Building a sequence
Tap add bar to append a new bar. Set its meter with the top/bottom fields (e.g. 7/8), then tap each beat square to cycle its accent: plain tick → strong ▲ → mid ○.
Beyond the click
Resources.
01
Quicklinks
PracticeOpen the composerBuild a loop. Find your groove.
Get startedHow to use OddMeterA quick guide to the controls.
WatchYouTube@oddmeterapp
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How to use OddMeter
Grouping & repeats
Select multiple bars (tap the group icon) to wrap them into a named, color-coded group. Set plays on a bar or group to repeat it that many times before moving on.
Subdivisions & beat patterns
Open subdivisions to split each beat into eighths, triplets, or sixteenths — audibly, visually, or both. Beat patterns quick-apply a common accent pattern to every bar at once.
Playback
Use the transport to play/pause, drag or type the BPM, or tap the tap button a few times to set tempo by feel. Toggle loop and count-in from the mode row.
Perform mode
Switch to perform for a big, clutter-free live view — on desktop it becomes a scrolling teleprompter that keeps the current bar centered.
Challenges
Open challenges to browse and load ready-made grooves — tap one, then hit play.
Save & load your work
Export saves your current session as a file; import loads one back in. Everything — sequence, tempo, theme — comes back exactly as you left it.
02
Learn
Get a rhythm under your fingers. Then hear where it can take you.
Time signature glossary
4/4 — the baseline
Four even beats per bar. The default feel in most pop, rock, and hip-hop. Everything in this glossary is defined relative to this being "normal."
3/4 & 6/8 — same 6, different math
Both have six eighth-notes worth of time, but they group differently: 3/4 is three groups of two (simple meter — waltz territory), 6/8 is two groups of three (compound meter — a rolling, lilting feel common in ballads and blues shuffles). This simple-vs-compound distinction is the seed odd meter grows out of: once you're comfortable feeling music in groups of 2 or 3, odd meters are just less-common combinations of those same building blocks.
5/4 & 5/8
Five beats (or five eighth-notes) per bar. Almost always felt as one long beat and one short beat grouped together: 3+2 or 2+3. Classic example: Dave Brubeck's "Take Five."
7/4 & 7/8
Seven beats per bar. The key question is always how it's grouped — 2+2+3, 3+2+2, or 2+3+2 all technically fit in 7, but each feels completely different. This is exactly what the app's beat-accent and grouping tools let you set explicitly.
9/8
Nine eighth notes per bar. Group them evenly as 3+3+3, or asymmetrically as 2+2+2+3. The grouping changes the feel.
10/8 & 12/8
12/8 is common and friendly — four groups of 3, the backbone of a lot of blues and gospel-tinged rock (often just felt as a "triplet feel" 4/4). 10/8 is the odder cousin: usually built from 3+3+2+2 or 3+2+3+2 style combinations, and works well as a stepping stone between 9/8 and 11/8.
11/8 & 13/8
Less common, mostly found in progressive rock/metal. Almost always built from smaller familiar chunks (2s and 3s) strung together — e.g. 11 = 3+3+3+2, or 3+2+3+3.
15/16
A longer, denser meter usually found in progressive metal. Typically decomposed into a run of 3s and 4s (e.g. 4+4+4+3) rather than felt as "15" all at once.
Mixed / changing meter
Some pieces don't sit in one time signature at all — they switch bar to bar (e.g. one bar of 7/8, next bar of 4/4, next bar of 5/8). This is what OddMeter Composer's bar-by-bar sequencing was built for.
How it's written on paper
In traditional notation, composers sometimes write the grouping directly above the time signature — e.g. (2+2+3)/8 — so performers don't have to guess. OddMeter Composer's beat-accent system is effectively doing the same job, just visually and interactively instead of on a printed score.
Grouping cheat sheet
The same meter can have very different feels. Group notes in twos and threes, then accent the start of each group.
| Notes per bar | Groupings to try |
|---|---|
| 5 | 3+2 · 2+3 |
| 6 | 3+3 · 2+2+2 |
| 7 | 2+2+3 · 3+2+2 · 2+3+2 |
| 9 | 3+3+3 · 2+2+2+3 |
| 10 | 3+3+2+2 · 3+2+3+2 · 2+2+3+3 |
| 11 | 3+3+3+2 · 3+2+3+3 · 2+2+3+2+2 |
| 13 | 3+3+3+2+2 · 3+2+3+2+3 |
For 2+2+3, count “1-2, 1-2, 1-2-3.” In the composer, mark the first note of each group with a strong accent.
Try it in the composer →Further reading & watching
Artist spotlights
14 starting pointsDave Brubeck Quartet
Start with “Take Five” and “Blue Rondo à la Turk”: two classic introductions to odd meter.
King Crimson
Shifting meters and interlocking parts. Try “Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Part II.”
Rush
Rock grooves with unexpected turns. Listen to the instrumental passages in “Tom Sawyer.”
Dream Theater
Progressive metal full of fast-moving odd and mixed meters.
Tool
Long-form pieces with evolving rhythmic layers. Start with “Lateralus.”
Meshuggah
Repeating riff groupings against a steady underlying pulse: another way to make rhythm feel unexpected.
Radiohead
Start with the five-beat groove of “15 Step.”
Yes
Extended progressive rock with changing meters. Explore “Close to the Edge.”
Genesis
Explore the Peter Gabriel-era recordings and the instrumental passages in “Firth of Fifth.”
Frank Zappa
Rock, jazz, and composition meet in restless, rapidly changing rhythms.
Snarky Puppy
Jazz fusion with a strong groove and inventive rhythmic phrasing.
Animals as Leaders
Instrumental progressive metal with intricate, layered rhythmic patterns.
Angine de Poitrine
Explore the duo’s off-centre instrumental world.
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard
Follow the rhythmic detours through a wide-ranging catalog.
03
Gear
Explore instruments and tools for your practice setup.
Useful tools at different budgets, from a first practice setup to regular rehearsals and gigs. Start with what you need; a higher price is not a requirement for better practice.
These recommendations are not sponsored. I have no connection to or affiliation with the brands or products featured here.
In-ear monitors
From a first monitoring setup to a more detailed premium option. Choose for comfort, fit, and your actual monitoring needs.
Shure SE215
Sound-isolating earphones with a detachable cable. A practical starting point for click-track practice.
Mackie MP-220
Dual dynamic drivers in a low-profile design, for monitoring your click and backing tracks.
Shure AONIC 5
Three balanced-armature drivers for detailed monitoring during practice and performance.
Backup metronomes
A dedicated click when you want to leave your phone or laptop out of the setup.
Korg MA-2
A straightforward starting point with tap tempo, 0–9 beats, and a headphone jack. Runs on two AAA batteries.
BOSS DB-30
A pocket metronome with tap tempo, a headphone output, and preset odd-beat combinations such as 2+3 and 3+4.
Practice pads
Work on stick control, accents, and timing alongside a click, from first rudiments to backstage warm-ups.
EVANS RealFeel 6-inch
A portable gum-rubber practice surface for rudiments and warm-ups. A small setup that is easy to take with you.
EVANS RealFeel 12-inch
A larger pad with gum rubber on one side and firmer recycled rubber on the other, for contrasting practice feels.
Notation & composition
Write ideas down, hear them back, and bring your rhythms into the composer.
MuseScore Studio
A free desktop notation editor for writing scores and listening back. A useful starting point with room for detailed arrangements.
Guitar Pro
The notation and tablature editor we use to compose and test odd-meter ideas before building them in OddMeter.
04
Support
A little coffee. More odd rhythms.
Enjoying OddMeter? Help keep this independent project going with a coffee.