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Rhythm

A sequence of durations and rests without pitches. It can time a melody without changing its note choices.

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Edit pitch and time independently

A line combines ordered pitches with durations. Its rhythm keeps only the time pattern; its point sequence keeps relative pitch movement without a fixed register. Transposing shifts sounding notes while both abstractions stay the same.

Event 1

Event 2

Event 3

Event 4

Event 5

Timeline · 5 beats

C41 beat
E41 beat
G42 beats
Rest0.5 beats
C50.5 beats

Melody · MIDI:beats

60:1,64:1,67:2,r:0.5,72:0.5

Point sequence

0:1,4:1,7:2,r:0.5,12:0.5

Rhythm

1,1,2,r0.5,0.5

Pitch classes

0,4,7,~,0

The sequencer pattern uses Strudel duration weights: a two-beat event occupies twice the cycle span of a one-beat event.

Written forms

Ways to write this concept

Each notation describes the same underlying object. Load a playable example to hear one MIDI realization in the Code Sequencer.

beats

Canonical: comma-separated durations in beats (quarter = 1). Rest = 'r' + duration (e.g. r1).

  • 1,0.5,0.5,2
  • 1,r1,1,1
  • 0.5,0.5,0.5,0.5

note values

Staff-like note-value letters: w h q e s t ('.' = dotted). Rest = value + 'r' (e.g. qr).

  • q,e,e,h
  • q,qr,q,q
  • e,e,e,e

ms

Durations in milliseconds (default 120 BPM). Rest = 'r' + ms.

  • 500,250,250,1000
  • 500,r500,500,500

ticks

Durations in MIDI ticks (default 480 PPQ). Rest = 'r' + ticks.

  • 480,240,240,960
  • 480,r480,480,480
Choose Load beside a convertible example to open its live player. Some catalog formats describe analysis or a display label and have no note realization yet.

Concept connections

Note sequenceAn ordered line of notes and optional rests. Adding durations makes its rhythmic placement explicit.Pitch-class sequenceAn ordered line of pitch classes without fixed octaves. Choose registers to turn it into MIDI notes.Point sequenceAn ordered, rootless pitch contour. An anchor note turns its relative positions into a concrete line.Metric gridThe beat/subdivision scaffold a rhythm snaps onto: the ordered points of one bar, each marked downbeat, beat, or subdivision. A grid is built from a meter + a tempo — the meter sets how many beats and where the downbeat falls, the tempo sets how fast they go by. A rhythm is placed on a metric grid (quantized) when given a meter + tempo; groove then nudges the grid points off their exact positions.
Sources and playback

Concept descriptions and examples were adapted from Codex Music Mono’s typed catalog and concept examples. The Code Sequencer plays MIDI through a connected instrument; Symbolic does not synthesize sound.