English Rhythm and Blues

Patrice Larroque hypothesizes that early blues singers may have been influenced by the trochaic rhythm of English. This book suggests investigating the rhythm of English and the rhythm of blues in order to show how the linguistic rhythm of a culture can be reflected in the rhythm of its music.

Patrice Larroque is Professor of English Linguistics and Translation Studies, Université Jean Jaurès, Toulouse, France.

Introduction   Part 1: Linguistic Rythm  Chapter 1: In the beginning is the word   Chapter 2: The Rhythm of English   Chapter 3:  The music of English   Part 2: Blues Music Chapter 1: Origins and definition   Chapter 2: The composition of blues   Chapter3: Restoring the rhythm   Chapter 4: The language in relation to blues music   General conclusion: Linguistic and musical evolution   References