APPENDIX
© E-mu Systems, Inc. 1985
Page 89
Enhanced by The Emulator Archive 2002 www.emulatorarchive.com
APPENDIX C: UNDERSTANDING TIME SIGNATURES
A time signature (also called metric signature) describes the meter of a piece of
music. It consists of two numbers arranged like a fraction, such as 3/4, 4/4, etc. The
top number (numerator) indicates the number of’ beats in each measure, while the
bottom number (denominator) indicates the rhythmic value of each beat. For
example, with a 3/4
time signature the numerator indicates that there are three notes
per measure, while the denominator indicates that each of these notes is a quarter
note. 4/4 indicates that each measure includes four-quarter notes. Usually the
downbeat (first beat) of each measure is emphasized by a metronome to help you
get a feel for the meter.
3/4 and 4/4 are the most common time signatures, but they are by no means the only
ones. In jazz, both 5/4 (where each measure has five 1/4 notes) and 7/4 (where each
measure has seven 1/4 notes) are often used. In practice, complex time signatures
are played like a combination of simpler time signatures; for example, some 7/14
compositions would have you count each measure not as “1, 2, 3, 4,5, 6, 7” but as “1,
2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3”. It’s often easier for musicians to think of 7/I4 as one bar of 4/4 and
one bar of 3/4, since as we mentioned, 4/4 and 3/4 are extremely common time
signatures.