Formula for a Funky Feel

[@rachitjuyalmusic]

Formula for a funk feel is as very funky name for a funk track

[@UniqueisUnity]

This entire comment is the name.

[@basedbattledroid3507]

@@UniqueisUnity that's a terrific name for a funk band name

[@tweakmygroovebox608]

Phormula phor a phunk Pheel!

[@ShedScale]

Yes! You really nailed the function that rhythm usually has in funk. I really like it when you explore different genres like this, especially with the 'scientific' approach, since it not only makes for consistency but also means you can explain your choices in a clear and concise way. Great video!

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!! I really appreciate it!!

[@GlennFiddles]

One of your greatest qualities with these videos is your humility towards styles you are less familiar with and acknowledging the limits of a purely analytical approach to music. Bravo!

[@ricardofranciszayas]

Brilliant!!! I am a retired keyboard player and when I was a young guy back in the 70s and 80s, our template was Sly, James Brown, Graham Central Station, P Funk, Tower of Power etc. I was fortunate to make my living as a freelance musician and thus was and still is a huge chunk of my vocabulary. I think that is so cool young musicians have studied the genre and are documenting specifics of the rhythmic language. I congratulate you. Thank you so much

[@keks-qk7uv]

You really put a lot of love and work in your videos! I really admire your work especially the funky stuff pls keep it up! 😊

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!! ❤

[@liights8193]

This is great! I really like how you broke down a genre that's led so much by feel and turned in into these mathematical pieces that are easy to understand. Fantastic work!!

[@stefan1024]

Cool, it's that lost Herbie Hancock track from the 70s!. :D

[@RmonikMusic]

I thought the same thing!

[@drbassface]

Thought the same!

[@robertYTB78g]

Love the little graphic that shows how the 16th snow rhythms were built up. Really interesting video, thanks for posting

[@shadowgolem9158]

Nailed it! Got the empty space and the swing feel sorted out. Very well done indeed. If you want you can shift even more and lag the beat if you break down further to 32 nds.

[@paulsanders7963]

As a classically trained French Horn player who is learning electric bass I find this honestly valuable. Saves me the time of transcribing a ton of music. Obviously I'll still need to transcribe some stuff but this is a good starting place.

[@thomasmcgill6918]

Ive played guitar in a few hardcore funk bands in my youth. Shutting my eyes, this arrangement of yours feels great. As always, love your adventures. Thank you for sharing with us your discoveries...

[@OboeFiles]

Such an inspiration! These videos make me want to keep growing as a musician! I love the way you present the info it’s so genuine and clear

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!! ❤

[@eddytheoboeplayerwoot6506]

Same! this channel has made me listen to music differently!

[@johnbovie9203]

Awesome. Really loved the breakdown of the composition. This is really useful for me to create funkier music. Thanks so much!

[@NahreSol]

Amazing, thank you!!! ❤

[@PrinceWesterburg]

Naaaa - You wanna pla fuunk, here, smoke thisss brutha! :D

[@johnbovie9203]

Unfortunately, I've been living in China for many years and they have the death penalty for that here. :(

[@smoke09able]

Pretty funky! I can hear some Stevie Wonder type riffs in the combined take.

[@oldboy9267]

it's the clav from superstition

[@avjake]

Your visual representations in this are outstanding.

[@BluePi1313]

Since last year, your feel has gotten significantly better! The first composition was good, but the performance was stiff. You're getting a lot more familiarized with swing genres, and honestly it's an inspiration. Keep doing what you're doing, and keep making videos.

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!

[@SoundFieldPBS]

Nahre! ABSOLUTELY THRILLED to have you on Sound Field! What should we name this song, so we can upload it to Soundcloud??!

[@Opuskrokus]

Rhythm 'n Sol

[@SoundFieldPBS]

@@Opuskrokus I was thinking Baby Popcorn

[@michaelholmes9874]

ludwig amadeus obviously.....

[@SoundFieldPBS]

I like it@ludwig amadeus

[@vigilancebrandon]

Funk: How To

[@frenchef7]

You nailed it! That scientific approach is also how I went about learning this stuff

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!

[@exquisiteoath]

And this is exactly why theory is so important - sure there's room to really dig into the feel of funk but the idea of counting 4/4 measures and navigating them gives us a common language to explain why things work. I'd been jamming on a funky feel last night but it was way too busy, those examples of just the first half of the bar are brilliant for space. Thank you Nahre

[@waxwingflock]

You've definitely got the funk this time! Beautifully done!

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!! I appreciate it 😀

[@arthurholmes-brown7104]

This kind of analysis really speaks to the way my brain works. Clear explanation, visuals and demonstration. Im going to test it out with a drum machine etc.

[@tinajackel]

very cool ideas! what a differences those two quarter note rests made that you added in the second versions! very inspiring thank you so much Nahre

[@NahreSol]

Thank you !! ❤

[@cnl1213]

Excited for this new show! Stuff like this and Vox Earworm helps make music accessible to the masses. Music is to be shared and experienced. Thank you for sharing your gift, Nahre!

[@nostaticatall]

So cool to see this broken down. I've never thought to analyze funk rhythms and phrasing like this.

[@Cleeemoo]

A scientific approach to compose a funk song is a brilliant idea! Really groovy track!

[@MuffinMachine]

Your scientific approach is like watching a water balloon burst in slow motion. I think it’s easy to feel and know in the body what is happening but by denoting visually and audibly what happens in each frame of the count you’re slowing down time. From there we can see all the pieces in great detail in a way that goes beyond just saying it. Thank you!

[@alanhirayama4592]

For me with most musical genres, especially funk, it's all about the feel and groove. The feel can be broken down to the repetition of rhythms and note choices. For anyone not familiar with a particular genre, I think it is very useful to breakdown the rhythms associated with a particular genre to find out the elements that are responsible for the feel. Thank you for sharing!

[@manuelm5664]

The GUIs helped me understand how funk rhythm works. Thanks for the scientific analysis and demo.

[@LinktheBard]

As a hard of hearing musician, thank you thank you THANK YOU for open captions!

[@justadude5659]

You're simply amazing, please don't stop doing what are you doing

[@barnabydixon]

Fantastic! :D

[@tristanr8977]

funktastic

[@YnteryPictures]

One of my favourite channels now, thank you for your videos)

[@kellyearthrise2453]

You "blinded me with science" but really helped take some of the mystery out of it. I'm sure someone will complain that it was simplified too much, but I don't think so. Thanks!

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!

[@NicStride]

As an intuitive musician who has been playing in these genres for most of my musical life, I find these videos really baffling. That's not a negative, I'm just amazed at how it's possible for us to both be 'Performers' who probably use similar theoretical terminology, but our actual conception and understanding of music is so different. It's really fascinating! Was cool to see you break things down like this, although it'd be a lot of thinking for most of us to play like this. Especially since 'groove' and 'locking in' seems to be such a human/emotional sensation for most contemporary pop musicians. Cool Vid, thanks! ;)

[@WizardOfArc]

16th note subdivisions are what my bass teacher told me to focus on for funky feel - great video... thanks for sharing your formula!

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!

[@justpassingby3175]

Guitar player here. Your videos are super useful even tho I dont play piano. Keep it up!

[@enricopersia4290]

Subdivisions are as important as intervals in music, a great way to figure it out if someone is not really involved into these things

[@featherycoffee1401]

I love the little text, it really helps.

[@spacesheep69]

Love the formula, it's a very simple and efficient way to demonstrate a core principle.

[@LeafGreen906]

This is fun! One of the most important parts of funk is simply striking the pocket to carry that groove the right way. If you listen closely to how the drums are played, the snare comes in just a little bit late to land in that pocket, which makes for most of how the genre sounds. You can have a 4/4 beat played with no notated syncopation, but as long as the snare hits the pocket it will still sound funky. What's very fun to do over those kinds of beats is to play around with very few syncopated in a bassline under it, maybe even just one syncopated tone, with the rest being on beat. The few hits that are syncopated swing the groove in a crazy way because the use of them is so restrictive.

[@TaffmanGuyo]

Nahre! Wow! Funk musical beauty via numbers - a brilliantly superb approach with respect to clarity. I'm a non sight-reader with bananas for fingers but you are inspiring me. Big hugs & thanks from this 67 year old in the UK.

[@LydiaPlain]

So inspiring! Thank you for sharing your thought process. The division in 16th surely helps a lot...

[@Koettnylle]

This is really awesome. It was very inspiring to see you develop a formula for the rhythmic phrasing. Also, to my ears your classical background revealed itself in the chord voicings. Without being a funk expert the timbres sounded a lot more complex compared to what i associate with funk chords in general.

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!

[@sargelester7351]

What a great way to visualize The Funk!! LOVE this!!

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!

[@llliiwwiilll]

As a classically trained pianst trying to learn funk, this is amazing.

[@RobertoGinsburg]

Without Jazz..Funk not could exist

[@aldo_mores]

Congratulations on getting to host a PBS channel! I don't get why nobody is mentioning this in the comments, it is an interesting and cool achievement.

[@davidsummerville351]

I could dance to that! Loved the keyboard views. Thanks

[@pianofortality9585]

I found your channel a few days ago, but it has already become my favorite one! Absolutely fascinating videos, especially piano tutorials, you must have really decent technique! But I'm surprised that there are almost no performances on the channel, so why don't you upload some? I'd love to hear you playing some serious stuff!

[@dylanbuckle114]

Really useful video Nahre. Thank you so much for sharing this.

[@IanEckie]

Love this video concept! As someone who often suffers from writer's block, I found this extremely helpful and interesting! Hope to see more videos like this in the future!

[@asderc1]

You made this so clear and concise. Quality!

[@sver3]

Nice! One thing I like about funk too it's the frequent contrast between long and very short notes. like quarters and 32's, etc..

[@danielperkins4610]

You have a really great funk groove and feel! Those accents make all the difference!

[@robbykelley3598]

I love how fearless you are! Do it the way you do it:) sounds fantastic

[@rodrigocalmanowitz]

You are amazing! I've stumbled across your channel a few days ago, and now I can't stop watching your videos!! Great vibe, you're so humble and you have a very cool approach to the genres you explore. Keep it up!!!

[@2FadeMusic]

I'll DEFINITELY be using this to help me write a funky track, thanks for the tips!

[@lindac.9445]

That's brilliant Nahre! Thank you.

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!

[@dovane9932]

This is gold! thank you so much to share.💞🎶

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!

[@chancegoodspeed5873]

thx for the upload helps me feel like im on the right track towards my dreams n goals n wants n everything thank you so much

[@splashesin8]

Bringing it on in! Love for the revisiting of funk. 😻

[@duckmanlequack]

It's an improvement! Take out 3 of those layers at the end, and compress the drums and bass. Funk is much more about the rhythm than the notes. Like James Brown says in the movie Get On Up, you're not playing a guitar, trumpet, keys, etc. You're playing a drum. "When you're playing the drum, it don't matter what key you in, what bar you in, what planet you on". The best kinds of funk is the stuff that makes you want to get up and get down as soon as you hear it. It makes you want to walk and step confidently in time to the beat feeling like the coolest mother alive, even if you look like Tobey Maguire in 'that scene' from Spiderman 3. At the very least you gotta nod your head with it. It's all about the feeling. End of the day, either you got the funk or you don't... And that's fine either way.

[@flimflamband5758]

Yes this ^

[@jackpao9322]

the formula is awesome and easy to understand with sequencer

[@ElianaDAngelo]

Great video and honestly a good formula to really get things going! Another thing about funk is to keep the stabs and accents very staccatissimo. Helps keep things feeling percussive and rhythmic. That said, I cant wait to see more Sound Field videos. :D

[@slimyelow]

Very interesting approach. I have been funking for decades and never realized how good I am.

[@DrRajeshKoothrappali]

I think that was awesome! Such a great explanation for anyone who wants to get into this genre! Thank you for the upload Nahre :)

[@HazeAnderson]

You are getting close to unlocking the secret rhythm .... which is just a clave! 😂

[@NahreSol]

Hi Haze!!

[@HazeAnderson]

Happy New Year Nahre, thank you for your help!! :D

[@MrLouiekang]

The scientific approach is great. I would suggest looking up 'Bernie Worrell Funkadelic live' because he was another pioneer of funk music. He grew up with a classical music background which you can hear in his particular brand of funk

[@chrisrouck]

Your videos always look really nice, and it makes all of these complex ideas easy to understand. Thanks for the awesome video!

[@fixedpointfunky]

Isn't your "descending numbers" algorithm another way of saying "3 against 4"? That was always my go-to algorithm for funking things up. It seems you discovered it works even when you vary the time scale, too, so congrats.

[@vZZenn]

I think she put it in other ways because in classical music and piano repertoire specifically, saying 3 against 4, means playing triplets against 16th notes, all within the same beat or w/e. Same with 2 against 3, eighth notes against triplets. And more complicated pieces often have 5 against 4 and can also be against 3 against 2 and any combination of odd/even note degrees within one beat. Also I don't think the particular idea of poly-rhythm that you're talking about exactly fits here. (you mean 3/4 against 4/4? right?) I guess maybe for a bar but not really, I'm not sure :D

[@ChubbyMonkeyX]

No actually; as the other dude said, that is a polyrhythm. It's still a 4/4 measure played with sixteenth subdivisions. No triplet feel in funk necessarily.

[@vZZenn]

@@ChubbyMonkeyX I wasn't stating there was triplet feel. I was giving insight into why she didn't say "3 against 4" because as a classical pianist, that would mean something different. Furthermore, at the end I stated how it might be considered a poly-rhythm but I wasnt sure

[@OkstadOo]

Three against four is (roughly put) the relationship between triplets and straight notes in 4/4 or conversely the quadruplets and straight notes in 3/4 or 6/8.

[@OrdinaryLatvian]

Pass the goddamn butter?

[@LeeJackson01]

Made my foot tap and head rock, so... Yup! Loved it.

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!! ❤

[@onlyrick]

Miss, I don't care how you went about it, that's FUNKY! Extra credit for choosing the right person to collaborate with. Great job, Guys. Be Cool.

[@jkhan337]

Great work as usual Nahre!

[@CRedfearn1983]

This is amazing, I love the track and the ‘formula’ for creating it.

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!

[@7wv5]

I came here from Andrew Huang. Hello. I was wondering why I haven't heard of Sound Field, since I've looked through PBS Digital Studio's array of channels. Then I realized this channel was REALLY young. I'm excited to see where all this goes!

[@KateBrunotts]

Thank you so much!

[@ccuny1]

Thank you for a great video. Love the keys and the drums, so thank you both.

[@bitmau5]

The end result is Brilliant. I hope it inspires you more. I was inspired by James Browns drummers around 25 years ago, more than inspired, obsessed, actually. Funk is like a bug. Once it sticks, it's very hard to shake off. Now it just bleeds into every genre I play.

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!

[@NeelDhar]

The 4-3-2 stab (example 1) is a 4:3 polyrhythms for the first three beats

[@monsthyness4616]

Brilliant, Nahre, visually an musically!

[@jaredbadalamenti3716]

LOVE this video. I come from the same background of classical music so this was SUPER helpful!

[@xiaolu7988]

This formula can be a very good start of writing music. Great video!

[@NahreSol]

Awesome, thank you!!

[@cassoconnell7814]

STRONG 70s Herbie/Head Hunters vibe! Love it 💖🎶

[@caeliachapin5317]

This is great! Gave me an inspiration that I think will help to resolve a seeming contradiction in my musical ideas. Thank u!

[@netuno60]

Great stuff Nahre!! You are very good as a teacher. And very smart as a student. Thanx.

[@jeffbarnes1102]

One like is not enough... LOVE these explorations! Keep it up.

[@michaelvanzyl9418]

KZbin recommendations working its magic😁

[@NahreSol]

❤

[@gereonH]

I like your videos very much! I am a jazz guitarist, coming from swing and bebop - and I am thinking in 8ths for phrasing. I started a Duo with a bassman who played years in a funk band. We had to do some bossa nova for a singer and I noticed, Mr. Bass an I had a different feeling. When I told him, to play off-beats, he did something like "off-off-beats". His rhythmical grid was in 16ths Notes. It was not easy to fix this and some phrases just didn't work out.

[@LOliveiraBss]

And it sounds great... Congrats!

[@andrewcampbell-bluespianop6741]

Your videos are awesome, So unique and inspiring. Cheers from Australia!

[@NahreSol]

Thank you!!

[@Xlornick]

Really good stuff! One thing that gets left out of funk historical and rhythmic analysis, is the influence of Cuban music. This groove naturally fits into a 2-3 rhumba clave, and each of your parts line right up, more or less. try tapping it out. Very cool!

[@NahreSol]

Yes!! You're right thank you :)

[@erikkihss]

Love it! Interesting approach and great collaboration!

[@NahreSol]

Thank you Erik-!!

[@erikkihss]

@@NahreSol I like the way you approach genres that you are not familiar with. Now that you have a great drummer for funk, you should jam with him and others who are comfortable in the genre. There is no substitute for playing with other musicians. BTW someone mentioned that your piece sounded like Herbie Hancock. I emailed you a YT link to a piece I wrote with quartal harmony with pre-funk "Herbie-like' chords. I always appreciate your feed back.

[@scrapheaper4408]

I definitely agree with the thing about descending numbers. I always thought of it differently though. I imagined playing phrases that are 3 semiquavers long and repeating them every 3 semiquavers to make a polyrhythm. Then you chop up this rhythm and put different amounts of delay inbetween the fragments. A good 'spacer' for the 3 semiquaver fragments is playing only the semiquaver offbeats- playing 2 and 4. The other thing about funk is I sometimes notice a slight 16th note swing on some tracks- quavers are straight but you can get a really nice funky effect by subtly delaying the 2nd and 4th semiquaver.

[@siddharthpatwari7534]

really useful, concise, & well explained!

[@TheMultipower47]

Wow this came together nicely. I'm not too musically inclined but I love the breakdown you did for how you got there

[@DojoOfCool]

This is a huge topic that really can't be written about Swing and Funk are about time being organic and breathing in and out over a measure or two. It's about the minutia that the beat is moving back and forth within. There is a Swing aspect to good Funk. Some say it came from the Afro Cuban music and it's Clave making its way to New Orleans and they very subtle 3 against 4 clave making the beat float. The feel made its way to Kansas City into the begining of Swing big bands. People talk about Swing they talk about eighth notes, but you listen to great bass players like Ray Brown and Ron Carter they play a quarter note walking bass line and it Swings, it because of the minutia of the beat breathing in and out. In Funk that Afro Cuban influence in New Orleans made its way into Second Line beat that them made it's way in to Funk with the Neville Brothers and others. It's all in the minutia and can't be written down and can only be learned from lots and lots of listening to Funk and Jazz you have to get the feel into your gut. I would say Classical music has an equivalent when working on the style of the great composers especially later ones that there are recording of them playing or conducting their work. It's all in the minutia, it's all about feel.

[@drewkg14]

Say minutia one more time

[@DojoOfCool]

Okay "minutia" and for our next request.... And for our next tune we're playing "Really Tiny Movement".

[@adaptedvinyl]

Absolutely. I work with music in the electronic studio and I'm always adjusting the positions of individual notes within a groove - what you're calling minutia. I call it micro-timing. Just moving a note by a millisecond can really alter the feel within a funky groove. Bass slightly ahead gives one feel, right on is another feel, slightly behind another and so on but with real interesting differences coming from all of the shades between. Multiply that depth through all of the main groove instruments and you can get some really complex feels going on. A pattern that would be written identically in musical notation can be played many different ways and individual players can have their own distinctive grooves. The keyboard playing on this video was fine for pattern placement of notes but the actual groove timing was really hard on the ears. Drummer was funky though.

[@DojoOfCool]

Exactly, that's why J. Dilla never used quanitize he wanted the shifts where hits occur.

[@TonytheCapeGuy]

I love your breakdowns. These are super cool. :)

[@KenA4ilu]

Fantastic! Unique! Many use a triplet feel. It moves!

[@rickrudd]

When I play guitar or piano, I do it with a natural drum track in my head, and funk just happens. Classical musicians and the pieces they play have such a fluid rhythm that it's apples and oranges. I can see how it would take some discipline/conscious thought to go from Handel to Brothers Johnson.

[@tim5749]

This is a really interesting approach!! I’ve been playing piano for a while, and funk has ALWAYS challenged me :(. I’ll give this a try and see how it feels!

[@mr.goodgood7782]

나래님 짱이다!! 자주 좀 올려주세요ㅋㅋ 덕분에 reface cp 열심히 쓰고 있어요