Chapter 5:Note Values and Basic Notation
The Least You Need to Know
◆Note values are named according to their duration. Whole notes last a
whole measure (in 4/4 time), half notes last a half measure, and so on.
◆Each smaller note lasts half as long as the previous note. A quarter note,
for example, is half as long as a half note.
◆Each note value has a corresponding rest of the same duration—which
indicates not to play or sing.
◆A dot after a note or rest extends the value of that note by 50 percent.
◆When you fit three notes into a space that normally holds only two, those
notes are called triplets.Exercises
Exercise 5-1
Name the following notes and rests.
65
Triplets are the most common uneven rhythmic division, but not the only one. You
can divide a beat any way you like, which can lead to groups of five or seven
or any prime number. (If you divide a beat by a nonprime number, you’re actually
dividing by two or more groups of a prime number. For example, if you divide a
beat into six, you’re really dividing into two groups of three—or two triplets.)NoteExercise 5-2
Write the count (“one-e-and-ah”) below each of the notes in the following measures.Exercise 5-3
Fill in the balance of these measures with eighth notes.