N-tuplet?

[Devon8822]

Ok, first of all are triplets the same as an N-tuplet (as label in guitar pro)?

I am writing some tunes, and when I got to a certain point in the song were there is a sequenced run (i think its triplets)... I cannot seem to get the right durations/timing in... so it sounds like its a triple issue. now in the n-tuplet selection thing in Gp there are number from 3 to 13... I have no idea about what these mean, and I only understand the most basic of what a triple is (that it is 3 notes that happen in the time of 2 or something?) Anyways, I am wondering if there are any links/lessons that explain these in detail, and how to use them. I need to figure out how to fit my run into my song properly. thanks!

[jessmanca]

Well yeah, it's whatever number of notes it is grouped into the space of one beat. Depending on what the notes in question are. For example if you have triplet quarter notes it'll take up the space of a half note, triplet eighth notes will take up the space of a quarter, and triplet sixteenths take up the space of an eighth note. Etc.

It's pretty impossible to describe how exactly to do it online. If you were one of my students i'd show you how and get out a metronome to help you practice it. I'd reccomend taking a couple guitar lessons and asking your teacher to show you how to do those rhythms. It's more of a "you have to feel it" thing.

[Devon8822]

Very helpful.. i will have to ask my teacher about it

So does N-tuplet me somethign different than triplet?

and what do the number represent when I choose one for the triplet in guitar pro? you can label notes triplets but you have to choose a number from 3 -13... what do these numbers mean?

[jessmanca]

They just call it N-tuplet because it can be any number, N is a variable.

If you had 5-tuplet eighth notes you would play all 5 in the space of a half note. It goes to the next nearest regular beat. Like 9-tuplet eighth notes would be played in the space of a whole note.

For a better explanation, read the short wikipedia article.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuplet

If you've learned your meters you already know how to play these. regular eighth notes are basically a 2-tuplet. 6/8 is basically two groups of triplets. etc.

[Devon8822]

Ok that explains alot, I understand it a bit better. Last thing though, I can't figure out how to, figure out which kind of tuplet to use for a lick, how exactly would I go about figure it out. If it comes to it I can post the lick... although I dont think you would know what timeing I have in mind for it, in my head.

[JonR]

Ok that explains alot, I understand it a bit better. Last thing though, I can't figure out how to, figure out which kind of tuplet to use for a lick, how exactly would I go about figure it out. If it comes to it I can post the lick... although I dont think you would know what timeing I have in mind for it, in my head.Play it to a metronome click (or drum pattern), set to the appropriate bpm. Each click should normally be a quarter note (in typical rock 4/4) - in a drum pattern, bass and snare usually count the beats (bass = 1,3, snare = 2,4)
So, count how many notes are there between two beats (within the 1/4-note space)? (You may need to record yourself to check this.)
If it's a multiple of 2 (4, 8, 16), and they're all even, you don't need a tuplet. Two notes per beat are written as 8th notes, 4 as 16ths, etc.
If the notes are still all evenly spaced, but any other quantity (3, 5, 6, 7, etc), then you need a tuplet with that number, and use the nearest kind of note value. (The wiki article is quiet clear on how to choose which type of note.)
eg for 3 equal notes (in one beat), use an 8th-note triplet. For 5 equal ones use a quintuplet of 5 16th notes.

If the notes (within the space of a 1/4-note beat) are all different lengths, you need to decide whether you can still divide the space into 2 or 4, before you assign tuplets to any of them. (Eg you might have 5 notes in there, but maybe it's three 8ths and two 16ths? or two 8ths and 3 16th triplets?)

Sometimes, notes are evenly spaced across a beat. 1/4-note triplets are a common example of this:
BEATS (1/4 notes):|1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . |
1/4-note triplets:|X X X X X X |
|_______| |_______|There you have 3 equally-timed notes in the space of a half-note. (In fact two sets of them.) Beats 2 and 4 fall between the notes.

Bear in mind tuplets (other than triplets) are quite unusual, except in transcriptions of quite loosely phrased solos. Do you really need a tuplet? Or is your lick just a kind of lazy interpretation of normal 8ths or 16ths? How important is it you notate your timing that accurately?

[jessmanca]

Yeah pretty much, find the number of downbeats you want the lick to cover, and how many beats are in the lick. Then it's easy to figure out. Keep in mind that if some of the beats are uneven it may not be tuplets you're looking for. And as jonr said it's probably possible to express your lick in eighths or sixteenths, maybe with a meter change. We can't really give advice beyond that unless you post the thing :) good luck