In
musicMusic is an art form whose medium is sound. Common elements of music are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
,
compound meter,
compound metre, or
compound time (
chiefly British variation), is a
time signatureThe time signature is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats are in each measure and which note value constitutes one beat....
or meter in which each
measureIn musical notation, a bar is a segment of time defined as a given number of beats of a given duration. The word measure is heard more frequently in the U.S., while bar is used in other English-speaking countries, although musicians generally understand both usages...
is divided into three or more parts, or two uneven parts (as opposed to two even parts, called
simple metreIn music, simple metre or simple time is a time signature or metre in which each beat divides naturally into two equal parts, as opposed to three, which is compound metre....
), calling for the
measuresIn musical notation, a bar is a segment of time defined as a given number of beats of a given duration. The word measure is heard more frequently in the U.S., while bar is used in other English-speaking countries, although musicians generally understand both usages...
to be played with principal and subordinate metric
accentsIn music, an accent is an emphasis placed on a particular note,either as a result of its context or specifically indicated by an accent mark.Accents contribute to the articulation and prosody of a performance of a musical phrase....
(the latter called
subaccents), causing the sensation of
beatsThe beat is the basic time unit of music, the pulse of the mensural level, also known as the beat level. However, since the term is in popular use, it often connotes the tempo of a piece or a particular sequence of individual beats, the meter, rhythm or groove...
. In Western music, the predominant form of compound meter is the division into three parts, often preferring to reduce a higher number of parts to written time signature changes, but more parts are possible, and frequently used, for example, in Balkan music; some examples are given in the article
Bulgarian dancesBulgarian folk dances are intimately related to the music of Bulgaria.A distinctive feature of Balkan folk music is the asymmetrical meters, built up around various combinations of 'quick' and 'slow' beats; as for the music, in Western musical notation, this is often described usingcompound meter...
.
Examples of compound meter:
- 6/8 divided into two equal parts, also called compound duple meter, i.e., a primary accent on the first 1/8 note, a subordinate accent on the fourth 1/8 note, and the rest of the 1/8 notes may have accents subordinate to that.
- 9/8 divided into three parts, also called compound triple meter, i.e., a primary accent on the first 1/8 note, subordinate accents on the fourth and seventh 1/8 notes, and the rest of the 1/8 notes may have accents subordinate to that.
- 12/8 divided into four equal parts, also called compound quadruple meter.
In
musicMusic is an art form whose medium is sound. Common elements of music are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
,
compound meter,
compound metre, or
compound time (
chiefly British variation), is a
time signatureThe time signature is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats are in each measure and which note value constitutes one beat....
or meter in which each
measureIn musical notation, a bar is a segment of time defined as a given number of beats of a given duration. The word measure is heard more frequently in the U.S., while bar is used in other English-speaking countries, although musicians generally understand both usages...
is divided into three or more parts, or two uneven parts (as opposed to two even parts, called
simple metreIn music, simple metre or simple time is a time signature or metre in which each beat divides naturally into two equal parts, as opposed to three, which is compound metre....
), calling for the
measuresIn musical notation, a bar is a segment of time defined as a given number of beats of a given duration. The word measure is heard more frequently in the U.S., while bar is used in other English-speaking countries, although musicians generally understand both usages...
to be played with principal and subordinate metric
accentsIn music, an accent is an emphasis placed on a particular note,either as a result of its context or specifically indicated by an accent mark.Accents contribute to the articulation and prosody of a performance of a musical phrase....
(the latter called
subaccents), causing the sensation of
beatsThe beat is the basic time unit of music, the pulse of the mensural level, also known as the beat level. However, since the term is in popular use, it often connotes the tempo of a piece or a particular sequence of individual beats, the meter, rhythm or groove...
. In Western music, the predominant form of compound meter is the division into three parts, often preferring to reduce a higher number of parts to written time signature changes, but more parts are possible, and frequently used, for example, in Balkan music; some examples are given in the article
Bulgarian dancesBulgarian folk dances are intimately related to the music of Bulgaria.A distinctive feature of Balkan folk music is the asymmetrical meters, built up around various combinations of 'quick' and 'slow' beats; as for the music, in Western musical notation, this is often described usingcompound meter...
.
Examples of compound meter:
- 6/8 divided into two equal parts, also called compound duple meter, i.e., a primary accent on the first 1/8 note, a subordinate accent on the fourth 1/8 note, and the rest of the 1/8 notes may have accents subordinate to that.
- 9/8 divided into three parts, also called compound triple meter, i.e., a primary accent on the first 1/8 note, subordinate accents on the fourth and seventh 1/8 notes, and the rest of the 1/8 notes may have accents subordinate to that.
- 12/8 divided into four equal parts, also called compound quadruple meter. A primary accent on the first 1/8 note and subordinate accents on the fourth, seventh and tenth 1/8 notes
For example, 6/8 can be divided into two parts, in effect making it into a
dupleIn music, duple refers to duple meter. Duple is also a duration of 1½ the regular note value duration in compound and or triple meter. An irrational rhythm, it may also be used as a polyrhythm when played against the regular duration....
meter, of three quavers (
eighth notethumb|180px|right|Figure 1. An eighth note with stem facing up, an eighth note with stem facing down, and an eighth rest.thumb|right|180px|Figure 2. Four eighth notes linked together....
s) each, making it compound meter (compound duple meter), having 2 beats of the length of a dotted quarter/crotchet. But 6/8 can also be divided into three parts, in effect becoming a 3-time. This interpretational switch has been exploited, for example, by
Leonard BernsteinLeonard Bernstein was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
, in the song "America" from
West Side StoryWest Side Story is an American musical with a book by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. The musical's plot is based on William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet....
, as can be heard in the prominent motif:
Some works with compound meter:
- Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring
"Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" is the English title of the 10th movement of the cantata Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147 composed by Johann Sebastian Bach. A transcription by the English pianist Myra Hess was published in 1926 for piano solo and in 1934 for piano duet...
is in 9/8 time.
- Modern Jazz Funk quartet Chris Potter
Chris Potter may refer to:*Chris Potter *Christopher Potter *Chris Potter *Chris Potter *Christopher Potter, English academic and clergyman...
's Underground uses a textbook form of compound meter in the composition "Train". The piece begins with a 6/4 section, but switches to an alternation of 9/4 and 7/4 signatures.
- British rock musician Sting uses the 9/8 time signature on his 1996 song "I Hung My Head
"I Hung My Head" is a murder ballad written by the singer-songwriter Sting and released on the album Mercury Falling. In 2002, Johnny Cash covered the song in the album American IV: The Man Comes Around along with several other contemporary songs....
" from the Mercury FallingMercury Falling is the fifth studio album released by Sting. The album was marked by its tight studio production and use of brass reminiscent of recordings made at FAME Studios in the 1960s...
album. He uses it by playing 8 eighth notes (in effect, using a normal 4/4 time signatureThe time signature is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats are in each measure and which note value constitutes one beat....
), just followed by a single eighth note. Thus, the division becomes: 4/8+4/8+1/8=9/8.
- British progressive rock
Progressive rock is a form of rock music that evolved in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility."...
band GenesisGenesis are a Grammy Award-winning English rock band formed in 1967, and are among the top 30 highest-selling recording artists of all time with approximately 150 million albums sold worldwide, including 21.5 million albums sold in the United States. In 1988, the band won the Grammy Award for Best...
uses the 9/8 time signature in Part 6, titled Apocalypse in 9/8, of their epic "Supper's ReadySupper's Ready is a song by the band Genesis. A recorded version appeared on their 1972 album Foxtrot, and the band performed the song regularly on stage for several years following this...
", off the 1972 album FoxtrotFoxtrot is the fourth studio album by British progressive rock band Genesis and the second from the band lineup which included Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford, Phil Collins, and Steve Hackett.-Album history:...
.
Compound meter divided into three parts could theoretically be transcribed into musically equivalent simple meter using
tripletsIn music a tuplet is "any rhythm that involves dividing the beat into a different number of equal subdivisions from that usually permitted by the time-signature "...
. Likewise, simple meter can be shown in compound through duples. In practice, however, this is rarely done because it disrupts conducting patterns when the
TempoIn musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. It is a crucial element of composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
changes. When conducting in 6/8, conductors typically provide two beats per measure. Where the tempo is slow, however, all six beats may be performed.
Compound time is associated with "lilting" and dance-like qualities. Folk dances often use compound time. Many
Baroque danceBaroque dance is dance of the Baroque era in Europe , closely linked with Baroque music, theatre and opera.- English country dance :...
s are often in compound time: some
gigueThe gigue or giga is a lively baroque dance originating from the British jig. It was imported into France in the mid-17th century and usually appears at the end of a suite.The Gigue is lively Baroque dance originating from the British jig...
s, the
couranteThe courante, corrente, coranto and corant are some of the names given to a family of triple metre dances from the late Renaissance and the Baroque era....
, and sometimes the
passepiedThe passepied is a 17th- and 18th-century dance that originated in Brittany. The term can also be used to describe the music to which a passepied is set...
and the
sicilianaThe siciliana or siciliano is a musical style or genre often included as a movement within larger pieces of music starting in the Baroque period. It is in a slow 6/8 or 12/8 time with lilting rhythms making it somewhat resemble a slow jig, and is usually in a minor key. It was used for arias in...
.