Time unit box system
Encyclopedia
Time Unit Box System is a simple system for notating events that happen over a period of time. This system is mostly used for notating rhythm
s in music
. The notation consists of one or more rows of boxes; each box represents a fixed unit of time. Blank boxes indicate that nothing happens during that interval, while a mark in a box indicates that an event occurs at the start of that time interval.
TUBS is most useful for showing relationships between complex rhythms, such as polyrhythm
s, that would be difficult to see in traditional musical notation
. TUBS also has the advantage that non-musicians can interpret it much more easily than musical notation, because of its simplicity.
It was originally used by musicologists
Philip Harland and James Koetting to notate polyrhythms in African music. However, Joseon
composer Bak Yeon(박연)'s invention of similar but unrelated notation jeongganbo(정간보, image) to notate Korean court music
dates back to middle of the 15th century.
TUBS notation has been adapted by several people; the most common adaptations use different symbols in the boxes to represent different sounds, for example different ways of hitting a drum or even different musical pitches. In fact, tracker notation is essentially TUBS rotated by 90 degrees.
Below is an example of an adapted TUBS score depicting a percussion pattern for multiple instruments. One benefit with the TUBS system is that it clearly relates WHICH drum is to be struck (as the symbol will be solid, hollow, etc. uniquely for each drum) as opposed to different drums being notated via a different line of the musical staff, which can be more difficult to see. More importantly, the SYMBOL used inside of each Time Unit Box relates HOW the drum is to be struck (open tone, slap, bass, rim-shot, etc) which is not as easily conveyed with the musical staff notation.
Rhythm
Rhythm may be generally defined as a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions." This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time may be applied to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or...
s in music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
. The notation consists of one or more rows of boxes; each box represents a fixed unit of time. Blank boxes indicate that nothing happens during that interval, while a mark in a box indicates that an event occurs at the start of that time interval.
TUBS is most useful for showing relationships between complex rhythms, such as polyrhythm
Polyrhythm
Polyrhythm is the simultaneous sounding of two or more independent rhythms.Polyrhythm in general is a nonspecific term for the simultaneous occurrence of two or more conflicting rhythms, of which cross-rhythm is a specific and definable subset.—Novotney Polyrhythms can be distinguished from...
s, that would be difficult to see in traditional musical notation
Musical notation
Music notation or musical notation is any system that represents aurally perceived music, through the use of written symbols.-History:...
. TUBS also has the advantage that non-musicians can interpret it much more easily than musical notation, because of its simplicity.
It was originally used by musicologists
Musicology
Musicology is the scholarly study of music. The word is used in narrow, broad and intermediate senses. In the narrow sense, musicology is confined to the music history of Western culture...
Philip Harland and James Koetting to notate polyrhythms in African music. However, Joseon
Joseon Dynasty
Joseon , was a Korean state founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye that lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo at what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul...
composer Bak Yeon(박연)'s invention of similar but unrelated notation jeongganbo(정간보, image) to notate Korean court music
Korean court music
Korean court music refers to the music developed in the Joseon Dynasty . Very little is known about the court music of earlier Korean kingdoms and dynasties.It was partly modeled on the court music of China, known as yayue...
dates back to middle of the 15th century.
TUBS notation has been adapted by several people; the most common adaptations use different symbols in the boxes to represent different sounds, for example different ways of hitting a drum or even different musical pitches. In fact, tracker notation is essentially TUBS rotated by 90 degrees.
Examples
Below is an example in TUBS, followed by a similar representation in traditional music notation.TUBS
| X | X | X | X | X | |||||||||||
| X | X | X | X | X | X | X |
Traditional
Below is an example of an adapted TUBS score depicting a percussion pattern for multiple instruments. One benefit with the TUBS system is that it clearly relates WHICH drum is to be struck (as the symbol will be solid, hollow, etc. uniquely for each drum) as opposed to different drums being notated via a different line of the musical staff, which can be more difficult to see. More importantly, the SYMBOL used inside of each Time Unit Box relates HOW the drum is to be struck (open tone, slap, bass, rim-shot, etc) which is not as easily conveyed with the musical staff notation.