Rhythm and Pacing/Pulse
Say, have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a musician? How about a boxer? At first glance, these two lads seem to have nothing in common. Believe it or not, there are many similarities between musicians and boxers. Both use their hands, practice many hours a week, and require impeccable timing and unbeatable rhythmic combinations. Let's take a look at the basics of their practice routines through rhythm.
Whole Notes and Whole Rests
Good boxers and musicians always get in pace before starting. Once the musician and boxer have found their pace, a proper warm up can take place. Each might start with breathing or playing four full counts like a whole note. The whole note is typically defined as having four full counts or lasting one whole measure. This is true in many situations, and because other notes are named according to their division of the whole note, we'll make the assumption for this lesson that the whole note is equal to four beats. Let's warm up with a whole note, boys! The whole note looks like an oval with a circle cut out of the center, kind of like an oblong doughnut.
The musician and the boxer can't spend all of their time practicing, though. Sometimes they also need a little rest. In music, a rest is a note that is silent. Rests are easy to tell apart visually from other rhythms because they are either rectangular or made of lines. The whole rest is silent and lasts one whole measure. For our case, we'll assume this is four beats. Take a rest boys, a whole rest!
Half Notes and Half Rests
OK, boys, let's pick up the pace a bit. You can see that our musician and our boxer are now warming up at a rhythm that is half the length of the whole note. This is called a half note. The half note is usually defined as having a value of two beats. If we look carefully at the half note, we can see that it looks different from the whole note. This part is called the note head, and this part is called the stem. It's important to observe that, on the half note, the center of the note head is empty. The stem can point up or down, depending where it is on the staff.
The half note is made of an empty note head and a stem
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We can have our boys vary the rhythm by adding in a half rest every now and then. The half rest is silent and lasts for two beats. It looks very much like the whole rest but is on top of the line instead of underneath. Let's see the half rest in action.
Quarter Notes and Quarter Rests
Our musician and boxer can continue to play smaller rhythms. The next smallest increment is called a quarter note. They are called quarter notes because they are 1/4 the length of a whole note. Quarter notes are often equal to one beat each. So in a case like this, they match the pulse. It's important to note that quarter notes do not always match the pace. Unlike half notes, quarter notes have a filled in note head. In fact, they kind of look like our drummer's and boxer's legs!
The silent version of the quarter note is the quarter rest, which is equal to one beat of silence or pause. The quarter rest looks like this.
Quarter rests as part of a rhythm
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If we change the previous rhythm to have a quarter rest on the last beat, we get this. The beat is still there - it's just silent. Rests may seem unnecessary, but they are an important part of keeping the rhythm interesting and less predictable, which is something important for both boxers and musicians. If we really want to mix it up, we can put the rests in different places. Go boys, go!
Flags and Beams
So far, our rhythms have been pretty tame. This can be boring for the musician and makes it difficult for the boxer to win. Let's incorporate some rhythms that are smaller. Notes smaller than quarter notes have flags or beams. Beamed notes are just two or more flagged notes next to each other, like if you tied their flags at the top or bottom. Flags and beams serve the same purpose. For each additional flag or beam, the value of the note is cut smaller by half. The more flags or beams a note has, the shorter its length is. So, a note with many flags or many beams is quite short - maybe even too short for our guys!
Eighth Notes and Eighth Rests
The largest type of note with a flag or beam is the eighth note. Eighth notes are equal to 1/8 the length of a whole note. This means that they often have a quicker feel than the pulse and sound twice as fast as quarter notes. Eighth notes often come in a pair, like this, which has a beam across the top. If we assume that the whole note is worth four beats, then each pair of eighth notes is worth one beat. This means that individually, each half of the pair is worth half a beat.
A beam connects two eighth notes
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Let's see these eighth notes in action! Boy, are eighth notes exciting! Let's see them combined with quarter notes and quarter rests. You're sure to get a knock out with this one! The eighth rest is the silent equivalent of the eighth note. If we add in some eighth rests, we get some really snazzy rhythms!
Sixteenth Notes and Sixteenth Rests
Now our boys are really moving! And they're going to be moving even quicker with sixteenth notes. Sixteenth notes have two flags or beams and are equal to 1/16 the length of a whole note. These sound twice as fast as eighth notes and four times as fast as quarter notes. Sixteenth notes are often seen beamed in a group of four. This group of four is worth one beat. Alright boys, get those arms moving! Of course, we can combine sixteenth notes with other types of notes to make new rhythms. These are sure to drive 'em wild!
Our boys have got one more trick up their sleeves. It's the sixteenth rest . The sixteenth rest is the same length as the sixteenth note but silent. Sixteenth rests can make the rhythm pretty complicated... can you swing this one, boys? Wow! What a couple of cool cats! You're both ready for the big time!
Lesson Summary
Our musician and boxer have shown you whole notes and whole rests, which last a whole measure and are often thought of as four beats each. These notes typically have the longest value of a single note. Notes smaller than whole notes and whole rests have both note heads and stems.
Half notes and half rests are 1/2 the length of a whole note and are often two beats each. The half note is empty in the center of the note head. Quarter notes and quarter rests are 1/4 the length of a whole note and are often one beat each. The quarter note has a filled note head.
Flags and beams shorten the length of a note, and beams connect flagged notes for ease of reading. Eighth notes and eighth rests are 1/8 the length of a whole note and are often half a beat each. Single eighth notes can be connected into pairs by a beam. Finally, sixteenth notes and sixteenth rests are the smallest of our bunch, with a value of 1/16 the length of a whole note. Sixteenth notes are often seen in groups of four and connected with two beams, which altogether equals one beat.
While the values described here will not work in every musical situation, they are a guideline to work from. Now go on and practice so that like our musician and boxer, you too can be a champion of rhythm!
Learning Outcome
Once you have watched this lesson, you should be ready to identify and define the different kinds of musical notes and rests, from whole to sixteenth.
