duplets

Duplets are a rhythmic device in Western music in which two notes are played in the time normally occupied by three notes of the same value. They are typically indicated by a bracket with the numeral 2 above or below the two notes, sometimes with a ratio such as 2:3 to show the duration relationship. Duplets occur most often in compound meters, where the beat is subdivided into three equal parts (for example 6/8, 9/8, or 12/8), but they can appear in other contexts as well.

In a duplet, the two notes share the time of three of the same value, creating a cross-rhythm against the prevailing triple subdivision. For example, two eighth notes can be played in the time of three eighth notes (a 2:3 relationship), or two sixteenth notes in the time of three sixteenths. Duplets may involve longer note values too, such as two quarter notes in the time of three quarter notes, depending on the meter and the composer’s intent. The notation signals to the performer that the two notes should be evenly distributed over the span of the three-notes’ duration.

Duplets are contrasted with triplets, where three notes fit in the time of two, and they often form part of polyrhythmic textures when combined with other subdivisions. They appear in Baroque keyboard and ensemble music, as well as in contemporary classical, jazz, and world-music traditions that explore cross-rhythm and additive timing.