Foster Rhythm Calendar

Night 11 🌕🌑🌕🌑

This rhythm sounds like a previous one, but it’s different. The Night 2 rhythm was 🌕🌕, which is based in 2/4 time, while this one is based in 4/4 time. How we divide rhythms changes our perspective and relationship to them.

If this rhythm were in quarter notes, it would be called a “front beat” pattern. Check out my video “5 Basic Rhythms” for more information.

Have you noticed the patterns from Night 1?
🌕 🌖 🌗 🌘 Just like the waning moon, the rhythm fractions are getting smaller.

We started with a 1, then moved 3/4, now we’re at 1/2, and they’ll continue diminishing

🌑 until we reach the new moon.

🌕🌕🌑🌑 Tonight’s beat takes us back into the “four world,” where we play the first two beats and rest on the last two.

Notice how this differs from Night 8, especially in the rests.

This rhythm takes me to a basketball game 🏀 vibe, where the crowd chants with stomps: BOOM BOOM “DE-FENCE!” 📣👟

Moon update: We’re in the waning crescent phase 🌘.

🌒 Waxing = growing
🌖 Waning = shrinking
🌔 Gibbous > quarter
🌘 Crescent < quarter

So, the moon’s light is fading, and it’s less than half full.

Tune into this rhythm, feel its pulse, and let the cosmic dance of the moon guide your beats. Whether in the vastness of the night sky or the vibrant echo of a stadium, rhythm connects us all. 🥁🌌

🌗 We’re entering the Last Quarter phase of the moon, marking the final lunar week before the 🌑 New Moon.

Even though it looks like half a moon, this phase is termed a “quarter” because of the four primary moon phases: 🌑 New (Resting), 🌓 First Quarter, 🌕 Full, and 🌗 Last Quarter.

This rhythm when it’s based in 8th note triplets, is known as a shuffle rhythm. You’ve likely have heard it music genres such as Jazz, Blues, Swing, early Rock and Roll, Western Swing, R&B, Reggae, Pop, and even Classical and nursery rhymes. It’s second in popularity of the 3 world patterns only to the rhythm of Night 3 🌕🌕🌕.

Don’t forget you can adjust the playback speed of the video by clicking on the ⚙️ settings icon.

Catch the morning moon before it sets! Visit https://www.timeanddate.com/moon/phases/ to find out when it’s visible.

🌕 🌕 🌑 We’re drumming back into the “3 world,” ending our sequence with a rest this time.

🤘🎸 This rhythm might be a bit unfamiliar to those used to rock, blues, folk, pop, hip hop, country, EDM, or Reggae, as it’s more prevalent in 🌍 West African and Afro-Latin cultures.

If this pattern feels new, your instinct and the rhythmic gravity might pull you towards the more familiar swing rhythm of 🌕🌑🌕. -which might be coming up soon. 🤫

As cultures blend and evolve 🌏✨, this rhythm is weaving its way into hip hop 🎤 and pop 🎶, so keep an ear out—it’s becoming more widespread 📈.

Recognizing patterns, whether in lunar phases 🌗 or musical measures 🎵, is crucial for learning and growth 🌱.

It deepens our connection to the rhythms of life and music. 🌍🎶

Keep counting, keep playing, and most importantly, find joy in the rhythms that surround us. 🥁❤️

🌕 ➡️ 🌗 Welcome to Night 7 since the Full Moon!

While we’re still within the same lunar week, it’s interesting how our journey doesn’t align perfectly with the Gregorian week. This highlights a unique part of lunar timekeeping. 📅 🌙

In lunar calendars, a ‘week’ can vary from 6 to 9 days, depending on the Moon’s distance to Earth. 🌍 This lunar week gives us 8 days of rhythm. 🎵

Today, we dive into the 3rd variation of our rhythmic pattern: three notes followed by a pause. 🎶➖ Though they may sound similar, counting is key to uncovering their differences. 🔍🎼

Let’s embrace the subtleties, keep the rhythm alive and let the moon guide our beats! 🌔🥁

🌟 One form of rhythmic intelligence is hearing the same rhythms from different angles. 🎵

Yesterday’s and today’s rhythms might seem alike, but there’s a twist! Both have 3 beats followed by a rest, but today, we have a pause on beat 3, not 4. 🛑

That’s where counting shines! 🤓✨ It helps us grasp the true pattern, even when our minds want to stick to the familiar.

Enter what I call “rhythmic gravity” 🌌 – it’s like a force that pulls our perception towards what we’re used to. If your brain expects a 1-2-3 rhythm but the beat is really starting on 4 (like 4-1-2), without counting, you might not catch the shift. 🔄

Counting might feel like a chore at first, but trust me, it’s worth it! 💪 It’ll soon become second nature, letting you dive deeper into the rhythm. Exploring new beats, even the unfamiliar ones, is key to honing your rhythmic skills. 🚀

And a cool tip: Want to play the tracks faster? Just hit the ⚙️ settings icon on the video player! 🎶⏩

Keep grooving, and let the rhythm lead the way! 🥁🌜

Today, we’re adding our first pause in the rhythm. A moment of silence at the end of the measure.

The moon wanes 🌖 and its shadow expands, you’ll find that our rhythm today mirrors this lunar phase.

As we approach the new moon 🌑, or what I like to refer to as the ‘resting moon,’ our moments of rest will increase.

We’re still in the realm of 4/4 time. Play the first three beats, then rest 🛑 on the fourth.

Try counting out loud 🗣️ while you play, and then shift to counting in your mind 💭.

The most common time signature in music is….
4/4. That’s why it’s also called common time.
4 Quarter notes per measure.

Four is important not only with 4 beats to a measure but also 4 bar phrases.
It’s very common to have changes of music after groups of 4, 8, or 16 measures.

Here’s a playlist of 4 songs in different genres to bucket drum along with that are in 4/4 time. Count to 4 and listen how it aligns with the music.

Also, the concept of 4 world connects to the 4 phases of the moon.

1. 🌑 New Moon
2. 🌓 First Quarter
3. 🌕 Full Moon (100% lit)
4. 🌗 Last Quarter

https://vimeo.com/917384266?share=copy

Rock – “We will rock you” Queen

Pop – “Can’t Stop the Feeling” by Justin Timberlake

Jazz – “Feeling Good” by Michael Bublé

Latin – “Havana” by Camila

We divide music into notes and measures so we can understand it better.
Whether it’s 3/4, 6/8, 9/8, or 12/8 time signature,
1/4, 8th, or 16th note triplets…
These all based on the concept of “3 world”.

This is the 3rd day since the full moon and the rhythm mirrors this with 3 beats.

Three is odd. 🥴 So when we play drums with 2 hands they alternate every other time.
Right, left, right….Left, Right, left.
Count 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3, and play along to today’s rhythm of the moon cycle.

The moon’s phases can be simplified into three stages:
1. Waxing (the moon’s light grows)
2. Full Moon (100% lit)
3. Waning (the light decreases)

We started with the full moon and now it’s waning.
Can you see the shadow that started creeping in?

Here’s the 2nd Rhythm after the 🌝 Full Moon. It sounds the same but instead of the counting to 1 we’ll add 2.

This adds another dimension.
1 being the Front Beat. 2 being the Back Beat.

1, 2, 1, 2, 1, 2,

Count and tap along to this video with the moon from Last night.

And can you predict tomorrow’s rhythm?

Remember, understanding the importance of each rhythm will become clear as we progress through the 30-day Moon cycle.

442 years ago on 224 the Gregorian Calendar (commonly used in Western Countries) was introduced.

224 (Feb. 24th 2024) was the introduction of the Foster Rhythm Calendar.
It’s based on the natural cycles of the Sun, Earth and the Moon. As the sun set the Full Moon rose above the horizon.

The Rhythm of the day for the full moon is a Down Beat.

It’s the most fundamental rhythm and it’s the frame of reference for almost all other rhythms.

If we were to count it in its most basic form, It would be 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1…

It’s the pulse.