Counting 6/8 vs 3/4: a beginner's guide
Put 3/4 and 6/8 side by side and they look almost the same. Both have six eighth notes in a measure, and both can be written with a dotted half note filling the whole bar. But play a waltz and then a march in 6/8 and you'll hear two completely different feels. This guide explains why, shows you how to count each one, and gives you a short plan to practice telling them apart.
Simple vs compound meter
The key idea is how each beat divides. In a simple meter, each beat splits into two equal parts. In a compound meter, each beat splits into three.
3/4 is a simple meter: three beats per measure, and each beat (a quarter note) splits into two eighth notes. 6/8 is a compound meter: two beats per measure, and each beat (a dotted quarter note) splits into three eighth notes. Same six eighth notes, grouped a different way.
So the top number of a time signature doesn't always tell you how many beats you'll feel. In 3/4 it does. In 6/8 the "6" counts eighth notes, and those six eighths are felt as two big beats.
Counting 3/4
In 3/4, count three quarter-note beats: 1, 2, 3. When a measure has eighth notes, add "&" between the beats: 1 & 2 & 3 &. Beat 1 is the strongest, and beats 2 and 3 are lighter. That strong-weak-weak pattern gives 3/4 its swaying, dance-like feel.
You already know plenty of songs in 3/4: "Happy Birthday", "My Country, 'Tis of Thee", and almost every waltz. Try clapping on beat 1 and tapping lightly on 2 and 3 while you sing one of them.
Heads up: "Happy Birthday" starts with a pickup. "Hap-py" comes before the first full measure, on beat 3, so the first downbeat lands on "birth". Count "1, 2" to yourself, sing "Hap-py" on 3, and your clap on beat 1 will line up with "birth" and the other strong syllables.
Note values in 3/4
- Quarter note: 1 beat
- Half note: 2 beats
- Dotted half note: 3 beats (a full measure)
- Two eighth notes: 1 beat, beamed together in pairs
Counting 6/8 in two
In 6/8, count two beats per measure, and split each beat into three: 1 & a 2 & a. Put the weight on 1 and 2, and keep the "& a" light. Some teachers use other syllables, such as "du da di" or "ta ki da". That's fine, as long as your section all counts the same way. See other ways to count rhythm.
Most band music in 6/8 moves fast enough that you'll feel it in two, and your director will usually conduct it in two. Marches like Sousa's "The Washington Post" and songs like "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" are in 6/8. Listen for the galloping, rolling feel: ONE-and-a, TWO-and-a. Marches in cut time are felt in two as well, but with a half-note beat: see Why cut time feels fast.
When 6/8 is very slow, as in some ballads and chorales, you may count all six eighth notes (1 2 3 4 5 6), and your director might conduct in six. The accents still fall on 1 and 4, so it's still two groups of three.
Note values in 6/8
- Eighth note: ⅓ of a beat (one "1", "&", or "a")
- Quarter note: ⅔ of a beat (two eighths)
- Dotted quarter note: 1 full beat
- Dotted half note: 2 beats (a full measure)
- Eighth notes: beamed together in groups of three
The most common 6/8 rhythm is a quarter note followed by an eighth note (long-short, long-short). Count it as 1 (&) a 2 (&) a: the quarter note holds through "&", and the eighth note lands on "a".
Hearing the difference
When you're listening instead of reading, ask yourself one question: does the beat split into two or three? Tap your foot to the pulse that feels most natural, then listen to what happens between the taps.
| 3/4 | 6/8 | |
|---|---|---|
| Beats per measure | 3 | 2 |
| Beat note | Quarter | Dotted quarter |
| Each beat splits into | 2 eighths | 3 eighths |
| Eighth notes beamed in | Pairs | Groups of three |
| Feel | Sway: ONE two three | Gallop: ONE-and-a TWO-and-a |
On the page, the beams are your best clue. In 3/4, eighth notes are beamed in pairs, one pair per beat. In 6/8, they're beamed in threes, one group per beat. Look at the beams before you count anything.
Some music plays with the two feels on purpose. "America" from West Side Story famously alternates between a 6/8 measure (two groups of three) and a 3/4 measure (three groups of two). Once you can hear the switch, you really understand the difference.
Common mistakes
- Counting fast 6/8 in six. "1 2 3 4 5 6" at a march tempo is exhausting, sounds stiff, and doesn't match a conductor beating in two. Count "1 & a 2 & a" and feel two.
- Treating a quarter note as one beat in 6/8. In 6/8, a quarter note is only two eighths, ⅔ of a beat. The full beat is the dotted quarter.
- Mixing up the dotted quarter. In 3/4 a dotted quarter lasts 1½ beats. In 6/8 it lasts exactly one. Same note, different job.
- Rushing the "a". In the long-short 6/8 pattern, players often cut the quarter note short and play the eighth too early. That turns the gallop into a lopsided swing. Keep all three parts of the beat even.
- Ignoring the beams. If you count before you look at how the notes are grouped, it's easy to read a 6/8 passage as if it were in 3/4.
A five-day practice plan
Ten minutes a day is plenty. Say every count out loud: your voice will catch mistakes your eyes miss.
- Day 1: Clap and count six eighth notes in 3/4 (1 & 2 & 3 &), then in 6/8 (1 & a 2 & a). Accent only the beats. Switch every four measures.
- Day 2: Open Rhythm Trainer, set the meter to 3/4 at Beginner, and do a round. Tap the beat on your leg as you listen.
- Day 3: Do the same in 6/8. Before you answer, check which options are beamed in threes.
- Day 4: Switch Rhythm Trainer to Random meter so 3/4 and 6/8 are mixed with the other meters. Decide "two or three?" before you look at the options.
- Day 5: Try Rhythm Builder in 6/8 and write out what you hear. Then find a 6/8 passage in your band folder and count it out loud before you play it.