Eighth-Note Triplets

But wait, there's more stuff we can do with eighth notes. We can combine them into “triplets!” This means that, instead of fitting just two eighth notes into the space of one beat, we now squeeze three eighth notes into the same space:

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Listen to track 12 to hear the sound of eighth-note triplets. You'll hear three notes for each metronome tick. Try counting “1 trip-let 2 trip-let” etc., along with this rhythm, as evenly as you can.

Notice that each set of three eighth notes is beamed together, and that the number “3” is shown above each group. The “3” tells you that this grouping note is a triplet, and not just ordinary eighth notes.