Topic
Syncopation
About: Syncopation is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 146 publications have been published within this topic receiving 4303 citations.
Papers published on a yearly basis
Papers
Book•
14 Apr 2006TL;DR: A theory of expectation is used to explain how music evokes various emotions for readers interested in cognitive science and evolutionary psychology as well as music as mentioned in this paper, which can be found in the book "Sweet Anticipation".
Abstract: A theory of expectations is used to explain how music evokes various emotions for readers interested in cognitive science and evolutionary psychology as well as music. The psychological theory of expectation that David Huron proposes in "Sweet Anticipation" grew out of experimental efforts to understand how music evokes emotions. These efforts evolved into a general theory of expectation that will prove informative to readers interested in cognitive science and evolutionary psychology as well as those interested in music. The book describes a set of psychological mechanisms and illustrates how these mechanisms work in the case of music. All examples of notated music can be heard on the Web. Huron proposes that emotions evoked by expectation involve five functionally distinct response systems: reactive responses (which engage defensive reflexes); tension responses (where uncertainty leads to stress); predictive responses (which reward accurate prediction); imaginative responses (which facilitate deferred gratification); and appraisal responses (which occur after conscious thought is engaged). For real-world events, these five response systems typically produce a complex mixture of feelings. The book identifies some of the aesthetic possibilities afforded by expectation, and shows how common musical devices (such as syncopation, cadence, meter, tonality, and climax) exploit the psychological opportunities. The theory also provides new insights into the physiological psychology of awe, laughter, and "spine-tingling chills." Huron traces the psychology of expectations from the patterns of the physical/cultural world through imperfectly learned heuristics used to predict that world to the phenomenal qualia experienced by those who apprehend the world.
1,696 citations
TL;DR: There is an inverted U-shaped relationship between syncopation, body-movement and pleasure, andsyncopation seems to be an important structural factor in embodied and affective responses to groove.
Abstract: Moving to music is an essential human pleasure particularly related to musical groove. Structurally, music associated with groove is often characterised by rhythmic complexity in the form of syncopation, frequently observed in musical styles such as funk, hip-hop and electronic dance music. Structural complexity has been related to positive affect in music more broadly, but the function of syncopation in eliciting pleasure and body-movement in groove is unknown. Here we report results from a web-based survey which investigated the relationship between syncopation and ratings of wanting to move and experienced pleasure. Participants heard funk drum-breaks with varying degrees of syncopation and audio entropy, and rated the extent to which the drum-breaks made them want to move and how much pleasure they experienced. While entropy was found to be a poor predictor of wanting to move and pleasure, the results showed that medium degrees of syncopation elicited the most desire to move and the most pleasure, particularly for participants who enjoy dancing to music. Hence, there is an inverted U-shaped relationship between syncopation, body-movement and pleasure, and syncopation seems to be an important structural factor in embodied and affective responses to groove.
361 citations
TL;DR: It is argued that musical rhythm exploits the brain’s general principles of prediction and proposed that pleasure and desire for sensorimotor synchronization from musical rhythm may be a result of such mechanisms.
Abstract: Musical rhythm, consisting of apparently abstract intervals of accented temporal events, has a remarkable capacity to move our minds and bodies. How does the cognitive system enable our experiences of rhythmically complex music? In this paper, we describe some common forms of rhythmic complexity in music and propose the theory of predictive coding as a framework for understanding how rhythm and rhythmic complexity are processed in the brain. We also consider why we feel so compelled by rhythmic tension in music. First, we consider theories of rhythm and meter perception, which provide hierarchical and computational approaches to modeling. Second, we present the theory of predictive coding, which posits a hierarchical organization of brain responses reflecting fundamental, survival-related mechanisms associated with predicting future events. According to this theory, perception and learning is manifested through the brain’s Bayesian minimization of the error between the input to the brain and the brain’s prior expectations. Third, we develop a predictive coding model of musical rhythm, in which rhythm perception is conceptualized as an interaction between what is heard (‘rhythm’) and the brain’s anticipatory structuring of music (‘meter’). Finally, we review empirical studies of the neural and behavioral effects of syncopation, polyrhythm and groove, and propose how these studies can be seen as special cases of the predictive coding theory. We argue that musical rhythm exploits the brain’s general principles of prediction and propose that pleasure and desire for sensorimotor synchronization from musical rhythm may be a result of such mechanisms.
268 citations
Book•
28 Feb 1976
TL;DR: Maury Yeston as mentioned in this paper studied the relationship between pitch and meter in tonal music and found some fundamental aspects of logical form in the system of musical rhythm, as well as a basis for understanding the relationships by which unique rhythmic designs are integrated aesthetically in a cohesive musical composition.
Abstract: There are many books on counterpoint and harmony, but few indeed on the theory of rhythm. Those few approach it through its graphic notation, or in terms of metrical feet, as if it were poetry. Maury Yeston treats rhythm instead in the context of sounded music, with a view to clarifying its ambiguous and little studied, but crucial, relationship with pitch. Although his work is strongly influenced by the methods of the German theorist Heinrich Schenker, it is a strikingly original contribution to musical theory in its own right. Maury Yeston begins by developing analytic procedures for understanding the rhythm of tonal music in terms of pitch levels. He then focuses on certain structures that arise from the interaction of these levels, thereby discovering some fundamental aspects of logical form in the system of musical rhythm. In the course of the inquiry, Mr. Yeston redefines traditional notions of meter, syncopation, and accent. In addition, his study provides a basis for understanding the relationships by which unique rhythmic designs are integrated aesthetically in a cohesive musical composition.
225 citations
TL;DR: The Black Atlantic rhythm is founded on the idea of groove or feel, which forms a kinetic framework for reliable prediction of events and time pattern communication, its power cemented by repetition and engendered movement as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The "Black Atlantic" rhythmic diaspora, be it realized in jazz, blues, gospel, reggae, rock, candomblee, cumbia, hip-hop or whatever, seems to have widespread capacity to facilitate dance, engagement,
social interaction, expression and catharsis. This article examines the reasons for this. Black Atlantic rhythm is founded on the idea of groove or feel, which forms a kinetic framework for reliable prediction
of events and time pattern communication, its power cemented by repetition and engendered movement. Overlaid on this are characteristic devices that include syncopation, overlay,displacement, off-beat phrasing,
polyrhythm/polymeter, hocketing, heterophony, swing, speech-based rhythms, and call-and-response. Using an evolutionary argument, I point out here that nearly all of these have at their heart the establishment
of perceptual multiplicity or rivalry, affecting expectation, which acts as either a message or a message enhancement technique (via increased engagement and focusing of attention), or both. The causal
path for the remaining devices is based on adopting structures shared with speech, notably prosody, conversational interaction, and narrative. Several examples illustrate how, particularly in jazz and jazz-related
forms, extensions and relatively complex creative adaptations of traditional African and African diasporic rhythmic techniques are a natural consequence of a culture of questioning and reflection that encompasses
maintenance of historical reference and accommodation to innovation.
195 citations
Related Topics (5)
Performance Metrics
| Year | Papers |
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| 2021 | 4 |
| 2020 | 3 |
| 2019 | 9 |
| 2018 | 6 |
| 2017 | 6 |
| 2016 | 6 |