Rhythm lessons you can play.
Pick a song or a rhythm. See the count, build a practice loop, then train it in stages. Start slowly enough to hear where the pattern turns.
Play the music
Song lessons
Each lesson takes one rhythmic idea from a song and turns it into an original counting exercise.
Tool’s “Lateralus”: feel the 9 + 8 + 7 cycle
Count the 9/8, 8/8 and 7/8 sequence associated with Tool’s Lateralus, build a simple AnyBeat practice loop, and train it in stages.
Changing meter · 1 to 9 · 1 to 8 · 1 to 7Jazz · 5 min lesson“Take Five”: keep the fifth beat in the bar
Use a five-click AnyBeat loop to practise the 5/4 meter in the Dave Brubeck Quartet’s Take Five, composed by Paul Desmond.
Steady 5/4 · 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · repeatClassical piano · 6 min lessonChopin’s “Fantaisie-Impromptu”: four against three
Hear the four-against-three relationship in Chopin’s Fantaisie-Impromptu, then build a simple two-voice AnyBeat exercise before returning to the score.
4 against 3 polyrhythm · 1 to 12, then repeatProgressive metal · 6 min lessonDream Theater’s “The Dance of Eternity”: keep up with the bar changes
Practise an 8 + 7 + 6 contraction identified in The Dance of Eternity, using an original AnyBeat counting loop.
Changing meter · 1 to 8 · 1 to 7 · 1 to 6Jazz · 7 min lessonAvishai Cohen’s “Eleven Wives”: two ways to feel eleven
Hear 3 + 4 + 4 against 3 + 3 + 3 + 2 inside one eleven-pulse span, using the contrasting groupings Avishai Cohen described for Eleven Wives.
Parallel accent grouping · 3 + 4 + 4 over 3 + 3 + 3 + 2Jazz · 6 min lesson“Blue Rondo à la Turk”: change the shape of nine
Practise 2+2+2+3 and 3+3+3 in Dave Brubeck’s Blue Rondo à la Turk, then connect the four-bar phrase in AnyBeat.
Regrouping 9/8 · 1-2 · 1-2 · 1-2 · 1-2-3Rock · 6 min lessonPink Floyd’s “Money”: switch from seven to four
Keep a steady quarter-note pulse while moving between 7/4 and 4/4, with an original AnyBeat exercise inspired by Pink Floyd’s Money.
Meter transitions · 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 · 1 2 3 4Pop rock · 6 min lessonSting’s “Seven Days”: keep offbeats steady in five
Count ten eighth-note cells inside a five-beat bar, then practise the offbeats with a preloaded AnyBeat rhythm inspired by Sting’s Seven Days.
Offbeats in 5/4 · 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 5 &Baião / forró · 6 min lesson“Asa Branca”: build a two-beat foundation for baião
Prepare to study Luiz Gonzaga’s Asa Branca with an original two-beat pulse and anticipation exercise in AnyBeat.
Pulse and anticipation · 1 e & a · 2 e & aJazz · 6 min lessonAvishai Cohen’s “When I’m Falling”: find the next nine
Use Avishai Cohen’s published 9/8 lead sheet to practise bar boundaries and quiet pulses with a nine-cell AnyBeat loop.
9/8 bar boundaries · 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9Get the shape
Rhythm foundations
Use these lessons when a count, grouping or practice setup needs a closer look.
Odd meter: how to count 5/4, 7/8 and uneven groups
Learn what odd meter means, count 5/4, 7/8 and 11/8 in small groups, and hear playable examples with the pulse unit made clear.
Theory · 6 min lessonAdditive meter: count the groups, hear the difference
What is additive meter? Count 7/8 as 2+2+3, compare groupings in a playable metronome, and build a 6-6-6-7 practice cycle.
Theory · 7 min lessonPolymeter vs polyrhythm: hear what stays the same
What is polymeter? Hear 4 against 7 on one pulse, compare it with a 3:2 polyrhythm, and learn exactly when the patterns meet again.
Rhythm · 5 min lessonClave patterns explained: 3-2, 2-3 and why they matter
The clave is the five-stroke rhythmic key under Cuban and much Latin music. See how 3-2 and 2-3 son clave are built, differ, and feel in practice.
Reference · 6 min lessonTempo markings and BPM: choose a speed you can hear
Adagio, andante moderato, allegro: compare approximate BPM ranges, hear the click, and check which note value the tempo actually counts.
For teachers · 5 min lessonRhythm practice sheet: count, clap and keep the pulse
A free printable rhythm practice sheet with 7/8, 3:2 and 4-against-7 counting exercises, a practice log, and links to playable AnyBeat lessons.