What characteristic do all compound meters share?
-Compound meters have beats that are divided into three equal parts
Describe top and bottom numbers of time signatures
-Top number shows the number of divisions in a measure
-Bottom number shows the rhythmic value of divisions
What does duple, triple, quadruple, etc. describe?
-It shows how many beats are in a measure
Beaming
-It shows the beat
Be careful with blanket statements and giving beginners too much information
Perception
-Tempo can affect how you hear meter
-Simple triple can sound like compound single at a faster tempo
Meters that divide the beat into three equal parts are compound meters.
When combined with simple meters, there are six types of standard meter in Western music:
In a time signature, the top number (and the top number only!) describes the type of meter. Following are the top numbers that always correspond to each type of meter:
In compound meters, the bottom number of the time signature corresponds to the type of note corresponding to a single division of the beat. If a compound meter is notated such that each dotted-quarter note corresponds to a beat, the eighth note is the division of the beat, and thus the bottom number of the time signature is 8. If a compound meter is notated such that each dotted-half note corresponds to a beat, the quarter note is the division of the beat, and thus the bottom number of the time signature is 4. Note that because the beat is divided into three in a compound meter, the beat is always three times as long as the division note, and the beat is always dotted.
"Shiver," Radiohead
Strong Quartet No. 17 in B-flat Major, K. 458, "The Hunt," Movement I., Wolfgang A. Mozart
"The Tourist," Radiohead
Sonata No. 42 in G Major, Hob. XVI:27, Movement II., Joseph Haydn
"Exogenesis: Symphony Part 3," Muse
Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp Minor, Op. 27, No. 2, "Moonlight," Movement I., Ludwig van Beethoven
St. Matthew Passion, No. 1, Chorus, "Kommt, ihr Töchter, helft mir klagen," J.S. Bach