Six eighth notes, grouped into two beats. Practise hearing that shape, then read and play fresh rhythms in compound duple meter.
The compound preset starts in 6/8. Feel the groups of three as you read; the two large beats begin on subdivisions 1 and 4.
4 measures · 4/4 time · 72 BPM
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Feel two large beats, each divided into three. Compare six eighth notes with two dotted-quarter notes.
Measure 1: clap 1 la li 2 la li, with a gentle emphasis on 1 and 2. Measure 2: clap on 1 and 2 only; each dotted quarter lasts for one complete la-li group. The playback tempo is dotted-quarter beats per minute.
A measure of 6/8 contains six eighth-note units. In its usual compound-duple feel, these form two groups of three. Each large beat is a dotted quarter note, which lasts as long as three eighth notes.
This is why 6/8 and 3/4 do not usually feel the same, even though both measures contain the same total written duration. In 3/4, the usual grouping is three quarter-note beats, each divided in two. In 6/8, it is two dotted-quarter beats, each divided in three.
ONE two three · FOUR five six
Counting all six eighth-note units is useful while learning a pattern. Once it is comfortable, try “1 la li, 2 la li” to connect the same six subdivisions to two larger beats. Use whichever syllables let you keep the divisions equal.
A quarter note in 6/8 lasts two eighth-note units. A dotted quarter lasts a whole large beat. Keep counting inside those held values; the rhythm should not rush simply because fewer notes are written.
1 la li · 2 la li
Do not automatically read each written eighth note as one of six equally strong beats. Let subdivisions 1 and 4 anchor the two groups. A rest may remove a sound from a strong position, but it does not remove that position from the measure.
Be precise about tempo markings. A dotted-quarter BPM value measures the two large beats, while an eighth-note BPM value measures all six subdivisions. Those numbers describe different pulses. When comparing recordings or metronomes, check which note value each one uses.
The measure contains six eighth-note units, usually felt as two large dotted-quarter beats. Counting all six is useful for learning the subdivisions; feeling the two larger beats helps establish the compound-duple meter.
They contain the same total written duration but usually have different groupings. 3/4 has three quarter-note beats divided in two. 6/8 has two dotted-quarter beats divided in three.
Ordinary eighth notes in 6/8 already divide a large beat into three, so they do not need a triplet marking. In 4/4, an eighth-note triplet is a marked division of one quarter-note beat into three equal parts.
Open the worksheet generator and select 6/8 before generating your sheet. Use the browser print preview to check the layout, then print it or save it as a PDF where supported.