8 Time (Music)?

Question:

12/8 Time (Music)?

Heya, what does 12/8 time mean when reading music? Used to playing 4/4 time. Thanks.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: My band director always calls this the "secret code"

The top number is how many beats are in each measure.
The bottom number is what note gets the beat.

12/8 time means the eighth note gets the beat, and there are 12 notes in each measure. The director will conduct it in 4 beats, which are 4 groupings of three eighth notes (or triplets).

You will probably come across 2/2 time or cut time as well. This means that there are two notes per measure and the half note gets the beat. It is related to 4/4 time because it is just like 4/4 except everything is cut in half (half notes are one beat and not two, for example). Lots of marches are in cut time.

Other common time signatures based on the quarter note like 2/4 and 3/4 are just like 4/4 except they have two and one less beat per measure, respectively.

6/8 time is also common, many times the conductor will conduct in three groupings of two beats with this time signature.

Hope this helps. :)