Duplet
A duplet divides a value that would otherwise split into three equal parts into two. The typical place is compound time: in 6/8 two eighth notes with the figure 2 fill the time of a dotted quarter.
- Division
- two notes instead of three
- In the score
- figure 2 (or bracket), rarely the ratio 2:3
- Typical time signature
- compound times such as 6/8
- Counterpart
- triplet
Two instead of three
In compound time, for example in 6/8, each beat splits into three eighth notes. A duplet replaces these three eighth notes by two. Both notes are then longer than an ordinary eighth, namely one and a half times as long, and together fill exactly the time of the dotted quarter. The ratio is therefore 2:3: two notes in the time of three.
Duplet in 6/8: two eighth notes instead of three
In each bar a duplet comes first. The two eighth notes with the figure 2 last together as long as the dotted quarter that follows.
For comparison: the same duration in three parts
Here three ordinary eighth notes divide the dotted quarter. The notes of the duplet above lie on the start and on the middle of this time.
How it is written
The usual sign is the figure 2 above or below the group of notes. If there is no continuous beam, a bracket is added. The written-out ratio (2:3) is rarer and appears mainly where the figure alone would be ambiguous. In compound time the duplet is usually understood as 2:3, because the beat there consists of three equal parts.
Duplet and triplet
The triplet does the opposite: it divides a value that would otherwise split into two parts into three. The duplet divides a value that would otherwise split into three parts into two. Both therefore change the usual division of the beat. One difference in effect: the triplet brings movement into an even pulse, while the duplet divides a three-part beat into two halves.
Common mistakes
- Playing the duplet like two ordinary eighth notes: Then the group would be too short. Both notes are longer than normal eighth notes.
- Placing the second note too early: It lies exactly in the middle of the time, not at the second third.
- Overlooking the figure 2: Without the figure you would read the two eighth notes as ordinary eighth notes.
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Related terms
TripletQuintupletQuadrupletNote valueBar / measureTime signatureBeatEighth noteMetronome
Editor: Maik Krohm · reviewed on 3 October 2026
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