Posted on

Mastering Rhythmic Accuracy in Music: A Comprehensive Practice Guide

The Power of Rhythmic Accuracy

When you watch a live music performance, what do you notice first? For most of us, it’s the sweet sound of a melody or a soaring vocal line that captivates our senses. But, beyond the melodies and harmonies, there’s another crucial aspect of musical performance that often goes unnoticed but can make or break a live show: rhythmic accuracy.

Rhythmic accuracy is the unsung hero of any musical performance, standing shoulder to shoulder with pitch in importance. It’s what separates the professionals from the amateurs, the extraordinary from the ordinary. Just a few beats played out of rhythm can be jarring to the ear, revealing a lack of professionalism in the music. But fear not, because in this comprehensive guide, we’re about to unveil a powerful practicing method that can transform your rhythmic accuracy.

Allow me to share a bit of personal history. About two decades ago, I had the privilege of studying music under the mentorship of one of Hungary’s finest jazz musicians. During my time with him, he revealed a practicing method that was so potent, it can be applied to master virtually anything on any instrument. What’s truly baffling is that, despite its incredible effectiveness, this method remains hidden in plain sight. In all my years in the music world, I’ve yet to meet another musician who knew about this technique.

I was so intrigued by this method’s uniqueness that I scoured the internet, searching for any mention of it in blogs or videos. To my surprise, the results were absolutely clear: I found NOTHING. This method is a hidden gem in the world of music practice.

But before we dive into the technique, there are two vital things you need to keep in mind:

1. The Deceptive Simplicity: At first glance, this method may appear remarkably simple, which is perhaps why it remains overlooked. I’ve shared this method with many musician friends, and, initially, none of them thought it was a game-changer. That is until they put it to the test. Only those who’ve tried it truly understand its transformative power.

2. The Art of Patience: You must approach this method with patience and a commitment to follow each step as I explain it. The magic lies in the method’s progression.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through this method step by step, revealing its true potential. We’ll also explore other strategies to develop your accuracy, such as training your ear for pitch and rhythm. So, if you’re ready to take your rhythmic accuracy to the next level, let’s dive in!

Continue Reading
Posted on

The Rhythm Code™

What’s the Rhythm Code™?

The Rhythm Code is a hidden system behind many successful songs. It is used by all successful songwriters, even though they are probably not aware of it. The Rhythm Code is used in ALL genres: pop, rock, jazz, EDM, country, funk, R&B.

What do you mean by “hidden”?

The Rhythm Code is a hidden system the same way a musical key is a hidden system. For example, in a song, there are melodies, chords, intervals, and they all give us CLUES that they are in a common system: we call this “a key”. For example “the key of C major”.

A typical song doesn’t necessarily contain all the notes of the C major key, yet we know that it’s in the key of C major. Because we know the theory of the hidden system behind it. The same applies to the rhythm. There is a hidden system for rhythm, which I’ve discovered in 2012 and named it the Rhythm Code. We have had a theory for tonality for a very long time now, but this is the first time we have a similar theory for rhythm.

Why is it important?

The Rhythm Code is the most popular rhythmic system on the planet. It is used by ALL top producers and songwriters (people like Max Martin, Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Adele, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and so on…), even though they are probably not aware of it.

It’s extremely useful for songwriters and producers because, with the help of the Rhythm Code, we can create better songs, better grooves, better rhythms, better melodies, better drumbeats, better bass lines. It is everywhere in the song arrangements in highly successful songs.

Rhythm is the most overlooked topic in songwriting, yet it’s one of the most essential parts of good music.

The Rhythm Code is the first chapter of the Songwriting Essentials online course.

This is how I found a hack for musical rhythm

In 2010, I got the idea of writing my own songs in the style of Cuban Salsa. (Which is kind of weird, since I’m not Cuban.) The problem was, even though I played many Salsa songs before, I didn’t know anything about how to create those complex rhythms to arrange my own songs.

So I started to transcribe many salsa songs and analyze their rhythm. What the horn section is playing, what the piano, the bass, the drums are playing. Unconsciously, I came up with the idea of creating a visual “map”, kind of like a guide that helped me create salsa arrangements. And it worked!

My first Salsa song became relatively famous amongst salsa dancers around the world. They sent me many videos from 50 countries where they dance to my song. (Take a look at this video with the song.) On top of that, a hotel in Havanna, Cuba used this song in their promotional video. (This was kind of a big deal for me, a Cuban hotel promoting Cuba with my song.) And many people are still surprised when they found out that this song is not from a Cuban band, but from a songwriter from Europe.

It was only later that I realized that this “map” of rhythm is not only in Cuban music. It’s literally everywhere. One of my biggest surprises was when I realized that the song “Happy” by Pharrell Williams is using the Rhythm Code. Since then, I analyzed more than 2000 songs in popular genres. It turns out, the Rhythm Code is everywhere. Do you want to know the biggest secret of Max Martin? It’s not melodic math. It’s the Rhythm Code.

It was an even bigger realization that I’m the first person on the planet who discovered this hidden system in rhythm. I have searched Google for articles, publications, videos, books, courses about songwriting, composing, musical rhythm, but NOBODY talks about this.

 

The secret pattern behind successful songs

Get the eBook for $7