Thoughts on Time

There is so much to say about time, and it is a topic that deserves to be revisited over and over again. In music it is of utmost importance, and in life as well. In music we talk about having good time. In life, although it can be difficult to remember, we have time. In both cases it can be so hard to keep in mind, but we must be diligent, and we must try. Presence of mind is key. And practice. Our relationship to time is something that must be practiced. The drummer’s primary role is being a timekeeper. To achieve good time we practice with a metronome, refining our sense of maintaining a steady rhythm, and learning how to place the notes precisely where we want them to be. When we play without a metronome, we are the metronome, and we rely on the sense of time we develop with the metronome.

The metronome teaches us about our tendencies. Some rhythms we tend to rush, some we tend to drag, and sometimes the way we feel the rhythm is perfectly steady. Life is similar in that way. Sometimes we are too hurried, sometimes we are lethargic, and sometimes we feel that perfect moment where we are at peace in the moment, right in the groove.

In music we can only play one note at a time, and each note deserves its moment in the spotlight. Each note is important, and each note shines brighter when the space between the one that came before it, and the one that will follow, can be felt. Each note matters, and so does the space between them. The goal is not to rush to the next note, but we also must never drag our heels on the way to it. The music needs to have forward momentum, it needs to be going somewhere, but this is much different than hurling ourselves toward an endless slew of notes, never taking time to acknowledge and honour the one that is currently being played. The forward momentum is created more through intention than anything else. It is created through a deliberate pursuit of the next note, and playing it with energy when the times comes. But only at the right time.

The notes are the action, the space in between is the quiet presence, and the energy with which we play is the driving force toward what we are ultimately attempting to make succeed: the music.

All in Good Time,

-Alexander Cook