Rhythmic Dictation and Meter Flashcards
7 cards from real Music Transcription practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Rhythmic Dictation and Meter flashcards as text
Which of the following is an example of an irrational (or non-standard) time signature?
Answer: 4/6
4/6 is irrational because 6 is not a standard power-of-two note value; standard denominators are 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32.
In rhythmic dictation, a grace note (acciaccatura) is typically notated as:
Answer: A small note with a slash through its stem, played very quickly before the main note
An acciaccatura is a crushed grace note notated small with a slash, performed as rapidly as possible before the primary note.
If a quarter note = 60 BPM, how long does a dotted quarter note last in seconds?
Answer: 1.5 seconds
At 60 BPM a quarter note = 1 second; a dotted quarter = 1.5 quarter notes = 1.5 seconds.
When transcribing a rhythm in 3/4, you note that a syncopated figure starts on the 'and' of beat 2 and lasts two beats. How do you notate this?
Answer: An eighth note on the and-of-2 tied to a quarter note on beat 3
The note starts on the eighth-note off-beat after beat 2 and is tied to the next beat to express its full two-beat duration across the barline or within the measure.
Metric modulation is a compositional technique where:
Answer: A new tempo is derived from a rhythmic value in the previous tempo
In metric modulation, a rhythmic value (e.g., triplet eighth) from the old tempo becomes the new beat unit, establishing a new tempo mathematically.
Which beaming convention correctly represents two beats in 6/8?
Answer: Two groups of three beamed eighth notes
In 6/8, eighth notes are beamed in two groups of three to clearly show each of the two compound beats.
A quintuplet marking (5) placed over five notes indicates that those five notes:
Answer: Are played in the time of four (or three) notes of the same written value
A quintuplet means five notes fit in the time normally occupied by four (or sometimes three) notes of the same value.