In Workbook 2A there are many exercises on identifying the metre of a rhythm as simple duple, simple triple, or compound duple.

There is a huge problem with this is: THE BEAT VALUE IS NOT GIVEN.

It says in the book ‘you will hear the speed of the beat or pulse’. Well, which is it, beat or pulse? These are very different things. If we hear 6 sounds, is that two bars of 3/4 (i.e. beat) or one bar of 6/8 (i.e. pulse)?

If the beat value is not given, we at least need to be told whether we are hearing the beat or the pulse, and how many bars are given.

It is absolutely impossible to tell the difference aurally between four bars of 3/4 and two bars of 6/8, and in fact also between these and 2 bars of 2/4 with triplets. They would all sound exactly the same.

Does this mean that any of these three answers will be marked correctly?