The Complete Idiot''s Guide to Music Theory

Part 2: Rhythms
55
5
Note Values and Basic Notation 
57
Taking the Measure of Things ........................................................58
Taking Note—of Notes ....................................................................58
Whole Notes ....................................................................................59
Half Notes ......................................................................................59
Quarter Notes ................................................................................60
Eighth Notes ..................................................................................61
Sixteenth Notes ..............................................................................61
Taking Count ....................................................................................62
Taking a Rest ....................................................................................62
Taking a Note—and Dotting It ........................................................63
Taking Two Notes—and Tying Them Together ............................64
Taking the Beat and Dividing by Three ..........................................64
6
Time Signatures 
67
Measuring the Beats ..........................................................................67
Quarter-Note Time ........................................................................68
Eighth-Note Time ..........................................................................69
Half Time ......................................................................................71
Changing the Time ..........................................................................72
Grouping the Beats ..........................................................................72
7
Tempo, Dynamics, and Navigation 
77
Taking the Pulse ................................................................................77
Beats per Minute ............................................................................78
Italian Tempo Terms ........................................................................78
Speeding Up—and Slowing Down ..................................................80
Hold That Note! ..............................................................................80
Getting Loud—and Getting Soft ....................................................81
Dynamic Markings ........................................................................81
Changing Dynamics ........................................................................81
Play It Harder ................................................................................82
More Dynamics ..............................................................................83
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Contents
Finding Your Way ............................................................................83
Repeating Sections ..........................................................................84
Repeating Measures ........................................................................85
Repeating Notes ..............................................................................85
Repeating Rests ................................................................................86