Rhythm Distribution in Recordings
(All Recordings)

Of related interest:
  • Rhythm History: A graph of how this distribution has changed over the past decades.
  • Discography: List of the recordings considered here.
  • Recordings by Decade: A graph of the historical distribution of these recordings.
  • Top Ten
  • Top 100 Tunes of the Century.
  • Rhythm Definitions: Comments on how I classify tunes according to rhythm.

This list ranks rhythms by how often they occur on commercial recordings of Irish traditional music. The total number of individual tune recordings considered here is 12,317. Since it ignores whether a tune recording is distinct tune or not, it reveals how often each tune type has been recorded. For example, even if one particular reel was recorded by ten different musicians over time, it still counts that as ten "votes" for the reel rhythm.

This report, since it considers all indexed recordings, is slightly different from the report Rhythm Distribution in Recordings (In Fully Irish Albums). Compare also Rhythm Distribution of tune types among all distinct tunes, as well as Rhythm Distribution in Session Tunes.

RhythmNumber of
instances		Percentage
of total		Bar graph
Reel5,69446.2%bar
Double jig2,37519.3%bar
Hornpipe8887.2%bar
Song7255.9%bar
Polka5384.4%bar
Air3993.2%bar
Slide3622.9%bar
Slip jig2822.3%bar
Piece1931.6%bar
March1311.1%bar
Barn dance1110.9%bar
Set dance1110.9%bar
Waltz1040.8%bar
Single jig1030.8%bar
Fling950.8%bar
Strathspey670.5%bar
Highland580.5%bar
Mazurka330.3%bar
Other180.1%bar
Schottisch160.1%bar
Single reel140.1%bar
Please cite your source when you share information from this document. This page was updated on 16 July 2008.
© 2006–2008 Alan Ng, agng@facstaff.wisc.edu. Questions? Comments? Please use the easy Feedback Form. Thank you!
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