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The course consists of two parts of around 20 short lessons each, covering all the basics, from note names, scales and basic rhythms to chords.
Lessons can be done individually, in modules of just a few lessons at a time, or as a complete course. Most lessons only take around 10 minutes to read and, for lessons that include exercises, less than an hour to complete.
Music Theory De-mystified Free Basic Music Theory Course starts from scratch. It assumes nothing. The theory taught applies to all genres and styles: it is equally relevant to popular and classical music.
Hear it and see it for yourself!
There is an emphasis on listening and understanding. Lessons are amply illustrated with audio and diagrams as well as music notation.
No rules, just explanations. Descriptions are clear and concise and every major point is demonstrated: no need to take it on faith.
Lessons contain clear How-to sections complete with examples and exercises.
Lessons on scales, intervals, timing and rhythm include practical exercises designed to develop basic musicianship skills.
Music Theory De-mystified also contains various related posts including a growing series of tips and hacks as well as investigative articles about how music works.
Don’t discard those worn-out Christmas carols! While they’re still fresh, they make a great educational tool for children (and others) to learn intervals.
By associating a song you already know with an interval, you can immediately sing that interval.
Here’s an incomplete list of Christmas carols whose opening interval starts with various intervals.
Any other suggestions?
Minor 2nd ascending
I’m Dreaming Of A White Christmas
Minor 2nd descending
Joy To The World (the first line is a complete major scale descending)
Major 2nd ascending
Silent Night
Ding Dong Merrily On High
Major 2nd descending
Deck the halls
Minor 3rd ascending
Jingle Bells (chorus)
Major 3rd ascending
While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night
Perfect 4th ascending
We Wish You A Merry Christmas
Away In A Manger
12 Days of Christmas
Perfect 4th descending
O Come All Ye Faithful
Perfect 5th ascending
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
Major 6th ascending
The Holly And The Ivy
Octave ascending
The Christmas Song (chestnuts roasting on an open fire)
You can also learn to sing intervals by singing scales. For more, please visit:
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
This lesson contains a few exercises you can use to teach yourself how to recognise and sing individual notes within a major chord.
Note recognition within a chord is a very useful skill. It’s the basis of working out harmonies; in fact, of arranging in general. It’s also the starting point for solos/lead lines and improvisation.
The idea is to strip a chord down to its content; to sing each different note in the chord at an octave that’s well within your vocal range, starting with the lowest note of the chord.
Some major and minor chords contain notes played at more than one octave. If you stay within the comfortable part of your range and match these notes in your octave, you’ll end up with just 3 notes for each chord, all within 1 octave.
Once you can sing the content within 1 octave, you will be able to recognise one of the triad inversions you learnt at the beginning of this post.
The following exercises feature a major/minor chord played four times. The first and third times the notes are played together but the second and fourth times they are slightly arpeggiated: you can briefly hear the notes one after the other. If you have trouble hearing the individual notes within the chord, focus on the arpeggio to start with.
Method
Listen to each chord several times. In particular, listen for the lowest note.
As you listen, try to sing the lowest note of the chord at an octave that’s towards the lower end of your vocal range.
You want to sing a low note, but not one that’s too low to sing properly. If it’s too low, try an octave higher.
If you have trouble deciding which is the lowest note, listen to the “answer” a few times and then go back to the exercise. There is no such thing as cheating, just learning 😊. You can find the answers at the end of this post.
Once you’ve found the lowest note, sing up the scale until you find the next match.
Continue once more to find the third note of the triad. Once you’ve found 3 different notes, any higher notes should match one of the notes you’ve found (if not, it’s not a plain major or minor chord).
The notes are played as an arpeggiated triad in the “answers” at the end of this post.
Example
Listen to the chord and follow the above steps:
You should end up singing something like bar 2 below.
The first bar shows the chord, the second bar shows the content as a triad built on a singable octave of the lower note.
You can check how you went by singing along to the movie. Keep singing bar 2 while you hear the repeat of bar 1.
Try These…
Major Chords
Minor Chords
Mixed
Can you tell whether the chord is major or minor?
Note: Depending on your musical life experience, you may find some of these exercises difficult. Take your time. Just do a little each day and you’ll soon master them. In the meantime, you can continue with the rest of this course.
How To Tell Which Note Is The Root Note
If you can sing the notes in triad order from the lowest note up, listen for the interval of a perfect 4th as you sing.
The upper note of a perfect 4th is the root note.
In root position there is no perfect 4th. The lowest note in the triad is the root note.
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date with new posts, please subscribe.
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
How To Sing A Major Triad
To get started, sing a major scale with the chord notes long and strong and the notes in between quick and quiet.
The scale notes between the notes of the triad are called passing notes. Gradually weaken the passing notes until you’re just singing the chord notes as a triad in root position.
Inversions Of Major Triads
Now practise singing major triads in each inversion. As you sing, try to hear and feel the root note when you sing it. To help, you can accent the root note slightly as you sing.
The examples below include passing notes in the first bar, as a listening cue. Sing the second bar while you listen to the first bar.
Root position
1st inversion
2nd inversion
Once you’re familiar with these, try them in different keys (starting on different notes).
A Quick Way To Find the Root Note of a Major or Minor Triad
In 1st and 2nd inversion there is a perfect 4th between two of the notes. The root note is the higher of these two notes.
If there is no perfect 4th the triad is in root position (the root note is the lowest note of the triad).
Minor Triads
Now let’s learn minor triads. Here are three methods you can choose from:
Sing a natural minor scale as above, emphasising the triad notes.
The melodic minor ascending might be easier to sing than the natural minor. Since we’re only after the 1st, 3rd and 5th notes, it’s your choice: sing the minor you’re most familiar with.
For both methods, gradually weaken the passing notes until you’re just singing the triad.
You can skip the minor scale altogether and go straight for the triad. The only difference between a major and a minor triad is the 3rd, which is flattened compared to the major 3rd (1 semitone lower than the major 3rd).
Whichever method you use, once you can sing the triad in root position, practice singing each inversion.
The examples below include the passing notes in the first bar, as a listening cue. Sing the second bar while you listen to the first bar.
Root position
For 1st and 2nd inversion I have included passing notes for both natural and melodic minor. Choose your preference.
Ist inversion
2nd inversion
Once you’re familiar with these, try them in different keys.
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date with new posts, please subscribe.
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
In B8. Time Signatures 2: Compound Time we saw that we can regularly divide a beat into thirds and sixths by using a time signature in compound time. But what if we just wanted the occasional beat in thirds while the rest of the piece contains half and quarter beats?
Triplets
In simple time, we can divide an individual beat into thirds by using triplets, in this case triplet quavers.
Triplets are indicated with a triplet sign; the number 3 written outside the beam.
In terms of duration,
1 crotchet = 2 normal quavers = 3 triplet quavers
It’s not just crotchets that can be divided into triplets: any standard note value (excluding dotted notes) can. If the note value is too long to use beams, a square bracket is used to indicate the grouping.
In general terms, 3 triplets of any note value are the same total length as two normal notes of that value. They equal one of the next longer note value.
Other Combinations
Any rhythm based on dividing a note into thirds rather than halves can be used within the triplet group, such as a triplet crotchet plus a triplet quaver or a series of triplet semiquavers.
Any rhythm in compound time can be written as triplet groups in simple time.
Note that because a triplet crotchet-quaver group has no beam, a square bracket is used to allow us to see where the beats are.
Sometimes square brackets are written over beamed triplets as well.
How To Play Triplets
When you first try to tap or play triplets in simple time, it’s often hard to keep them even.
The most common mistake is to play the first and second quavers too fast and the last one too slow, resulting in 2 semiquavers and a quaver. This has quite a different character.
Practise these rhythms made up of triplet groups. If you find them difficult, slow the tempo down.
Rewrite the rhythms in 12/8 (tip: each triplet is equal to 1 beat of compound time).
Answers at the end of this post.
Swapping Between Quavers And Triplets
Before being able to freely swap between quavers and triplets,
Practise each rhythm separately to a metronome at a medium-slow tempo, say around 80bpm.
Once you feel fully settled, try 4 beats of each, then 2.
Eventually you will be able to alternate at will.
The trick to learning rhythms is repetition. Play each rhythm till you can do it instinctively.
Any rhythm, even a simple one, needs to be so familiar that you can remember it by its character or feel, rather than having to figure it out from scratch every time you play it.
Avoiding Clutter
Triplet signs, especially those with brackets, make the music look unusually cluttered. This is fine for the odd triplet in the midst of normal note values but these common groupings could easily be the main rhythm of the piece. Imagine a whole piece written in triplets!
Pieces which predominantly use triplets are either written in compound time or by using a shortcut which we’ll look at in the next lesson.
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date with new posts, please subscribe.
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
Note: There are a number of exercises in this lesson, so it may take a little longer to complete. Take as long as you need… You can the first few rhythms now and come back to the harder ones later.
One-Beat Rhythmic Modules
Below are some simple 1-beat rhythms in compound time, written as individual bars of 3/8. Tap, clap or play along with these until you are familiar with them and can play them by yourself.
Although not indicated in the part, each rhythm is played 4 times.
Once you’re comfortable with these exercises at a quaver beat of 180 bpm, try counting every bar of 3/8 as a single, dotted crotchet beat at 60 bpm.
From there, you can continue to increase the tempo, counting dotted crotchet beats.
Practice Tip: Beats are easier to feel if you emphasise notes which are on the beat by playing an accent. Accenting the beats will help transition from playing with a metronome to without.
These rhythms can be combined to form complete bars of 6/8, 9/8, 12/8 etc. You can make up your own combinations. There are a few common examples at the end of this post.
Rhythms with semiquavers
Any quaver in the above rhythms can be substituted by a pair of semiquavers. In the following rhythms, look at pairs of semiquavers as halves of a beat, “1 and”.
Note: As you continue to increase the tempo, the semiquavers become too fast to be able to say the word “and”. Hopefully, by then you can feel them without having to count aloud.
The above are by no means every possible combination involving semiquavers. However, these are the most common; familiarity with these rhythms will make it easier to learn new ones.
Syncopation
Below are three common syncopated rhythms within a beat in compound time. Again, they are written as individual bars of 3/8.
Each rhythm is preceded by a similar rhythm which you have already learnt in the previous exercises. To create the syncopation, simply hold the dotted quaver (or quaver in the last example) through the first of the pair of semiquavers in the previous bar, as indicated by the counting lyrics.
Bars Of One-Beat Modules
Each of the above rhythms in 3/8 amount to a single beat in compound time. They (and other 3/8 rhythms not listed here) can be combined to form rhythms of 1, 2 or more bars.
Below are a few common 1-bar rhythms for you to practice. Rather than having to learn the whole bar as a new rhythm, look for the individual 1-beat rhythms you have already learnt then join them together.
As recommended earlier, if you have any difficulty counting dotted crotchet beats, start by counting each beat as a bar of 3 quaver beats.
Try These…
Answers at the end of this post.
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date with new posts, please subscribe.
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
The standard note values make it easy to to indicate lengths of half or quarter of a beat. This suits some rhythms but not all. Many others are based on dividing a beat into thirds.
Dividing A Beat Into Thirds
Rhythms based on 1/3 beat subdivisions have a slightly more lelaxed feel compared to semiquavers; they sound a little less intense…
That’s not to say that these rhythms can’t be powerful and driving!
*
Compound Time
So how can we divide a beat into thirds of a beat when the standard note value symbols are based on halves?
We do this by using a symbol for 1 beat which naturally has 1/3 beat subdivisions, the dotted crotchet.
A dotted crotchet is the same length as 3 quavers.
In simple time we count beats and half beats as ”1-and 2-and” etc.
In compound time we count ”1-and-a 2-and-a” etc.
Time Signatures With A Dotted Crotchet Beat
To make a beat which naturally divides into thirds, we want the dotted crotchet, not the crotchet, to be the symbol for 1 beat. So how do we distill this into a fraction name?
A dotted crotchet = a crotchet + a quaver. As a fraction, that’s 1/4 + 1/8 = 3/8. The dotted crotchet is a 3/8 note.
Time signatures are written as the number of beats in a bar x the note value for 1 beat.
A bar of 2 dotted crotchet beats is 2 x 3/8 = 6/8
A bar of 3 dotted crotchet beats is 3 x 3/8 = 9/8
A bar of 4 dotted crotchet beats is 4 x 3/8 = 12/8
And so on…
Review: Time Signatures In Simple Time
Time signatures are fractions. In simple time, the upper note, the numerator, represents the number of beats in a bar and the lower note, the denominator, represents the name of the note value which represents 1 beat.
Split up, a time signature in simple time looks like this:
3/4 = 3 x 1/4 note (crotchet) beats per bar
Other note values can also be used to represent 1 beat. For example,
4/8 = 4 x 1/8 note (quaver) beats per bar 2/2 = 2 x 1/2 note (minim) beats per bar
Reserved Time Signatures
When we see a time signature like 6/8 we would normally assume that there are 6 beats in the bar, each of which is a quaver (1/8 note). However, 6/8 and higher multiples of 3/8 (not 3/8 itself) are reserved for music which requires a dotted crotchet beat.
These time signatures aren’t what they appear to be; they need to be broken down to be understood. Appropriately, they are collectively known as compound time.
It takes a little while to get used to reading music in compound time. We’re so used to seeing a crotchet as 1 beat that it’s hard not to think of a dotted crotchet as 1 1/2 beats…
The trick for reading compound time is to think of each dotted crotchet as a fast bar of 3. More on this later…
Hierarchy Of Compound Time
Bars have strong and weak beats. This is true for both simple and compound time. The only difference is whether a beat naturally divides into halves or thirds.
Below are the hierarchies of strong and weak points in 6/8, 9/8 and 12/8.
How To Read And Play Compound Time
In simple time, we can make a piece easier to learn by slowing it to half the tempo and counting every half-beat as a beat. For a reminder, please visit 3. Beats, Tempo and Timing.
In compound time, the same method would have us slow down to 1/3 of the tempo so each quaver can be counted as a beat. Practically, we don’t need to slow down quite so much, but the principle is the same.
Think of each dotted crotchet grouping as a miniature bar of 3 quaver beats, a bar of 3/8. Three beats per bar at a fast tempo is familiar to many as a waltz. If you know what a fast waltz feels like, you’re well on the way… if not, practice each dotted crotchet’s worth of notes as a separate bar of 3 until you feel the rhythm.
Once you can feel character of each beat of 3/8 as a simple 3-beat rhythm, you can start to speed up the tempo a bit until each bar of 3/8 feels like a beat in the overall time signature.
For example,
Zoom in a little. Think of each beat as a bar of 3.
It may look more familiar if we rewrite it as 3/4. Simply double each note value.
If you’re familiar with simple rhythms in 3/4, you’ll be able to play them at the tempo of a fast waltz.
Tap, clap or play along:
3/8 has the same beat structure as 3/4, it just looks different. Just count quavers as beats instead of crotchets…
Once you’re used to the character, increase the tempo until it’s quite fast, say 180 bpm.
As you speed up, you’ll start to feel each group of 3/8 as a single beat.
Once you feel the character of the whole rhythm, you can increase the tempo further if needed.
In the next lesson we will look at some common rhythms in compound time.
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date with new posts, please subscribe.
* Audio extract from Another Hopeless Situation by Erik Kowarski
This post is one of a growing series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
A time signature has an inherent hierarchy of strong and weak points within the bar. Syncopation is the emphasis of weak parts of the time signature. This introduces a dynamic interaction between the time signature’s implied rhythm and the rhythm of the part; a sense of going “against the grain”.
The Back Beat
The simplest form of syncopation is to emphasise the weak beats instead of the strong beats. The classic example of this can be found in many popular music genres since the advent of rock & roll; the snare drum playing the “back beat”, emphasising beats 2 and 4 in a 4-beat bar.
A similar effect can be achieved on any instrument by accenting the weak beats. Below is an example of a quaver rhythm, first with accents on the strong beats, then on the weak beats.
Tap, clap or play along to the following rhythms:
Playing Off The Beat
The back beat is only syncopation in the broadest sense. The term syncopation typically refers to emphasising weak parts within the beat a rather than just the weak beats.
The most common example of syncopation within the beat is to emphasise the 2nd quaver of each beat, the “off-beats” or “and”s, instead of the beat itself.
The following example of a bar of quavers uses accents, first to emphasise each beat, then to emphasise each off-beat quaver. Listen to the rhythms then tap, clap or play along:
Listen again and this time, only tap on the accented notes.
Syncopation adds excitement to a rhythm. Even in rhythms which are largely on the beat, the odd syncopated moment adds life to a part.
In the drum rhythm below, there is a brief syncopation is in the second half of bars 2 and 4.
Ways To Syncopate
Syncopation can be achieved in 2 ways:
by emphasising a note or notes on a weak part of the bar as above, with an accent.
by de-emphasising a strong part of the bar, in particular by not playing a note there at all. This can be because there’s a rest or because the previous note is still sounding.
Note that when clapping or tapping, there is no audible difference between these two bars.
Zooming In
Syncopation doesn’t just refer to emphasising the off-beat quavers. A more aggressive version would be to syncopate by a semiquaver.
A couple of the rhythms we learnt in 20. How To Read Rhythms 1 had semiquaver syncopation within the beat, by not playing a note on the “and”, the 2nd quaver. We can see now why these felt harder to learn than the others… Here’s an example of a bar with these two rhythms. Tap or play along:
Once you’ve experienced it, syncopation feels quite “natural”. In many popular genres, singers seldom sing exactly on the beat, even if that’s how the melody is written. Instead, they instinctively apply a degree of syncopation so the melody doesn’t sound too rigid. Rhythmic players rely on syncopation to add dynamics and drive.
Learning To Syncopate
Like many rhythms, syncopation is best learnt initially using a metronome. The secret to being able to syncopate is to feel the beat – to know where the beat (or strong beat) is, and then to know what relationship your note has to the beat.
Some musicians find it easy to tap the beat with their foot while playing. If this works for you, then by all means tap instead of using a metronome. However, many find it awkward to tap on the beat while playing off the beat, especially when first learning a new rhythm.
Foot Tapping Tip: In simple time, use the action of lifting your toes between taps to represent the half-beats; the “and”s.
If the rhythm seems tricky, remember to slow down the tempo and zoom in, as discussed in 20. How To Read Rhythms 1.
Ultimately, once you know a rhythm well enough to be able to feel it, you will no longer need the metronome. Metronomes can become quite annoying over time(!) so it’s worth weaning yourself off it as soon as you can feel the rhythm properly.
Mixed rhythms
Many parts, rhythmic as well as melodic, have a degree of variation in their rhythm, often achieved by brief syncopations in between overall on-beat rhythms.
Try These…
Play the movies below and tap the rhythms with your hand on a bench top, or if you prefer, clap. Listen carefully to the metronome click so you remain aware of the beat…
Once you’ve learnt each rhythm, play it to a metronome at 60 bpm without the movie. Gradually increase the tempo to 100 bpm or more. You can play along to the following movies of the rhythms at 100 bpm to see how you went.
Being able to tap the beats with your foot while playing is a useful skill. Practice tapping the beats with your foot, together with the metronome, while playing or tapping/clapping the above rhythms with your hands. As you settle in, stop the metronome and try it by yourself.
Notation Tip
Rhythms are usually notated so that it’s clear to see where the beats are. For shorter notes, this is indicated by beaming. For longer notes, the note is split into shorter notes and joined by a tie (see 21. Note Values 2: Ties).
When crotchets fall halfway between beats, on the “and”s, they can be written as crotchets: it’s such a common occurrence that most musicians, once they see a crotchet after a single quaver or quaver rest, are familiar with this shortcut.
However, crotchets which are a semiquaver off the beat must be split and tied to show where the beats are, otherwise the music is too hard to follow.
In the correct example above we can see that the next note starts just after each beat. The position of each beat is clearly shown by the beaming.
If you found this post helpful, please feel welcome to like, share or leave a comment. If you have any questions, leave them as a comment and I’ll respond as soon as I can. To stay up to date wth new posts, please subscribe.
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
This post is one of a 2-part series of free basic music theory lessons on my blog, musictheoryde-mystified.com. You can see the complete list here. Please feel welcome to make a comment or ask a question.
If you can’t wait to get to the exercises, click here. Otherwise, first some background.
Simple Time
Simple time refers to time signatures where the upper number = the number of beats in a bar and the lower number represents the note value for 1 beat. For example:
3/2 = 3 beats per bar, where each beat is a 1/2 note (minim)
5/4 = 5 beats per bar, where each beat is a 1/4 note (crotchet)
4/8 = 4 beats per bar, where each beat is a 1/8 note (quaver)
3/16 = 3 beats per bar, where each beat is a 1/16 note (semiquaver)
Why can so many note values represent 1 beat?
This is a subject for a future post but in essence, it allows the composer to influence the look of the written page. Just as we have different ways of explaining something, a composer can present musical information in a number of ways.
X/4
By far the most frequently used time signatures in simple time are X/4, where 1 beat is represented by a crotchet (quarter note), such as 2/4, 3/4, 4/4 etc.
In simple time it’s easy to divide a beat into halves and quarters using standard note values. If a crotchet = 1 beat, then a quaver = 1/2 beat and a semiquaver = 1/4 beat.
When there are several notes with tails in succession (quavers, semiquavers etc.) their tails are beamed (joined) together.
Notes are beamed in groups of one beat (quavers can also be beamed in groups of 2 beats), with the first note in the group being on the beat. This makes it easy to see where the beats are in a bunch of short notes.
(Sib Graphic of 2 bars of 4/4 mixed rhythms)
Resolution
Music is a human experience. Our ability to count steadily roughly matches the range of human heart rates, about 40 to 200 bpm.
At a tempo slower than about 40 bpm we can’t feel the continuity between beats and it becomes hard to keep the beats at an even tempo.
For really slow tempi we can effectively double the resolution by doubling the counting speed; by counting the “and”s, the second half of each beat. The more frequent counts allow us to keep track of the timing.
On the other hand, at a tempo faster than about 200 bpm it’s hard to feel each beat. We just can’t keep up… We’re tempted to just count the strong beats so we can count more slowly.
In both cases, when the tempo is outside a comfortable counting speed, we can adjust the resolution by changing what we count as 1 beat.
The Zoom Factor
When practising a tricky piece of music, the first step is to slow the tempo right down so we have a chance to learn the notes.
However, some pieces don’t just have a fast tempo; the beats are divided into really short notes, 1/4 of a beat or even shorter. Even at a slow tempo, the actual notes can still be really fast…
The solution is to count the “and”s; to count a half beat as if it’s a beat. By counting twice as often, we can slow the tempo down to half without it feeling too slow to count. For more on this, please visit 3. Beats, Tempo and Timing.
I liken this to zooming in.
When zoomed in, fast rhythms are much easier to learn. Instead of having to divide a beat into quarters, you only need to divide into halves.
For example:
How To Learn A Fast Or Tricky Rhythm
Zoom in and count every half-beat as a beat at a slow tempo.
Gradually speed it up until it’s fast enough to zoom out.
Without changing the playing speed, count half as often, so you’re counting the actual beats.
Gradually build up to the final tempo of the piece.
The Percussion Clef
The exercises that follow use a percussive sound (a snare drum). Drums and percussion have their own clef, where the lines and spaces represent different percussion instruments rather than note pitches. (Cymbals and some other percussion instruments also use differently shaped noteheads).
Common 1-Beat Rhythms In X/4
In X/4, a beat can be made up of a combination of quavers and semiquavers. In principle, we can go even further, into demisemiquavers (1/8 of a beat) or more, but that’s quite advanced.
There aren’t many ways to divide a beat into halves and quarters. These rhythms make a small enough list to learn as presets. In the example below I have written each beat as a bar of 1/4.
Even at 60 bpm, some of these rhythms sound quite tricky at first glance. They are much easier to learn if we zoom in.
Clap, Tap, Sing or Play
You can practise rhythms anywhere, by tapping on a tabletop, clapping or singing a simple syllable like “da”, “do”, “la” etc.
You can also play your instrument. Note that on keyboards and some melodic instruments it’s easier to play fast by alternating between 2 or 3 note pitches than to repeat a single note rapidly. Adapt the exercises accordingly…
Try These…
The following exercises have a metronome click to keep track of the beats. In the first group the rhythms are zoomed in so we count each quaver as a beat and each semiquaver as half a beat.
Each bar is played 4 times. The text “play 4 times” above the repeat signs has been left out to save space.
Make sure that you count at a steady tempo when practising. Tap or play each rhythm a number of times before trying at a faster tempo.
Emphasise the first note of every beat a little, especially if practising without a metronome. This helps you to feel the beats.
The first three rhythms are pretty straightforward at a moderately slow tempo when zoomed in…
NOTE: If you’re having trouble getting started…
Zoom in twice and count each semiquaver as a beat. A quaver is 2 beats long, a dotted quaver = 3 beats and a crotchet = 4 beats: no dividing required.
Gradually increase the tempo, then zoom out to quaver beats and continue with the following steps.
Practise each of these rhythms until you can feel them effortlessly. Start at a slow tempo and gradually work up to at least 120 bpm.
Once they’re at 120 bpm, count half as often without changing how fast you play the notes. Now we’re counting crotchet beats at 60 bpm!
This should sound the same as the previous step…
From here, we can gradually increase the tempo depending on the piece. I recommend practising until at least 100 bpm. Try to absorb the character of each rhythm as you practise.
As you become more familiar with each rhythm, leave out the “and”s.
Now let’s look at the other rhythms, one at a time. Follow the same steps as for the first three rhythms.
Bar 4
Bar 4 is probably easier after playing bar 2 first. Again, we’ll start by counting quavers as beats, at a moderate tempo. Feel the quavers, then add in the 2nd semiquaver.
Gradually increase the tempo until it’s at 120 bpm.
Now count crotchets at 60 bpm (it should sound the same as before).
Gradually increase the tempo (examples below at 80 bpm and 100 bpm).
Bar 5
Bar 5 is probably easier after playing bar 3 first. Feel all the semiquavers, then leave out the last one.
Note: It’s easy to get bars 4 and 5 mixed up. The difference is more obvious if you emphasise the first note of the bar.
Gradually increase the tempo until it’s at 120 bpm.
Now count crotchets at 60 bpm (it should sound the same as before).
Gradually increase the tempo (examples below at 80 bpm and 100 bpm).
Bar 6
Bar 6 is one of the harder rhythms because there is no note on the 2nd beat. Listen for the 2nd beat before playing the last note.
Gradually increase the tempo until it’s at 120 bpm.
Now count crotchets at 60 bpm (it should sound the same as before).
Gradually increase the tempo (examples below at 80 bpm and 100 bpm).
Bar 7
To play bar 7, hold the first note until after you’ve heard the 2nd beat. Listen for the 2nd beat before playing the last note.
Gradually increase the tempo until it’s at 120 bpm.
Now count crotchets at 60 bpm (it should sound the same as before).
Gradually increase the tempo (examples below at 80 bpm and 100 bpm).
Bar 8
To play bar 8, play the first 2 notes quickly then hold the 2nd note all the way to the end of the bar.
Gradually increase the tempo until it’s at 120 bpm.
Now count crotchets at 60 bpm (it should sound the same as before).
Gradually increase the tempo (examples below at 80 bpm and 100 bpm).
Rhythmic Presets
Practise tapping or playing each one-beat rhythm until you can recognise it at a glance. When you see a bar with a seemingly complex rhythm you can break it down beat by beat into familiar presets.
Can you recognise the one-beat rhythms in the following short melody? Tap or clap along if you can…
Notating Rhythms
Once you can recognise the character of each rhythm, you will become familiar with how it looks on a stave.
Bear in mind that tails and beams depend on the direction of the note stems. In a pitched part, some groups may appear upside down as in the above melody.
Try These…
The following audio files are each made up of a 1-beat rhythm played 8 times.
Tap or count the beats so you can feel the tempo as you listen to each audio file.
Once you feel the tempo, listen to the rhythm and clap, tap, sing or play the rhythm.
Identify which rhythm you’re hearing/playing.
Notate each rhythm as a series of correctly beamed note values (since the pitch doesn’t matter, you can use blank paper instead of manuscript if you like).
Answers at the end of this post.
Reading Rhythms
Long notes are relatively easy to read – we can just count a number of beats while holding the note. Short notes are a bit harder because we have to divide a beat into smaller values such as 1/2 or 1/4 of a beat.
This is where rhythmic presets come in. Rather than having to learn a longer rhythm from scratch, look for one-beat presets within the music so you can recall the rhythms you’ve already learnt.
Rhythm Practice
A great way to practise rhythms is to combine it with your scales practice.
Choose a one-beat rhythm and repeat it on each scale note.
Over time, build up the tempo.
Each day, play a different scale with a different rhythm.
Another good exercise is to write out a bar of 2/4, 3/4 or 4/4 made up of a combination of 1-beat rhythms, then learn to tap or play the whole bar as a larger rhythm. For example:
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