Printable worksheet
Compound time worksheet
Free printable compound time worksheet: beat note and beats per bar in 6/8, 9/8 and 12/8, counting eighths, reading bars and completing bars.
Compound time worksheet
Sheet #
Name Date Score /
Answer key
Compound time worksheet · Sheet #
How to use it
- Choose a difficulty and a task, then press New worksheet.
- Remember that the top number of a compound time signature counts the small notes (eighth notes in 6/8) and the beats are groups of three of them.
- Divide the top number by 3 to get the number of beats; the beat note is a dotted note worth three of the bottom-number notes.
- Show answers to check each result, or print the answer page.
Compound time is the family of time signatures with 6, 9 or 12 on top, such as 6/8 and 12/8. The beat is a dotted note, which splits naturally into three equal parts.
What the tasks cover#
- Beat note and beats per bar. Name the note that gets one beat and how many beats are in the bar, or work backwards from a description to the signature.
- Counting eighth notes. How many eighth notes fit in a bar or in one beat.
- Reading a bar beat by beat. Count the notes played in a printed bar (rests do not count) and on how many beats a note starts.
- Completing a bar. Add the one note that fills a bar of 6/8, 9/8 or 12/8.
- Equal bars. Find the simple time signature with a bar of the same length, for example 3/4 for 6/8, and compare how many beats each has.
A quick reference#
| Signature | Beats per bar | Beat note | Eighth notes per bar |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6/8 | 2 | dotted quarter | 6 |
| 9/8 | 3 | dotted quarter | 9 |
| 12/8 | 4 | dotted quarter | 12 |
Difficulty levels#
Easy uses 6/8, 9/8 and 12/8 in the written questions, and 6/8 and 9/8 in printed bars. Medium adds 6/4 to the written questions and 12/8 to printed bars. Hard adds 9/4 and the sixteenth-note signatures 6/16, 9/16 and 12/16 to the written questions. Printed bars use the eighth-note signatures only.
Frequently asked questions
Why is 6/8 two beats and not six?
In compound time the eighth notes are grouped in threes, and each group is one beat: a dotted quarter note. Six eighth notes make two such groups, so a bar of 6/8 is counted 1-2 even though there are six eighth-note subdivisions.
What is the beat note in 9/8 and 12/8?
A dotted quarter note in both. 9/8 has three beats per bar and 12/8 has four, because 9 and 12 divided by 3 are 3 and 4.
Which time signatures count as compound here?
Those with 6, 9 or 12 on top: 6/8, 9/8 and 12/8, plus 6/4 from the medium level and 9/4, 6/16, 9/16 and 12/16 at the hard level. The beat is a dotted half note in 6/4 and a dotted eighth note in 6/16.
Is a bar of 6/8 the same length as a bar of 3/4?
Yes, both last three quarter notes. They feel different: 6/8 has two beats that divide into three, 3/4 has three beats that divide into two.