Music is often referred to as a universal language.
A major reason for this is because music across genres, geographies, and generations regularly share universal patterns. In the tutorial video above, Nick Chen breaks down ten rhythmic, melodic, and harmonic musical patterns that every music creator needs to know.
See the list of patterns below, as well as timecodes for where they’re discussed in the video. With each topic, Nick also shares examples from both popular music and actual productions in the DAW so we can better understand how they’re applied in context.
10 musical patterns you need to know:
- Asymmetrical rhythms (0:35)
- Polyrhythms (1:41)
- Velocity (3:05)
- Swing (3:34)
- Contour (6:36)
- Figured arpeggio (8:00)
- Counterpoint (8:58)
- Tertiary harmony (10:35)
- Inversions (11:11)
- Harmonic rhythm (12:40)
If you enjoyed any of the samples that were featured in the video and want to use them in your own productions, you can download them via this Collection.
Which patterns were most interesting to you? What other musical patterns are also key that we didn’t cover above? Let us know in the comments section of the video, and subscribe to the Splice YouTube channel for more tips, tutorials, and insights.
College students, educators, and other Splice users who register using a valid .edu email address are now eligible for a discounted monthly price on our Sounds+ plan:
September 5, 2023
