Questions tagged [beats]
For questions about the underlying pulse of a musical piece. Do not use for questions about rhythm patterns and instead use the rhythm tag.
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How far can a beat be broken down?
I am thinking about making a software beat machine, and wondering how I can make the timeline adapt to where you start off with 4/4, then you realize you want to have 8th notes, then 16th notes, then ...
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What does "gets the beat" mean?
When learning music theory, I keep hearing the terminology of, for example, a quarter note in a piece of music in 4/4 time "getting the beat". What exactly does this mean?
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Second-to-last measure (m. 33) of Chopin Op 9 No 2
The second-to-last measure of Chopin's Op.9 No.2 has two voices(?). The very first double note (G-Eb2) on right hand, how do you tell which is that "other voice" and which one goes with the ...
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Where did the term backbeat come from?
In most modern music in 4/4 beats 2 and 4 are where the snare hits are and are usually referred to as the backbeat. Normally in 4/4 the 2 and 4 beat would not be accented, but the snare hits do just ...
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Did the music of the common practice period always end with a full measure?
If there are pieces which end with an incomplete measure, then what would be some examples? And is there a term for an incomplete measure at the end? Something that would be the opposite of anacrusis.
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Is there an error in this measure? (beat count in Simplified Mendelssohn Op. 19 No. 1)
I got this arrangement for beginner piano solo from free-scores website. It has two voices. As you see the time signature is "C"=4/4. In Measure 27 bass clef, one voice is a whole C note, ...
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How to play this chord?
This is a simplified version of Schumann's Träumerei (Op.15 no.7) , toward the end. How to play the left hand chord pointed to by the red arrow? How does it differ from just the original version ...
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Piano oscillation on a single string
Why is that when the hammer hits only one string on the piano, there is an oscillation and not a solid note throughout. I hear it like a wave of sound, not an absolute pitch. It doesn’t happen on ...
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Correct way to play Mozart K331 Trio Measure 11?
I just started to learn the Trio movement of Mozart's K331. It sounds really nice but is the hardest movement of this piece for me. (By the way, why are the Menuetto and the Trio often counted ...
Dom♦
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In these measures of Mozart K331, should the hand without grace notes start with the grace notes or the main notes by the other hand?
See image: Is the orange or the green time correspondence the correct way to play? (Does the hand without grace notes begin to play at the same time as the grace notes, or the main notes, by the other ...
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Am I hearing overtones or beats? is it normal to hear them?
I started learning piano not so long ago and there is something that's confusing me a lot: when I play some notes at the same time (chords or two notes) sometimes I hear a second higher vibrating ...
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How do the notes on the treble and bass staves here correspond to each other? (Mozart K331 Mvmt 1 Var. V Measure 100)
In this measure 100 of the Variation V of Mozart's K.331, I'm trying to get it right which note on the treble staff is played at the same moment as which note on the bass staff. In the image I drew ...
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Where do metrical accents come from?
I'm still trying to wrap my head around time signatures, but I think I'm stuck on where these metrical accents come from. For example, in 4/4, we say the main beats are Strong-Weak-Less Strong-Weak.
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Is there a name for the first beat in a piece (not including the anacrusis)?
I am looking for a specific, distinct name for the first beat in the first bar. The anacrusis or pickup measure should not be considered.
Context
This is for a label in a software for playback-based ...
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Help with note grouping in 6/4 time
I'm currently preparing music for a rehearsal and recording session, and I want my charts to be easy and clear to read without any problems.
I have a tune in 6/4 and am a little unsure of what looks ...
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Can I still use the staff notes that exceed the number of beats?
May I ask if the measure has a certain number of beats, can I still use notes in that measure that exceed the number of beats?
Look at the picture below:
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Question about beats and their inheritance of accents on the rhythm
I see that I've created a lot of confusion with my original question, so I have decided to send the author of "How to read Music in 30 Days, English 2022 Ed." a detailed question that should ...
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Out of phase with pulse
It is moderately easy for me to match the tempo of the pulse of music with my movement (e.g. clapping, instrument, dance). However, I find it immensely difficult to lock into phase of that pulse. What ...
Dom♦
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Confusion about BPM and time signature [duplicate]
First of all, is the beat in BPM based on the quarter note or the fundamental beat of each time signature?
For example, if it's 3/2 time and it's 80 BPM, does the half note go in 80 times in a minute?
...
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What's that mystery beat that's present in Spanish and Middle Eastern music? [closed]
Believe it or not, I've been trying to find the name of this specific beat since I was 7 or 8 years old. Here are some examples of it:
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What time signature has 3 out of 8 beats accented?
It's been a very long time since I've done musical theory but I know this rhythm is quite common, especially in dance and even some punk/metal.
So, some songs have 4 beats to a bar but it has 2 ...
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How do "dotted-crotchet = one beat" teachers address "irregular compound" meters (e.g., 5/8)?
"Ordinary" Compound Meter
I was taught that 6/8 time, for example, meant "six beats in a measure; the eighth note (quaver) gets one beat." Similarly, 9/8 would be "nine beats ...
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On-beats vs off-beats in guitar
Below is my definition of on-beats and off-beats in the context of guitar playing.
On-Beat
In a 4/4 time signature, beats 1,2,3,4 are on-beats.
If we were to use the 1 E & A counting system to ...
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Bottom number on a time signature [duplicate]
My understanding of the bottom number in a time signature is that this is how many beats there are in a whole note. So if the bottom number is 4, a whole note gets 4 beats. If the bottom number is 2 a ...
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Why can't velocity information be extracted from this kick drum loop?
I wanted to apply the groove of a downloaded kick drum loop to my own kick sound. The plan was to convert the loop’s audio, which happened to be in stereo, to MIDI and then simply hot swap the ...
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How can I make my DAW songs really groove? [closed]
For context: I make rock music in Ableton, and I use Ableton’s Drum Rack to quickly program drum beats (for reference, think “Heart of Glass” by Blondie or “Little Red Corvette" and "When ...
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Origin of the Backbeat
I've heard a lot on the origin of the backbeat. Some say it came from African voodoo and others say from the Middle East. Where did it actually come from?
Also, people say it was expressly made for ...
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Drumming: Where do backbeats/snares go in 2/2 time
In the vast majority of modern popular 4/4 music involving drum kits (jazz, hip hop, rock, country, etc.) the snare hits (or equivalent 'pat' noise) occur on the backbeats (2 and 4). Of course, like ...
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Can we give each weak beat a weak degree from strong and weak beats notation?
I've seen the strong and weak beats written S-W-s-w in 4/4 time. This means strongest - weak - strong - the weakest. The distinction between the strengths of weak beats seems to be characteristic of ...
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How do I interpret note lengths in this song? [duplicate]
I've only just recently begun learning the basics of time signatures and counting beats, and I'm having trouble applying what I've learned to real sheet music. Consider the second measure in this ...
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Gnossiennes and Free Time
I'm looking at Erik Satie's Gnossiennes, specifically Nos. 1-3, but for simplicity let's just consider Gnossienne No. 1.
Most editions (see IMSLP) are engraved without a time signature nor with any ...
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Can someone help me find this audio? [closed]
I found this really cool song but I’m unable to find it anywhere and Shazam is giving me the wrong result. I was hoping someone may recognize it. This is the link to the video since it’s on Instagram: ...
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How are beats divided in simple/compound/odd meters supposed to sound different?
This is a question somewhat difficult to explain, in music theory it is said that simple, compound and odd meters subdivide into beats that are grouped into 2s for simple, 3s for compound and 2s 3s or ...
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What is the connection between time-signature, beat, and tempo?
What is the connection between time-signature, beat, and tempo? Mainly time-signature and tempo. Tempo is beats-per-minute I know, but does the time-signature affect it?
For example, in a 120bpm tempo,...
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How to annotate staff with beat numbers in Lilypond?
I would like to annotate a RhythmicStaff with Beat Numbers - as in the following picture:
Perhaps, one could use the '_' character after a note to add numbers connected to a note at the beginning of ...
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At what BPM (Beats per Minute; quarter note = beat) will we hear the top note as F4?
My question comes from MUS 204: At what BPM (Beats per Minute; quarter note = beat) will we hear the top note as F4?
Now, I understand this polyrhythm would generate a perfect fourth when sped up to ...
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can someone explain me how many beats in my notation in the photo?
I'm confused about notation in my music sheet for my training classical guitar, in this photo there are 2 beats notation (orange circle) but the time signature is 3/4, can someone explain me how many ...
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What this is, and how can it be put into Sibelius?
If you look at the bass staff, there is one more 16th note than there should be on a 4/4 time signature. Can someone explain this to me? And what is the number of top of the barline?
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Common Time Question
I am composing a second species counterpoint in 4/4. The cantus firmus is on the bottom and consists of all quarter notes. The melody I have to compose will consist of all eighth notes.
My question is ...
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Do you play the upbeat when beginning to play a series of notes, and then after?
Do you play an upbeat like this when beginning the song, and then also at the end?
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Is it necessary to include the anacrusis?
I am putting the Psalms to the music of popular hymns using a software called MuseScore. I noticed that many hymns start with an anacrusis and then divide the measure at the end of the line, so that ...
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Why is the ''backbeat'' called the ''rock beat''?
The basic rock beat is 4/4, so you count 1-2-3-4. And to create the rock rhythm, you have to place the emphasis on the off-beats, which 2 and 4. So it goes like this: one, TWO, three,
FOUR. At least ...
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BPM, beat durations vs frequency
I understand that 60 BPM means 60 Beats Per Minute.
And if the "BPM beat note" is a quarter note, it means a quarter note has the duration of 1 second (each quarter note should be held 1 ...
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How should I count beats while playing alternating bass on piano?
While playing alternating bass is it improper to count the I and V as eighth notes, i.e. (I-strum-V-strum-I-strum-V-strum) where the strum would be the 'and' of the beat? Would this be incorrect ...
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What are common / usual timings for music
I'm a programmer and I'm developing some software for use in combination with music. Part of the software will include a sequencer that can show / start certain tasks that match the music's tempo.
I ...
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what difference beat value makes in time signature [duplicate]
I am trying to understand the intuition behind the time signature. My confusion is as below :
My first confusion was why in general every metronome beat is considered a quarter beat, but what I ...
Dom♦
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I am trying to learn Good Riddance by Green Day. Im not sure what BPM to play this at?
the sheet music I have says the BPM = 172 with a 4/4 time (which seems very fast for this song) but when i pull up sheet music online you see 94 bpm in one but 172 bpm in another...I have seen this in ...
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what is a beat histogram and how is it different from spectrograms?
I am learning about audio signals for analytical purposes. I came across beat histograms and spectrograms. I understand that a spectrogram is all about frequency and time but I am confused about beat ...
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slow drum beats over fast sub beats
I'm looking for the definition of a drum beat where the main beat is slow, about 70 bpm, but the sub beat is about 3 times faster. What is the official name/style of that playing?
for example ...
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Why is alternating kick and snare so common in beats?
I've been messing with finger drumming with midi controllers, and one thing I've noticed time after time is how prevalent alternating kick/snare. Especially Kick on Beats 1 and 3, and Snare on Beats 2 ...
