# Triplets

*Module 11 · Lesson 3: Rhythm II · BazzLow*

> Play eighth-note and quarter-note triplets evenly.

Before this lesson: [11.1 Sixteenth notes](https://bazzlow.com/en/rhythm-2/sixteenth-notes/)

So far every beat has split into two, four or eight. A triplet splits it into three, which gives music a rolling feel.

## Three in the time of two

A **triplet** fits three equal notes into the time normally taken by two of the same value. It is a **tuplet**, the general name for such groups. It is written with a **3** over the group, often with a bracket.

- **Eighth-note triplet**: three notes in one beat. Count “**1-trip-let, 2-trip-let…**”. The three must be equal, not two short and one long.
- **Quarter-note triplet**: three notes across **two beats**. Harder to feel: each note falls exactly two eighth-note-triplet pulses apart.

> **Diagram:** Two lines on the same four beats: eight eighth notes, then twelve eighth-note triplets, three to a beat, each group marked with a 3.

> **Diagram:** One bar of eighth-note triplets counted “1-trip-let 2-trip-let 3-trip-let 4-trip-let”.

> **Diagram:** Quarter-note triplets: three notes in the time of two beats (beats 1 and 2), marked with a bracket and a 3, followed by a half note on beats 3–4.

Sixteenth-note triplets (six notes per beat) exist too. They are not covered here. Triplets are the bridge to compound meter (lesson 11.4) and to swing (lesson 11.5): both are based on dividing the beat into three.

> **Diagram:** A visual pulse with four dots, one per beat, and a quiet click on each of three equal parts of the beat. Press Start, set the tempo with the slider, and use Sound to mute the click.

## Try it

At 60 BPM, alternate one bar of straight eighths and one bar of triplets on the open E, counting aloud. Then play quarter-note triplets against the click.

## New terms

- triplet
- tuplet

Page: https://bazzlow.com/en/rhythm-2/triplets/