Beats per bar
33 quarter note beats fill every bar of 3/4.Pulse · tempo · time
3/4 Metronome
This page opens a working metronome in 3/4 time at 120 BPM. The first beat of every bar gets a brighter accent click, so you can hear where the bar begins without watching the screen. Change the tempo freely, or switch signature from the same panel to compare.
Beats per minute
BPM
123
Ready at 120 BPM in 3/4.
Tempo facts
What 3/4 time means
A bar of 3/4 holds 3 quarter note beats. Here is how that plays out at the 120 BPM this page opens with.
Beat unit
Quarter noteThe lower number, 4, is what counts one beat in 3/4.Accent
Beat 1The metronome plays a brighter click on the downbeat. The pattern below shows the lighter stresses musicians add.Bar length
1.5 sAt 120 BPM one bar of 3/4 lasts 1.5 seconds.How 3/4 is counted
- 1Strong
- 2Weak
- 3Weak
Count 'one two three' over and over. Three quarter-note beats fill each bar, with the accent on beat one and two lighter beats following it. That strong–weak–weak pattern is what makes 3/4 rock sideways instead of marching forward.
How to practise in 3/4
Set 3/4, then play a bass note on beat one and chords on beats two and three — the standard oom-pah-pah accompaniment. Once that is even, deliberately accent beat two instead and hear how completely the metre depends on where the weight falls.
What music is written in 3/4
3/4 is waltz time. It carries the Viennese waltz, the minuet, the mazurka, a great many hymns and folk songs, and plenty of country ballads. Rock songs use it too, usually to make a chorus feel like it lifts off the ground.