7 Musical Rests: Whole Rest, Half Rest, Quarter Rest…

Whole rest, half rest… Learn to recognize the 7 musical rests and the corresponding durations of the 7 notes values (whole note, half note…) they represent.

In music, musical rests denote brief silences, serving as short breaks in the flow of sound. In musical notation, a rest is the symbol that signifies such a pause.

Just as there are music notes of different values (whole note, half note, etc.), there are rests of different values (whole rest, half rest…).

For each note value, there is a rest of equivalent value; and for each rest value, there is a note of equivalent value.

Music Rests of Different Values

The example below shows how some of the music notes making up a musical phrase can be replaced with music rests of equivalent lengths.

A staff with music notes of different values, without any rest.
A staff with music notes of different values, without any rest.

 

Now, the same musical phrase, but some music notes have been changed in rests:

A staff with music notes and music rests of different values.
A staff with music notes and music rests of different values.

 

Note Value and Silence of an Equivalent Duration

There is a musical silence for each value of note

Note value and silence of an equivalent duration: whole rest, half rest, quarter rest, quaver rest
Note value and silence of an equivalent duration.

The whole rest, which is positioned below the fourth line of the staff – remember, lines on the musical staff are always counted from the bottom up – represents a musical rest lasting the same duration as a whole note.

IMPORTANT: When indicating silence for an entire measure, always use a whole rest symbol, regardless of the measure’s duration. For instance, if the piece is written in 3/4 time (meaning it consists of three beats per measure, each worth a quarter note), even though three quarter notes equal a dotted half note rather than a whole note, you should still use a whole rest symbol to indicate the silence.

The half rest, positioned on the third line of the staff, equals the duration of a half note.

The quarter rest equals the duration of a quarter note.

The eighth rest equals the duration of the eight note, the sixteenth rest equals the duration of the sixteenth note, the thirty-second rest equals the duration of  the thirty-second note, and the sixty-fourth rest equals the duration of the sixty-four note.

Difference Between American English and British English

AMERICAN ENGLISH – BRITISH ENGLISH

  • Whole Rest – Semibreve Rest
  • Half Rest – Minim Rest
  • Quarter Rest – Crotchet Rest
  • Eight Rest – Quaver Rest

Dotted Rest

The duration of a rest may be increased by half but it’s reserved to modern music.

Learn Music Rests the Fun Way with the Free Game Music Note Cracker HN

A breakout game to learn the music rests (half rest, quarter rest...) the fun way. When the ball hit a music rest, a music note of equivalent duration (half note, quarter note) comes out.
A breakout game to learn the music rests (half rest, quarter rest…) the fun way. When the ball hit a music rest, a music note of equivalent duration (half note, quarter note) comes out.

PlayTell me more

Music Rests and Music Theory

Music Staff (or Stave)

The music staff (or stave) is made by five parallel horizontal lines.

Clefs – Treble, Bass, Alto, Tenor

Learn about the different musical clefs and which one is used for each musical instrument.

Music Notes – Name of Notes (A B C or Do Re Mi)

Seven notes of music and two systems to name them.

7 Note Values (Whole Note, Half Note, Quarter Note…)

The type (shape) of musical notes (Quarter Note, Half Note, Whole Note) fixes the note values (duration).