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Reference : compound meters
The time unit of the compound meter is divisible by three.
Some important points to remember about these measures are
We recognise compound measures because the numerator (the top number in the time signature) is 6, 9 or 12.
We get the note that occupies a beat by dividing the numerator by 3. For example, a 6/8 measure has 2 beats.
We add a dot to the notes that occupy a beat.
The denominator (the lower number) indicates the note that occupies a third of the time unit. For example, in a 6/8 time signature, the eighth note occupies a third of a beat, since a beat is occupied by 3 eighth notes or 1 dotted quarter note.