01
One arc, one voice
Every colored ball owns a pitch and an endpoint rhythm.
Motion becomes musicPolyrhythm
Polyrhythm
balls.
Every ball keeps its own time. Listen as separate loops collide, drift apart, and suddenly snap into one beat.
Hear the patternVoices
10
Notes played
0
Next unison
24.0s
Phrases
0
How it feelsSeparate clocks.
Separate clocks.
One destination.
Each arc completes a different whole number of strikes inside the shared phrase, guaranteeing a real synchronized ending.
02
Almost together
Tiny timing differences weave taps and dings into a living pattern.
03
Perfect unison
Every loop resolves on the shared phrase boundary—watch for the flash.
How Polyrhythm Balls Visual Instrument
actually works.
Polyrhythm Balls maps several whole-number cycles onto visible arcs and pitched strikes. The parts sound separate during the phrase, then meet again at a shared boundary.
Written by WeSimSims · Last meaningfully updated August 30, 2026
How to use it
- 1Enable sound and start the phrase.
- 2Follow one colored ball and listen for its endpoint strike.
- 3Watch the other cycles drift around it and identify the final unison.
What the model demonstrates
Each ball completes a different integer number of trips during one common phrase duration. Because the cycle counts share the same phrase boundary, their final endpoint events align mathematically.
Controls that matter
- Playback
- Starts, pauses, or restarts the synchronized phrase.
- Sound
- Enables synthesized pitches associated with the visible cycles.
- Export
- Records motion and generated audio together when the browser supports it.
Experiments to try
- Follow the slowest cycle without watching the others.
- Count one color's strikes before the shared ending.
- Listen once without watching, then watch silently and compare the perceived grouping.
How to read an outcome
The middle of the phrase feels irregular because endpoint events interleave. The ending resolves because all cycles were defined over the same total duration.
Limitations and accessibility
Browser scheduling and audio hardware can introduce tiny playback differences. This is a visual instrument, not a precision metronome or music-theory assessment.
Animations may include rapid motion, flashes, synthesized sound, and dense particle effects. Pause playback, mute sound, or reduce graphics quality whenever needed.
Frequently asked questions
Is the final unison accidental?
No. Whole-number cycle counts are fitted to one shared phrase duration.
Is the audio prerecorded?
No. The tones are synthesized in the browser from simulation events.