Weeks 3-4 · rhythm · entry timing after 4-beat count-in
Wait for four. Enter exactly on the fifth click.
The rule
pass: ≤ 120 ms off on 8 of 10
Four count-in clicks, then an accented beat 1 — that’s your entry. The emerald dot lands inside the ±120ms tolerance band centred on the accent. The grey dots are early and late entries that fall outside. R120 is the standard rhythmic-accuracy band — close enough that an ensemble doesn’t flinch, tight enough to expose drift.
Hear it first
Three reference entries at different tempi. The on-the-beat entry locks onto the accent — your note and the click sound like one event. Early and late entries you can hear as a slight slap before or after the click.
What’s happening.A count-in lets your motor cortex internalise the pulse before you have to produce against it. Four beats is the conventional count-in length because it’s long enough for the pulse to feel settled (more than two beats are needed for entrainment) and short enough that everyone can hold it in working memory.
Why 120 ms. R120 — ±120ms — is the rhythmic-accuracy band used across the curriculum. It’s wider than skilled-ensemble timing (~30-50 ms) but tight enough to catch the “a beat off” mistake. We test across four tempi (70, 80, 90, 100 bpm) so you can’t just memorise one period; rotating tempi force you to actually entrain to each click.
Why this is the foundation. Every song starts with an entry. Without R120, you sound late or early and the rest of the line never recovers. Pulse-clap taught you to feel the pulse; this lesson puts it under voice. Verse-breath-plan, harmony-over-drone, and every later tempo-aware drill depend on you reliably landing beat 1.
Session ahead
10 trials · tempi rotate through 70, 80, 90, 100 bpm · entry must land within ±120 ms of beat 1 · hit 8 to advance.