Grade One Music Theory - Lesson 4: Time Names of Notes - from Semiquavers to Semibreves (UK Version)

Change terms to USA

 

Note Shapes

To show how long notes should be held for, we draw them with different shapes.

Most notes are made up of a note head and a stem (apart from semibreves, which have no stem).

 

Crotchets

The most basic and most common length of note is the crotchet, which looks like this:

or this

 

It’s a black note head on a basic stem, (or stick).

A crotchet quarter note usually represents one beat.

As musicians, we can decide for ourselves exactly how long a beat should be, but often a crotchet lasts about one second.

Here are 4 crotchet quarter note Ds.

 

Quavers

Notes which are twice as fast as crotchets are called quavers . They look like this:

or this

 

Notice that although the quaver 8th note has a black note head like the crotchet, it also has a small tail on the right side of its stem.

Here are 8 quavers , F sharps and Gs.

 

(To find out why there is only one sharp symbol, read Lesson 3 – Accidentals.

 

Listen to the crotchets and quavers together. The quavers here are joined together in groups called beams - this makes them easier to read. The rules about beaming are explained in Lesson 7 – Beaming.

 

 

Minims

Minims half notes are twice as long as crotchets .

Minims look like this:

or this

 

Notice that minims look like crotchets quarter notes), but their heads are white, not black.

Here are a minim B and  A, in the bass clef: 

 

Listen to the crotchets , quavers and minims together:

 

Semibreves

Semibreves  are twice as long as minims, or four times as long as crotchets . Semibreves look like this:

 

Here is a semibreve whole note D in the bass clef:

 

Listent to the crotchets (, minims half notes, quavers and semibreves together:

 

 

Semiquavers

Semiquavers  are twice as fast as quavers, or 4 times faster than crotchets. Four semiquavers take up the same amount of time as 1 crotchet quarter note. So, a semiquaver is equal to a quarter of a crotchet. 

A semiquaver  looks like this:

or this

 

We can also join two or more semiquavers together, like this:

Semiquavers look like quavers, but they have two tails where quavers have one.

Here are some semiquavers in action:

 

And here is the finished product - from semibreves to semiquavers!

 

 

Why are Semibreves called Semibreves?

There is another note, called a breve double whole note, which is worth two semibreves . Breves aren't used very much these days, so you don't need to know about them for your grade one music theory exam. A long time ago, breves and semibreves were quite short notes. Over time, they have become longer and longer, and so today we think of semibreves as very long notes, but it wasn't always the case! 

 

 

Grade One Music Theory - Lesson 4: Times Names of Notes - from Sixteenths to Whole notes (USA Version)

Change terms to UK

 

Note Shapes

To show how long notes should be held for, we draw them with different shapes.

Most notes are made up of a note head and a stem (apart from whole notes, which have no stem).

 

Quarter notes

The most basic and most common length of note is the quarter note, which looks like this:

or this

 

It’s a black note head on a basic stem, (or stick).

A quarter note usually represents one beat.

As musicians, we can decide for ourselves exactly how long a beat should be, but often a quarter note lasts about one second.

Here are 4 quarter note Ds.

 

Eighth notes

Notes which are twice as fast as quarter notes are called eighth notes. They look like this:

or this

 

Notice that although the eighth note has a black note head like the quarter note, it also has a small tail on the right side of its stem.

Here are 8 eighth notes, F sharps and Gs.

 

(To find out why there is only one sharp symbol, read Lesson 3 – Accidentals.

 

Listen to the quarter notes and eighth notes together. The eighth notes here are joined together in groups called beams - this makes them easier to read. The rules about beaming are explained in Lesson 7 – Beaming.

 

 

Half notes

Half notes are twice as long as quarter notes.

Half notes look like this:

or this

 

Notice that half notes look like quarter notes, but their heads are white, not black.

Here is a half note B and a half note A, in the bass clef: 

 

Listen to the quarter notes, eighth notes and half notes together:

 

Whole notes

Whole notes are twice as long as half notes, or four times as long as quarter notes. Whole notes look like this:

 

Here is a whole note D in the bass clef:

 

Listent to the quarter notes, half notes, eighth notes and whole notes together:

 

 

Sixteenths

Sixteenths are twice as fast as eighth notes, or 4 times faster than quarter notes. Four sixteenths take up the same amount of time as 1 quarter note. So, a sixteenth is equal to a fourth of a quarter note. 

A sixteenth looks like this:

or this

 

We can also join two or more sixteenths together, like this:

Sixteenths look like eighth notes, but they have two tails where eighth notes have one.

Here are some sixteenths in action:

 

And here is the finished product - from whole notes to sixteenths!