Note values tell you how long each hit lasts relative to the beat. Quarter, eighth, and sixteenth notes are the building blocks behind nearly every groove you'll play.
| Note | Symbol | Duration | Per bar (4/4) | Count out loud |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quarter Note ♩ | ♩ | 1 beat | 4 per bar in 4/4 | Say: 1 — 2 — 3 — 4 |
| Eighth Note ♪ | ♪ | ½ beat | 8 per bar in 4/4 | Say: 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & |
| Sixteenth Note | ¼ beat | 16 per bar in 4/4 | Say: 1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a |
A quarter note lasts one full beat. In 4/4 time, you play exactly 4 quarter notes per bar — one on each beat (1, 2, 3, 4). It's the baseline unit: when you tap your foot to the music, you're usually feeling the quarter note pulse.
An eighth note lasts half a beat — twice as fast as a quarter note. Two eighth notes fit in one beat. In 4/4 you get 8 per bar. Eighth notes are the foundation of most rock drumming, especially on the hi-hat.
A sixteenth note lasts one quarter of a beat — four fit in a single beat, and 16 fill a full bar. Sixteenth notes create dense, fast grooves and are essential for funk, hip-hop, and metal drumming.
In a standard rock beat, you play eighth noteson the hi-hat while the snare (beat 2 & 4) and kick (beat 1 & 3) provide the quarter-note pulse. This layering of note values at once is what makes drumming so rhythmically rich.
A quarter note gets one full beat. In 4/4 time there are four quarter notes per bar. Playing the kick drum on every quarter note gives you the driving 'four-on-the-floor' pulse heard in disco and dance music.
An eighth note is half the length of a quarter note - there are 8 eighth notes in a 4/4 bar. Eighth notes on the hi-hat are the most common pattern in rock drumming and give grooves a steady, driving feel.
A sixteenth note is half the length of an eighth note - there are 16 sixteenth notes in a 4/4 bar. Sixteenth-note hi-hat patterns create a fast, urgent feel common in funk, punk, and uptempo rock.
Count eighth notes as '1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and'. The numbers fall on the beat (downbeats) and 'and' falls exactly between beats (upbeats). Each syllable equals one eighth note.
Count sixteenth notes as '1 e and a 2 e and a 3 e and a 4 e and a'. Each group of four syllables (1-e-and-a) fills one beat, and each syllable equals one sixteenth note.