T&D's "Take Five"

[zilam98]

What's special about the rhythm or choreography about this program? Chris talked about this in an SOI show, but I didn't understand what he meant.

 

[Mathman]

I don't know about the choreography, but the rhythm is strange because it is 5/4 time. When Brubeck came out with it decades ago everyone thought it was a cutting edge jazz risk. That whole album featured experimental rhythms. For instance, Rondo a la Turk is in 9/8 time.

Lu Chen did a cute number to Take Five a few years ago, as a pro, IIRC.

Mathman

 

[berthes ghost]

OT, but Lulu did her 97 SP to Take 5. She botched the jumps, but the choreo (bezic?) was great.

 

[icenut84]

What's special about the rhythm or choreography about this program? Chris talked about this in an SOI show, but I didn't understand what he meant.

The rhythm of the Take 5 music is unusual because the beats are in sets of 5 (if that makes sense). Like for most music, it's 4, so you can count rhythmically "1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4" etc and it fits the music. In Take 5, you count to 5. Which is quite rare/unusual in music, as far as I know, and would be an extra challenge when choreographing.

 

[Grgranny]

I have never been able to find what site I found that music on. I love it. I thought I got it on MSN but it sure wasn't there later. The public didn't seem to warm up to T & D when they skated to it in K C. That was one of the years when we used to be able to get front row center seats! I was the only one who applauded during the show.

 

[miffy_1306]

Jeff Buttle's SP this season is to Take Five, and it's excellent, he captures the music so well

 

[Ladskater]

zilam98:

What's special about the rhythm or choreography about this program? Chris talked about this in an SOI show, but I didn't understand what he meant.

What's difficult about this music is the time. Jeff Buttle skates to this music as well and he uses every beat of music. It takes someone very musical to skate to it. That is probably the point Chris Dean was making.

 

[NorthernLite]

Ryan J. used Take Five a few years ago.

5/4 isn't completely rare in classical music. (IIRC some Tchaikovsky and possibly Mahler pieces are in 5/4, as well as later ones of course.) Other pop pieces that employ 5/4 time include the original Mission Impossible theme.

Pieces with unusual time signature often are actually combinations of subgroups. For example, Take Five is really 3/4 + 2/4 (1-2-3, 1-2; 1-2-3, 1-2). Ditto on Mission Impossible. (This would be much easier if I could sing and conduct it for you - hope you understand. )

As someone said above, in Western music we are acclimated to "simple" rhythms such as 2/4 and 4/4 (and 3/4 "waltz" time). In all major Western styles of music - "classical," jazz, rock - as music evolved, it became more complex harmonically, not rhythmically. So 5/4 still seems a bit "unnatural" to anyone trying to play/interpret it. (OTOH in some other cultures, more complex rhythms are routine.)

I recently heard that Dave Brubeck said many years after he debuted Take Five that it was still difficult to play.

 

[Mathman]

Thanks for that explanation, Northernlite. I never realized that about the Mission Impossible music (but now that you mention it, yeah, that is 5/4). Cool.

About the 3-2 breakdown, the only way I could feel this rhythm is to concertrate on the bass line. It is very definitely BOOM-boom-boom, Boom-boom. Then everything else falls into place (even the drumming).

Mathman