Time Vales of Notes

Dotted notes

When you see a dotted note, that note is increased by one half the length of its original value.

For example, a dot placed after a half note will be equal to the half note plus a quarter note. A dot placed after a quarter note will be equal to a quarter note plus an eighth note.

Ties are similar to dots—they extend the value of the original note. A tie is simply two notes linked together with a curved line between the note heads. Unlike dots, which are abstract and based wholly on the value of the original note, ties are explicit: the note is increased in length by exactly as long as the second note value.

One reason you would use a tie versus a dot is, for example, when a note's duration would not fit musically into the space of a measure. In that case, you simply add the leftover duration into the next measure as a note, and tie the two together.

Rests

Music is series of notes and the spaces between them. Those spaces are called rests, and even in silence, they can really add motion and life to music. Let's take a look at how they're notated.

Like notes, they have specific symbols for specific durations. A whole note rest is a rectangle descending from the 4th line, and a half note rest is a rectangle resting on the 3rd line. The quarter note rest is a squiggly line, and the rest of the rests are an angled bar with the same number of flags as their equivalent note value. These flags always sweep to the left.

Semibreve

Minim
There are 2 minims to a semibreve

Crotchet
There are 4 crotchets to a semibreve

Quaver
There are 8 quavers to a semibreve

Semiquaver
There are 16 semiquavers to a semibreve