The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
  1. #1

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    Hi all,
    What is the best practice for tapping your foot when playing a shuffle rhythm, or swinging 8th notes? I tend to tap on the beat and go up on the shuffle (~third note of the triplet). Is that what I should do, or should I keep a strict tap on the beat and then up on the "and" (in other words, up on the straight 8th notes)? I feel like my "shuffle tapping" approach has served me well, but now I'm playing a piece that alternates between straight 8th notes in some bars, and swinging 8ths in others. Switching my foot tapping when the feel of the measure changes is tripping me up a bit and its not easy to make the transition. I've tried tapping straight 8ths for the swinging sections but that feels awkward too (but I'm willing to practice if that is the best approach). Any advice is welcome!
    Thanks!

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  3. #2

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    I've been trying to just tap on the one. Calms me down a bit

  4. #3

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    Foot tapping is an interesting issue.

    You can watch great players, playing together, and each tapping his own way. There's a video of Ellis, Kessel and Pass, I think, each tapping his own way.

    Some recommend tapping on 2 and 4, a smaller number recommend 1 and 3. Some players don't tap at all (I notice that horns in a big band often don't). Others tap every beat. I've even seen subdivisions, like tapping eighth notes at pretty high tempos. I've seen top pros with their feet just about vibrating. A minority, for sure, but it worked for them.

    I find myself gravitating to quarters or 1 and 3. I have to focus to tap on 2 and 4. I get why it's a good idea, but it doesn't feel natural.

    But, where I find it even more relevant is in tunes with tempo changes that are specified with that equation thing and, also, changes in the time signature.

    Thread Hijack (sorry):

    So, for example, say the tune is in 2/4 and you're tapping quarters. Now, the time signature changes to 3/8. I had to figure that out. Same with going from 7/8 to to 4/4.

    In m/n time, there are m beats to the measure and the 1/n note gets one beat. So, for 3/8, there are 3 beats to the measure and an 1/8th note gets one beat.

    But, you were tapping quarters just before the change to 3/8. You continue tapping at the same rate and those are still quarters. There are now 1 1/2 of them in a measure. It may be easiest to double the speed of you tapping to match the time signature.

    It helped me to realize that 3/8 might be better understood as 1.5/4. That is, a quarter note still gets one beat, but there are only 1 1/2 beats per measure.

    For 7/8 to 4/4, you tap, first, on 1 3, 5, 7 and then 1 a half beat sooner. So it's like 1 3 5 71 3 5 71 etc. Then in 4/4 it changes to 1 3 5 7 1 3 5 7. Same taps except the 71 quickie.

    I still struggle with tempo change equations. Apparently, the current (pre-equation) tempo is on the left, then the equal sign and then the new equivalent is on the right. So eighthnote=quarternote doubles the tempo. But it can get tricky when it's going from half notes to dotted quarters, or something. I always end up wondering how to count it and how to tap my foot.

  5. #4

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    This brought to mind something I've been trying to do. The heel tap on the one and a toe tap on the two, like a drummer rocking my foot back and forth.

    Carl Verheyen often does this and you can hear just the back beat of the toe tap with the heel tap being close to silent. Check it out at 2:50 of this video.


  6. #5
    Thanks for the replies. I hadn’t considered changes to the time signature yet

    Just to clarify my original post, I am tapping quarter notes on every beat. It sounds like how to manage the upbeat (foot up) between beats is variable, so I’ll stop stressing about it!

  7. #6

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    What's the point, D?
    Some Jazzers' do it naturally; Classical players-- rarely. You're going to teach yourself to tap your foot? May I suggest playing scales/chords with a metronome for time much better spent . . . Good luck on your endeavor!
    Marinero

  8. #7
    I do play with the metronome extensively and it has helped a lot with my inner clock. I can “hear” the clicks and feel them even when it isn’t on now. But when I don’t use the metronome, I rely on my foot to keep the time. I was really just asking about how people think about what goes on between the clicks/taps. I’m thinking the answer is nebulous and comes down to “feeling it.”

  9. #8

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    Tap your foot on 1 and 3 if it’s fast.

  10. #9

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    Quote Originally Posted by dcontoyannis
    I do play with the metronome extensively and it has helped a lot with my inner clock. I can “hear” the clicks and feel them even when it isn’t on now. But when I don’t use the metronome, I rely on my foot to keep the time. I was really just asking about how people think about what goes on between the clicks/taps. I’m thinking the answer is nebulous and comes down to “feeling it.”
    Hi, D,
    I'll tell you a story. In the early 80's, I got out of music "full time." I was playing sax/flute in horn bands and Disco killed most live music in Chicago. So, I put my horn away and in '92 wanted to return to playing gigs part-time on the weekends. The sax was no longer practical and since I played R@B/Funk guitar, I decided to study Classical guitar since I always loved the music. And, because of my former music experience, I was fortunate to study with a world-class CG for my first teacher. After working on the mechanics of "fingerstyle" and adjusting to the over-sized neck of a CG, I started playing pieces and on my first lesson, he asked me "Why are you tapping your foot?" I said because I've always tapped my foot when playing. He said "that's not done in Classical Music . . . you tap with your inner ear. Can you imagine the Chicago Symphony tapping through "La Traviata." Or, Segovia tapping through the Villa Lobos "Preludes?" So, although it took awhile, my happy tapping days had ended and I have have become forever lost to the beats of my inner ear.
    Marinero