Duple and quadruple meter

Duple meter (or duple metre, also known as duple time) is a musical metre characterized by a primary division of 2 beats to the bar, usually indicated by 2 and multiples (simple) or 6 and multiples (compound) in the upper figure of the time signature, with 2
2 (cut time), 2
4, and 6
8 (at a fast tempo) being the most common examples. Though it must, the upper figure being divisible by two does not of itself indicate duple metre; for example, a time signature of 6
8 usually indicates compound duple metre though it may locally emphasize simple triple, such as the famous example of Leonard Bernstein's song "America" from West Side Story.