15.1 · Advanced Rhythm
Thirty-second notes
Each split halves the note again: quarter, eighth, sixteenth. One more split makes thirty-second notes: eight to a beat, three flags on the stem. Too fast to count one by one; you count the beat and let the eight ride it.
One beat, four splits
The same four clicks under every bar. One note per beat, then two, four, eight. The pulse never moves; only the surface speeds up.
Count the flags
Flags on the stem count the splits: one flag is an eighth, two a sixteenth, three a thirty-second. Each flag halves the note.
Where you meet them
Drum rolls and fast fills are thirty-seconds written down. Two steady beats, then sixteen notes crammed into the last two: a drummer's fill.
Quiz
1 / 3How many thirty-second notes fill one beat?