Swing is not one fixed delay

Swing can make evenly notated subdivisions sound unequal, often with a longer first and shorter second part. The ratio varies with tempo, style and performer; a fixed triplet ratio is not a universal definition.

Study accents, articulation and accompaniment alongside timing. Delaying every second note by one amount does not guarantee a convincing performance. Compare a short original pattern in straight and swung versions before applying a timing idea across a whole arrangement.

Example

Compare an even eighth pair with a long-short pair, judging the ratio in context.

1:1 → 2:1

Try it

Must every part use exactly the same swing displacement?

Answer

No: the relationship depends on style and the roles of the parts.

References

FL Studio online manual

Subject-expert review pending.

Swing is not one fixed delay

Example

Try it

Related topics

References