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The time signature indicates the meter of a musical movement at the bar level. In a music score the time signature appears as two stacked numerals, such as 4. 4 (spoken as four–four time), or a time symbol, such as (spoken as common time). It immediately follows the key signature (or if there is no key signature, the clef symbol).
Examples of time signatures for common time. Alla breve [alla ˈbrɛːve] – also known as cut time or cut common time – is a musical meter notated by the time signature symbol (a C with a vertical line through it), which is the equivalent of 2. 2. [1] The term is Italian for "on the breve", originally meaning that the beat was counted on ...
Notes that are shown as sharp or flat in a key signature will be played that way in every octave—e.g., a key signature with a B ♭ indicates that every B is played as a B ♭. A key signature indicates the prevailing key of the music and eliminates the need to use accidentals for the notes that are always flat or sharp in that key. A key ...
Joplin also employed in "Magnetic Rag" the classic "common time" 4/4 time signature instead of the more usual 2/4 time of rag tunes. Simultaneously, Joplin doubled all the note values, effectively making the unusual 4/4 time signature have no practical effect on the way the piece sounded or the way it was performed.
It concludes with a pair of 16-bar themes in the subdominant key (the key with one additional flat, or one less sharp), commonly called the trio, in the following sequence: A third theme (or C strain). A repeat of the C strain. A fourth theme (or D strain). A repeat of the D strain. This can be written more succinctly as: INTRO AA BB A CC DD.
Following the key signature is the time signature. The time signature typically consists of two numbers, with one of the most common being 4 4. The top "4" indicates that there are four beats per measure (also called bar). The bottom "4" indicates that each of those beats are quarter notes. Measures divide the piece into groups of beats, and ...
Sometimes a piece is written with multiple time signatures simultaneously. For example, it might specify 4/4 2/4 3/4 5/4, meaning that the length of measures is irregular and can be 4, 2, 3 or 5 quarter-notes. The time signature of the first measure is always specified first, and the others are placed in increasing order of length. Usually, the ...
Marches can be written in any time signature, but the most common time signatures are 4 4, 2 2 (alla breve, although this may refer to 2 time of Johannes Brahms, or cut time), or 6 8. However, some modern marches are being written in 1 2 or 2 4 time. The modern march tempo is typically around 120 beats per minute.