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I was given a simple exercise by my teacher to practice rhythm which is something I´ve been struggling with (it´s getting better).
Basically, I count 1-2-3-4 (4/4 time) and keep switching between different rhythms. So I may start just playing quarter notes to establish the tempo and feel the beat, then I may suddenly change and play triplets to change in the next beat to sixteenth notes. Sometimes at the beginning of my lessons, my teacher makes me change the note values very frequently and I find it quite hard. Especially the triplets and sixteenth notes are sometimes not evenly divided throughout the beat. Of course not having this pretty basic skill hinders one's progress in sightreading since if you read just the notes but the rhythm is incorrect, then the whole piece is incorrect because rhythm really is the basics structure and without it, there is no music.

Do you also do similar things you could share here? I really want to master playing in consistent tempo, steady beat, and the notes equally divided in the beat as they should be. I already count aloud, usually just the beats (so in 4/4 I´d count one, two, three, four...) because I was told not to subdivide the beats if not absolutely necessary which will enable me to feel the pulse better plus it's not possible to subdivide to let´s say sixteenth note level and play fast...

Hi Tom,

I'd suggest that you practice it with a metronome, maybe it could be of help?
You could also try choosing for instance a 4/4 time and write down your own rhythm exercises ranging from very simple (4 quarter notes) to more complex (different note values per bar) and play all of it with the metronome. I actually don't quite know how these types of exercises are meant to be done but in my early lessons, I would usually practice by playing the same note on the piano while counting the beats. Maybe if you use a metronome, it could help because it will dictate the beat counting while you can really focus, first, on the rhythm of the notes you're playing.

Also, keep in mind that even if it is a 4/4 time, the number of beats you count really depends a lot on the tempo and type of rhythm you're playing. Think of the opening of the 1st movement of Beethoven's Pathetique Sonata (counting 8 or 16 beats per bar instead of 4) vs Chopin's Scherzi (counting 1 instead of 3). Just make sure you can have a nice and steady pulse on your mind (so that's why I suggested the metronome) and focus on the notes. For more complex note values distribution, it could be a good idea to slow down the tempo of the bar and increase the "subdivision" of the counting, only at a first approach so you can get acquainted with the phrases.

Good luck!! Cheers,
pw

Hey Tom, I love to work with rhythm even from the outset of my piano days. I use my ears. If there is a piece you've never heard I'd say go to youtube etc to find someone playing it and get it locked in your ear. Musical shortcuts arenot a bad thing particularly if you are 59 versus 9 yo. Good luck!

Here’s my “drummers perspective” on this as I drilled in a similar exercise when moving between various subdivisions on the drum kit.

Start by playing a single note on the beat - say Middle C - for a bar - (so four notes)
Then switch to 1/8th notes for the next bar - Say Middle C and G (C on the pulse, G as the in between 1/8th note fingers 1 and 5)
Then switch to triplets for the next bar - C, E, G with each C on the pulse (and maybe a descending run from G for the next beat)
Then switch to 1/16th notes for the next bar, C,D,E,F beat 1, G, F, E, D, beat 2 and repeat - basically a 5 finger drill up and down alternating between C and G on the beat.
Then switch hands and do it all again then hands together and go through the cycle.

Rinse and repeat until you feel the difference between the triplets and the 1/16th notes in particular

Hope that helps

Exercise from a book on working on rhythm. In the initial stage, cancel all ties .

https://i.ibb.co/s97NdP5/Untitled-1.jpg

If you know scales well, try
Doing 4 octaves with first octave quarter notes, second eighth
Notes, third triplets and fourth sixteenth notes. I often do scales this way and can change the
Rhythm easily because I don’t have to think about the notes.

I like Hammertime's practice suggestion. It's simple and progressive.

If you feel like using a metronome (to ensure that your own 1-2-3-4 counting is steady), that would be useful as well. (Nahum will not approve . . . )

I found a book in my local shop:

"The Rhythm Book: Beginning Notation and Sight-reading"

. . . by Rory Stuart

It has a progressive set of exercises. The early ones are really easy, the later ones are genuinely difficult.

Have fun!

This is a very advanced material, apparently for higher educational institutions. Beginners have nothing to do here ...

https://roryrhythmbooks.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/v5-preview.pdf

How much easier it is to do this by pronouncing the rhythm through the melodica, pressing one or three keys of some chord .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcF...wzVOGdchfRcf093A9bkfBxGN6O4f0D0BVFlRYHO4

Quarters: Tu Ta Tu Ta
8ths: Tuku Taka Tuku Taka
Triplets of eighths: Tukita Pakita Tukita Pakita
Sixteens : Tuku-tuku Taka-taka Tuku-tuku Taka-taka

Nahum --

My reference was to the "basic" volume.

Your reference is to the "advanced" volume -- "odd meters and changing meters". I agree -- nothing for beginners, in that one.

I'm sorry, this is what I found on Google under the heading THE RHYTHM BOOK – Beginning Notation and Sight-Reading