Types of Rests

Since music theory is taking the backseat, let’s talk about music rests for now. Every musical note you know has a matching rest. Here are the main types of rests:

Whole rest or semibreve rest
It is a shaded rectangle attached to the bar line, facing downwards.

Half rest or minim rest
It looks almost like the whole rest. The difference is that it is facing upwards.

Quarter rest or crotchet rest
A squiggly line best depicts this type of rest.

Eight rest or quaver rest
It is a slanted line with a single dot.

Sixteenth rest or semiquaver rest
It is sort of an eight-rest replica only it has two dots.

Thirty-second rest or demisemiquaver rest
This type of rest is also similar to the eight rest but it has three dots.

Sixty-fourth rest or hemidemisemiquaver rest
Again, this type of rest is similar to the eight rest. This time, however, it has four dots.

Other than the types of rests just mentioned, there are also those called the multiple measure rests. These types of rests signal an interval of silence of more than one measure.

Four-measure rest or longa rest
This type of rest indicates a silence four times longer than a whole rest. It is generally evident in lengthy silent passages that are not divided into bars.

Two-measure rest or breve rest
This type of rest stands for a silence two times longer than a whole rest. Breve rests are typically seen next to the longa rest.