Counting music
Finding the 1, eights and phrases, tempo, and counting any song.
Posts
How to Count Music for Dance: Beats, Eights and Phrases
Find the steady beat, count it in fours, join two fours into an eight, and follow the eights through the phrase. Here is the whole method, step by step.
Guide4 min readHow to Find the 1 in Music
The 1 is the first beat of every bar. Listen for the kick and the bass, count along, watch for pickups, and check it over a whole phrase.
Guide4 min readDance Tempo Chart: BPM for Every Style
Typical BPM ranges for dance styles from ballet adagio to bulerías, plus the WDSF ballroom and Latin tempos converted from bars per minute.
4 min readWhat Does 5, 6, 7, 8 Mean in Dance?
5, 6, 7, 8 is the lead-in dancers count before a routine starts, so everyone's first step lands together on the next 1.
4 min readWhat Is an 8-Count in Dance?
An 8-count is eight beats numbered 1 to 8, then start over. Two bars of 4/4, one dance phrase. Here is how it works and how to practise it.
5 min read