For Anyone Who’s Ever Wondered Why Songs Just… Work
My 11-year-old daughter asked me what a bar was one day, while we were working on a song. I had previously explained to her what it meant technically but she still didn’t quite understand the point of it and why it mattered.
After thinking about for a while, I finally said, “A bar is like a sentence.” She perks up curiously. “How does it feel when someone starts a sentence and doesn’t complete it?” I asked.
“Like you’re hanging?” she replied. “Exactly,” I said. But she wasn’t completely satisfied. She went on to ask why [I said that] transitions in music happen every 4 bars and that most choruses in pop music are exactly 8 bars long.
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My daughter aside, this also matters when you’re choosing (or creating) background music for your videos too but more on that in a later post. Do subscribe for updates on that!
That was a good question. The truth is, it really isn’t all that easy to explain that to a person with very little exposure to the technical aspects of music. But then I had an idea.
Poetry in music
I shared a simple poem with her:
Roses are red, (1 bar)
Violets are blue, (1 bar)
Sugar is sweet, (1 bar)
And so are you. (1 bar)
I asked her to read out loud. Then I asked her to read it again but this time, only the first 3 lines. You should try that too…
Did it feel incomplete? Of course it did… there was nothing to rhyme with blue!
1 bar, by itself is like a sentence. You’d need at least two to make a rhyme:
Jack and Jill (1 bar)
Went up the Hill (1 bar)
That works the same way in music. 1 bar works, 2 bars completes the cycle but if you stopped at 3, you’d very really feel like you’re lefthanging. 4 is when you finally feel resolved, where it feels somewhat complete.
And if you heard another 4 bars, your brain understands the pattern of the first 4 bars and anticipates the next 4 (almost as if you’re subconsciously singing along the second time round). It feels natural, giving the listener enough time to absorb the current idea before moving on to the next. And that is precisely why 8 bar choruses work perfectly.
In a song, a chorus is usually an emotional high point and often the most memorable aspect of the song. Humans tend to gravitate towards even-numbered groupings (2, 4, 8), and 8 bars offer a satisfying symmetry that resonates with our innate sense of rhythm
For our brains, bars work to chunk music up into manageable and repeatable pieces, making it easier to follow or dance along to. It builds patterns that create predictability and anticipation.
Wait. So what exactly is a bar?
A bar is a measure. A way to divide music into segments. It’s made up of beats. So in one measure, there are a number of beats.
Typically, if you’re listening to a song and you counted ONE-two-three-four, you’ve made a bar! Count to four again, and there’s your next bar. Simple, right?
Well… not quite.
Time Signatures (the Ruler of Music)
The number of beats in a bar depends on the time signature of the music. Think about a ruler. It’s got markings for centimetres (cm) and inches (in), and each system divides the ruler differently. For example, 1 cm is divided into 10 equal parts, while 1 inch is divided into 16 parts.
Just as centimetres and inches divide length differently, time signatures divide beats differently. For example, a 4/4 bar has four beats, while a 3/4 bar has three. Most songs out there follow 4/4 signatures – also known as Common Time.
Now that we understand how bars work in common time, let’s explore other time signatures that feel very different.
3/4 Timing – (The Waltz)
There’s really no other way to describe it. The best way to imagine it is to imagine a waltz. What this means is that you have 3 beats per bar (measure). You’d count it like this:
ONE-two-three, ONE-two-three
With a focus on the ONE as the downbeat. Another way is to count it ONE-and-two-and-three-and
Go ahead and try it, this is one of the most recognisable songs in 3/4 time.:
Que Sera, Sera by Doris Day
But of course, 3/4 time signatures aren’t limited to Waltzes. Take a listen (and try counting) to the following:
My Favourite Things by Julie Andrews
Did that work? Ready to take it up a notch?
6/8 Timing – (The Rolling 3 beats)
It doesn’t take a math genius to see that 6/8 is really just 3/4 when you factor it down and that’s why it isn’t immediately obvious. You’d usually find 6/8 time signatures in timeless (pun intended) ballads.
While 3/4 flows like a waltz, 6/8 rolls forward in pairs of three. It is used when using 4 as a measure isn’t quite enough, where it doesn’t feel complete. There are many songs in this category, where a single “bar” needs to be just a little longer for it work. The way I like to count it is like this:
ONE-and-a-two-and-a
The best way to understand this rolling rhythm is to give it a go yourself. 6/8 isn’t just about the numbers; it’s about how it moves. It creates a sense of momentum, like climbing toward something triumphant. And there’s probably no better song to illustrate this than one that captures both the drama and the grandeur of the rhythm itself…
We are the Champions by Queen
This next song isn’t easy to count after but it really does a good job illustrating why it needs 6 beats a measure. The extra beats in 6/8 give this song its rolling, dreamy quality, making it feel more romantic and timeless.
Can’t Help Falling in Love by Elvis Presley
Okay, But I’m Not a Musician so why Should I Care?
Fair point! You don’t have to be a musician to appreciate this. Do you make videos? Like those reels or slideshows of family moments? Maybe you’ve been roped into creating a feature video for your kid’s birthday – or maybe your parents’ anniversary (cue the guilt-tripping.)
Here’s the thing though: knowing your bars and time signatures can take that Pixel Perfect imagery and pair it with a Rhythm Refined backing track. Suddenly, your masterpiece not only looks incredible; it feels incredible too.
And hey, if geeking out about this isn’t on-brand for Geekist.co, then what is?