Beats and the Division of the Beat

Let's start with the prelude 🎵

Do you ever wonder why music feels so cool? It's all about the beat! In this lesson, we're going to dive deep into the world of rhythm. We'll learn how to identify the main pulse of a song and break it down into smaller parts. Think of it like learning the heartbeat of music. By the end, you'll be able to create your own rhythmic patterns and understand the building blocks of any song. Let's get started! 🎶

Understanding the Beat

A beat is the fundamental pulse or unit of rhythm in music. It's the regular, recurring pattern of sound and silence that forms the foundation of a musical piece. A beat is a simple, steady rhythm that can be felt and counted, providing a consistent framework for musical expression. Listen to this brief example and try to “feel” the driving beat or pulse in the music:

So, how many beats did you hear? Listen again and try to pick out 16 main beats. There were a lot more than only 16 notes there. In addition to the main beats, there were also more notes that made up subdivisions of each beat. We will talk about that a bit more later in the lesson.

Now let’s review the different note values that were introduced in the previous module.

Remember that different notes have different values or lengths, and 4/4 or common time means that there are four beats per measure and the 1/4 or quarter note gets one beat. Here again are the different types of notes and how much of the measure they take up.

View the full text from the image above.

Musical notes with corresponding beats: whole note (4 beats), half note (2 beats), quarter note (1 beat), eighth note (1/2 beat), sixteenth note (1/4 beat), thirty-second note (1/8 beat), sixty-fourth note (1/16 beat).

The duration of notes follows a mathematical pattern. Two half notes equal a whole note, two quarter notes equal a half note, and so on. This chart shows how smaller notes can combine to equal the same duration as larger notes.

Binary tree diagram with nodes branching symmetrically, each level doubling the number of nodes.

Now that we have reviewed the note values, let’s take a look at different ways you can combine notes to make up the beats.

Sheet music with treble clef, notes, and rests on a five-line staff.

In 4/4 or common time, there are four beats in each measure. Note that composers group together notes within the same beat with horizontal beams for clarity. Two eighth notes equal one beat, and four sixteenth notes equal one beat. Notice that the number of beams used when grouping notes together is the same as how many flags are on the note by itself. An eighth note has one flag, so two eighth notes are grouped together with a single beam. Sixteenth notes have a double flag, so they convert to a double beam when grouped together. Sometimes the notes are mixed to make a complete beat, like two sixteenth notes and an eighth note or a sixteenth note-eighth note-sixteenth note pattern.

Annotated diagram of musical notation showing parts of a note and a beam connecting eighth notes.

Whenever you notate two or more notes with flags in the same beat, the flags are replaced with a beam. In general, this is to clarify which notes belong to a particular beat. The chart below shows how the flagged notes look grouped together under a beam.

Conversion of musical notes from flags to beams for eighth, sixteenth, thirty-second, and sixty-fourth notes.

👏 Encore! Bravo! Wrap-up

In conclusion, we've explored the fundamental concept of the beat in music. We’ve learned how to identify the main pulse of a song and understand how it can be divided into smaller units, such as eighth notes and sixteenth notes. By understanding the beat and its divisions, we've laid a strong foundation for understanding rhythm and musical notation. We've also learned how to create simple rhythmic patterns using different note values and read and interpret basic rhythm patterns in music. With this knowledge, you're well-equipped to continue your musical journey and delve deeper into the world of rhythm and composition.

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