Explaining Time Signatures

Hy. I was watching your videos on youtube wich are great. I saw the one with time signatures and it’s really helpful. I was listening to a song Eminem – Underground http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZZqZU2-1sU and i cant identify the time signature. Can you help me ?
Thanks !

Its in 4/4. The snare hits on beats 2 and 4. The intro is kind of difficult to tell, but fast forward and you’ll hear it.

The Chorus is in eighth note triplets – that’s why it sounds confusing because its syncopated.

Thanks !
I dont’ understand something. You counted the drums for the time signature. Then on chours you said it’s triplets, but the drums hit the same. It’s triplets another time signature ?

Here’s a few tutorials on Triplets: http://waltribeiro.net/?s=triplets&x=0&y=0

I counted the drums because that’s what keep the beat. Eighth Note triplets are the rhythm that is sung over the drum beat.

No, triplets aren’t another time signature – their a rhythm. Although in a time signature of 6/8 you would have a grouping of 2 eighth note triplets (because the time signature states “6 eighth notes in each measure”)

So there are others forms of rhythm besids triplets ?

Yea – there’s whole, half, quarter, eighths, sixteenths, triplets.

But don’t be confused. They’re all the same except triplets.

For example, Eighth notes are simply quarter notes played twice as fast, etc.

Triplets are three notes played in the space of two

Someone told me about Underground and 5 Cent – In da club like this (i’m gonna translate from romanian):
“For “Underground” and “In The Club” the first drum is before the first beat of the measure (on the first beat there’s nothing), that is the beat 4 and 3 quarters (4.3.1.000) of the previous measure. That’s indeed, 4/4.”
So i don’t get something how the first drum is before the first beat of the measure ?

Sounding like it’s a 3/4.

Why the voice is on triplets beause it’s not 3 notes there ” 1here 2comes 3the 4rain 5rest 6and 7thun – 8der 9now 10rest”
Where is the group of 3 notes to be a triplet ?
Thanks !

Pale, first drum beat before the song is called a pickup measure.

You didn’t answer to all my questions
And what is about with the pickup measure ?
Thanks !

I think you should do a video for those two songs or at least one of them cuz it’s not working just with comment messages. I think there’s more to explain… If you consider people would want to see this…if not it’s ok here too.

“Pale, first drum beat before the song is called a pickup measure.”
You refered to “Underground” i assume. I read more about it and it’s also called Anacrusis. And i think it’s something like the measure it’s not starting with the downbeat but with the upbeat. Tell me if i’m correct.
At the song we are talking about the first kick got the accent if we judging by the drums, and if we judging by the voice and instruments on what the accent falls ?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anacrusis it’s the same as pickup measure i think.

So what you think ?

Yea it looks the same!

Hi, i’ve been watching some of your tutuorials which have really helped me as i@m trying to learn music theory on my own but I have hit a block with time signatures. Ths may seem a bit dull lol but I was hoping you could clear up my confusion please :)
I understand the top number is beats per measure, it’s the bottom number I have gotten a little confused with. When you say which note gets the beat’ do you mean that note values physically change? say a half note goes from two beats to one and a whole from 4 to one? And if so why not just use the note that is already equal to that value? lol or do you mean (what i’m leaning more towards) that say in 8/8 time that there are eight eighth per measure that remain the same value they do in common time it’s just telling you there are eight per measure. Same as with 7/16 tells you there are seven sixteenths per measure. I just am totally confused by the fact possibility of note values changing completly.

Please help i’m a complete newbie to reading music and this has confused me so much lol I cannot move on until I get it right in my head.

Thank you :)

Note values NEVER change. Half notes will ALWAYS get 2 beats, etc.

So an example is that in 7/8 – you would have 7 eighth notes. In 12/16 time signature – you would have 12 sixteenth notes. In 4/2 time you would have 4 half notes.

In bottom notes:
the 8 refers to eighth notes
the 4 refers to quarter notes
the 2 refers to half notes

etc.

The bottom notee refers to when the beat hits. So in 4/2, the beat, pulse, etc hits on every half note.

This may help: http://waltribeiro.net/2009/04/10/cut-time-and-common-time-explained/

Thank you so much, that has really helped :)

where are you Walt? Thanks for your vids, just found you a couple of days ago and i feel good already, learning something useful. God bless you. are you still doing upstreamtv?
love from England. keep it up!!!