On 2/26/08 5:39 AM, "Palmer, Ralph" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> Hi, Kurt - > > When I brought up "my" definition, it certainly was not intended to be > exclusive (as in the only definition). Nor did I perceive it that way. > I was trying to point out that there was an alternative meaning to polymeter. Certainly ... > I have no easy answer to the problem(s), especially since I think polymeter > or complex meter can refer to more than time signatures - either initial or > subsequent. ... which is why I asked the question. > Are the layered patterns in some West African drumming considered to be > polymeter, or is that polyrhythm? That's polyrhythm ... which may simply be polymeter writ small, at the beat instead of the measure. > I think western music's recent and rapid exposure to a lot of different > rhythmic structures, notations, and possibilities have helped create a > confusing set of terminologies whose definitions haven't settled down yet. Just wait until I finish the section on proportions (the Renaissance one, not the usual LilyPond one) -- reading about "time signatures" of 33/9 (triplasuperbipartientetertias) or 51/15 (triplasuperbipartientequintas) does wonders to expand the mind. The terminology seems fairly settled to me, but with a lot of redundancy. I wanted to remove some of that redundancy from a framework that would be obvious to the casual musician-observer. BUT, more importantly, I did NOT intend for this framework to be a straitjacket. Folks who specialize in the tals you mentioned in your last email on the subject will continue to discuss them with *their* terms ... but when I ask them to explain it to me (a non-Indian), they can say "Oh, it's a regular sequential polymeter that groups beats in groups of 3+2+ ... etc." I hope this clarification helps. Regards, Kurt _______________________________________________ lilypond-user mailing list [email protected] http://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/lilypond-user
