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Angle brackets in mini-notation advance one element per cycle, not per step

The <> brackets in mini-notation step through their contents once per cycle rather than fitting them all into one cycle. "" is monophonic: it plays c on the first cycle, e on the second, g on the third, then repeats — not all three within a single cycle (which square brackets or a space would do). This is how you get a value that changes each bar. Reading <> as a within-cycle sequence is a common source of unexpected rhythm. The grammar is shared by Tidal and Strudel.

Examples

"" // c on cycle 1, e on cycle 2, g on cycle 3 (one per cycle) “[c e g]” // all three within one cycle (a fast arpeggio)

Assessment

How many notes sound per cycle from "", and how does it differ from “[c e g]”?

“`<>` advances once per cycle**, not per step. `"<c e g>"` is monophonic across three cycles.”
context/ · L1-instruments/tidal/gotchas.md · chunk 1