Editing Tuplet (section)

== Triplet ==

The most common tuplet{{sfn|Schonbrun|2007|loc=8}} is the '''triplet''' (German ''Triole'', French ''triolet'', Italian ''terzina'' or ''tripletta'', Spanish ''tresillo''). Whereas normally two [[quarter note]]s (crotchets) are the same [[duration (music)|duration]] as a [[half note]] (minim), three triplet quarter notes have that same duration, so the duration of a triplet quarter note is {{2/3}} the [[duration (music)|duration]] of a standard quarter note.

:<score sound="1"> \new RhythmicStaff {
   \clef percussion
   \time 2/4
   \set Score.tempoHideNote = ##t \tempo 4 = 100
   c4 c
   \tuplet 3/2 { c4 c c }
}
</score>

Similarly, three triplet [[eighth notes]] (quavers) are equal in duration to one quarter note. If several note values appear under the triplet bracket, they are all affected the same way, reduced to {{2/3}} their original duration.

:<score sound="1"> \new RhythmicStaff {
   \clef percussion
   \time 2/4
   \set Score.tempoHideNote = ##t \tempo 4 = 100
   c8 c c c
   \tuplet 3/2 { c8 c c } \tuplet 3/2 { c8 c c }
}
</score>

The triplet indication may also apply to notes of different values, for example a quarter note followed by one eighth note, in which case the quarter note may be regarded as two triplet eighths tied together.{{sfn|Gehrkens|1921|loc=19}}

:<score sound="1"> \new RhythmicStaff {
   \clef percussion
   \time 2/4
   \set Score.tempoHideNote = ##t \tempo 4 = 100
   \tuplet 3/2 { c4 c8 } \tuplet 3/2 { c8 c4 }
}
</score>

In some older scores, rhythms like this would be notated as a [[Dotted note|dotted]] eighth note and a sixteenth note as a kind of shorthand{{sfn|Troeger|2003|loc=172}} presumably so that the beaming more clearly shows the beats.