4/4 has four quarter-note beats in each bar. It is the default time signature of rock, pop, hip-hop, funk, country and electronic music, and it is often written as a C, for common time. The metronome above plays 4/4 with an accent at the start of each group. Count it as: 1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a.
What does 4/4 mean?
The top number, 4, says how many notes fill one bar; the bottom number, 4, says which note value they are (quarter notes). 4/4 is a simple meter: each beat divides into two equal halves.
How to count 4/4
Count 4/4 as “1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a”. The grouping is 1+1+1+1, so you feel 4 beats per bar, and the first note of each group carries the accent.
Accent pattern for 4/4
Group
Length
Accent
Group 1
1 quarter note
Strong (downbeat)
Group 2
1 quarter note
Medium
Group 3
1 quarter note
Medium
Group 4
1 quarter note
Medium
Setting a metronome for 4/4
Set the metronome to 4/4 and let it click on the quarter note. Put the click on all four beats first, then on beats two and four only, like a backbeat. Hearing only two and four makes you place one and three yourself.
How long is a bar of 4/4?
With the click on the quarter note, one bar of 4/4 lasts 4.00 seconds at 60 BPM, 2.67 seconds at 90 BPM, 2.00 seconds at 120 BPM.
Bar length in 4/4 (click on the quarter note)
Tempo
One bar
Eight bars
60 BPM
4.00 s
32.0 s
90 BPM
2.67 s
21.3 s
120 BPM
2.00 s
16.0 s
Drum grooves in 4/4
These grooves from the SuperTime library are written in 4/4: Basic Rock, Funky Drummer, Billie Jean Pocket, Boom Bap, Four-on-the-Floor, Reggae One Drop. Each page shows the pattern hit by hit with its count, and plays it on the metronome.