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 13,190. 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
Reel6,08446.1%bar
Double jig2,55119.3%bar
Hornpipe9477.2%bar
Song7725.9%bar
Polka5804.4%bar
Air4303.3%bar
Slide3913.0%bar
Slip jig3032.3%bar
Piece2081.6%bar
March1381.0%bar
Set dance1180.9%bar
Barn dance1170.9%bar
Single jig1140.9%bar
Waltz1090.8%bar
Fling990.8%bar
Strathspey690.5%bar
Highland660.5%bar
Mazurka390.3%bar
Other220.2%bar
Single reel170.1%bar
Schottisch160.1%bar
Please cite your source when you share information from this document. This page was updated on 9 February 2010.
© 2006–2010 Alan Ng, agng@facstaff.wisc.edu. Questions? Comments? Please use the easy Feedback Form. Thank you!
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