Article by Constance Kotis
y first reaction to this question was . . . probably not
very well. I have had some students realize this rhythm figure
beautifully while others struggle for years. I think part of the problem
is due to what we call it: two against three.
My first contact with it conjured up a picture that stayed in my mind longer
than I care to admit.
Many of my students tried the same approaches (that I did) hoping that
the "best" hand would win. We practiced hands separately, assuming
that by some miracle the hands would finally cooperate. This gave way to
years of counting along one cup-a tea, two cup-a tea leading
to some level of success. I also confess to many mathematical explanations
that went beautifully at Largo but unsuccessfully at Allegro.
Finally, it dawned on me that tapping and immediately playing the figure at the keyboard might produce better results. I avoided extensive verbal information and began with simple notated exercises that would allow the student to be successful in arranging two notes with three. The basic premise of the exercises was to build on the student's ability to tap the rhythm quarter, two-eighths, quarter, hands together. This was followed with asking the student to tap
Then, when playing this on the keyboard, the student had fewer problems with coordination, especially when both hands used the same fingers. The basic pattern and variations below helped develop the ability to play three LH notes with two RH notes, not against them.
Same finger numbers and same rhythm in both hands
In all the following exercises, the hands can be reversed to vary the exercise. Same finger numbers when hands play together.
Var. I: RH new rhythm pattern and intervals; LH the same.
Var. II: RH subdivision of beat 2.
Var. III: RH new rhythm. Intervals the same as in Var. I.
Var. IV: New notation for the same sound as Var. III.
Tapping a basic rhythmic figure and playing simple exercises that evolve into a positive experience, students will play 2 with 3 without too much effort. Students who had reached a reasonable degree of basic rhythmic proficiency before attempting these exercises, found them interesting and accessible. These students did not have to understand fractions, complex notation, or advanced theory. We worked on solving a problem before it became an issue. Unlike me, these students will not have any mental pictures of two battling opponents, but rather of two partners making beautiful music together.
1997 bio
CONSTANCE KOTIS is Co-Founder and Associate Director of the 700-student Greensboro Music Academy in Greensboro, North Carolina. She is active as a teacher, adjudicator, and free-lance accompanist, and is a staff accompanist each summer for the International Workshops. Her degrees in music education and accompanying are from the University of North Carolina in Greensboro.
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