Playing in 7/4

[plangentmusic]

I'm not one to play in odd times just to be fancy, but there are a few ocassions where it seems to fit. Here's an old standard that I always felt actually flowed better in 7 than in 4. The second tune -- Meditation. Let me know what you think.

[Michele C.]

A pianist with which I am going to rehearse wednesday told me to get ready for 15/4 (that's 4 - 4 - 3.5 - 3.5 :-/

Well, let's see

[plangentmusic]

3.5? That's really 7, isn't it?

 

I've played a lot of shifting time sigs, but having a set odd time flow well is something else. I always thought Jethro Tull's "Living in the Past" was a really natural 5/4.

[Richard W]

The closest I get to playing in 7/4 is when I perform on Independence Day.

[Michele C.]

he said 3.5, like

 

one - two - three -four

one - two - three -four

one - two - three - and

one - two - three - and

 

Total 15/4. Well, i'll see and hear tomorrow :-)

[_Sweet Willie_]

"Money" Pink Floyd 7/4 and 4/4.

 

"Black Hole Sun" Soundgarden 4/4 and 9/4

 

"Take Five" Paul Desmond 5/4

 

Most things by The Mahavishnu Orchestra 13/4, 17/8, and so on -- often within the same piece.

 

Various offerings from Yes

 

"Eleven" Primus...um, I'll let you guess...

 

All seem to work nicely and flow in the odd meter.

 

Peace.

--SW

 

[Wally Malone]

Jeremy and I use to play Killer Joe in 7 and then swing the bridge in 4 in our bass band Bassed on Jazz.

 

Wally

[Mark Schmieder]

When you listen to a lot of Celtic and Middle Eastern music, those so-called "odd" time signatures are second nature. That's the best way to learn them, so that you feel them vs. intellectualize them.

 

Although I like all the tunes mentioned above, I consider them bad examples of their respective time signatures, being that they are somewhat in the category of intellectual exercises.

 

Thus, people who have mostly just heard those compositions, tend to fall into those patterns when attempting the same time signatures. All of those compositions tend to use a static relationship between the sub-groupings, which isn't how it's done in the Celtic or Middle Eastern genres.