On the Rhythm Part 2: Feel it - Read it

In the post  "On the Rhythm- Part 1", the beginning steps of listening and feeling rhythm were discussed.

Next, when students begin learning a piece, they usually find the correct notes (pitch) first.  The feeling of the rhythm may already be there so that the piece is recognizable by ear, however the exact rhythm needs to be reinforced by the parent and teacher as the next step.  It is difficult for students to feel longer notes for example, so there is a tendency that these note values are played shorter when the piece is being learned. The dotted half note in "French Children’s Song" is a good example of this.  Another familiar example is the dotted quarter notes, and also the half notes in "Mary Had a Little Lamb".

There are several ways to help the student with feeling and playing the correct rhythm.  The student can play with the teacher who is keeping a steady beat.  At home the parent can sing the melody in correct rhythm as the child plays. At the lesson, the student can clap the steady beat while the teacher plays.  Sometimes it helps to show the child a metronome, which they are very interested in, and then the teacher can play the piece with metronome at various tempos keeping a steady beat. This help the students differentiate rhythm and tempo.  At a later stage, the parent can clap the beat (softly) for the child at home practice. This can be done in the lesson first to make sure it is helpful to the child.

Specifically, on a spot such as a dotted half note, the teacher can clap the beat on that note when the child plays so that they feel the pulse on the long note. By clapping the pulse without counting “1, 2, 3” the child will be able to play without too much thinking.  Of course understanding counting is important too, and is good to do after the child can feel the beat without the use of numbers.

Recognizing the rhythm of pieces without hearing the melody is another good tool for internalizing the rhythm.  The teacher or another student can clap the rhythm of a piece, and then the student(s) can guess what song it is. The students enjoy this activity. Mary Had a Little Lamb and London Bridge have the same rhythm until the last two measures, so students have to listen until the last two measures to know which piece is being played.  This internalization of the rhythm helps students perform the pieces better, and is also a step towards reading rhythm.

Introducing the visual picture of the rhythm to students is easy to do on the Book 1 pieces they already know.  Twinkle D has only quarter and half notes and is great because every phrase has the same rhythm every 2 measures with the half note at the end. Teachers may want to use the Orff or other syllables to represent the sound in addition to clapping, and/or use a hand gesture to indicate the pulse on the notes longer than one beat. . You can clap the rhythm separately, and also while singing the melody.  Counting can be introduced after the rhythms are understood through direct association of the feeling with the visual representation.

This can be done with all of the Book 1 pieces when the students are ready.  Older students may still be in Book 1 and doing this activity, while younger students studying in Book 2 will benefit from this relationship between what they have already learned by ear, and the visual representation of the rhythm. There are various useful materials that can be used to teach these concepts. I like using a white board for the rhythm, and 8"X11" paper each with one measure on it for the full score representation.

Dr. Suzuki says: Raise your ability on a piece you can play.”

Therefore, using the sound of the pieces the children have already internalized and learned to play, help students to feel the rhythm. Next present the visual representation of the rhythms they already know.  This is integral learning as the students are connecting what they can hear, feel, and do with the mental learning of the reading concepts.