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Music vocabulary · Recording and Production

Click track

Meaning in music, with examples

/ˈklɪk træk/nounCommon term

In music, click track means: A metronome sound that musicians hear in their headphones or in-ear monitors while recording or performing, so that everyone stays at exactly the same tempo.

In Turkish: klik, metronom kanalı

How it is used

Usually just 'the click': 'play to a click', 'Can I have more click?', 'Turn the click off for the intro'. Live bands use a click when they play with backing tracks or synced video and lights.

Example sentences

  1. The drummer recorded to a click track at 104 BPM.

  2. We don't use a click track on the ballad because we want it to breathe.

Common collocations

  • play to a click
  • record to a click track
  • turn up the click
  • click in the in-ears
  • without a click
  • metronomeA device or app that clicks at a steady, adjustable speed so that musicians can practise keeping an even tempo.
  • BPMShort for beats per minute: the number of beats in one minute, used to measure tempo. A slow ballad might be around 70 BPM and a dance track around 125 BPM.
  • tempoThe speed of a piece of music, usually measured in beats per minute (BPM) or shown with Italian words such as allegro (fast) or adagio (slow).
  • takeOne attempt at recording a part or a whole song. Engineers usually record several takes and choose or combine the best ones.
  • trackA single song on an album or release. In a studio or DAW, it also means one separate recorded part, such as the drum track or the vocal track.

More terms: Recording and Production

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