In
music and
music theory, the
beat is the basic unit of time, the
pulse (regularly repeating event), of the
mensural level (or
beat level). The beat is often defined as the rhythm listeners would tap their toes to when listening to a piece of music, or the numbers a musician
counts while performing, though in practice this may be technically incorrect (often the first multiple level). In popular use,
beat can refer to a variety of related concepts including:
tempo,
meter, specific
rhythms, and
groove.