Lesson 01 The pulse and the quarter note
- Introduction
- 4/4
- 60 bpm
- 4 bars
- 16 claps
- New: quarter note; 4/4 time
Before you start
The pulse is the steady beat of music, like a clock. In 4/4 time each bar has 4 beats and the quarter note (♩, black notehead with a stem) lasts 1 beat. In this exercise you clap once on every beat: 1, 2, 3, 4.
How to play it
- Count-in: the site counts 1 bar before starting ("1 2 3 4"). Clap the first note on beat 1 of bar 1.
- Reading: read the line on the yellow strip and look ahead to the next one: that's how you read ahead.
How to practice
- Say the count out loud, without clapping, looking at the Bar by bar table.
- In Together mode, count and clap at the same time as the character.
- In Your turn mode, clap on your own. If it's hard, slow down and then come back.
Bar by bar
Bold = clap · (n) = don't clap, the sound keeps going (hands together) · [n] = rest, hands open.
| Bar | Notes | Count |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 quarter notes | 1 2 3 4 |
| 2 | 4 quarter notes | 1 2 3 4 |
| 3 | 4 quarter notes | 1 2 3 4 |
| 4 | 4 quarter notes | 1 2 3 4 |
Notes used: quarter note.