# Strong and weak beats

*Module 2 · Lesson 5: Rhythm I: pulse and note values · BazzLow*

> Recognise which beats of a bar carry weight, and how the bass relates to the drums.

Before this lesson: [2.4 Counting eighth notes](https://bazzlow.com/en/rhythm-1/counting-eighth-notes/)

The beats in a bar are not all equal. Some carry more weight, and a bassist feels this all the time.

## Strong and weak

Inside a bar, some beats are **strong** and others **weak**:

- in **4/4**, beat 1 is the strongest and beat 3 is medium-strong; beats 2 and 4 are weaker;
- in **3/4**: strong, weak, weak;
- in **2/4**: strong, weak.

Playing a beat a little louder than the others is called an **accent**.

## Bass and drums

In much popular music the drums put the **kick drum** on or around beats 1 and 3, and the **snare** on 2 and 4. Snare hits on 2 and 4 are called the **backbeat**. The bass very often plays the root of the chord on beat 1, the moment the harmony is defined, and lines up its rhythm with the kick drum.

> **Diagram:** A 4/4 bar as four boxes: the taller the box, the stronger the beat (1 strongest, 3 medium, 2 and 4 weak). Below it a simple pattern: kick drum on 1 and 3, snare on 2 and 4, and a bass note on 1 and 3.

> These are common tendencies, not rules. Moving accents away from the strong beats is syncopation, which comes in Module 11.

## Try it

Play quarter notes on the open A and accent beat 1 (play it a little louder) for 4 bars. Then accent beats 2 and 4 instead and notice the different feel.

## New terms

- strong beat
- weak beat
- accent
- kick drum
- snare
- backbeat

Page: https://bazzlow.com/en/rhythm-1/strong-and-weak-beats/