Delay Times

Timing is rational.

If we have a track playing at 60 bpm each beat lasts 1 second.

60 beats
1 minute

1 minute
60 seconds

60 beats
60 seconds

1 beat
1 second

Now we can sub-divide or multiply that beat how we wish to obtain our delayed echo effect

So as not to get over-complicated in my explanation I'm going to assume that you follow this principle.

If the question is 'how many milliseconds should I set my delay to?' you answer it by solving the following rational calculations:

1. How many bpm?
- Calculate how many beats per second (as above)
- Multiply that by 1000 to obtain the duration of each beat in milliseconds

2. What pulse do you want the delay to have in relation to the beat?
- Express it as a ratio.[e.g. 2 pulses for every 3 beats = 2/3]

3. 'How many milliseconds should I set my delay to?
- Divide your duration (1) by the pulse ratio (2) to obtain the answer

The process is as follows:

beats per minute gives beats per second gives milliseconds per beat
divided by pulse per beat gives milliseconds per pulse

These calculations are rational [based on ratios].
They are musically intelligent. When we try to achieve instinctive musicality we rely on our perception and senses to achieve the same result.

Hence our intelligence (properly applied) and our instinct (suitably refined) arrive at the same answers.

There is nothing mystical about these calculations, but the results they can achieve on a good track can have a quasi-spiritual effect on us.

I think this is saying something profound about the relation between rational thought - timing - instinct - and spiritual/emotional response.

So where do the Harmonic and Inverse Harmonic Series come into this?

Rational calculation derives from the Harmonic and Inverse Harmonic Series (just as addition and subtraction derive from simple counting of number).

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© Jonathan Parry 2000