Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 2: Counting the Rhythm
• Part 2 of 2: Learn Time Signature

While professional musicians are capable of memorizing music by ear, most beginners need to learn how to read music. Understanding the principles of music reading is also important for dancers and can captivate the heart of the casual listener. First, you need to learn how to count the musical rhythm or know how long to hold or play each note. It is also important to know what a time signature is. This article describes the standard principles for reading music using the 4/4 time signature.

Steps

Part 1 of 2: Counting the Rhythm

1. 1 The concept of tact. The music is divided into bars, indicated by vertical bars. Notes in music are named according to how long they take in a measure. Think of a measure as a pie that can be cut into quarters, halves, eight pieces, or a combination of different notes.
2. 2 Learn basic musical notation. Note names carry information about how much of a measure they occupy. For a complete understanding, you must know the elementary meaning of "shares". A whole note will take up the entire measure, half notes will take up half a measure.
   • Quarter notes take up 1/4 of a measure.
   • Eighth notes take up 1/8 of a measure.
   • Sixteenth notes take up 1/16 of a measure.
   • Notes can be combined to create one whole, for example, one half note and two quarter notes last one full measure.
3. 3 Try to keep the rhythm. If the rhythm is monotonous, try hitting it with your heel and counting to four several times: 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4. Speed ​​is not as important here as keeping the same gap between each hit. A metronome can be helpful in maintaining an even rhythm.
   • Each complete 1-2-3-4 counting cycle is equal to one clock cycle.
4. 4 Try counting the length of the base notes. Say or sing "la" while continuing to count the rhythm to yourself. The whole note will take up the entire measure, so start singing the la note on the first beat and hold it until you reach the fourth. You just sang a whole note.
   • Two half notes make up a full measure. Sing a la for beats 1-2, and then a new la for beats 3-4.
   • Four quarter notes make up a full measure. Sing a la for each beat you hit.
5. 5 For smaller notes, add syllables. For eighth notes, you need to divide the measure into eight equal segments, although you will only continue to hit four beats per measure. Add an “and” conjunction between each beat: “1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and”. Practice until you get it right.Each word is responsible for 1/8 of a note.
   • Use a similar principle for counting sixteenth notes. You will need to fit sixteen sounds in one measure and beat them evenly. One popular way to do this is by repeating "1-and-a-2-e-and-a-3-e-and-a-4-e-and-a." Remember to keep the number fractions exactly the same.
   • The same principle can be applied to smaller notes, but since these notes appear quite rarely, it is not necessary for a beginner to learn them.
6. 6 Point value. Sometimes in music, a small dot is put right after the notes. It means that the length of the note should be increased by 50%.
   • A half note usually takes two beats, with a dot it increases to three beats.
   • A quarter note without a dot takes up one beat, and a quarter note takes 1 1/2 beats.
7. 7 Practice playing triplets. Triplets denote a group of three notes that lasts one beat. It is quite problematic to perform them, since all the studied notes had equal beats before. Pronouncing syllables will help you master triplets.
   • Try to hit the triplets by saying "1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th".
   • Remember to keep the number beats consistent by using the metronome or kicks.
8. 8 Do it your way. Fermata is a musical notation that looks like a dot with an arc above the note. According to this symbol, you have the right to stretch the note as much as you like, regardless of the musical rules.
   • If you are in an ensemble, then the duration of the note is determined by the conductor.
   • If you are performing solo, determine the best length in advance.
   • Listen to a recording of your playing if you are not sure how long to hold a note. This will give an insight into the decision of other artists, which will help you choose the best sound.

Part 2 of 2: Learn Time Signature

1. 1 Determine the time signature. In the upper left corner of the musical notation, you will see several musical notations. The first character is called the "clef", which usually depends on the instrument on which the piece is played. Then there can be sharp or flat. But after them you should see two numbers arranged in a column. This is the time signature.
   • In the first part of this article, we used the 4/4 size, which is indicated by two fours standing on top of each other.
2. 2 The value of each number in time signature. The upper number indicates the number of beats per measure, and the lower number indicates the relative length. Most often, 4 is indicated in the denominator, setting the duration of the beats equal to the quarter note.
   • In a 4/4 time signature, the top note indicates that there are four beats in the measure, and the bottom note indicates that each beat is equal in length to a quarter note.
   • In the 2/4 meter, there are two beats per measure, but you still use the quarter note as the beat. Thus, instead of counting 1-2-3-4, it is necessary to count 1-2, 1-2 at the same pace.
3. 3 Practice waltz. Music with a 3/4 time signature consists of three quarter notes per measure. The waltz has invariably been danced to this rhythm, so if you find a song playing a waltz, you will be able to hear this system more clearly. As you listen, try counting "1-2-3" to yourself.
   • The song "Christmas Waltz" has a characteristic waltz rhythm and also contains the lines "and this song of mine / in three-quarter time" to indicate the rhythm.
4. 4 Consider the less common time signatures. The upper number always indicates the number of beats in a measure, and the lower number always determines their length. If the number 8 is at the bottom, then it is necessary to count the eighth notes. If the number 2 is at the bottom, then you need to count the half notes.
   • The 6/8 beat is similar to the waltz in that the beats are grouped in threes, but there are twice as many. Beats 1 and 4 should be emphasized: ONE-two-three-FOUR-five-six. The first beat should be the strongest.
   • The 3/2 time signature means that you need to count three and a half notes in one measure. One half note replaces two quarter notes.Try to evenly count to six, focusing on the odd numbers: ONE-two-THREE-four-FIVE-six, ONE-two-THREE-four-FIVE-six. By underlining odd numbers, you indicate the beginning of each half note. By counting out even numbers, you maintain a measured pace.
5. 5 Practice counting notes while listening to music. Time signature gives different types of music a characteristic rhythmic sound. For example, composers often write 2/4 marches to make the walk more distinct - 1-2, 1-2.
   • Pop, country and other music aimed at a wide audience usually has a 2 or 4 time signature because people prefer to beat the beat to the music. Selecting a simple time signature allows a wider audience to enjoy your music.
   • Jazz and other modern music often seems incoherent due to non-standard time signatures such as 13/8, 5/4 and other uneven divisions. They are quite difficult to count, but by doing so, you can understand how time signature affects the overall perception of music.