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by Andrew Pouska
There are two varieties of eighth note rhythms musicians use: straight eighth
notes and what are called shuffle eighth notes or swing eighth notes. Its
essential to know the difference and be comfortable playing either type of
eighth note.
If youve studied the eighth note subdivision lesson, youve already learned to
play straight 8th notes. Straight eighth notes are 8th notes which evenly
divide each beat in half. Since theyre an even division, we call them straight.
Unless youre told to do otherwise, in most styles you are expected to play 8th
notes straight.
Shuffle eighth notes alternate a long note and a short note. The long note falls
on the beat and the short one in-between on the upbeat.
You are essentially playing the eighth note triplet, but not playing the middle
note of the triplet. You may think of the first two notes of the triplet as being
tied together or, just missing the middle note of the triplet.
People will say swing rhythm is pretty much the same as shuffle rhythm. This
is more or less true. And, in the beginning you may as well think that way. To
me, I think of shuffle as rigidly based on the underlying triplet rhythm. Swing
is similar, but open to more interpretation. If you listen to different jazz
musicians, they all swing rhythms slightly differently. There's a lot of room for
subtle variation. Most people will tell you swing cannot be accurately notated,
only felt.
In jazz you're always expected to swing 8th notes unless it is a Latin tune (i.e.
Bossa Nova, Samba) where you use straight 8th notes. The swing rhythm is a
defining element of jazz.
A common marking for shuffle 8th notes is a little equation written at the
beginning expressing 2 eighth notes are to be played like a triplet with the
first two notes tied. Or, the first two 8th notes of the triplet are written as a
quarter note. (See Shuffle Markings
diagram.)
Be sure to go over the exercises to get a good grasp of the sound of shuffle 8th
note rhythms.