Triple metre

"9/8" redirects here. For the dates, see September 8 and August 9.

Triple metre (or Am. triple meter, also known as triple time) is a musical metre characterized by a primary division of 3 beats to the bar, usually indicated by 3 (simple) or 9 (compound) in the upper figure of the time signature, with ³
₄, ³
₈ and ⁹
₈ being the most common examples. The upper figure being divisible by three does not of itself indicate triple metre; for example, a time signature of ⁶
₈ usually indicates compound duple metre, and similarly ¹²
₈ usually indicates compound quadruple metre.

Shown below are a simple and a compound triple drum pattern.

Stylistic differences

In popular music, the metre is most often quadruple,^[1] but this does not mean that triple metre does not appear. It features in a good amount of music by artists such as The Chipmunks, Louis Armstrong or Bob Dylan.^[2]

In jazz, this and other more adventurous metres have become more common since Dave Brubeck's album Time Out.^[3][4][5] One noteworthy example of a jazz classic that employs triple metre is John Coltrane's version of "My Favorite Things".^[6]

Triple time is common in formal dance styles, for example the sarabande, the minuet, the mazurka, the waltz and others.

Triple metre is rare in national anthems – the national anthems of Austria, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Greece, and the United States being notable exceptions.

Sources

1. Schroedl, Scott (2001). Play Drums Today!, p. 42. Hal Leonard. ISBN 0-634-02185-0.
2. Everett, Walter (2008). "Musical time: rhythm, metre, and tempo". The Foundations of Rock: From "Blue Suede Shoes" to "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes". Oxford University Press. p. 306. ISBN 9780190294977. Despite the great preponderance of quadruple meter, triple time is heard in a good deal of pop music. [...] David Seville [...] The Chipmunks [...] Bob Dylan [...] Louis Armstrong [...] Tom Jones [...]
3. May, Chris. "Dave Brubeck Quartet: Time Out" All About Jazz December 15, 2011 Retrieved March 14, 2017
4. Lamb, Evelyn "Uncommon Time: What Makes Dave Brubeck's Unorthodox Jazz Stylings So Appealing?" Scientific American December 11, 2012 Retrieved March 14, 2017
5. Smith, Hedrick; Hackel, Cliff "Brubeck's Trademark Style: Odd Time Signatures, Polyrhythms and Polytonality" PBS:Rediscovering Dave Brubeck Released 16 December 2001 Retrieved March 14, 2017
6. Gary Giddins (22 October 1998). Visions of Jazz: The First Century. Oxford University Press. p. 485. ISBN 978-0-19-987953-3.