How to count and practise 6/8
Most 6/8 music is felt as two dotted-quarter beats per bar. Count the six eighth notes as “ONE two three FOUR five six,” with the strongest accent on ONE and a secondary pulse on FOUR. Browser Metronome’s 6/8 BPM number therefore refers to dotted-quarter beats.
Example: 6/8 · 60 BPM · 8ths · stopped
- 60 BPM means 60 dotted-quarter beats a minute. Each large beat lasts one second. The dotted-quarter symbol beside the number tells you the BPM unit.
- Count six eighth notes in two groups. With 8ths selected, each large beat contains three audible eighth-note positions: “ONE two three FOUR five six.” The long and round marks locate those clicks. The faint short marks between them are smaller, silent positions in this setting.
On this page
A 6/8 subdivision routine
Check the setup
- Meter
- 6/8
- Tempo
- 60 BPM · dotted quarter note beats
- Subdivisions
- 8ths
- Swing
- Straight
- Accent sound
- On
- Mode
- Session
- Count-in
- 1 bar
- Duration
- 16 bars
Opens in a new tab. Review the settings, then press Start when ready.
- Set 6/8 at 60 BPM and choose 8ths under Subdivisions so all six eighth-note positions sound.
- Count “ONE two three FOUR five six” for four bars.
- Clap only ONE and FOUR while continuing to say all six counts.
- Play your passage while feeling two large beats, each divided into three.
- Switch Subdivisions to Main beats and keep the smaller subdivisions internally.
Optional progression
Alternate four bars with audible eighths and four bars with only the two dotted-quarter beats. Later, use Gap Trainer to remove a bar of click while keeping the two-in-a-bar pulse.
Common mistakes
- Counting six unrelated beats: group the notes 3+3 and feel ONE–FOUR.
- Treating the BPM as an eighth-note value: here the displayed dotted-quarter note (♩.) is the beat unit.
- Making both pulses equally heavy: FOUR supports the bar, but ONE remains the downbeat.
Success criterion
Progress when the passage stays steady with Subdivisions set to Main beats. The six eighth-note positions should remain even, and the next downbeat should stay clear without counting aloud.
Keep uneven groups steady
Change one source of support after the present task is repeatable.
Try the next practice