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What is a "hemidemisemiquaver"?

Question #121336. Asked by metsfan1001.

deputygary
Answer has 2 votes
deputygary
20 year member
276 replies

Answer has 2 votes.
It is a 64th note (the 64th note of a song you play).

link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sixty-fourth_note

May 07 2011, 7:01 AM
Watchkeeper
Answer has 2 votes
Watchkeeper
18 year member
412 replies

Answer has 2 votes.
The basic unit of time in music is represented by a semibreve. "Semi" means "half", so a semibreve lasts for half as long as a breve. However, the breve is now obsolete and the semibreve has taken over. Typically, a semibreve lasts for 4 beats.

Other musical notes are derived from the semibreve by halving. Thus a minim lasts half as long as a semibreve (or, to put it another way, two minims last as long as a semibreve).

Likewise, a crotchet lasts half as long as a minim so 4 crotchets last as long as a semibreve.

Dividing by two again give us the quaver, lasting for one-eighth of a semibreve.

Now "hemi", "demi" and "semi" are prefixes meaning "half" (think hemisphere, demigod and semi-detached). Thus a semiquaver would last one-sixteenth of a semibreve, a demisemiquaver for one-thirtysecond and therefore (here's the answer at last) a hemidemisemiquaver for one-sixtyfourth of a semibreve.

link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whole_note
link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quaver
link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sixty-fourth_note
link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical_notation

May 07 2011, 7:30 AM
darkpresence
Answer has 0 votes
darkpresence
19 year member
264 replies

Answer has 0 votes.
But that does not mean it's necessarily the 64th note of a song, it could occur anywhere in a piece. As I understand American music terminology, calling a note a 64th note means, as Watch says, 1/64th of a full note. Probably easier to learn than all the hemis and demis we use on this side of the pond.

May 07 2011, 2:29 PM
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