# Anyone have any ideas to improve on Time signatures



## Davzon

Hi all, just wondering can I count cut time the same I count 4/4 ? cause in cut time a minim is worth the same as a crochet beat, so if that's true, then if i simple just speed up something in 4/4 then it would then sound like a 2/2 piece ? or have I got that wrong?


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## PetrB

All I can hope to improve is your misconception about time signatures.

Cut time is a common shorthand for 2/2. 
2/2 has two primary beats, and you do not count the four quarters of 2/2 as _1, 2, 3, 4_, but as _1 &, 2 &_.

That is how you should count 4/4 marked as cut time.

The reason is fundamental: there are four strong pulses in a bar of 4/4, with only two strong beats in a bar of 2/2. 
Those must be heard, played to be heard, with the slight accent required to make them heard (this often is subtle, but present nonetheless.)

Counting a straight four where two is needed will not do the job.

In a compound signature, like 3/2, if counting the quarter notes, you would be counting 1 & 2 & 3 & for the six quarter notes of that 3/2 measure.


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## Davzon

I just thought cut time was almost the same as normal time, cause my thought on it was I just slow it down to make the counting more easy then just speed it up to make it sound like it should be. cause it's in duple time which can be counted in either 2 or 4. I am not sure about 3/2 but that's cause I have never read a piece with that time signature at all. So I get the idea that there is duple with is either 2 or 4 beats.. and triple which is in 3 or 6 beats. Thanks for the refresher.


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