How to determine the Metronome Marking based on how many beats and time.

Hello,

I've asked a couple people at the university, but there answers were all unnecessarily convoluted. It really is this simple, I just suck at math, but this is what I want.

No convoluted answer, just straight mathematical formulas.

Say, I have a period of time (15 seconds).

I've composed 34 beats of music, a quarter note equalling one beat.

Notice how I said BEATS, not BARS, because there are time signature changes in this period of time, though the pulse is all the same, nothing is faster or slower, THE SAME TEMPO.

What is the mathematic formula for determining MM = XX. The tempo marking.

Is it time divided by number of beats, times sixty, times another number? I just want a straight answer, please.

And don't ask me to go to a website where it does it automatically. I want to KNOW.

Thank you,

Ben

Metronome markings are in beats per minute.

You have 34 beats in 15 seconds.

Therefore you'd have 68 beats in 30 seconds.

Therefore you'd have 136 beats in 60 seconds ... 136 beats per minute.

Best to say "quarter note = 136" ... (or the same thing using the standard quarter note symbol, which I can't do in this posting) rather than "MM = 136" if there's likely to be any confusion over the issue.

With changing time signatures, I'd definitely go with the "quarter note = 136" format.

jada

Thank you, but no thank you for not giving me a simple mathematical formula :P

This is how I take it.

(60 / time ) = x

x time number of beats equals what I want

Thank you

MM = (60 / t) * n = 60n / t

For n beats occuring in t seconds. OK?

Edit: Oh, that seems to be what you just said.

No offense guys, but....did any of you guys besides Eldkatt take algebra?

No offense guys, but....did any of you guys besides Eldkatt take algebra?

:huh:

??

:huh:

??

He is gently indicated to us composers that we suck... KILL HIM :laugh:

(joke)

Its a proportion...

time you have/beats you have for that time = 60 (to get beats per minute)/x beats in that minute

in this case its 15/34 = 60/x cross multiply and get 2040=15x divide both sides by 15 and you get 136 BPM

(60 / time ) = x

x time number of beats equals what I want

MM = (60 / t) * n = 60n / t

For n beats occuring in t seconds. OK?

time you have/beats you have for that time = 60 (to get beats per minute)/x beats in that minute

in this case its 15/34 = 60/x cross multiply and get 2040=15x divide both sides by 15 and you get 136 BPM

No offense guys, but....did any of you guys besides Eldkatt take algebra?

No offence, but WHY are you guys making this SOOOOO complicated? I didn't reply because I figured grade five math class would have taken care of this for me.

Find out how many beats per second, then multiply by 60.

i.e.

34

No offence, but WHY are you guys making this SOOOOO complicated? I didn't reply because I figured grade five math class would have taken care of this for me.

Find out how many beats per second, then multiply by 60.

i.e.

34

Well, you don't have to do any cross-multiplying... that makes it somewhat easier. :huh:

I thought this thread would be over after 2 posts, one replying to the question and another from the thread-opener saying "thanks"... :(

I thought this thread would be over after 2 posts, one replying to the question and another from the thread-opener saying "thanks"... :(

you would think...right??

and cross multiplying is just up my alley....i was just giving my imput on the situation....