Swing Rhythms
A swing rhythm is created by tying together the first two notes of a triplet. There are several different ways of writing swing rhythms. To understand them, it is worth using one musical example written in various ways. The following example has the first and second notes of the triplet group tied together.
Play this example and listen to the feeling created by the rhythm.
Instead of tying the first two notes of the triplet group, a quarter note can be used. The quarter note grouped with an eighth note by a triplet bracket shows clearly that the first note is worth two thirds of the beat, while the second note is worth only one third. Play the following example and notice that it sounds the same as the previous one.
A third way to write the same rhythm is to notate the whole thing in eighth notes and to write 6 = z at the start of the music. Jazz players usually write swing rhythms in this manner as it is easier to read. Play the following example and notice that once again it sounds the same.
