Doing the math on BPM

• Sep 8, 2013 - 06:52

I was reading in the guidebook where the tempo text (or, if you like, tempo marking) creates a BPM value based upon the quarter note. That's great if you're working in a duple meter; not so great if you're working in, say, 6/8 that feels in two. Is there a simple rule of thumb for taking a BPM based upon quarter notes and converting it into something based on, say, dotted quarter notes? Perhaps it's the lateness of the hour; but my brain isn't getting a BPM to work to approximate where I want this piece to run; on top of which, I would be planting a "dotted quarter =" graphic at the top of the page to indicate the actual tempo; and again, the math needs to work.

Thanks,

K


Comments

Doing the math: a dotted quarter is 1 1/2 the length of a quarter, that is 3/2, so if you want e.g. 60 dotteted quarters per minute this is 60/2*3=90 quarters per minute

We tend to think of "beats per minute" as the number of strokes of the conductor’s baton or the number of steps per minute in a march (120, for instance). MS interprets "beats per minute" in the same way that MIDI does, i.e. as quarter notes per minute.

Here is a quick guide for 6/8 time conducted as two beats per measure. Left column is the number of baton strokes per minute (what you'd normally call beats per minute) and right is the number you enter into MS for the tempo.

44 66
48 72
60 90
72 108
96 144
112 168
120 180
132 198
144 216
176 264
184 276
200 300

There is a possibility to determine the exact duration of a particular note

Half note = 120 / BPM
Quarter note = 60 / BPM
Eighth note = 30 / BPM
Sixteenth note = 15 / BPM
Dotted-quarter note = 90 / BPM
Dotted-eighth note = 45 / BPM
Dotted-sixteenth note = 22.5 / BPM
Triplet-quarter note = 40 / BPM
Triplet-eighth note = 20 / BPM
Triplet-sixteenth note = 10 / BPM
source - http://yourhomeworkhelp.org/math-tests/algebra-tests/

In reply to by Square-Wave

On a serious note: You can enter tempo text via the palette and give it for a whole series (6 I believe) of different notes (including dotted crotchet for 6/8). MS will then do the math for you and calculate the crotchets per minute from your entry. This number you'll find in inspector.

In reply to by Square-Wave

On a serious note: You can enter tempo text via the palette and give it for a whole series (6 I believe) of different notes (including dotted crotchet for 6/8). MS will then do the math for you and calculate the crotchets per minute from your entry. This number you'll find in inspector.

In reply to by DRyelle

The Inspector is but one of the very many gigantic improvements in 2.0 compared to 1.3. Change can be difficult to adjust to, but it really is *orders of magnitude* better in virtually every conceivable way. I highly recommend spending the time it takes to adjust so you can take avdantage of the very many fantastic improvements (this one is but the very tip of the iceberg).

Marlena Turner, duration in what? Milliseconds? Sorry, it's probably very obvious (and this post is really old), but I don't know what you're talking about.

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