4/4 Bell Patterns

One Bar

V <jx2w"J2xw"r2w"Rx2w"ij2w"Jx2w"rx2w"R2w">
V <x444x$44x4$44x4$x444$>
Son Clave (3-2)

V <jx2w"J2wx"r2w"Rx2w"ij2w"Jx2w"rx2w"R2w">
V <x444x$44x4$44x4$x444$>
Rumba Clave (3-2)

V <jx2w"J2xw"r2w"R2xw"ij2w"xJ2w"xr2w"R2w">
V <x444x$444x$44x4$x444$>
Son Clave (2-3)

V <j2w"Jx2w"xr2w"R2w"ixj2w"J2xw"r2w"Rx2w">
V <44x4$x444$x444x$44x4$>
Rumba Clave (2-3)

V <j2w"Jx2w"rx2w"R2w"ixj2w"J2wx"r2w"R2xw">
V <44x4$x444$x444x$444x$>
Cuban (rumba) #1

V <jx2w"J2xw"xr2w"R2xw"ij2w"xJ2w"xr2w"R2w">
V <x444x$x444x$44x4$x444$>
Brazil

V <jx2w"J2xw"r2w"xR2w"ij2w"xJ2w"xr2w"R2w">
V <x444x$44x4$44x4$4x44$>
Bell patterns 1

Nigeria (juju)

V <jx2w"J2xw"r2w"xR2xw"ij2w"xJ2w"xr2w"R2w">
V <x444x$44x4x$44x4$x444$>
Haiti (Ibo, Congo)

V <xj2xw"J2xw"xr2w"xR2w"ixj2w"xJ2w"xr2w"xR2w">
V <x4x44x$x44x4$x44x4$x44x4$>
Cuban (Yesa)

V <j2xw"J2xw"r2w"xR2xw"ij2w"xJ2xw"r2w"xR2wx">
V <4x44x$44x4x$44x4x$44x4x$>
Cascara

W <xj2w"cJ2cw"r2cw"R2cw"icj2w"cJ2w"cr2wc"R2xw">
W <x44c4c$4c44c$c44c4$c4c44x$>
Cascara alternate

V <jx2w"xJ2xw"xr2w"xR2xw"ixj2w"xJ2xw"xr2w"xR2xw">
V <x44x4x$x44x4x$x44x4x$x44x4x$>
Samba

W <jc2w"cJ2w"xr2xw"R2cw"ij2cw"J2cw"xr2w"xR2w">
W <c44c4$x4x44c$4c44c$x44x4$>
Samba

W <cj2w"xJ2xw"r2cw"R2cw"ij2w"J2xw"xr2w"cR2w"i
0 icj2w"xJ2xw"xr2cw"R2cw"ij2w"J2xw"xr2w"cR2w">
W <c44x4x$4c44c$444x$x44c4$ic44x4x$x4c44c$444x$x44c4$>
Bell patterns 2

Garden variety ago-go pattern for Samba in 2/3 arrangement

W <xj2w"cJ2w"cr2w"xR2xw"ij2cw"J2cw"cr2w"xR2w">
W <x44c4$c44x4x$4c44c$c44x4$>
Extra cool Samba Batucada pattern in 3/2 #1

W <j2cw"J2cw"cr2w"xR2xw"ixj2w"cJ2cw"cr2w"xR2xw">
W <4c44c$c44x4x$x44c4c$c44x4x$>
Extra cool Samba Batucada pattern in 3/2 #2

W <j2cw"J2cw"cr2w"xR2w"ixj2w"cJ2w"cr2w"xR2xw">
W <4c44c$c44x4$x44c4$c44x4x$>
Samba do Morro pattern built around Partido Alto in 2/3

W <xj2w"cJ2w"xr2xw"R2xw"ij2cw"J2xw"xr2w"xR2w">
W <x44c4$x4x44x$4c44x$x44x4$>
The very famous Partido Alto that one hears all the time

W <xj2w"cJ2w"r2xw"R2xw"ij2cw"J2w"xr2w"xR2w">
W <x44c4$4x44x$4c44$x44x4$>
Another 2/3 Samba

W <cj2w"xJ2w"xr2xw"R2cw"ijc2wc"J2xw"xr2w"cR2w">
W <c44x4$x4x44c$c4c44x$x44c4$>
Samba da Rua pattern in 2/3

W <xj2w"xJ2w"cr2cw"R2xw"ij2xw"J2xw"r2cw"cR2w">
W <x44x4$c4c44x$4x44x$4c4c4$>

Bell patterns 3

miscellaneous 2/3 samba #1

W <xj2w"xJ2w"r2cw"R2cw"ij2xw"J2xw"xr2w"cR2w">
W <x44x4$4c44c$4x44x$x44c4$>
miscellaneous 2/3 samba #2

W <cj2w"cJ2w"xr2w"R2cw"ij2cw"J2xw"r2cw"R2xw">
W <c44c4$x444c$4c44x$4c44x$>
miscellaneous 2/3 samba #3

W <xj2w"cJ2w"cr2cw"R2cw"ij2cw"J2cw"cr2w"xR2w">
W <x44c4$c4c44c$4c44c$c44x4$>
miscellaneous 2/3 samba #4

W <xj2w"J2cw"cr2w"R2xw"ijx2w"Jc2w"cr2w"R2xw">
W <x444c$c444x$x44c4$c444x$>
The extra-cool Samba de Roda pattern from Bahia

W <cj2w"cJ2cw"r2cw"R2cw"ij2cw"J2cw"r2cw"cR2w">
W <c44c4c$4c44c$4c44c$4c4c4$>
unnamed samba #1

W <cj2cw"J2xw"xr2w"cR2cw"icj2w"xJ2xw"xr2w"cR2cw">
W <c4c44x$x44c4c$c44x4x$x44c4c$>
unnamed samba #2

W <cj2cw"J2cw"r2xw"xR2w"icj2w"cJ2w"xr2w"xR2w">
W <c4c44c$4x4x4$c44c4$x44x4$>

Bell patterns 4

2-bar samba

W <cj2w"xJ2xw"xr2w"cR2cw"ij2xw"J2xw"xr2w"cR2cw"i
icj2cw"J2xw"xr2w"cR2cw"ij2xw"J2xw"xr2w"cR2cw">
W <c44x4x$x44c4c$4x44x$x44c4c$ic4c44x$x44c4c$4x44x$x44c4c$>
Afoxe

W <cj2cw"J2cw"r2cw"xR2w"icj2w"cJ2w"cr2w"xR2w">
W <c4c44c$4c4x4$c44c4$c44x4$>
Ijexa

W <cj2w"cJ2w"xr2w"xR2w"icj2cw"J2xw"r2xw"xR2w">
W <c44c4$x44x4$c4c44x$4x4x4$>
Ijexa

W <cj2cw"J2xw"r2xw"xR2w"icj2w"cJ2w"xr2w"xR2w">
W <c4c44x$4x4x4$c44c4$x44x4$>
Ijexa

W <j2w"cJ2cw"cr2w"xR2xw"ij2cw"J2xw"r2xw"xR2w">
W <44c4c$c44x4x$4c44x$4x4x4$>
Ijexa variation #1

W <j2cw"J2xw"r2xw"xR2w"icj2w"cJ2w"xr2w"xR2xw">
W <4c44x$4x4x4$c44c4$x44x4x$>
Ijexa variation #2

W <j2cw"J2xw"r2w"xR2w"ij2w"cJ2w"xr2w"R2xw">
W <4c44x$44x4$44c4$x444x$>
Bell patterns 5

Ijexa variation #3

W <j2cw"J2cw"r2cw"cR2w"icj2w"xJ2xw"xr2w"xR2xw">
W <4c44c$4c4c4$c44x4x$x44x4x$>
Ijexa variation #4

W <j2cw"xJ2xw"r2xw"xR2w"icj2xw"xJ2xw"xr2w"xR2xw">
W <4c4x4x$4x4x4$c4x4x4x$x44x4x$>
Mambo

W <xj2w"cJ2cw"xr2w"cR2cw"ixj2w"cJ2w"xr2w"cR2cw">
W <x44c4c$x44c4c$x44c4$x44c4c$>
Comparsa

W <cj2w"cJ2w"xr2xw"R2w"icj2cw"J2w"xr2w"cR2xw">
W <c44c4$x4x44$c4c44$x44c4x$>
Gahu

V <xj2w"J2xw"r2w"xR2w"ij2w"xJ2w"r2w"xR2w">
V <x444x$44x4$44x4$44x4$>
Haitian

V <xj2w"J2xw"r2w"xR2w"ixj2w"J2w"r2w"R2w">
V <x444x$44x4$x444$444$>
Ghana

V <xj2w"xJ2w"xr2w"xR2w"ixj2w"J2xw"r2xw"R2w">
V <x44x4$x44x4$x444x$4x44$>

Bell patterns 6

12/8 (6/8) Bell Patterns

6/8 Short Bell

V <jx3,3rx#,3Jx3rx#,3Jx3,#jx3,3rx#>
6/8 Long Bell

V <jx3,3rx#,3Jx3,#jx3Jx3,#jx3,3rx#>
Abakua

V <jx3,3,#,3Jx3,#jx3,3rx#,3,3,#ijx3,3rx#,3,3,#jx3,3,#,3Jx3,#>
Haiti

V <jx3,3,#,3Jx3,#,3,3rx#,3,3,#ijx3,3rx#,3,3,#jx3,3,#,3Jx3,#>
Ghana

V <jx3,3,#,3Jx3,#,3,3rx#,3,3,#i,3,3rx#,3,3,#jx3,3,#,3,3,#>
Cuban (bakoso)

V <jx3,3,#,3Jx3,#,3,3rx#,3Jx3,#i,3,3rx#,3,3,#jx3,3,#,3Jx3,#>
Cuban (rumba)

V <jx3,3,#,3Jx3,#,3,3,#,3Jx3,#i,3,3rx#,3,3,#jx3,3,#,3,3,#>
Cuban (palo)

V <,3,3rx#,3Jx3,#,3,3rx#,3Jx3,#i,3,3rx#,3,3,#jx3,3,#,3Jx3,#>

Bell patterns 7

"Bembe Wheels"
Cycling the 6 / 8 Bell Pattern
by various List Members as noted below
Imagine the typical 6/8 bell pattern heard so often in African and Cuban music:

V <jx3,3rx#,3Jx3rx#,3Jx3,#jx3,3rx#>
and the bell recycles. Call this Bembe 1, others call it the 6/8 short bell. Imagine the first note that you
strike is the second x which changes the orientation and creates a new sound relative to the pulse; this is
bembe 2. You can keep doing this by starting at different points in the bell pattern. If you start the
pattern on the 4th x, you end up with what people call the 6/8 long bell. If you start the pattern on the
7th x, you end up with a bell pattern used in jazz a lot. As you probably know, the appearance of the lst
and 4th pattern in one song is quite popular and creates tension as well as melody as the first "doublet" of
each pattern now sit side by side and create a roll of 4 contiguous notes between two bell players. The
same effect can be created with hand drums, tom-toms, cymbals, etc.
Now imagine the 1st Bembe on the Wheel is written like this:

y <o33x#3o3o#3x3#x33o#>
where O = tone (or TANG or low or bell mouth) and X = slap (or KI or high or bell body). Now rotate
through the seven bembe wheels and see what you have created. You will probably find that changing the
tones and slaps for certain wheels make a better sound such as for bembe wheel 2, try

y <o33x#x33o#3o3#x3x3#>
One could spend a lifetime on Bembe Wheels.
Hello, everyone. Recent explanation of the Seven Wheels of Bembe links up with and extends a
fascinating analogy I ran across on the web. Richard Hodges, the Webmaster for C.K. Ladzekpo's web
site, has posted an interesting article on African music called "Drum is the Ear of God" at his own site. It
includes these observations on the "standard" African/Afro-Cuban bell pattern:
"It is of some interest that the pattern between strokes in this bell pattern is the same as that of the
whole- and half-steps in the diatonic major scale. Here we are comparing patterns in time and pitch, which
might be considered apples-to-oranges; but it illustrates the idea that African music is projected upon a
richly interconnected rhythmic organization that repeats indefinitely in the dimension of time, analogous
to the organization of tonal music in the dimension of pitch, with tonal pitch conceived as repeating in
octaves.
<--------o n e p e r i o d-------->[repeat ...
C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B [C ...
do . re . mi fa . so . la . si[do ...
|_____|_____| |_____|_____|_____|
|__|
|__|
^
^
x
x
x x
x
x
x [x ...
X . . X . . X . . X . . [X ...

chromatic octave
diatonic scale
whole steps
half steps
"intervals"
strokes of bell pattern
Main beats and pulses

V <xj33x#J3x3x#r3x3#Rx33x#>
Bell patterns 8

"The bell pattern can be heard as two distinct sections which connect to each other through the
"intervals." This creates a sense of alternation between outward and inward movements, evocative
perhaps of breathing or of the two directions of consciousness. The same device is also used at a larger
scale. A rhythm may have a "front section" and a "back section" each of which is constructed upon a
similar rhythmic idea, but with mutations of weight and syncopation that express movement out and
return home."
If you know western music theory, you know where I'm going: The procedure of cycling through starting
points to create different bell patterns is exactly the same as shifting to different modes in western
harmony:
C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B [C
C . D . E F . G . A . B [C
|_____|_____| |_____|_____|_____|
|__|
|__|

...
...

chromatic octave
C major (diatonic) scale
whole steps
half steps

Above is a major scale in the key of C--the Ionian mode. However, if you use the same collection of notes
to form a scale (still going upwards) with D as the root, you get the D-Dorian mode, which is a minor scale.
Start on A, you get the A-Aeolian mode or natural minor scale. Each starting note creates a different
mode which sounds and feels different, to a greater or lesser degree. (Alternately, you can leave C as the
root note for all modes/scales and slide the sequence of whole and half steps around. Same scales or
modes, different root notes or keys.)
C.K. Ladzekpo has provided a lot of information from his ethnic background as an Ewe about the meaning
and life-lessons contained in African rhythmic principles. Hodges is probably thinking about these same
ideas in this footnote to his article:
"According to Ouspensky, following the teaching he received from Gurdjieff, the diatonic scale is the
survival of a very ancient metaphysical symbol representing the structure of a process of any nature:
cosmic, psychological, organic, etc. The pattern of long and short steps has a specific significance which is
at the heart of the meaning of this symbol. The short steps, which Ouspensky calls the "intervals" of the
octave, represent the points at which a process can change its direction, or at which a new influence can
enter."
Making that little change at the "interval" changes your direction, but paradoxically leads you back where
you began--only at a higher level. (Betcha didn't think "do-re-mi" had any life lessons in it...)
If you compare the arrangement of these whole and half steps to the strokes of the 6/8 Bembe Wheel
#1 (aka 6/8 short bell), you will notice that the organization is the same. The intervals (wholes and
halves) between tones are the same as the temporal sequencing of the stokes of the bell pattern. Viola!
An obvious interpretation of this is that our Western/European concept of "scale" derives from
organizational elements deeply rooted in African musical systems that go so far into the past that we
can't readily see them. Since the Darwinian theory of evolution and anthropological evidence from
archeological digs place human origins firmly in Africa, this can come as no surprise that the earliest
musical sensibilities come from there as well.
For those of you who have glimpsed this thread about Bembe Wheels but have not grokked it from an
experiential point of view, sit with thine own djembe, conga, etc. and work through the 7 possibilities and
interchange tones, slaps, and bass sounds. You will find that this dramatically enhances your possibilities
to create leads while playing in 6/8 while maintaining the same "structure" of the bell pattern. Here's my
challenge to you for when you play with your next group or on your next gig: merrily play along in 6/8 using
either the short (Bembe 1) bell or long (Bembe 4) bell pattern. This works best when you are the bell
player and the group is hanging on to you. When the groove is well established and rock solid (!!!), spring
into Bembe 7 which actually starts the 6/8 bell on the pick-up note by placing it on the "One." Hang here
for just a few bars and watch what it does with your fellow/fella rhymatists. A lot of tension gets
created but it takes a few seconds to realize the bell pattern shifted. Before the eyeballs start drifting
your way, make sure you have returned to the original short or long pattern. They'll know something was
Bell patterns 9

up but may not be able to identify it. The groove will still be happening and you just boosted your eartraining and pattern generation abilities to the next level
P.S. there are more than 7 possibilities but that's another posting
These Bembe wheels are great! After you go through them in 4:
1..2..3..4..

V <x33x#3x3x#3x3#x33x#>
You can go through them in three:
1...2...3...

V <x33x3#x3x33x#3x33x#>
and they feel completely different. Fourteen wheels actually, depending on your paradigm. Then you can
add various combinations of those... Very deep stuff. Thanks for some very valuable info.
The "long" bembe bell is the "short" bembe bell backwards. Anyone else >notice this? (And I challenge
anyone to perceive this without >notation!)
I'm not up to wading into the notation vs. not controversy but the relation of these to patterns is pretty
obvious when one is played against the other, as is pretty common agbe or bembe rhythms, and a feature
of Haitian rhythms as well.
It becomes REAL clear when one plays them together, right and left hand. Thinking of these patterns in
terms of clave (why I usually like to see notation in 6/8 rather than 12/8-but that's not to say that I
"like" notation)-one bell pattern spread out of two measures, with a "front" and "back" that relation
becomes even more apparent.
What is lovely about the analogy of the "wheel" in this discussion is that as the rhythm revolves where
one chooses to begin to measure makes all the musical difference, the pattern or wheel remains the same.
Think of the upbeat boule pattern Barky was speaking of last week played against either the "short" or
"long" bell as you refer to them. Quite different energy is produced by each. (Now try the boule in one
hand and the different bell patterns in the other.)
All this "structure" is great for the architect in me.
A quick reiteration: the 7 Bembe Wheels can be visualized by "notating" the seven strokes of the bell
pattern in a circle rather than a straight line. Note that since this is a l2/8 rhythm, the 7 stokes lie
within the 12 possible moments that a stroke could happen. The linear representation of the Bembe
Wheel #1 would be:
X . X . X X . X . X . X
^
^

V <xl33x#3x3x#3x3#x33lx#ixl33x#3x3x#3x3#x33xl#>
Bell patterns 10

Imagine this circled up so that the 2 indicated X's rest side by side. Now as you rotate the wheel counter
clockwise so that the 2nd X rests on the beginning of the 4 pulse, you now have Bembe Wheel #2. Keep
rotating and you get all 7 Bembe Wheels. Notably, #1 and #4 are the ones we commonly hear and are
sometimes called the Short and Long Bell respectively. #7 is pretty cool too.
Last week, I suggested bell players ( or drummers ) to rotate through the wheel and use different tones
at different strokes to create new melodies. For example,
Bembe #2 could be played thusly to create a nice melody where 0 = mouth and X = body of the bell:

V <o33x#x33o#3o3#x3x3#>
Any rocket scientist can see that there really are 12 Bembe Wheels rather than just 7 if you rotate the
wheel counter clockwise one space at a time instead of one stroke at a time. Therefore there is a Wheel
#1A, #2A, #4A, #5A, and #6A.
Each of these new Wheels would not have an acoustic event happening on the 1st pulse since you haven't
struck the bell yet. There are no #3A or #7A Wheels because of the "doublets." This accounts for all 12
possibilities and probably exceeds your need to actually apply them very often. Just knowing they exist
adds new meaning to life.
Try #5A like this for example when you want to bend the ears of your fellow/fella players.

V <3x3#o3o3#o33x#x33o#>
Hang there one or twice and then zip back to your #1 or #4 pattern. You'll find that you can extend an
interesting bell melody over 2 or 3 bars while still keeping the integrity of the pattern but shifting its
orientation to the pulse.
This can be a very good way of introducing variations in your bell playing that creates tension and
resolution that has a "relationship" to the bell pattern and is not just random generation of unrelated
sounds and possibly cacophonous.
Common bell starts:

V <jx3,3rx#,3Jx3rx#,3Jx3,#jx3,3rx#>

straight

V <jx3,3rx#,3Jx3,#jx3Jx3,#jx3,3rx#>

backwards

V <jx3Jx3,#jx3,3rx#,3Jx3rx#,3Jx3,#>

start on the second of "2" of the straight

V <jx3Jx3,#jx3,3rx#,3Jx3rx#,3Jx3,#>

start on the last of "3" of the straight

One interesting thing is that, if the beat is played as a slap, all the permutations resolve to:

y <s33t#s3t3t#s3t3#s33t#>
and a variation

y <s33t#s3t3t#s33#s33t#>
(of course you can drift the slaps along the measure to give the phrase different "starting points")
Bell patterns 11

The Seven Wheels of Bembe

Imagine that bell pattern we hear so often in African and latin drumming:

V <x33x#3x3x#3x3#x33x#>
This, known to latin players as the short bell part, is the first wheel of Bembe. Now imagine the same
looped sequence of notes and spaces, but beginning with the downbeat on the second note; this is the
second wheel. Start the loop on each of the seven notes, and you have seven different patterns,
generated from the same sequence. These are the seven patterns:
Make sure you can play each of the wheels first, by itself, then experiment with putting one on top of
another. We're sure you'll agree, they're quite a find.
Bembe Wheel #1

V <x33x#3x3x#3x3#x33x#>
Bembe Wheel #2

V <x33x#x33x#3x3#x3x3#>
BembeWheel #3

V <x3x3#x33x#3x3x#3x3#>
Bembe Wheel #4 also known as the long bell part

V <x33x#3x3#x3x3#x33x#>
Bembe Wheel #5

V <x33x#3x3x#3x3#x3x3#>
Bembe Wheel #6

V <x33x#x33x#3x3x#3x3#>
Bembe Wheel #7

V <x3x3#x33x#x33x#3x3#>

Bell patterns 12

Clave Patterns
Forward Son Clave

V <x444x$44x4$44x4$x444$>
Forward and reverse clave patterns are really the same pattern started from different points in the loop.
For example, take the forward son clave (above), start it halfway through (on beat 3), and you get reverse
clave (below). We put a kick drum on "one" to mark the beginning of the loop, but keep in mind that seldom
if ever would one hear this done in traditional afro cuban music. It is used here simply as a learning tool,
and in the future, we will include the clave along with cascara and other, more traditional parts.
Reverse Son Clave

V <44x4$x444$x444x$44x4$>
Other clave Patterns:
Forward Rhumba Clave

V <x444x$444x$44x4$x444$>
Reverse Rhumba

V <44x4$x444$x444x$444x$>
Rhumba clave with cascara: Play green pattern with strong hand, red pattern (clave) with other hand.
Then, If you're feeling adventurous, switch hands and play clave with your strong hand and cascara with
the other.

V <x44x4x$4x44x$x44x4$x4x44x$>
V <x444x$444x$44x4$x444$>

Bell patterns 13

Son clave wheels

With the bembe wheels, each wheel started on a note. We wondered what the result would be if the clave
wheels started on each step of the loop, regardless of whether it's a note or a space. These 4/4 clave
wheels were the result. Check 'em out!
Wheel One (The forward Son clave)

V <x444x$44x4$44x4$x444$>
Son Clave Wheel two

V <4x44$x444x$444x$4x44$>
Son Clave wheel three

V <44x4$4x44$x444$x44x4$>
Son Clave wheel four

V <444x$44x4$4x44$4x44x$>
Son Clave wheel five

V <x444$x444x$44x4$44x4$>
Son Clave wheel six

V <4x44$4x44$x444x$444x$>
Son Clave wheel seven

V <x44x4$44x4$4x44$x444$>
Son Clave wheel eight

V <4x44x$444x$44x4$4x44$>
Son Clave wheel nine

V <44x4$x444$x444x$44x4$>
Bell patterns 14

Son Clave wheel ten

V <444x$4x44$4x44$x444x$>
Son Clave wheel eleven

V <x444$x44x4$44x4$4x44$>
Son Clave wheel twelve

V <4x44$4x44x$444x$44x4$>
Son Clave wheel thirteen

V <44x4$44x4$x444$x444x$>
Son Clave wheel fourteen

V <x444x$444x$4x44$4x44$>
Son Clave wheel fifteen

V <4x44$x444$x44x4$44x4$>
Son Clave wheel sixteen

V <44x4$4x44$4x44x$444x$>

Bell patterns 15

Clave wheel combinations

There are many ways to look at this clave wheel thing. You can start a wheel on every step of the 12 note
matrix in 6/8 (clave is a two bar pattern), as we did on all 16 steps for the 4/4 clave wheels. However, for
now in 6/8 we're only starting a new wheel on a note of the clave patterns, resulting in 5 clave wheels, at
least for purposes of this page. Here then is an example of the first two 6/8 clave wheels...put together.
If you're not quite sure what we're doing here, please refer to the Wheels of Bembe and Clave Wheel
pages...
6/8 clave wheels 1 and 2, combined:

V <x33x#33x#3x3#x33#>
V <33x#3x3#3x3#x33x#>
The Mother of all Polyrhythms
Three against two, the original polyrhythm, is best conceived in six, because six is divisible by both two
and three. Listen to the high conga part playing the cycle of three. The low conga is playing a cycle of two,
and they meet at the beginning, on the downbeat of one. The shaker, in the background, is playing on all
six counts. These exercises are designed for beginners, to help you become more familiar with
polyrhythms.

V <x2"x2"x2">
V <x22"x22">
Three against two
Play the top line with your strong hand, and the bottom part with your other hand. Notice where the
hands fall both together. If you're right handed, the pattern is:
Both, right, left, right.
Focus on your strong hand for a minute, counting "1,2,3" along with the rhythm. Then shift your focus to
the other hand, the one playing the "green" part. Count "1,2,1,2," along with the green part. As your
mental focus changes from three to two, the rhythm will feel different to you.
Put each hand on a different sound source, say, your leg and the table. After playing awhile, switch hands.
The hand that was playing on your leg is now on the table, and vice versa. The reversal of the sounds will
give you a different perspective on the rhythm. This works well on any two sound sources, for example
two bells of different pitch, or the rim and head of a tom tom or djun djun.
Play this rhythm until it is completely natural. Meditate on it. It is much deeper than first meets the ear.

Bell patterns 16

CASCARAS & KATAS

by: James VanDenAkker

"My heritage is the heritage of all humanity. The country of my ancestors is the planet Earth. I ain't no
minority. I'm part of the human race." Jim
In the Cuban repertoire, certain rhythms are divided into the classifications claves and cascaras. The
Haitians have a further division called katas. The distinguishing difference between these classes of
rhythms are their densities.
Classification by density helps by grouping all rhythms of a certain density level together. Once grouped
together, they are much easier to explore for similarities and differences.
For instance, there are 65,535 possible 16/8 rhythms, not counting strange accentuations, etc. Clearly
too extensive a list to explore if one is just trying to find a new bell line.
Fortunately, these rhythms can be divided into subgroups by their density, what percentage of the
measure the notes occupy.
A further filtering out can be accomplished by only including those rhythms that spread themselves
evenly across the measure. This is easy to do with a computer, but we don't all have one as part of our
"kit".
Here is how the classification scenario works. (This will address the 16/8's only. The definitions fit the
8/8's, 6/8's and 12/8's but there are fewer of them).
CLAVES: 25% to 50% of the measure. No more than one note in a row. No more than 3 rests in a row.
At the 25% level, this would be the minimum of 4 evenly spaced notes, in other words, the typical
quadruple 16/8 beat. At the 50% level you would have every other note being played and this is the
border of the cascaras.
Rhythms with more than 3 rests in a row would have less continuity than the beat. The use of such
rhythms as one hand stick rhythms has not been found in any culture. Rhythms with more than one note in
a row do not have the distinctive character of a clave.
CASCARAS: 50% to 75% density. No more than 2 notes in a row. No more than one rest in a row.
The restriction on notes in a row has to do with human dexterity. Rhythms that cover more than half the
measure call for speed. If you search the world for cascaras, you will find 99% of them being played with
one hand. In most cultures, if a rhythm takes two hands to play, it eventually winds up being played on a
drum. (And these classifications are not about drum rhythms).
These rhythms are clearly too fast and dense to be thought of as clave rhythms. The division is for the
brisk rhythms that humans play on bells, beer bottles and ride cymbals with one hand. It is not that they
cannot be played with two sticks. It's just a special division to encompass what most cultures are really
doing.
Whey playing briskly with one hand, two things become evident. People don't count any rests or leave
room for more than one at that speed. It's a natural phenomena found in all cultures. The brain gets
occupied with powering the rhythm along and just won't pause to include multiple rests. On the other
hand, humans cannot execute three strokes in a row with one hand comfortably. One or two strokes is
easy. On a third stroke, the muscles of the forearm tense up. Not enough bounce and recovery is left in
the stick. One hand rhythms with more than three notes in a row have never been found in any long term
human culture.

Bell patterns 17

KATAS: 75% to 100% density. Katas are found in many cultures but it was the Haitians that made them
most popular. Therefore, we use the Haitian term. The most popular kata of all is the 100%. This, of
course is just like doing a continuous roll. Many Haitian rhythms are made of very few notes. When played
alone, they sound fine, but somehow lack in drive. The kata fills in the background with the pulse of the
rhythm. Try playing the Haitian glissade Congo without its kata. It will sound kind of bare, like most of its
substance is missing. Add the kata and the rhythm leaps with fire.

16/8 Cascaras
Density: 50% to 75%
Notes: 8 to 10; no more than 2 in a row
Rests: 8 to 6; no more than 1 in a row
1.

<x44x4$x44x4$x44x4$x44x4$>

2.

<x4x44x$4x44x$x44x4$x44x4$>

3.

<x4x44x$4x4x4$x44x4$x44x4$>

4.

<x4x44x$x44x4$x44x4$x44x4$>

5.

<x4x44x$x44x4$x4x44x$x44x4$>

6.

<x4x44x$x44x4x$4x44x$x44x4$>

7.

<x4x44x$x44x4x$4x4x4$x44x4$>

16/8 Katas
Density: 75% to 100%
Notes: 12 to 16
Rests: 4 to 0; no more than 1 in a row
1.

<x4x4x4$x4x4x4$x4x4x4$x4x4x4$>

2.

<x4x4x4x$4x4x4$x4x4x4$x4x4x4$>

3.

<x4x4x4x$4x4x4$x4x4x4x$4x4x4$>

4.

<x4x4x4x$4x4x4x$4x4x4$x4x4x4$>

Bell patterns 18

5.

<x4x4x4x$4x4x4x$4x4x4x$4x4x4$>

6.

<x4x4x4x$4x4x4x$4x4x4x$x44x4$>

7.

<x4x4x4x$4x4x4x$x44x4$x4x4x4$>

8.

<x4x4x4x$4x4x4x$x44x4x$4x4x4$>

9.

<x4x4x4x$4x4x4x$x44x4x$x44x4$>

10.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4$x4x44x$x4x4x4$>

11.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4$x4x4x4$x4x4x4$>

12.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4$x4x4x4x$4x4x4$>

13.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4$x4x4x4x$x44x4$>

14.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$4x44x$x4x4x4$>

15.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$4x4x4$x4x4x4$>

16.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$4x4x4x$4x4x4$>

17.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$4x4x4x$x44x4$>

18.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$x44x4$x4x4x4$>

19.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$x44x4x$4x4x4$>

20.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$x44x4x$x44x4$>

21.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$x4x44x$4x4x4$>

22.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$x4x44x$x44x4$>

23.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$x4x44x$x4x4x4$>

24.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$x4x4x4$x44x4$>
Bell patterns 19

25.

<x4x4x4x$x44x4x$x4x4x4$x4x4x4$>

26.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$4x44x$x4x4x4$>

27.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$4x4x4$x4x4x4$>

28.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$4x4x4x$4x4x4$>

29.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$4x4x4x$x44x4$>

30.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x44x4$x4x4x4$>

31.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x44x4x$4x4x4$>

32.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x44x4x$x44x4$>

33.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x44x4x$x44x4$>

34.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x4x44x$4x4x4$>

35.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x4x44x$x44x4$>

36.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x4x44x$x4x4x4$>

37.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x4x4x4$x44x4$>

38.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x4x4x4$x4x4x4$>

39.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x4x4x4x$4x4x4$>

40.

<x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x4x4x4x$x44x4$>

41.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x44x4$x4x4x4$>

42.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x44x4x$4x4x4$>

43.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x44x4x$x44x4$>

44.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x44x4x$x4x4x4$>
Bell patterns 20

45.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x4x44x$4x4x4$>

46.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x4x44x$x44x4$>

47.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x4x44x$x4x4x4$>

48.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x4x4x4$x44x4$>

49.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x4x4x4$x4x4x4$>

50.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x4x4x4x$4x4x4$>

51.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x4x4x4x$x44x4$>

52.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$>

53.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$4x44x$4x4x4$>

54.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$4x44x$x44x4$>

55.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$4x44x$x4x4x4$>

56.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$4x4x4$x44x4$>

57.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$4x4x4$x4x4x4$>

58.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$4x4x4x$4x4x4$>

59.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$4x4x4x$x44x4$>

60.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$4x4x4x$x4x4x4$>

61.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x44x4$x44x4$>

62.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x44x4$x4x4x4$>

63.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x44x4x$4x4x4$>

64.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x44x4x$x44x4$>
Bell patterns 21

65.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x44x4x$x4x4x4$>

66.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x4x44x$4x4x4$>

67.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x44x4$>

68.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x4x44x$x4x4x4$>

69.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x44x4$>

70.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$x4x4x4$>

71.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$4x4x4$>

72.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x44x4$>

73.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x4x4x4$>

74.

<x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$x4x4x4x$>

Bell patterns 22