Question: what exactly is a grace note?

Thank you again!

I am not a huge huge fan of The Black Crowes, but I can appreciate some great American music!

After reading through some of this thread, I wonder if Sometimes Salvation... well never mind.

Sometimes less is more, in life, and music.
Keep rolling with the passion HMX!

Up here in Canada... We Jam Econo

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Henry_Sardonicus

Question: what exactly is a grace note?

---

grace note
noun
Definition of GRACE NOTE
1
: a musical note added as an ornament; especially : appoggiatura
2
: a small addition or embellishment

Just a guess, I really don't know either.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Santa Claustrophobia

Do you forget where you are?

---

Duh, the internet.

Thanks for reminding me.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by FairwoodStudios

A theorem on this, based on three data points:
- Grace notes are hard
- Grace notes aren't always authored
- Those two songs have lots of grace notes

I think both of those started off without grace notes, got tiered, and then grace notes were added without re-tiering. I've done the same in reverse- "Keep on Running from My Love" started with grace notes, they were removed, but the corresponding high tier remained. So it's grossly overtiered. It's a pretty simple oversight, on the whole, though one that certainly feels rather embarrassing to make.

I don't know how well that theory jives with Harmonix's current process, but the situation fits that sequence of events logically.

---

Cool, nice insight.

What's a Grace note?

Basically, it's when you play a chord and then you have to quickly switch one of the notes, usually the root note of the chord, to another. See: Higher Ground, Free Ride, Footloose, Once Bitten Twice Shy, I Need To Know, etc.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bront20

Cool, nice insight.

What's a Grace note?

---

You've probably got a keyboard in front of you right now. (Like, a computer keyboard.) Let's say you want to type the letter 'r'. But for whatever reason- your typing technique, maybe you aren't paying attention, maybe your fingers are fat- you type a quick 'f' first. You get 'fr'.

That's the idea behind grace notes (on keys/guitar). They're something you hit, really quickly and softly, when you're trying to hit something else. But they're not bad- that faint little hint of F right before an E can give the tone a sense of direction and depth that it wouldn't have otherwise, not to mention a sort of human naturalness inherent in the 'error'. But while they are there, they're not important, and they're not necessarily intended. This is why there's a little variation in whether or not they're authored. They're part of the grand "accuracy vs. fun" authoring debate.

Particularly on the two songs Lowlander cited, Harmonix chose to author plenty of grace notes that lead into chords. That's really hard, because you have to hit one note, then two, without hitting the first again. It's tricky. Grace notes into single notes, not so bad, but chords? That can bump a tier.

There's also "ghost notes" on drums, which may incorrectly be termed "grace notes". Those are really soft hits (usually snare hits) that don't really bring too much to the beat. They're just texture, kinda to keep the snares excited, give the kit some life. There's an equal debate and variation about authoring or not authoring them, and again it comes down to the song or the beat. (The Christmas Song is actually loaded with ghost snares, but they're so inaudible that they were mixed down a little more and left unauthored. If I was meticulous and put every single one in, it'd probably be a tier 3, tier 4 part rather than tier 1.)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Lowlander2

Basically, it's when you play a chord and then you have to quickly switch one of the notes, usually the root note of the chord, to another. See: Higher Ground, Free Ride, Footloose, Once Bitten Twice Shy, I Need To Know, etc.

---

Actualy, it's not. A grace note is a note that's played briefly BEFORE the real note (so your finger just 'graces' the first note). In your examples the chord is the grace note, not the note that comes after the chord.

Ahh, makes sense.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bront20

Cool, nice insight.

What's a Grace note?

---

this song is full of Grace notes.