3 against 5 in Rachmaninoff Prelude Op. 32 no. 5

[thompson_321]

Is their any special rhythm which can helps for this cross rhythm. Thanks.

[musicluvr49]

Hi thompson,

I have a little thing I use to help wth polyrythms. If I'm trying to learn 3 against 5 I'll go for a walk. I clap to keep the beat, I'll step 5 times per beat, and I'll count 3 times per beat out loud. (I usually do this in a secluded place where I won't be looked at as mentally insane.... )
I do this for a while, and then I go back to the piano. I hope you understood all that, it really helps for me, so you may wanna try it. Good luck !

[thompson_321]

Hi thompson,

I have a little thing I use to help wth polyrythms. If I'm trying to learn 3 against 5 I'll go for a walk. I clap to keep the beat, I'll step 5 times per beat, and I'll count 3 times per beat out loud. (I usually do this in a secluded place where I won't be looked at as mentally insane.... )
I do this for a while, and then I go back to the piano. I hope you understood all that, it really helps for me, so you may wanna try it. Good luck !

That sounds difficult! I'll give it a try! Thanks.

[aintgotnorhythm]

I really struggle with this sort of thing (I even find 2 against 3 a challenge!) so what I do is take a mathematical approach. The lowest common multiple of 3 and 5 is 15, so I would write out the offending phrase in 15ths, practice it completely separately, taking it really slow to begin with and then speeding up until it fits with the rest of the piece.

I also find it helpful to come up with a sequence of words whose syllables naturally match up to the timing of the notes when spoken out loud.

Mostly though I completely avoid this kind of piece ...

[raisinbrahms]

With polyrhythms, I have to actually sit down and figure out mathematically where each beat goes and then practice it with my hands in my lap or something until I can "feel" the composite rhythm.  This is a real pain, of course, but once you have it down, you really have it down.

Here's a site that shows how to line up 3 against 5.  Scroll down to example 14 and have fun

https://f.unkster.tripod.com/polyrhythm.html