Sheet Music Symbols...For Silences

Now that you have learnt a few music note symbols, let's take a look at sheet music symbols which tell you when not to play. These are called rests.

This rest, is called a crotchet, or quarter note rest. This means that you don't play anything at all, for one count. So you are silent for one count.

This rest is called a minim, or a half-note rest. This means that you don't play anything at all, for two counts.

This rest is called a whole-bar rest. This means that you don't play anything at all, for the full bar (which is usually 2, 3 or 4 counts, depending on the time signature).