The Melodic beat data: exploring asymmetry in polska performance

Supplementary data for article in Journal of Mathematics and music, Mathematics of Rhythm, in Memoriam Godfried Toussaint, 2020Abstract:Some triple-beat forms in Scandinavian Folk Music are characterized by non-isochronous beat durations: asymmetric beats. Theorists of folk music have suggested that the variability of rhythmic figures and asymmetric meter are fundamental to these forms. The aim of this study is to obtain a deeper understanding of the relationship between melodic structure and asymmetric meter by analyzing semi-automatically annotated performances. Our study considers archive and contemporary recordings of fiddlers’ different versions of the same musical pieces: polska tunes in a local Swedish tradition. Results show that asymmetric beat patterns are consistent between performances and that they correspond with structural features of rhythmic figures, such as the note density within beats. The present study goes beyond previous work by exploring the use of a state-of-the-art automatic music notation tool in a corpus study of Swedish traditional music, and by employing statistical methods for a comparative analysis of performances across different players.

2020年《数学与音乐期刊》（Journal of Mathematics and Music）「节奏的数学」纪念戈德弗里德·图桑（Godfried Toussaint）专题文章的补充数据
摘要：斯堪的纳维亚民间音乐中的部分三拍子体裁具有非等时性节拍时长的特征，即不对称节拍。民间音乐理论家提出，节奏型的多变性与不对称节拍是此类体裁的核心要素。本研究旨在通过对半自动标注的演奏录音进行分析，深入探究旋律结构与不对称节拍之间的关联。本研究纳入了存档与当代两类录音，均为民间提琴手演奏的瑞典本土传统波尔斯卡（polska）曲调的同一乐曲的不同版本。研究结果表明，不同演奏间的不对称节拍模式具有一致性，且该模式与节奏型的结构特征（如节拍内的音符密度）相契合。相较于过往研究，本研究的创新之处在于：一是在瑞典传统音乐语料库研究中应用了当前最先进的自动音乐记谱工具（automatic music notation tool），二是采用统计方法对不同演奏者的演奏作品开展对比分析。