read through the whole thing I more or less zoomed through it I’m giving him the benefit of doubt. The book is inundated with multiple examples of clave and use of his template called the rhythm which I think or feels like is basically built of the concept rhythm clave. Again I raced skimmed through this hoping to find some tips on building different kind rhythms but it seems like it’s just mostly about clave rhythm .

[Julia Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm pretty sure that anyone who gave less than 5 stars for this book didn't understand it, or haven't even read it. (One of the reviewers even admitted he didn't even read it through.) The Rhythm Code is truly a groundbraking theory that you won't find in any other music theory books. It's a very useful tool for music creators.

[Davon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book will make you an expert in rhythm.. I'm a session musician for more than 20 years now and worked with hundreds of musicians so far. I'm keep asking my friends if anyone every heard about these concepts but so far, NOBODY. This book made me realize we were literally BLIND about rhythm before this book! How is this not a standard in all the freaking music schools???

[Sergei Kovac · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is an excellent book. It's not just a music theory book, but it actually gives us a very practical method that we can apply when we write music. My songs definitely sound better because of this method.

[Will Clay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE this book! Already read it in one day (128 pages!) and trying to utilize the things I learned in it. I feel like this was a missing link in my music. This is one of those rare books that really teaches you something useful.

[Raaj]

Superb

[James K · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a truly brilliant method! I'm surprised it's not more popular.

[Phillip Parker · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am not sure I know what to think about this book. I am glad I read it. I do not feel inspired enough to rate it at 5 stars. Maybe thats saying it’s not in competition with the latest Michael Connolly fiction. And therefore I am not being fair comparing a musical discovery to a thrilling crime drama.

Well, the author states emphatically the Rhythm Code anchors the 2:3 Clavé yet the author is also emphatic that the rhythm code is not the the clavé.

I will be trying the code on Pharrell Williams song Happy and see how I may crack its code and if I can utilise the code to improve my creativity on the kit and percussion.
If so I will return to Goodreads and revise my rating.