Supplement 56C: Artificial Note Values | Part 3 of 4

An artificial note value is any subdivision of a duple or triple value into an uncommon number of notes, marked with a number over the group — the triplet is the simplest and most familiar example. Quintuplets and septuplets are the next most common, though virtually any number is possible; a quintuplet over a quarter note, for instance, divides it into five equal parts written as 16ths with a “5” overhead. This section is about understanding the notation itself before the next few lessons put it into practice — notably, Frank Zappa’s music (Ralph’s own former bandleader) leans on artificial values extensively, “The Black Page” being the famous example.