Notes and rests

Notes and rests revolve around a relationship between their durations. Here are the duration ratios between the most used notes and rests:

Note Rest Ratio
Double whole note Double whole rest 2
Whole note Whole rest 1
Half note Half rest 1/2
Quarter note Quarter rest 1/4
Eighth note Eighth rest 1/8
Sixteenth note Sixteenth rest 1/16
Thirty-second note Thirty-second rest 1/32
Sixty-fourth note Sixty-fourth rest 1/64
Note Ratio
Double whole note 2
Whole note 1
Half note 1/2
Quarter note 1/4
Eighth note 1/8
Sixteenth note 1/16
Thirty-second note 1/32
Sixty-fourth note 1/64
Rest Ratio
Double whole rest 2
Whole rest 1
Half rest 1/2
Quarter rest 1/4
Eighth rest 1/8
Sixteenth rest 1/16
Thirty-second rest 1/32
Sixty-fourth rest 1/64
In a nutshell

The whole note lasts as long as two half notes, the half note lasts as long two quarter notes, the quarter note lasts as long as two eighth notes, the eighth note lasts as long as two sixteenth notes…

The note tree (a.k.a. note pyramid) illustrates well these ratios between notes. Use the arrows to zoom in or out!

Notes
Rests