How to read and write rhythm notation

Rhythm notation answers two questions for every note: when does it start, and how long does it last. Everything below is a convention for answering those clearly.

Note values and rests

Each note value is half the length of the one before it. In 4/4 the quarter note gets the beat, so a whole note fills the bar, a half note two beats, a quarter one beat, an eighth half a beat and a sixteenth a quarter of a beat. Every note value has a matching rest of the same length.

Value	Beats in 4/4	Fit in one bar of 4/4
Whole	4	1
Half	2	2
Quarter	1	4
Eighth	½	8
Sixteenth	¼	16

Whole, half, quarter, eighth and sixteenth notes, one bar eachTap it

Dots and ties

A dot adds half of the note's own value: a dotted quarter lasts one and a half beats, a dotted half three. A tie joins two notes into one sound, and it is how you write a length that no single note can show, or a note that carries across a barline or the middle of a 4/4 bar.

Dotted quarter + eighth, dotted half, and ties across the beatTap it

Engravers prefer notes that show where beat 3 falls in 4/4. A half note starting on beat 2 is usually written as two tied quarters, because it hides the middle of the bar. Claptoscore follows this rule.

Beaming shows the beat

Eighths and shorter are joined by beams, and the beams are grouped by beat, so the eye can find each beat without counting. Four sixteenths make one beamed group in 4/4; three eighths make one group in 6/8.

Common sixteenth-note figures, each beamed within its beatTap it

Triplets

A triplet squeezes three notes into the time of two. Eighth-note triplets divide one beat into three equal parts instead of two, the feel of a shuffle or a waltz inside a single beat. They are marked with a 3 over the group.

Eighth-note triplets, and the long-short triplet swing figureTap it

Syncopation

Syncopation puts a note's start off the beat and lets it ring through the next beat. The notation makes the hidden beat visible with a tie, rather than using one long note that would obscure where the beat falls.

Eighth–quarter–eighth figures and a tie over beat 3Tap it

3/4 versus 6/8

Both meters hold six eighth notes, but they are felt differently. 3/4 is three beats, each divided in two. 6/8 is two beats, each divided in three, so its beat is a dotted quarter. That is why 6/8 eighths are beamed in threes.

3/4: three beats of two eighthsTap it in 3/4

6/8: two beats of three eighthsTap it in 6/8

Writing down a rhythm you hear

Rhythmic dictation gets easier in three passes. First find the beat and tap it until it is steady. Then decide the meter by finding the strong beat: count how many beats go by before it comes back. Finally, work beat by beat: for each beat, ask whether it holds one note, two, three or four, and write that figure down before moving on.

Claptoscore does these passes for you: tap the tempo, choose the meter, tap the rhythm, and it writes the result using the conventions on this page. Compare its answer with your own transcription to check your ear.

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