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9/8 time signature

9/8 means nine eighth notes in a bar, usually grouped in three beats of three: ONE two three FOUR five six SEVEN eight nine. It is compound triple time, a waltz-like three with every beat split in three.

80 BPM, Andante: at a walking pace

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How to count 9/8

Count 1 to 9, leaning on 1, 4 and 7, or count the three beats as 1 & a 2 & a 3 & a. The metronome counts the tempo in dotted quarter notes, three beats a bar, and clicks all nine eighths.

9/8 at a glance: its type, its beats and what a bar holds
9/8
TypeCompound triple
Beats in a bar3
A beat isA dotted quarter note
A bar holdsnine eighth notes or three dotted quarter notes

Music in 9/8

Irish slip jigs, and some jazz and classical music. "Blue Rondo à la Turk" by the Dave Brubeck Quartet groups most bars of its 9/8 as 2 + 2 + 2 + 3, with every fourth bar in 3 + 3 + 3.

9/8 or 3/4?

Both bars drawn to one scale: the wider a box, the longer its note.

9/8: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
3/4: 1 2 3

3/4 also has three beats, but each splits in two: six eighth notes, ONE & TWO & THREE &. 9/8 splits each of its three beats in three.

How to count it and where it is heard are on the page for the 3/4 time signature.

Questions about 9/8

What does 9/8 mean?

9/8 means nine eighth notes in a bar, usually grouped in three beats of three: ONE two three FOUR five six SEVEN eight nine. It is compound triple time, a waltz-like three with every beat split in three.

What is a slip jig?

An Irish dance tune in 9/8: three beats a bar, each of three eighth notes.

Is 9/8 the same as 3/4 in triplets?

It sounds the same: three beats, each split in three. 9/8 writes those triplets as plain eighth notes, which reads more easily when the whole piece moves in threes.

What music is in 9/8?

Irish slip jigs, and some jazz and classical music. "Blue Rondo à la Turk" by the Dave Brubeck Quartet groups most bars of its 9/8 as 2 + 2 + 2 + 3, with every fourth bar in 3 + 3 + 3.

Other time signatures

4/43/42/45/46/47/42/23/26/89/812/83/85/87/8

For any tempo in any of them, use the online metronome.

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