Topic: History of 4/4

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Posted at November 25, 2016, 5:44 am:

I was wondering recently about the origin of 4/4.

I think everyone will agree that it is the easiest time signature to play in, but I was thinking, why is it the easiest?

Is it simply because there are so many songs in 4/4? Or is there some special quality of 4/4 causing it to be easier to understand than others? If it is the latter, what is this special quality?

Original of the message was taken from http://www.sputnikmusic.com/forums/

Replies:

It's only been used in Western cultures a lot.

Our western ticking gadgets (such as watches and pocketwatches) sublim...

I'm guessing because most mainstream music is in 4/4, because it's eas...

maybe it's evenness that makes it stable to the mind of a listener.

Your heartbeat waltzes?

nah, waltz is 3/4, 6/8 sounds different.

4/4 is best

6/8 is too.

well my guess is its because of the counting for poems and hymns from ...

It can be.

Relax, it began as a joke

7/8 > 4/4 But it's friggin' confusing for us shoddy players to wri...

Early gregorian chant was the first music to be notated that we know o...

I like to confuse guitar playing friends by switching from 11/13 to 3/...

i bet early cave people didn't even know they were doing it, but then ...

Whether you're in 4/4 or 15/16, you have a steady pulse.

my bands drummer used to like doing that, then we threw things at him ...

as my drum teacher says, "if your playing any kind of rock you ne...

..Or because that's what the style dictates is appropriate?

I think that the human mind marurally breaks thing down into 4's.

Mathematics.

Not really, 15/16 isn't a steady pulse.

Hardly.

I think this is the closest so far.

11/13? is that 11 13ths of a semibrieve? please elucidate, i thought i...

I'm sticking with the dance version.

Harldy.

There's no such thing as a 13th note.

you can't even count yourself

I go by 60 seconds per minute and 60 minutes per hour.

I'd imagine it would be pretty confusing playing in a time signature t...

11/13 theoretically could exist.

In theory you can break a note into 13 beats yes, but it still doesn't...

Yes, you COULD technically play notes that would be the duration of a ...

To get back to the point, it's basically the Western mentality to use ...

4/4 is very popular because it is easy to dance to.

Western music started out with 4/4 and 3/4 (after they figured out wha...

Tell me who invented bread and when and I'll tell you the same about 4...

Do any of you guitarists/bassists count while you play?

you are an idiot

Nah I prefer to just feel it.

Thank God for that!

are you retarded or what?

No, you're what, hence your name.

To each his own I guess.

There's no such thing as a 3rd or 5th note.

empty post

oh how witty

i dont get it

The dudes username is actually What.

the guy's way to intelligent for you

I guess the number "4" has something to do with it.

Ugh, this is getting confusing.

wow.

Nah man, you're kind of missing the point here.

^^ /thread

I can count better than every drummer I've ever played with.

I don't think I'm the Pinky you know.

then it'd really be 22/26.

He probably meant powers of 2 (e.

Well, there have been a few allusions to gregorian chant and church mu...

Yeah, I see where you are coming form.

Hehehe.

empty post

>.

Niether have I, it'd be a pretty funny question to be asked though (an...

Usually you group odd and additive meters into smaller groups when you...

13th, 9th, 7th, 5th, 3rd, etc.

Yeah, that's the way I count within a standard bar.

I read that, and after some thought I have to go back to my original s...

Just so we're clear.

You're correct.

When time signatures first developed in the west, 3/1 was the most com...

Alot of good stuff here already, and maybe I'm late, but just one obse...

Good point.

No, you are the pinky I think you are, indeed.

Could somebody explain to me how to figure out time signitures in song...

I'm not sure there is an exact way to do it.

I'm sure Meshuggah disagree.

They.

Exactly.

Its just become less complex as time goes on.

Winner.

Ask them why the sky is called the sky.

Find where the main phrase starts.

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