LEARNING HOW TO COUNT IN MUSIC
Every singer and pianist must know how to count in music; knowing when to start and stop in a song, it’s all about rhythms and timing. The time signature at the beginning of a song will tell you how to count. For instance, If the time signature is 4/4 (the two numbers are written like a fraction), you will count 1,2,3,4 repeatedly. The Waltz rhythm is 3/4 time signature and you would count 1,2,3 over and over. The time signature’s top number tells you how to count repeated in each measure.
One of the best ways to learn how to count is turning on your favorite songs and clapping to the beat. The song “Let It Be” by the Beatles has a 4/4 time signature. If you clap on the first beat and clap every time you hear the piano chord played, you can almost hear 1,2,3,4. Pull up the song on Youtube and try clapping to the song and see if you can stay on beat.
There are many musicians who have learned how to play by ear, but it’s important to try and learn how to read the music as well. Understanding how to count in music is important for dancers, as well as musicians. A part of reading music is having the ability to count it in each measure. Which means you need to know how long to hold a note in each measure. In 4/4 time, a whole note gets four counts, a half note gets two counts, a quarter note gets one count and an eighth note gets ½ a count. In the song “Let It Be” each chord you hear gets one count, there are a few eighth note chords which would make the count 1,2 & 3,4.
There is much more to this, but this is covering the some of the basics. So if you are a singer, pianist, drums, guitar or any other instrument, you need to learn how to count in music. Attached is Audrey Diaz singing “Let It Be,” the Beatles song in 4/4 time. See if you can clap along to the beat!
JOKE FOR THE DAY:
What raised the musician’s car insurance?
Accidentals!
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