Lesson 45 of 84 · Famous Composers
⭐ 30 XP🎻 Music History HallWalking the Beat (Part 2)
In jazz, the drummer plays the ride cymbal on every beat while the hi-hat snaps on beats 2 and 4, creating 'swing.
🎯 Your mission
Steal one trick from a master. Use it your way.
⚡ The twist
Old doesn't mean boring. Some 300-year-old music still slaps.
Listen for this
🎧 Close your eyes. What does this music make you picture?
Artist Spotlight
🌟 Ada Lovelace, the first computer programmer, wrote about computers playing music in 1843.
Mind = Blown
🤯 The first pop song to hit a billion plays online took 3 years. Now it happens in months.
Learn about walking the beat (part 2): identify the downbeat and upbeat
What You'll Learn
In jazz, the drummer plays the ride cymbal on every beat while the hi-hat snaps on beats 2 and 4, creating 'swing.'
Identify the downbeat and upbeat
Feel the beat in different music styles
Check Your Understanding
Question 1 of 3
What does the metronome do?
Where you hear this in real life
Today's pop hit borrows from 70 years of music history without anyone noticing.
Stretch Challenge
Try this in real life this week.
Find one famous musician you've never heard of. Listen to one song.
For the dinner table
“Tell me about the music you loved when you were my age.”
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