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Let’s take EP284 for one example. Brian says a quarter note = 80. 4/4 time, 4 beats per measure, not too tough, except 80 bpm is pretty slow. That composition moves along pretty fast. When I tap it out, it shows more that double the 80. In fact to keep time with his song, I need my metronome set at 172. I find this to be true on all his lessons that I have studied. Tell me what I’m missing, because I don’t get it. I thought I had a handle on basic music theory but this one stumps me.
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First of all, it sometimes happens that Brian forgots to update the BPM on the tab sheets, or maybe his music notation software just displays the default BPM. But most to the time the BPM is shown correctly. As for counting out the BPM, it just depends on whether you are counting 1, 2, 3, 4 as the beats, or 1, and, 2, and, 3, and, 4 as the beats. So 80 BPM and 160 BPM are functionally the same. It’s even stranger when the song is built on triplets, so that you can have 80 BPM which sounds like 240 BPM. Many members have either a music-slow-downer app or a DAW, and these will display the BPM. The problem is, they are counting the actual beats picked up by the tempo analysis, not the beats shown by the music notation.
Sunjamr Steve
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I don’t agree Steve. A quarter note is a quarter note. That’s 1,2,3,4 in 4/4 time if the bpm is based on a quarter note. If its 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and, and the bpm is double, then it’s got to be based on eighth notes. The note and the bpm are notated as (example) quarter note = 80. That tells you what the composition is based on, regardless how you count it. Each quarter note is one beat. Doesn’t matter if uses eighth notes or triplets. I guess it’s no big deal. I can just clap it out and get the timing. I just find it confusing, and actually, every lesson I’ve worked on on AM is that way. The notated bmp does not match the actual composition.
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You are talking about written music, and in that respect you are absolutely correct. But software BPM analyzers can’t tell a quarter note from an eight note or a sixteenth note. They just display the dominant BPM. It would be fair to say that most people don’t care what the written BPM is, and don’t try to set a metronome to it. The aim is to play along with the jamtrack, if there is one. Some people adjust the tempo setting of the SoundSlice app and start learning lessons at a slower speed. I use a music-slow-downer app and often adjust the tempo of the jamtrack up or down to suit my taste. If it’s a lesson that has no jamtrack, then we just play it a speed that sounds good to us, using our internal brain metronome which feeds pulsed neuromuscular responses to our left foot, causing it tap at regular intervals.
Sunjamr Steve
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I love using a metronome. I have been using a metronome since my piano days in my childhood. That’s more years ago than we should talk about. I still prefer to learn with that. I don’t often pay attention to the backing tracks until I feel I have the composition down pat and up to speed. As far as an internal metronome, mine is suck. I tend to speed up as I play along, especially if the song is fun. Then it’s like sports. Give me the ball and let me run with it, no matter how bad I am. I just wanna let go. A metronome keeps me in line. Yup I use Audacity to slow down compositions for learning. It can be useful when I do play with the backing tracks, but most of the time I don’t mess with anything except my guitar and my metronome.
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Unfortunately this thread was double post. Sorry about that.
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