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The direct injection of rhythms westward to the Americas as a consequence of the Atlantic Slave trade has been well documented by historians and scholars. In his book Cuba and Its Music, Ned Sublette describes how rhythms also traveled northward from the African continent to Europe via the Mediterranean mercantile trade and through periodic invasions by Berbers and Moors. From a historical perspective as well as structural perspective, Africa’s influence on contemporary western rhythm is undeniable. One of the African imprints on western music is a rhythmic principle known as subdivision. It’s a deceptively simple concept and easily overlooked, yet it’s the key to understanding and creating complex rhythmic structures. Basically, one cycle can be divided evenly in either multiples of two or three. For example, let’s say that one cycle or measure consists of twelve total beats as shown below. The first beat starts at the 12 o’clock position. (Note: this correlates to a triplet feel or 12/8 time signature.)

If you divide the total number of beats by two, then there would be a pulse every six beats.

If you divide the total number of beats by three, then there would be a pulse every four beats.

If you divide the total number of beats by four, then there would be a pulse every three beats.

If you divide the total number of beats by six, then there would be a pulse every two beats.

If you divide the total number of beats by twelve, then there would be a pulse every one beat.

We can also subdivide one cycle into twenty four beats. The timeframe to travel around the cycle is the same as all the examples above. The only difference is that there are double the amount of pulses compared to the twelve pulse cycle in the previous example.

This becomes interesting when you divide the cycle into sixteen beats which correlates to the popular 4/4 time signature. It’s important to note that this is a different ‘time feel’ compared to the twelve beat cycle. The sixteen beat cycle can be divided by two and four similarly to the twelve beat cycle. But we have a couple of extra options because we can also divide by eight and sixteen as shown below. If you divide the total number of beats by eight, then there would be a pulse every two beats.

If you divide the total number of beats by sixteen, then there would be a pulse every one beat.

If the circular visuals are difficult to follow, we can alternatively view the subdivisions in a grid-like format, keeping in mind that the cycle repeats once it reaches the end. This visual format is helpful for viewing how the divisions relate to each other within one full cycle.

In much of today’s popular music, we can see this division of time used through song bars and measures. Each note or group of notes holds a place in time, and maintains the overall song structure. The magic occurs when the various subdivisions are layered to create what is known as cross rhythm, a topic for another day.

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