Rhythm
Rests in music: how long each silence lasts
A rest is a written silence. Each note value has a rest of the same length: a quarter rest is one beat of silence, a half rest two beats, a whole rest a whole bar. Rests are counted exactly like notes; you just don't play.
Rest values at a glance
| Name | Length in 4/4 |
|---|---|
| Whole rest | 4 beats |
| Half rest | 2 beats |
| Quarter rest | 1 beat |
| Eighth rest | ½ beat |
| Sixteenth rest | ¼ beat |
Hear and tap rhythms with rests
Quarter rests
Play on beats 1 and 3, stay silent on 2 and 4.
Half rest
A half note, then two beats of silence.
Eighth rest
The eighth rest on beat 2 makes the next note land on the &.
Whole rest
A bar of quarter notes, then a whole bar of silence.
How to recognise each rest
A whole rest is a small block hanging below the fourth line of the staff; a half rest is the same block sitting on the middle line. A quarter rest is a zig-zag squiggle. An eighth rest looks like a slanted line with one small flag, a sixteenth rest has two.
The whole rest is a whole bar
A whole rest also means "rest for the whole bar" in any time signature, so in 3/4 it lasts three beats, not four. It is the one rest whose length depends on the bar it is in.
Keep counting through the silence
The most common rhythm mistake is coming in early after a rest. Keep counting the beats out loud during the rest, and play again exactly on the count where the next note begins.