A rhythmic pattern in music where three units of one rhythmic division occur in the time normally taken by two units of a different division.
From Greek hemi- (half) + ōlē (a pull or strain), describing the stretched or altered rhythmic tension created in musical composition.
This is the technical musical term that explains why a section suddenly feels 'off' in a way that's thrilling rather than wrong—it's the composer intentionally breaking the listener's rhythmic expectations.
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