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Chapter 3 · Rhythm and meter

Dots and ties

4 min Lesson 4/5

Key idea A dot adds half the note's value again: dotted half = 3 beats, dotted quarter = 1½ beats. A tie joins two notes of the same pitch into one longer note, even across a bar line.

A small dot just right of a note head adds half the value again. A half note is 2 beats, plus 1 makes 3. A quarter is 1 beat, plus a half makes 1½.

31½½
A dotted quarter (1½) plus an eighth (½) makes 2 beats.
341+2+3+1+2+3+1+2+3+
In 3/4 a dotted half fills the whole bar.
441+2+3+4+1+2+3+4+
The dotted quarter starts on "1" and holds through beat 2. The eighth lands on the "and" after 2.

Ties

A tie is a small curve joining two notes of the same pitch. Play only the first note and hold it for both values. Ties are often used to carry a note across a bar line.

441+2+3+4+1+2+3+4+
The last note of bar 1 is tied into beat 1 of bar 2: one press, held for 2 beats.

Quick check

Question 1/5

How many beats is a dotted half note?

Keep practicing

Drill Rhythm tap Hear the count-in, tap in time. Piece Ode to Joy A stepwise tune shared between the hands in C position. Piece Jingle Bells Dotted rhythms over a bass of chord roots and fifths.