Rests
The note value symbols introduced in the previous lesson indicate sound duration. The duration of silence is indicated by rests. Musicians must be as familiar with the notation of rests as they are with the notation of sound duration.
For each note value there is a corresponding rest. For instance, the whole rest is equal in duration to the whole note, the quarter rest is equivalent to the quarter note, and so on. The following table provides a summary of most common symbols that represent note values and their equivalent rests.
| Note Name | Note Value | Rest |
| Whole |  |
 |
| Half |  |
 |
| Quarter |  |
 |
| Eighth |  |
 |
| Sixteenth |  |
 |
At first glance, the whole and half rests look very similar—both are rectangular boxes that fill up half of a space on the staff. However, they are positioned differently on the staff: While the whole rest hangs from the fourth line of the staff, the half rest sits on the third line of the staff. One clever way of remembering this is to imagine that the rest is a helium balloon; if it is full (a whole rest), it floats to the top of the third staff space, but if it is only half-full, it rests on the bottom. Click on "Whole Rest" and "Half Rest" in the example below to see the difference between them.
Whole and half rests
Notice that the eighth rest and the sixteenth rest have the same number of flags as the eighth note and the sixteenth note (click "Eighth Rest" or "16th Rest" in the example below to see this illustrated). As with note values, you can continue to make smaller rest values by adding more flags. Thus, a 32nd-note rest would have three flags, a 64th-note rest would have four flags, and so on.
Eighth and sixteenth rests
Notation Practice
Now, print out another Notation Practice Sheet. Practice tracing the notes and rests described in the last two lessons. You might also want to print out some blank staff paper and practice writing these notes and rests without tracing them.
Remember
- Noteheads are oval shaped rather than round.
- Stems that point up are always on the right; stems that point down go on the left.
- Flags always go on the right-hand side of the stem, and point inwards towards the notehead.
- Whole and half rests should only fill half of the staff space.
- Quarter rests are the most difficult to draw. Good luck!
Core Skill
- Recognize the shape of rests quickly and accurately.
- Interpret the relative duration of rests fluently.