Quick Time Sig Question

[Implements Of Destruction]

Well i've recently been playing around in different time sigs. I recently wrote a song and the verse goes as follows;
bar of 3/4, bar of 3/4, bar of 3/4, bar of 4/4

Now i was wondering how i should write this down as i've seen both of the following ways done;

1) Write it as above
2) Combine them all and have it as a bar of 13/4

[Mispeled]

I personally think that alternating between the three 3/4 and a 4/4 measures would be less confusing, especially if you have a lot of notes. If it's a slower passage, then writing in 13/4 would probably work better.

[Implements Of Destruction]

So is it all down to personal choice then or is there like a set way of doing it?

[Trigger_003]

Personal - I think.

You'd have to mentally aproach it slightly differently, as 13/4 is in odd time and 3/4 and/or 4/4 bars are both in simple time.

When you're in odd time (i.e. when the time signature has an odd number (that isn’t 3, or is greater than and also divisible by 3) on the top i.e 5, 7, 11, 13, 15, etc.), the beats break down into groups of simple or compound times. With the top number being 5, the beats will break into a group of 2 and a group of 3 or visa versa and can change per bar. So obviously it's going to be a bit more confusing to the player about what he/she should do with natural stresses with accentuation and so forth (every bar has its own stresses that occur. For instance, in 4/4, the first beat is stronger, beats 2 and 4 are weaker and beat number three is around the middle).

Without hearing it, I'd be more likely to suggest the first option as well... it's less confusing.

[gaslight]

I would do it in two bars of 3/4 and one of 4/4.

When writing out music it is best to go with the approach that would be the most accessible and understandable to someone trying to sight read it.

[Implements Of Destruction]

Yeah know that i think about it. It would make so much more sense to do it the first way since the accents are at the start of each of the bars. Seems stupidly obvious now that i think about it but ah well.