Level 4 · Sixteenths & Fills
4-3 - Funk displacement
Move a bass off the grid - your first syncopation.
How to practice it
Take the basic groove but DELAY the second bass: nothing on beat 3, bass on the 'and' of 3 instead. Pattern: B t S t (rest) B S t. That empty beat 3 is what makes it funky - respect the silence.
Suggested take: ~90s · start 70 BPM → pass around 90 BPM
1
B
&
g
2
S
&
g
3
·
&
B
4
S
&
g
70 BPM
Start at 70, exercise passes around 90. Legend: B bass · S snare · g ghost · - rest
Tips
- • Count out loud - the bass lands on 'AND': '1 and 2 and 3 AND 4 and'.
- • The rest on 3 is a note you don't play. Feel it pass.
- • Nod your head on the quarter pulse while the hands syncopate.
Watch out for
- • The bass sliding back onto beat 3 (the pattern flattens into 3-1)
- • Rushing through the rest
- • Losing the snare on 4 right after the off-beat bass
Record your take
Aim for ~90s. Put the phone ~1m away, facing the front plate. You'll get Rafa's feedback within a minute of submitting.
Up next after this: 4-4 - The traveling accent