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Home/Topic Guides/3/4 March Rhythm
📖 Topic GuideRhythm & Timing15 linked class moments

🕰️ 3/4 March Rhythm

Three beats a bar, wide open space on the page — bagpiping's simplest, most laid-back march.

The Short Version

3/4 marches are the simplest march family. One or two notes per beat, lots of space on the sheet music, and a down-tempo, laid-back character that comes from their old role as "retreat marches" — played by regiments marching back at the end of the day.
John MacLellan of Dunoon is the king of the 3/4. Tunes like Lochanside, The Dream Valley of Glendaruel, The Highland Brigade at Magersfontein, and The Bloody Fields of Flanders come from one composer who, in my teaching, has no rival in this tune type.
The best 3/4s hold a balance between wandering and coming home. A great 3/4 can stretch a phrase almost to the point of sounding like a random string of notes, then resolve back into a strong, simple, unmistakably familiar ending.

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About 3/4 March Rhythm

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✅ The essentials

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⭐ Essential Highlights

“Well, they tend to be simpler tunes than most of our others — they're definitely our simplest type of marches. The typical 3-4 march, you're gonna have one or two notes per beat. Your beats are gonna be quarter notes, sometimes you get a pair of eighth notes, or a dot cut. When we're looking at the sheet music, you'll see there's a lot of space on the page.”▶ 02:33 · The Greatest 3/4 Marches of All Time
“For that reason, they're sort of a little bit laid back. They're sometimes called retreat marches, which is not running away from enemy fire — this is more like, at the end of the day, the regiment is marching back after a hard day's work somewhere. So it's kind of a down-tempo, relaxing kind of thing.”▶ 03:19 · The Greatest 3/4 Marches of All Time
“So where our 2/4 marches have two beats per bar, our 3/4 marches have three beats per bar. Some of the most popular and classic well-known pipe tunes fall into the 3/4 march category. They're sometimes also called retreat marches, and this comes from the Scottish regimental tradition, where they would play 3/4s at the end of the day. A classic 3/4 that almost every piper knows — or should know — is The Green Hills of Tyrol.”▶ 15:09 · Understanding Tune Types: Marches, Strathspeys, Reels & More
“favorite of and early tunes — The Fields Glendaruel, — around the of lived of last none of turn the other Dunoon. Magersfontein, Bloody be all John 1900s 3/4 he of McLellan composers time, 3/4 might The 3/4s: at the which of Flanders. the wrote march the Brigade The all-time favorite, McLellan of The century my is king than absolute some Highland one Valley Dream of my Lochanside, and best and”▶ 15:52 · Understanding Tune Types: Marches, Strathspeys, Reels & More
“are is it what a point it it good random of, note then stretches happening not is a comes 3-4s There tune, sequence breaking is the and — really back. — to off, and really almost phrases this some in this wanders where”▶ 04:53 · The Greatest 3/4 Marches of All Time
“so Sometimes potato. — they're the almost perfect. minimalism. all love want I something the complexity, perfectly you the and it's 3/4s, it's is No very and sauce; like want pure just bells cooked and sometimes like you traditional that because these all whistles”▶ 42:11 · Practice Chanter Session
“simple, in beautiful, snapshot: that's really coming — This but 3-4 ornamented, through. quite simple a minimalist really is I melody but just sparse. sparsely beautiful mean, a quite a powerful, rhythms,”▶ 56:48 · The Greatest 3/4 Marches of All Time
“harmonies. ambitious. impact a love pipers for think to rather formula of a than well I 4/4 opener terms with some do that's something something — a trying being an idea that's and great make settle too can played difficult good and that the of 3/4 really together, or cool in an really and your I”▶ 33:30 · Ask Me Anything

What makes a 3/4 march simple

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The retreat march tradition

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The wandering phrase, and why it works

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John MacLellan of Dunoon, and where 3/4s show up

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