Chapter 7

Rhythm: The Beat and the Quarter Note

You already know what a beat feels like. Put on a song and tap your toe. That steady tap is the beat.

Down, then up

Watch your foot. It moves down, then up, over and over. The speed can change from song to song, but the taps stay evenly spaced.

Eight quarter notes aligned with eight steady foot taps
One quarter note on every beat.

If your foot taps eight times, how many beats have passed?

Eight. Nothing tricky yet.

The quarter note

A quarter note gives us one beat of sound in these starting examples. It has a filled-in note head and a stem.

The filled note head and stem show how long the note lasts. Its place on the staff - or its fret number in tab - tells you which pitch to play.

One important detail: play on the down tap, then let the sound continue until the next down tap. Do not cut every note short.

Tap, count, play

Quarter-note practice

  1. Tap eight steady beats. Count from 1 to 8.
  2. Tap eight more. Clap once on every down tap.
  3. Choose one open string. Play once on every down tap.
  4. Repeat without speeding up or slowing down.

Keep your foot and your note together.