Music Conducting Techniques & Time Signatures
Part of the Video Series How to Be a Music Conductor
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Video Transcript
Music Conducting Techniques & Time Signatures
Hello, my name is Duane Carter and, on behalf of Expert Village, I will be talking about band conducting. The conductor uses two essential techniques in conducting. One is the preparatory beat. This beat provides time for the ensemble to prepare for the downbeat and, since it is done in time, it indicates the tempo of the music. Sometimes, full measures of preparatory beats are provided by the conductor. The other technique is to use an imaginary plane, called an icthus. This imaginary, horizontal plane indicates the point of attack for each beat, as the baton bounces off of the icthus. Before I demonstrate the conducting patterns, let me say a little bit about time signatures. Generally speaking, time signatures are divided into two segments. One being duple meter, the other triple meter. Duple meter is always divisible by two, whereas, triple meter is always divisible by three. A time signature consists of two numbers. The top number tells you how many beats per measure. The bottom number indicates what type of note receives the beat. For example, the top number in 4/4 indicates that there are four beats per measure. The bottom number tells us that the quarter note gets the beat. Therefore, we are in duple meter. There are four quarter notes per measure, one for each beat.
Hello, my name is Duane Carter and, on behalf of Expert Village, I will be talking about band conducting. The conductor uses two essential techniques in conducting. One is the preparatory beat. This beat provides time for the ensemble to prepare for the downbeat and, since it is done in time, it indicates the tempo of the music. Sometimes, full measures of preparatory beats are provided by the conductor. The other technique is to use an imaginary plane, called an icthus. This imaginary, horizontal plane indicates the point of attack for each beat, as the baton bounces off of the icthus. Before I demonstrate the conducting patterns, let me say a little bit about time signatures. Generally speaking, time signatures are divided into two segments. One being duple meter, the other triple meter. Duple meter is always divisible by two, whereas, triple meter is always divisible by three. A time signature consists of two numbers. The top number tells you how many beats per measure. The bottom number indicates what type of note receives the beat. For example, the top number in 4/4 indicates that there are four beats per measure. The bottom number tells us that the quarter note gets the beat. Therefore, we are in duple meter. There are four quarter notes per measure, one for each beat.
About the Expert
Expert: Duane Carter has performed with and arranged for many jazz, R & B, and classical ensembles and earned a B.A. in Music Performance from California State University, Los Angeles. Read More
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