Metronome Marks

[Flavia]

Hello Friends!!!

Can anyone help me regarding the FAQs of the Metronome Marks. I m learning to play through John Thompsons Course and I have a difficulty which bothers me.

Besides the Rhythm specifying the tempo eg Moderato etc the tempo count for Crotchet is given as 60 then again besides the Three Beat sometimes the count is 50 or 54. now making a few searches i come to know that this gives the BEATS PER MINUTE numbers. then in that case can anyone explain the method of counting from Crotchet to minim or the third beat also what it is called taking the numbers i have already given. and if there is some standard formula then how do 54 and 50 go along with 60. where in each case 60 is for crotchet and 50 and 54 for the three count.

also this is my first mail so i need a help to know that how to insert symbols of staff notation in the mail.

Thx  a lot.

[bernhard]

I must confess that I have no idea what you are talking about.

The metronome is simply a piece of apparatus that gives you a “beat”, that is some sort of noise (a “toc” in the older models and a “beep” in the new digital ones). The metronome number specifies how many “beats” per minute it will sound.

So if you set you metronome to “60”, it will give you 60 beats per minute. If you set it to a 120, it will give you 120 beats per minute. That is all.

Now, some pieces of music will specify the “tempo” (that is the speed) by attaching a metronome number to a note-value. For instance, crochet = 60. This means that a crochet must be played in a 1/60 of a minute (= 1 second). If your piece has a string of crochets, you set your metronome to 60, and each crochet must be played together with the beat.

The other note values are played in relation to the crochet. So a minim (which equals two crochets) must last for the duration of two beats. A quaver (which equals half the time of a crochet) takes likewise half the time of a beat, so that you have two quavers for every beat of the metronome. And so on and so forth.

I hope this helps, although I am not sure if this is what you are asking.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[Flavia]

Hello Bernard!!!!

Thank You Very Much  You have helped with the fundamentals so thanks.But yet let me be more specific.

 As you said if it is specified as Crochet = 60 then from that we can derive the length of Semibreve, Minim and Quaver as well. Now Two questions

1. Giving Crochet 1 count we get Semi breve = 4 counts, Minim = 2 counts, Quaver = 1\2 count so what is a 3 count one called?


2. If crochet is assigned 60 then for that whose sign is A DOT AFTER MINIM i.e the third count value note will get what value? I read two different ones, now how can that be possible that crochet being 60 yet the note gets the value of 54 one time and 50 second time?
If u wish u can check in John Thompson's Third grade book.

Finally Thanks again and to end with one more question How can I insert Staff Symbols here in Forum correspondence.

Bye!!!!

[Flavia]

OOppSSS

Sorry Its BERNHARD  I will not make silly mistake again!!!!

[allchopin]

For instance, crochet = 60. This means that a crochet must be played in a 1/60 of a second.

You mean in one second, or 1/60 of a minute..

what is a 3 count one called?

You must mean a triplet - the three notes are to be played in the same time that would be taken to play only two notes of similar value (ie, play them slightly faster).

[xvimbi]

Hello Bernard!!!!

Thank You Very Much  You have helped with the fundamentals so thanks.But yet let me be more specific.

 As you said if it is specified as Crochet = 60 then from that we can derive the length of Semibreve, Minim and Quaver as well. Now Two questions

1. Giving Crochet 1 count we get Semi breve = 4 counts, Minim = 2 counts, Quaver = 1\2 count so what is a 3 count one called?


2. If crochet is assigned 60 then for that whose sign is A DOT AFTER MINIM i.e the third count value note will get what value? I read two different ones, now how can that be possible that crochet being 60 yet the note gets the value of 54 one time and 50 second time?
If u wish u can check in John Thompson's Third grade book.

I believe there is a fundamental mis-understanding somewhere here.

I always confuse crochets, minims, etc., because I'm used to quarter notes, eigths, etc.. Using the latter nomenclature will tell you right away how many beats each note receives. In any case, the metronome marking has nothing to do with this. It specifies speed, but not the relative duration of individual notes.

Note durations are generally based on a binary system, i.e. they are divided by 2 (whole, half, quarter, eigths, etc.). This means the number of "counts" (as you say it) is even for these notes, except for the shortest note in the piece or measure, which usually gets 1 count. You get odd counts, such as three, if a note is dotted. Example: if you have a quarter note and you assign two counts to it, the note that receives three counts would be a dotted quarter note.

I hope I understood you correctly.

[galonia]

1. Giving Crochet 1 count we get Semi breve = 4 counts, Minim = 2 counts, Quaver = 1\2 count so what is a 3 count one called?

If a crotchet gets 1 count, then a minim gets 2 counts, and a dotted minim (a minim followed by a dot) gets 3 counts.

A dot after a note gets half the value of the note which it follows (e.g. a dotted quaver is worth 1/2 + half of 1/2 = 3/4 counts)

[bernhard]

I agree with what everyone said above - I have just seen their posts, so there will be some repetition below.

Allchopin is right: I mean 1/60 minute (= 1 second), not 1/60 second (I have corrected it in the original post.
 

1. Giving Crochet 1 count we get Semi breve = 4 counts, Minim = 2 counts, Quaver = 1\2 count so what is a 3 count one called?

There is no three count note value, because every note value doubles or halves the others. So if crochet = 1, minim = 2, semibreve = 4, quaver = ½, semiquaver = 1/8 and so on.

So, how can one write down a note value that equals 3 counts? There are a number of ways. The most used is to “dot” a note. The dot adds half the value of the note. So the minim = 2, a dotted minim will equal 3: dotted minim = value of the minim (2) + half the value of the minim (1). A final way is to use triplets, where for instance, a quaver triplet (consisting of three notes) equals the time of two normal quavers (consisting of two notes), as allchopin mentioned.

A dotted semibreve will value 6: dotted semibreve = value of the semibreve (4) + half the value of the semibreve (2)= 6.

Now, it is important to remember that all these values are relative. I am assuming that crochet = 1. But you can give to the crochet whatever number of beats you want, but then all the other note values must change accordingly.

But if crochet = 1, then a dotted minim = 3. Another way to get 3 beats is to “tie” a minim and a crochet. (or to tie three crochets).

A final way is to use triplets, where for instance, a quaver triplet (consisting of three notes) equals the time of two normal quavers (consisting of two notes), as allchopin mentioned.

There are rules for when to tie and when to dot, and they will depend on the time signature. If you want the details, I suggest you get a copy of

Eric Taylor – The AB guide to music theory (ABRSM).

2. If crochet is assigned 60 then for that whose sign is A DOT AFTER MINIM i.e the third count value note will get what value? I read two different ones, now how can that be possible that crochet being 60 yet the note gets the value of 54 one time and 50 second time?

As I said above, a dot adds half the value of the note to the time value of that note. So if you have a dotted minim with a tempo of crochet = 60, all it means is that you must hold the dotted minim for three beats of the metronome.

I am not sure what you mean by the note getting the value of 54 and 50. (unfortunately I do not have John Thompson’s book,but I will have a look at it on the library this weekend).

 How can I insert Staff Symbols here in Forum correspondence.

I don’t think you can. I think the only way is to scan (or create a  jpg/gif file of it using a notation program) and host it on a website like tinypicture, and then insert the URL in between the image command: [img ]https://URL[/img ].

Have a look here where this is explained in more detail:

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,5503.0.html

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[bernhard]

I always confuse crochets, minims, etc., because I'm used to quarter notes, eigths, etc.. Using the latter nomenclature will tell you right away how many beats each note receives. In any case, the metronome marking has nothing to do with this. It specifies speed, but not the relative duration of individual notes.

Indeed, the American system is far superior. Unfortunately the British insist on doing things their way (driving on the wrong side, for instance). Who knows, maybe European rules may overcome this as well (we are now on the decimal system thanks to the EU).

In any case:

semibreve = whole note
minim = 1/2 note
crochet= 1/4 note
quaver = 1/8 note
semiquaver = 1/16 note
demisemiquaver = 1/32 note
hemidemisemiquaver = 1/64 note (good word for hangman )

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[faulty_damper]

Don't forget the Hundred twenty-eighth note, 1/128 = quasihemidemisemiquaver

Great word for confusing the heck out of my music teachers.

"Two quasihemidemisemiquavers is equivolent to one hemidemisemtquaver, Professor D!"

[Flavia]

Thx to All!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have learned a lot and seem to b gaining a lot by joining this forum. Always I was Whimsical about the fundas but here is a way to get it clear. Thx a tonne frens.

And hope u find John Thompson's Book as well.

Bye!!!!

[bernhard]

Don't forget the Hundred twenty-eighth note, 1/128 = quasihemidemisemiquaver

Great word for confusing the heck out of my music teachers.

"Two quasihemidemisemiquavers is equivolent to one hemidemisemtquaver, Professor D!"

Also an excellent name for a dog (or pet hamster).