Konnakkol: Is This The Best Technique Ever Invented For Counting Rhythms?

Learning to count as you play is very important for all musicians, including guitarists. Why? Because if you don’t count as you play, you never know on which exact beat your notes are falling… your sense of timing will be based on a vague feeling rather than a certainty of where the beat is.
 
Most of us learn to count in this way:
 
If there are 4 beats in a bar, we count them 1 2 3 4
 
If there are 2 notes for each beat in the bar, we count them 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + (saying “and” for “+”)
(these would be called 1/8 notes as there are 8 in a bar)
 
If there are 4 notes for each beat in the bar, we count them 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a
(these would be called 1/16 notes as there are 16 in a bar)
 
If there are 3 notes for each beat in the bar, we count them 1 e a 2 e a 3 e a 4 e a
 
There are 2 main problems or limitations with this system:
 

1. There are a lot of vowel sounds which aren’t good for counting rhythms. Vowel sounds don’t have a clear percussive sound like consonant sounds such as Ta and Da. Consonant sounds are better for counting rhythms. Try saying 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a fast and you’ll see – it all blends together in a blur!
2. I have not come across any good way to divide or group the beats in 5s, 7s or other more unusual numbers. If you have one, let me know!

Advantages of the Konnakkol System

The Konnakkol system is a language (said to be 5,000 years old) that evolved for the purpose of counting rhythm. When you sing beats using konnakkol you hear and feel the groove much better. It is very flexible and can be used for ANY number of beats, with ANY subdivision, and ANY grouping. It is easy to hear a rhythm in 7 or 13, and to then group another rhythm in 3 or 5, using the system.

Basics of Konnakkol

There are 5 basic sets of syllables:
 
Ta = 1
 
Taka = 2
 
Takida = 3
 
Takadimi = 4
 
Tadigenaka = 5
 
Any other lengths can be created using more than one of these together. For example, a groove in 7 beats could be:
 
3 4: takida takadimi
 
Or 2 2 3: taka taka takida
 
Or 5 2: tadigenaka taka
 
And so on. See what other groupings you can use to make a groove in 7!

Practicing with Konnakkol

You can use Konnakkol in many ways. Here are a few of them:

1. With a metronome, you can practice saying different groupings over the pulse while clapping along with the metronome
2. While playing scales along with a metronome you can use the syllables to help you play different subdivisions of the beat. Takadimi takadimi… for playing 1/16 notes. Tadigenaka tadigenaka… for playing quintuplets.
3. With a very slow metronome pulse (say 30 BPM), you could try filling each beat with a long cycle of notes while singing along with the syllables. Try 16 notes per beat, which can be grouped in a variety of ways:
   1. Takadimi takadimi takadimi takadimi
   2. Takida takida tadigenaka tadigenaka
   3. Try making up your own variations!

Conclusion

If you use this system, you will find it really helps your rhythm develop. It’s great for all musicians regardless of genre or instrument. But it’s ESPECIALLY useful for any musicians who are interested in playing or writing music in unusual time signature. Which is a lot of people these days!
 
At Ultimate School of Music, we teach our advancing guitar and songwriting students Konnakkol, as well as other useful music systems from around the world. Contact us for excellent guitar lessons in Dublin