Today, we'll discuss the groove and its role in music. What makes the groove special in music is that it has the job of helping to establish both the rhythmic foundation and harmonic foundation of a song whereas other roles in music do one or the other.
All genres of music have the groove in some form but they use different instruments to play it. For example, in reggae music, the groove appears in the form of a piano and guitar accenting the upbeats in addition to an organ playing a "bubble" pattern. In techno, a techno pluck or stab is typically used to fill the role of the groove. In hip-hop, good examples of the groove are the dark strings in "No Hands" with Wakka Flocka, Wale, and Roscoe Dash or the piano part in "Still D.R.E" with Dr. Dre and Snoop.
Because of it's dual-nature of rhythm and harmony, the groove typically serves as a linking agent between the drums (rhythm) and the lead and pad parts of a song (the melody). The groove serves has the glue that can gel them together. Sometimes, without the groove, the melody parts may sound good apart but don't seem to work when together. The groove is often times that missing link.
One other important function of the groove is to provide motion in a track. Because of it's rhythmic nature, parts that play the role of the groove have a sense of motion that more sustained parts such as the pads, just don't have. Often times, when a track is pretty much fully built but it seems stagnant, the groove is the final part that is missing that will give a song life. Use this sense of motion to your advantage when arranging a track. Often times, you can start out a track without the groove and then add the groove in at a part such as the chorus or to help build out parts in the verse. This provides interesting dynamics to the song by taking it from no movement to movement and vice versa. Combine this by using smaller divisions of notes occurring in the hi-hat (i.e going from 8th to 16th notes), it can be a powerful effect to add energy and motion to your track.
The groove is a powerful role and is essential to providing movement to your tracks. Experiment with incorporating it into your beats. In the next segment, we will talk about the leads.
All genres of music have the groove in some form but they use different instruments to play it. For example, in reggae music, the groove appears in the form of a piano and guitar accenting the upbeats in addition to an organ playing a "bubble" pattern. In techno, a techno pluck or stab is typically used to fill the role of the groove. In hip-hop, good examples of the groove are the dark strings in "No Hands" with Wakka Flocka, Wale, and Roscoe Dash or the piano part in "Still D.R.E" with Dr. Dre and Snoop.
Because of it's dual-nature of rhythm and harmony, the groove typically serves as a linking agent between the drums (rhythm) and the lead and pad parts of a song (the melody). The groove serves has the glue that can gel them together. Sometimes, without the groove, the melody parts may sound good apart but don't seem to work when together. The groove is often times that missing link.
One other important function of the groove is to provide motion in a track. Because of it's rhythmic nature, parts that play the role of the groove have a sense of motion that more sustained parts such as the pads, just don't have. Often times, when a track is pretty much fully built but it seems stagnant, the groove is the final part that is missing that will give a song life. Use this sense of motion to your advantage when arranging a track. Often times, you can start out a track without the groove and then add the groove in at a part such as the chorus or to help build out parts in the verse. This provides interesting dynamics to the song by taking it from no movement to movement and vice versa. Combine this by using smaller divisions of notes occurring in the hi-hat (i.e going from 8th to 16th notes), it can be a powerful effect to add energy and motion to your track.
The groove is a powerful role and is essential to providing movement to your tracks. Experiment with incorporating it into your beats. In the next segment, we will talk about the leads.
About the Author:
A founding part of the Jam Sonic production team, Frank Lubsey produces beats for hip-hop artists, jingles for small companies, and instrumental music for film and tv. His love of music began at a young age and never went away. Be sure to visit his website for beatmaking articles and videos and hip-hop beats for sale.
