Michael Cera: The Human Metronome

Lost and Found

I found my metronome today! This is huge news. Really. 

Blogworthy.

I thought it was hundreds of miles away, but my 'nome was actually less than a hundred inches away from my bed.

Good Time

Before this glorious day of 'nome's return, I had been relying on some alternative sources to find tempos and maintain good time. If you're ever without your trusty metronome and you need to keep good time, consider some of these options:

1. Internal sense of rhythm. (Knowing how long things take.)
   
   
   
   Meet George Michael.
   
   His sense of rhythm is as impeccable as his taste in flowery shirts.
   
   In the TV series Arrested Development, the undeniably cool George Michael (played by Michael Cera) is looking for a spot in his family's band when he highlights the importance of having a good internal metronome.
   
   
   
   
   
   "It's knowing how long things take." Brilliant.
   
   In a practice room, luxuries like iPods, Ghardetto's, George Michael, and external metronomes are permitted. However, in a performance setting, you must leave these items behind. On stage, all you're left with is your internal metronome.
   
   So, it makes sense to develop it. Devote some practice time toward working without a metronome. Re-introduce the metronome every so often to check and see how well your internal metronome fared. You can find some tips to help develop your own internal metronome at my post about Victor Wooten's grooviness.
   
   
2. A clock.
   
   A clock? Sure! A clock keeps steady time, doesn't it? It's exactly like a metronome. Except it's likely much larger than your 'nome, it hangs on the wall, doesn't necessarily make noise, and really only gives you one tempo. But other than that, it's a fine substitute for a 'nome.
   
   Bear with me now—we're about to get into some rather intense math:
   

   There are 60 seconds in a minute, and a clock's second hand ticks at every second. Sooo let me run some numbers here... 60 seconds per minute x 1 tick per second = 60 ticks per minute, or 60 beats per minute.

   If you're playing a lot of 60 BPM songs, you're in luck! Otherwise, subdivide eighth notes within the 60 BPM quarter notes to get 120 BPM, a common benchmark tempo. Of course all of these "calculations" are extremely simple and obvious, but the point is that in a no-metronome situation, you can use the clock to at least get a ballpark estimate of your desired tempo.
   
   
3. Your favorite songs.
   
   Think of some songs that you can easily hear in your mind just by thinking of them. Then, determine the tempos of these songs and devote the information to memory.
   
   This way, the next time you see a piece of music which calls for ~120 BPM, you can simply think of "Stars and Stripes Forever." (The recording I linked to is actually closer to 125 BPM, but the "march tempo" generally hovers around 120 BPM.)
   
   
   Or, you can think of Arrested Development's catchy theme song to approximate tempos around 175 BPM.
   

Those are just a few ways to help you keep the beat when you are away from your metronome. What are some methods you use to keep your time-keeping sharp?

Honing your internal metronome takes time, but it's well worth it. If you're successful, you could rival even the best time-keepers, like George Michael.

Here's a sample of his best work:

Grooving like Victor Wooten

Victor Wooten, Groove Master

Victor Wooten is a phenomenal musician. He plays bass with Béla Fleck and the Flecktones, but he is also an unbelievable solo bassist. If you're unfamiliar with Wooten's music, check him out. He is truly the master of the groove. ("You can't hold no groove if you ain't got no pocket!") 

Today I stumbled upon a video of Wooten explaining how he integrates the metronome into his practice routine. After watching it, my attitude toward the metronome changed drastically. Your teachers aren't lying when they tell you that "the metronome is your friend."

The metronome really is powerful tool, especially when it's used as Victor Wooten uses it. In the clip, he outlines a method of practicing with the metronome which has the goal of weaning yourself off of the metronome. As opposed to relying on an external click to provide the groove, this method helps develop your own internal sense of groove. Check it out:



Applying Wooten's Lesson

So, rather than always setting the metronome to one click per beat (4 clicks in one measure of 4/4), Wooten suggests gradually decreasing the number of clicks per measure (e.g. 2 clicks per measure, then just 1 click per measure). This way, you force yourself to rely only on your internal sense of time. The infrequent metronome clicks now act more as reinforcement of the groove. Or, if your groove deviates at all, the clicks help to correct you and get your internal metronome back on track.

After watching the clip, I migrated to the piano and tried it out for myself. I played a left hand bass line to "Georgia On My Mind" to explore the concept. Bass lines work well for this kind of practice, because they are monophonic (single melodic line) and allow for focused attention on just one aspect of music—in this case, the groove.

I started the metronome at 80 BPM (4 clicks per measure) and played a simple bass line through the form several times. Once I was comfortable with that, I reduced the 'nome to 40 BPM (8 clicks per measure). This variation took some time for me to adjust to. At times I rushed, and at times I lagged behind a bit. But once I locked into the groove, I could really tell. And I knew that I was relying more on my internal metronome than the audible clicks of the external metronome.

After this, I tried out his final practice idea from the YouTube clip. The idea here is to divide an interval of time into 5 beats, so your metronome is clicking once every 5 beats. But instead of using this clicking pattern to play in a 5/4 time signature, play over 4/4. When you do this, the click will sound at a different beat of the measure each time. That looks like this:

Before I could even attempt playing over this metronome pattern, I had to spend some time simply counting along: "One, two, three, four, one, two, three, four, one, two, three, four, one, two, three, four, one, two, three, four." Once you have that mastered, try playing over it! It really puts your internal sense of time to the test!

The Metronome Is Your Friend

Wooten is an excellent teacher, and through these metronome practice exercises, he teaches us a couple main points regarding the metronome:

1. Practicing with the metronome does not have to be boring/dull/static.
2. The metronome isn't there to give you the groove. You supply the groove, and the metronome helps you check it.

So, pull your metronome out of the trash can (and give it a good wash). Resurrect that clicking machine, and try out some of these exercises.