Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Free 6-Level Game Music Composer Roadmap (zero to game-ready tracks, plus an optional "get paid" level): bestmusiccoach.com/roadmap?htrafficsource=yt&el=use-syncopation-to-add-real-tension-to-your-rhythms
Tension and resolution in rhythm for video game music can often come from the difference between there being syncopation and no syncopation. And it's not the only way to create tension and resolution, but it is one. And how do we create syncopation? Well, syncopation at a fundamental level is a break in the expected pattern of the music. So to create syncopation, we can put emphasis on notes that start on weaker beats or beat divisions or beat subdivisions. Dotted notes in simple meter will oftentimes create a situation where we can have a note then land on an and, or being the offbeat, or we can start the dotted note on an offbeat. Ties that move emphasis to weaker beats or beat divisions or beat subdivisions. Rests that move emphasis to weaker beats, beat divisions, or beat subdivisions. And sometimes even accents and articulation marks that move emphasis to weaker beats or beat divisions or beat subdivisions. Now, what type of notes can be syncopated? Well, I'll give you an example. Let's say you're playing a piece of music where you're playing any note at the beat unit level, at the beat division level, beat subdivision level, and above the beat unit level. So a beat unit in 4/4 would be a quarter note because the quarter note gets the beat. That's going to be the beat unit. And then a half note would be 2x the beat unit. A dotted half note would be a whole note. That would be 4x. And those are a couple ways to create syncopation. Why do we want syncopation in our tool belts? Because that's how we're going to actually be able to create contrast. No, contrast creates emotion. Always, always, always, if you want music that's going to hit emotionally, there needs to be contrast. Now that contrast can happen within the piece of music or it can happen between pieces of music, right? So you can have one piece of music that's really hard hitting and another piece of music that's really soft and floaty and just piano and has some nice minor plagal cadences. And that is going to create contrast at the piece level. But you could also create contrast within a piece. You could also create contrast within a section. You could also create contrast within a subphrase and within a motif. So these ideas of contrast can scale up and down. All this is off of page 85 of my new book, Compose Legendary Video Game Music. It's out on Amazon. You can buy your copy now.
Free 6-Level Game Music Composer Roadmap (zero to game-ready tracks, plus an optional "get paid" level): bestmusiccoach.com/roadmap?htrafficsource=yt&el=use-syncopation-to-add-real-tension-to-your-rhythms
Tension and resolution in rhythm for video game music can often come from the difference between there being syncopation and no syncopation. And it's not the only way to create tension and resolution, but it is one. And how do we create syncopation? Well, syncopation at a fundamental level is a break in the expected pattern of the music. So to create syncopation, we can put emphasis on notes that start on weaker beats or beat divisions or beat subdivisions. Dotted notes in simple meter will oftentimes create a situation where we can have a note then land on an and, or being the offbeat, or we can start the dotted note on an offbeat. Ties that move emphasis to weaker beats or beat divisions or beat subdivisions. Rests that move emphasis to weaker beats, beat divisions, or beat subdivisions. And sometimes even accents and articulation marks that move emphasis to weaker beats or beat divisions or beat subdivisions. Now, what type of notes can be syncopated? Well, I'll give you an example. Let's say you're playing a piece of music where you're playing any note at the beat unit level, at the beat division level, beat subdivision level, and above the beat unit level. So a beat unit in 4/4 would be a quarter note because the quarter note gets the beat. That's going to be the beat unit. And then a half note would be 2x the beat unit. A dotted half note would be a whole note. That would be 4x. And those are a couple ways to create syncopation. Why do we want syncopation in our tool belts? Because that's how we're going to actually be able to create contrast. No, contrast creates emotion. Always, always, always, if you want music that's going to hit emotionally, there needs to be contrast. Now that contrast can happen within the piece of music or it can happen between pieces of music, right? So you can have one piece of music that's really hard hitting and another piece of music that's really soft and floaty and just piano and has some nice minor plagal cadences. And that is going to create contrast at the piece level. But you could also create contrast within a piece. You could also create contrast within a section. You could also create contrast within a subphrase and within a motif. So these ideas of contrast can scale up and down. All this is off of page 85 of my new book, Compose Legendary Video Game Music. It's out on Amazon. You can buy your copy now.
