Microtiming deviations in groove

Abstract

Overview - Much work has and is being done on the topic of timing variation in Western notated art music: see Appendix A to this thesis and ... However, less investigation has been undertaken into microtiming deviations in repetitive musics with globally stable tempo. Such musics are here referred to inclusively as groove musics – some examples are: traditional African drumming; funk; and Latin music. ¶ This thesis presents a theory (the Covert Clock Theory) and proposes a model of the production of musical groove. The computer model presented rests on arguments regarding what constitutes groove, both in a musical sense and - beyond the scope of musicology - in terms of how and why humans produce and respond to groove. ¶ Through the examination of human perception and production of rhythm, I propose to develop a model, based on the Covert Clock Theory, of the generation of microtiming deviations characteristic of groove. Ideally, the model should be intuitively controllable by a musician setting a small number of parameters, and should generate deviation patterns which are musically useful and have similar characteristics to those generated by human musicians. ...