1
00:00:01,358 --> 00:00:06,138
A note represents the pitch and duration
of a musical sound.

2
00:00:06,138 --> 00:00:09,420
Let's begin with <i>duration</i>,
or note value.

3
00:00:09,422 --> 00:00:12,272
Here are five note values.

4
00:00:12,279 --> 00:00:15,459
A whole note, which is a circle.

5
00:00:15,459 --> 00:00:22,255
A half note, which is a circle with a stem
so two half notes equal one whole note.

6
00:00:22,255 --> 00:00:26,448
A quarter note is like a half note,
but it's filled in.

7
00:00:26,450 --> 00:00:29,990
Two of these equal a half note.

8
00:00:29,998 --> 00:00:33,598
Four of these equal a whole note.

9
00:00:33,598 --> 00:00:37,998
An eighth note is like a quarter note,
plus a flag.

10
00:00:37,998 --> 00:00:40,618
Two of these equal a quarter note.

11
00:00:40,618 --> 00:00:42,617
Four equal a half note,

12
00:00:42,617 --> 00:00:46,249
and eight equal a whole note.

13
00:00:46,249 --> 00:00:50,479
A sixteenth note is like an eighth note,
but with an extra flag.

14
00:00:50,479 --> 00:00:54,883
The pattern is the same;
two sixteenths equal one eighth,

15
00:00:54,883 --> 00:01:00,231
four sixteenths equal one quarter,
and so on.

16
00:01:00,231 --> 00:01:02,552
These flags can also be connected,

17
00:01:02,552 --> 00:01:04,772
and the stems can go up or down

18
00:01:04,772 --> 00:01:09,862
without any change
to the duration or length.

19
00:01:09,862 --> 00:01:14,876
Now let's look at how these notes
specifically apply to music.

20
00:01:14,876 --> 00:01:18,066
We first begin with a time signature.

21
00:01:18,066 --> 00:01:20,726
The one that I'm choosing is 4/4.

22
00:01:20,726 --> 00:01:24,576
The top number indicates how many
regular pulses or beats

23
00:01:24,612 --> 00:01:28,612
are in each measure or bar.

24
00:01:28,612 --> 00:01:34,012
The lower number tells us
what kind of note is equal to one beat.

25
00:01:34,016 --> 00:01:39,066
Therefore, if we write 4 quarter notes
in 4/4,

26
00:01:39,066 --> 00:01:43,161
the bar is over and we add a bar line.

27
00:01:43,172 --> 00:01:49,912
If we do the same thing a second time,
we have created 2 bars or 2 measures.

28
00:01:49,917 --> 00:01:54,237
The words <i>measure</i> and <i>bar</i>
are used interchangeably.

29
00:01:54,237 --> 00:01:58,211
Let's use our five-note values in 4/4.

30
00:01:58,211 --> 00:02:00,511
The whole note gets 4 beats.

31
00:02:00,511 --> 00:02:04,131
If we find a whole note in music
with a time signature of 4/4,

32
00:02:04,131 --> 00:02:10,651
we would play or sing a single note,
and it would last the whole bar.

33
00:02:10,651 --> 00:02:16,293
A half note would get half of the whole,
or 2 beats.

34
00:02:16,293 --> 00:02:21,433
Let's listen to the beginning of Dvořák's
<i>New World Symphony</i>'s <i>slow movement</i>.

35
00:02:21,440 --> 00:02:25,750
This brass chorale has 3 measures,
or 3 bars of half notes

36
00:02:25,750 --> 00:02:29,731
and then one measure of a whole note.

37
00:02:29,731 --> 00:02:52,981
[orchestra music]