rests

Rests in music notation indicate silence. They provide the rhythmic structure of a piece, allowing notes to begin after a period of silence and to separate musical phrases. Each rest has a symbol that corresponds to a specific duration, mirroring the durations of notes. Rests are essential for shaping rhythm and phrasing, and they function as deliberate elements of a musical line rather than mere gaps.

Common rests include the whole rest, half rest, quarter rest, eighth rest, and sixteenth rest. Each rest lasts for the same length as its named note: a whole rest for a whole note, a half rest for a half note, a quarter rest for a quarter note, and so on. In standard practice, a whole rest can indicate silence for a full measure in meters such as 4/4; smaller rests fill the time within a measure. Rests may be dotted to extend their duration by half, and they can be combined in sequence to cover complex silences.

In music with multiple voices on a single staff, each voice has its own rests, so silence in one voice does not imply silence in another. For longer periods of silence, a multi-measure rest symbol may be used, typically shown as a thick horizontal line with a number above it to indicate the number of measures of rest.

Rests interact with notes to determine tempo, articulation, and pacing. They are integral to the notation system, enabling precise representation of silence as part of the musical flow.