How Irish tempos are counted
In Irish music the BPM counts the beat you tap your foot to, not every note. A jig in 6/8 has two beats a bar, one per group of three eighth notes, so a jig at 110 is 110 dotted quarter notes a minute. Reels are the ones that catch people out: they are written in 4/4 but felt in two, so a reel at 110 means 110 half notes a minute. Set a standard metronome to 110 quarter notes and you will be practising the reel at half the speed anyone at a session means.
| Tune type | Meter | One beat | Learning | Session |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jig | 6/8 | dotted quarter, 2 a bar | 60-90 | 105-120 |
| Reel | 4/4 (2/2) | half note, 2 a bar | 60-90 | 100-120 |
| Hornpipe | 4/4 | quarter note, 4 a bar | 90-120 | 130-160 |
| Polka | 2/4 | quarter note, 2 a bar | 90-120 | 130-150 |
| Slip jig | 9/8 | dotted quarter, 3 a bar | 60-90 | 100-120 |
| Slide | 12/8 | dotted quarter, 4 a bar | 80-110 | 120-140 |
| Waltz | 3/4 | quarter note, 3 a bar | 70-90 | 90-120 |
| Slow air | 4/4 or 3/4 | quarter note, 3 or 4 a bar | 45-60 | free |
Session speeds vary a lot from town to town and with whoever starts the set. Treat these as the middle of the road, not a target.
Getting a tune up to speed
Start at the tempo where you can play the tune cleanly, not the one where you can nearly play it. Most jigs and reels are two eight-bar parts, each played twice, so the default speed trainer setting of 2 bpm every 8 bars moves you up a notch each time you go through a part. When it falls apart, knock 10 bpm off and climb again. Evenness comes first; speed follows it, never the other way round.
Use the offbeat clicks while you learn, then turn them off so you are filling in more of the rhythm yourself. In a jig, lean on the first note of each group of three. In a reel, lift the offbeats rather than hammering the downbeat. Cuts and rolls are where the rhythm really lives, and the guide to Irish ornaments shows how they sit on the beat.
Practise with the click, then without it
Nobody at a session plays to a metronome. They lock onto each other, and the tempo breathes a little as the set goes on. The click is a practice tool for evenness: once a tune is solid at session speed, switch it off, play along with a recording or a backing track, and listen for where you rush. The jigs and reels on this site are a good source of tunes to work on, and if you are just starting out the easy tabs are the place to begin. Before you play with others, check your pitch with the tin whistle tuner.
Metronome questions
What BPM are Irish reels played at?
Most session reels sit between about 100 and 120 bpm, counted in half notes, which is two beats per bar. Learning speed is more like 60 to 90. Some sessions push well past 120, but an even, lifting reel at 100 is far better music than a ragged one at 125.
What tempo is a jig?
Roughly 105 to 120 bpm at a typical session, counting the dotted quarter note, so two beats in each bar of 6/8. Learn new jigs at 60 to 90 and only speed up once every group of three notes is even.
Why does the metronome count reels in two?
Because that is how the music is felt and how trad tempos are quoted. A reel is written in 4/4 but played in "cut time": the foot taps twice a bar. If you set an ordinary metronome to 110 in quarter notes, you will be playing a reel at half the speed people mean when they say 110.
Should I practise hornpipes with swing?
Most of the time, yes. Hornpipes are played with long-short eighth notes, somewhere between straight and a full triplet feel depending on the player and the region. The swing setting here uses a 2:1 triplet lilt, which is a sensible middle. If a run keeps coming out lumpy, switch swing off, get it even, then put the lilt back.
How is a slide different from a jig?
A slide is in 12/8, so four dotted-quarter beats a bar instead of two, and it is played quicker and with more punch, full of long-short quarter and eighth note pairs. Slides and polkas are the dance music of Sliabh Luachra on the Cork and Kerry border.
Does the metronome keep time if I switch tabs?
Yes. The clicks are scheduled on the audio clock rather than with ordinary page timers, so they stay steady when you switch tabs or the page is busy. On a phone, locking the screen may pause the sound, so keep the screen on while you practise.