The beat
Rhythm is how music is organised in time. Under almost every piece there is a steady beat: the pulse you tap your foot to. Notes are named by how long they last compared with the beat, so every rhythm is just notes of different lengths laid along the beat.
Note values
With a quarter note counting as one beat, each note value is half as long as the one before it:
| Note | Rest | Name | Beats |
|---|---|---|---|
| whole | 4 | ||
| half | 2 | ||
| quarter | 1 | ||
| eighth | ½ | ||
| sixteenth | ¼ |
A rest is silence of the same length. Every note value has a matching rest.
Dots and ties
A dot after a note adds half of that note's length. A dotted half note is 2 + 1 = 3 beats; a dotted quarter is 1 + ½ = 1½ beats. A tie joins two notes of the same pitch into one longer sound, often across a bar line.
Dotted half (3), quarter (1), dotted quarter (1½), eighth (½), half (2).
Bars and time signatures
The beat is grouped into bars (measures), divided by vertical bar lines. The time signature at the start says how: the top number is how many beats in a bar, the bottom number says which note gets one beat (4 = quarter note, 8 = eighth note, 2 = half note).
Strong and weak beats
The first beat of the bar is the strongest. In 4/4 the third beat is the next strongest: STRONG weak medium weak. This pattern of stress is what makes a waltz feel different from a march.
Simple and compound time
In simple time (2/4, 3/4, 4/4) every beat splits into two: count "1 and 2 and". In compound time (6/8, 9/8, 12/8) the beat is a dotted note that splits into three: count "1 la li, 2 la li". 6/8 has six eighth notes in a bar, but you feel only two beats.
6/8: two beats of three eighths, then two dotted quarters.
How to practise
- Warm-up: whole to eighth notes and 2/4, 3/4, 4/4. Tap the beat while you read.
- Working set: sixteenth and dotted notes, rests, 6/8 and cut time.
- Heavy lift: 9/8, 12/8, 5/4 and 7/8, and syncopated rhythms to hear.
Count out loud and clap along with the listening questions. Rhythm sits alongside pitch: see reading music on the staff, and the training plan for the order to learn it in.
Frequently asked questions
What is a time signature?
Two numbers at the start of a piece. The top number says how many beats are in each bar; the bottom number says which note value counts as one beat. In 3/4 there are three beats per bar and a quarter note gets one beat.
What is the difference between 3/4 and 6/8?
Both have six eighth notes' worth of music in a bar in 6/8 and three quarter notes in 3/4, but they are felt differently. 3/4 counts three beats that each split in two (1 2 3). 6/8 is compound time: two beats that each split in three (1 la li 2 la li).
What does a dot after a note do?
It adds half of the note's own length. A dotted half note lasts 3 beats (2 + 1), a dotted quarter lasts 1½ (1 + ½), and a dotted eighth lasts ¾.
How many beats is each note?
With a quarter note as one beat: whole note 4, half note 2, quarter note 1, eighth note ½, sixteenth note ¼. Each is half the one before.
What is a rest?
A beat or more of silence. Every note value has a rest of the same length, so a quarter rest lasts exactly as long as a quarter note.
What does 4/4 "common time" mean?
It is another name for 4/4, four quarter-note beats per bar. It is often written as a bold letter C. A C with a vertical line through it is cut time (2/2).
What is the difference between simple and compound time?
In simple time each beat divides into two (2/4, 3/4, 4/4). In compound time each beat divides into three (6/8, 9/8, 12/8) and the beat is a dotted note.
What is a tie?
A curved line joining two notes of the same pitch into one longer sound. It lets a note cross a bar line or make a length that has no single symbol.