Time signatures are used to define the meter or rhythmic feel of a piece of music. They indicate how many beats are in each measure and which note value receives the beat. The top number tells how many beats per measure, while the bottom number denotes the note value that receives one beat. Common time, represented as 4/4, is the most standard time signature, with four quarter note beats per measure. Other examples include 3/4, 2/4, 2/2 or cut time, and 6/8. Understanding time signatures allows musicians to properly play and interpret the rhythmic feel of a composition.

1. Time Signature
1 2 & 3 & 1 2 3 1 2 & 3 & 1 2 3

2. Time vs Pitch
● We deal with music based on time (x axis)
● And we deal with music based on pitch (y axis)
Pitch
Time

3. Time
● Where we divide time into various units of
measurement (hours, minutes, seconds), so we
divide music into beats. You can think of the beat
as the 'pulse' of the music. To measure time, we
can set the “tempo”

4. Time
● In this example, the beat is a quarter note and =
60 bpm
● 60 is how many times a quarter note happens in
a minute (beats per minute)

5. Rhythmic Feeling
● Different music has different feeling
● A waltz feels different than a rock song

6. Rhythmic Feeling
● That feeling comes from the way the beat is
counted
● A waltz is in 3, rock is typically in 4

7. Common Time
● The most standard measurement is 4 beats with
the quarter note receiving the pulse
● We call this “Common Time”
● OR 4/4

8. Common Time
● Time Signatures always have two pieces of
information: How Many Beats Per Measure? And
What Note Gets The Beat?
● The top note is the beats per measure
● The bottom note represents what note gets the
beat

9. Note Values
● 1 = Whole Note
● 2 = Half Note
● 4 = Quarter Note
● 8 = Eighth Note

10. Different Time Signatures
● 4/4
● 3/4
● 2/4

11. Different Time Signatures
● 2/2 also called
“cut time”
● 6/8

12. Applying the knowledge
● So, if you see an irregular time signature:
● How many beats per measure?
● What note gets the beat?