The course › Unit 6: Rhythm in detail
Lesson 33 of 72 · One, two, three: the waltz and the dotted half note
Until now, your measures had 4 beats. Lots of music is counted in 3: “ONE, two, three, ONE, two, three”… That’s the meter of the waltz.
At the start of the staff, the time signature 3/4 tells you so: the 3 (on top) means there are 3 beats in each measure, the 4 (below) means each beat is a quarter note. The 1st beat of each measure is the strongest.
Why this way: Before you tap, sway to the beat: a strong lean on “1”, lighter on “2, 3”. Feeling the meter in your body before you play it is the idea of Émile Jaques-Dalcroze.
Did you know?: The waltz got all of Europe dancing in the 19th century. The most famous one is probably The Blue Danube by Johann Strauss II (1867): listen to it while counting “1, 2, 3”.
Listen to the count-in (3 clicks), then tap. Think of the 1st beat of each measure as a little louder.
A dot placed right after a note makes it longer by half its value.
A half note lasts 2 beats; half of that is 1 beat. So a dotted half note lasts 2 + 1 = 3 beats: a whole measure in 3/4. Say it “ta-a-a”.
Ta, ta, ta | ta-a-a | ta-a, ta | ta-a-a.
Tip: On a dotted half note, count “1, 2, 3” while holding the key down, and only let go on the next “1”.
Read the bass clef, left hand in C position (pinky on Bass C). Count “1, 2, 3”: each phrase ends on a dotted half note.
Dotted half notes are held for the whole measure: keep the key (or the space bar) down through “1, 2, 3”.
Your first waltz, with both hands! The left hand plays the “ONE” of each measure. Right hand: the melody. Left hand: one dotted half note per measure, C (5) or G (1). Count “ONE, two, three”.
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