Isorhythm – Color and Talea

Isorhythm is a compositional technique in which a rhythmic pattern (talea) and a melodic pattern (color) repeat — but not necessarily in sync. It was mainly used in Medieval music, especially in 14th-century motets.

The talea and color can be of different lengths, causing them to overlap in shifting ways as the piece progresses. The color is often longer than the talea and is reused multiple times, while the talea repeats independently of the melodic material. Eventually, the full cycle resets when both the color and talea complete and align again.

I used this technique, along with some personal ideas, to express the hidden routine cycles in our lives. This piece was written for strings and piano. Here, I’m sharing only the piano section (slightly modified) to illustrate the use of isorhythm. “Life as a Routine” is the title track from the EP Life as a Routine.

First isorhythm in 6/4:

• Color: Ab – G – Bb – Ab – G – Ab – G – E – F (9 notes), it starts in soprano line then moves into tenor line
• Talea: crotchet – minim – minim – crotchet rest – 4 beats, repeats 3 times in one repeating cycle

 

Second isorhythm in 6/4:

• Color: Eb – Db – F – A – Bb – Gb – Db – C- Bb (9 notes), it stays in tenor line (bar 13)
• Talea: crotchet rest – minim – minim – crotchet, reversed of the first talea

 

The accompanying video starts from the middle of the piece to get to the point more quickly, intentionally skipping the original slow build-up. Full version audio is the next one.

 

 

 

 

Life as a Routine – Full Version: