Originally Posted By: Matt Finley
...I hear a 4/4 count-in on bongo of 1,2, 1234. It fits correctly with the music to follow, assuming this is a 6/8 style where there are twelve eighth notes in a measure of 4/4, at a tempo of (quarter note =) 110.

I could live with it...

Matt. Please forgive the long-winded response below.

I've struggled with this part of your reply all day. I'm still having difficulty with it so am looking for some assistance / clarification.

The two values in a time signature indicate how many beats and what type are in each measure of music. We all know that a song with a time signature of 4/4 has four beats (top value), each with a value of a quarter note (lower value).
Similarly, a musical passage with a 3/4 meter has three quarter note beats to the bar.
When a song in 4/4 time is counted in, it is counted in as 1,2,3,4. The number of beats to the bar is 4 (the top value).
When a song in 3/4 time is counted in, it is counted in as 1,2,3 not 1,2,3,4. The number of beats to the bar is 3 (the top value).

In 6/8 time, the top number tells us there are 6 beats to the bar, each beat is an eighth note.

Using the same simple rule, when we count in a 6/8 song, surely it supposed to be counted in as the number of beats to the bar which is 6

Let's also think Paul Desmond. "Take 5" has to have a count in of 5. Nothing else fits. It's impossible to correctly count it as a 3, 4, 6, or anything else.

So I cannot reason how a song with 6 eighth note beats to the bar could ever be correctly counted in as 1,2,3,4. Surely it should have a multiple of 6 as the count-in value. The notes are not even quarter notes. They're eighth notes.

It goes against all the music theory I ever learned (I'm classically trained and I studied and sat Australian Conservatorium of Music and also sat London College of Music examinations for too many years to remember).

I just cannot get the comment "It fits correctly with the music to follow" to work. There are no quarter notes in the time signature. There are 6 x eighth notes.

The correct count-in for a 6/8 musical passage surely has to be something made up of 6 beats. Just the same as the count-in for a 3/4 song has 3 beats.

I know you mentioned it could be improved with a 12 beat count-in, but I'm keen to know how 4/4 is in any way acceptable.

Have I missed the goal here?

I'd also look forward to any reply from PG Music staff to indicate why a 4/4 count-in should be associated with music with 6/8 time signatures. I am willing to learn.


Last edited by VideoTrack; 01/09/18 02:12 AM. Reason: Invite PG Music to comment also
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