-- Excerpt from Elvis' acceptance speech at the ceremony for the US Jaycees 'Ten Outstanding Young Men' for 1970
I love this quote from Elvis Presley. The sentiment is exactly what Jim Morrison and the Doors expressed in their song "When the Music's Over." Music is essential to a human being. I can't imagine living without it. Its universality breaks all barriers to understanding while stirring the emotions.
Dance on fire as it intends
Music is your only friend
Until the end
Until the end
Until the end
When the music's over, yeah
When the music's over
Turn out the lights
Turn out the lights"
-- Excerpt from the Door's "When the Music's Over." Strange Days. Jim Morrison - lyrics. Paul A. Rothchild, Producer
Seemingly simple, rhythm is actually one of the most complex musical concepts to define and explain. Its powerful presence in our lives is often misunderstood -- we listen to music and neglect to consider how rhythm is at its very core: it connects everything. Rhythm, like the heartbeat, is divided into repeated beats of a specific number at
a certain speed. In other words, the pattern is the controlled movement of music concerning time that may be defined in pulses, meters, or beats. In
all cases, rhythm is how music is divided into regular metric portions. Thus, beat and movement are also the lifeblood that systematically flows through the human body. Rhythm naturally lives in all of us -- as through the heart with automatic, involuntary reflex -- and it compensates our basic need for movement through conscious awareness.
It’s different from the music’s tempo, which is the speed at which the music plays. Strong and weak pulse patterns combine to make rhythm essential to movement in music. These pulse patterns make us want to follow a song's rhythm, which consists of beats playing for specific time intervals.
Do we crave rhythm for its pulsating purpose? Consider dancing. Think of the typical response of teenagers to Dick Clark's popular old segments of American Bandstand's "Rate a Record."
Clark: "Why do you like this record so much?
Teens' Reply: "It's the beat.
We accept rhythm without understanding its long list of complexities as simply the placement of sounds in time. In its most general sense, rhythm (Greek rhythmos, derived from rhein, “to flow”) is an ordered alternation of contrasting elements. The notion of rhythm also occurs in other arts (e.g., poetry and painting) as well as in biological rhythms.
Listening to music, most of us follow a tune's rhythm, which is actually comprised of many complexities such as time signature, meter, and accents. Of course, beats are the primary measurement unit of music while the time signature of any musical piece refers to the number of beats in one full measure and how long the beats last. It’s written as a fraction, such as 4/4, 6/8, 5/4, and so on. The two numbers indicate how you should count the rhythm.
Time signatures that have the number "4" for the bottom mean that the beat corresponds with a quarter note. For example, the time signature 5/4 means that a measure takes five beats to become whole.
Meanwhile, a 4/4 signature means that four beats are needed to make a full measure. It also means that each individual beat is the length of a quarter note.
4/4 is the standard time signature, but signatures go beyond it. ¾ time signatures are meant for waltz music, and 2/4 time signatures are meant for march rhythms.
(Steve, PMH. "What Is Rhythm in Music and Why Is It So Important?" Pro Musician's Hub. https://promusicianhub.com/what-is-rhythm/. May 19, 2021.)
While both rhythm and tempo directly correlate to how fast the music is, each of them contributes individually. The tempo is the speed of the music piece, while the rhythm is how long each note takes. Both depend on time, but in different ways.
"Rhythm is the foundation upon which music builds its cadence, inviting listeners to move, feel, and connect on a visceral level. It’s the heartbeat of music, dictating its flow and structure."
-- Nahuel Bronzini, "Understanding the Basics of Rhythm In Music, Native Instruments
To help us understand further, imagine a car driving down a highway.
The vehicle is moving at a specific speed, which refers to the tempo.
The rhythm here refers to the distance between the things along the
road’s side.
Making it simple -- our bodies are prone to respond in kind to basic rhythms. Think of basic dance moves -- slow and fast rhythms elicit normal, traditional reactions to dance; however, a good rhythm section is surprisingly detailed in how its accents contribute to any solid restriction within a composition's rhythms.
Rhythmic appeal varies. Strange rhythms do not easily allow our bodies to respond to their offbeat sounds. We normally just say it's a "fast" or "slow" tune. We are so used to 4/4 time (most commonly found in pop, rock, and many modern genres),
Irregular rhythms don't instantly relate to our body's natural tendencies -- blood flow, heartbeat, even brain connections.
Lyrics add meaning and theme for even greater response to a song. Are the words relatable to our sea of emotions? Some are more than others, but there are no restrictions to addressing the beat with words. Think of song lyrics evoking joy, sadness, reminisce, and any other feeling we have. The beat + the lyrics = what we believe to be a great piece of music.
I could never restrict myself to liking only one genre of music. All -- from rock, pop, country, blues, instrumental, and on and on -- feed my need to live a life full of music. I need to hear music to find what I might call a "personal redemption of being" for my life. I live vicariously in the songs I hear and play. I've grown up with the old Hit Parade songs, progressed to rock, and taken in all other forms with not necessarily equal zeal, but with an intensity present in what is known as a "music lover." Please, don't restrict my ears to one form or one understanding of appeal.
Through experience and longing for music, I recognize almost immediately that which I think is a great song. The variations of form and style I love might surprise you. To me, a good song is both satisfying and timeless. Unlike my response to television or to a movie, I never tire of hearing it play -- hundreds, maybe thousands of times. My tunes are my eternal companions as both Elvis and Morrison wrote: they have unusual, great power over me. I must listen to them again and again. Without music, I have no "light." My heart feels no flow.
Music is made for sharing and for introspection -- a dichotomy I don't really understand. It is just something I respect and for which I long. Sharing great songs with good friends is the best. Add dance and other movements of expression and I am so happy ... even when listening to the saddest songs or an earful of the blues. I feel music is God's gift to us because it gives us pause to contemplate; to think; and, of course, to relate and move.
Today, people spend so much on televisions and home theaters, yet they often decline to spend as much -- or any for that matter -- on the sounds within their own existence. If I had my way, I would have all of my CDs played on the best possible sound system. I could spend all my money on a system that accurately and beautifully produces the original sound of my favorite recordings.
With my restricted resources, I settle for "good" sound but long for "better." I am a true audiophile junky without the finances to afford systems capable of delivering the ''sweetest" of reproductions. In a perfect world, the sky would be the limit, and authenticity of recording would be paramount. In other words, I thrill to hear the best recordings played on the best systems. I love to meet people who share my passion for music -- they are becoming fewer and farther between instead of more and closer. God, how do people get by without music in their lives? Music is life; life is music.
I ache in the places where I used to play
And I'm crazy for love but I'm not coming on
I'm just paying my rent every day
Oh in the Tower of Song
I said to Hank Williams: how lonely does it get?
Hank Williams hasn't answered yet
But I hear him coughing all night long
A hundred floors above me
In the Tower of Song
I was born like this, I had no choice
I was born with the gift of a golden voice
And twenty-seven angels from the Great Beyond
They tied me to this table right here
In the Tower of Song
So you can stick your little pins in that voodoo doll
I'm very sorry, baby, doesn't look like me at all
I'm standing by the window where the light is strong
Ah they don't let a woman kill you
Not in the Tower of Song
Now you can say that I've grown bitter but of this you may be sure
The rich have got their channels in the bedrooms of the poor
And there's a mighty judgment coming, but I may be wrong
You see, you hear these funny voices
In the Tower of Song
I see you standing on the other side
I don't know how the river got so wide
I loved you baby, way back when
And all the bridges are burning that we might have crossed
But I feel so close to everything that we lost
We'll never, we'll never have to lose it again
Now I bid you farewell, I don't know when I'll be back
They're moving us tomorrow to that tower down the track
But you'll be hearing from me baby, long after I'm gone
I'll be speaking to you sweetly
From a window in the Tower of Song
Yeah my friends are gone and my hair is grey
I ache in the places where I used to play
And I'm crazy for love but I'm not coming on
I'm just paying my rent every day
Oh in the Tower of Song
* “Tower of Song” is a profound and introspective composition by the legendary singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen. Released in 1988 as part of his album “I’m Your Man,” this captivating song delves into themes of self-reflection, music as a source of solace, and the complexities of the creative process. Cohen’s masterful storytelling and poetic lyricism invite listeners on a journey towards self-discovery and contemplation.
At its core, “Tower of Song” explores the deeply personal nature of artistic expression. Cohen’s lyrics paint a vivid picture of an artist confined within the metaphorical walls of a tower, tirelessly honing his craft. This tower represents the artist’s inner world, their sanctuary where they create and navigate the labyrinthine corridors of their own mind. Through his distinct baritone vocals, Cohen beautifully captures the longing and vulnerability that often accompany the creative process.
(Warren Barrett. "The Meaning Behind The Song: Tower of Song by Leonard Cohen." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-tower-of-song-by-leonard-cohen/. September 9, 2023.)
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