Two families, one rule each
Two families, one rule each
Every common time signature belongs to one of two families. In the simple family (2/4, 3/4, 4/4) each beat splits in two; in the compound family (6/8, 9/8, 12/8) each beat splits in three. Within a family, the only difference is how many beats per bar. Turn rows on and off — every row runs at the same beat speed, on its own loop.
Tap ♪ on any rows. Accented clicks mark the beats; listen for twos against threes.
What to notice
The top number is not the beat count in compound time. 6/8 has six quavers but two beats — the beats are the accents, and each one carries three quavers. Read compound signatures as: top ÷ 3 beats per bar.
Family is feel. Play 3/4 against 6/8: same six quavers per bar, totally different pulse. Then play 4/4 against 12/8 \u2014 the same swap, four beats wide.