Free time (music)

Free time is a type of Musical meter free from musical time & time signature. It is used when a piece of music has no discernible beat. Instead, the rhythm is intuitive and free-flowing. There are five ways in which a piece is indicated to be in free time:

# There is simply no time signature displayed. This is common in old vocal music such as Gaelic psalms.
# There is no time signature but the direction 'Free time' is written above the stave.
# There is a time signature (usually 4/4) and the direction 'Free time' written above.
# The word FREE is written downwards across the stave. This is mostly used when the piece changes to free time after having had a time signature.
# Instead of a time signature, a large X is written on the stave.

Examples of musical genres based around free time include Free improvisation, Free jazz & Noise music. Examples of music written in free time include Igor Stravinsky's Rite of Spring, Erik Satie's Gnossienne No. 1 and Kaikhosru Sorabji's Opus Clavicembalisticum. In modern rock, the song "Hunting Bears" by Radiohead on the album "Amnesiac" is in free time.