A whole note is a hollow note head with no stem, and it lasts four beats in common time, a full measure of 4/4.
It is the longest note in ordinary use, and the reference every other value is divided from: two half notes, four quarter notes, eight eighth notes all fill the same space.
How to spot it
An empty oval with nothing attached. If a note has no stem at all, it is a whole note.
Find it in thirty seconds
Find a whole note in any piece, play it, and count four out loud while it rings. Most beginners cut long notes short; counting is the fix.
Open any piece of sheet music on this site and do it now. Reading is a recognition skill, and recognition is built by finding things, not by reading about them.
Related Topics...
How to Read Sheet Music: Learn how to read sheet music using interactive lessons from Chordzy. Or browse our various reading music topics.
Music Notation Glossary: Every symbol on a page of piano music, explained in one sentence each, clefs, note values, rests, accidentals, dynamics and repeat marks.
Half Note: A half note on the piano staff: how to spot the hollow head, and a thirty-second hunt for one on a real page.
Quarter Note: A quarter note on the piano staff: how to spot the filled head, and a thirty-second hunt for one on a real page.
Time Signature: Time Signature in piano music. The time signature is the pair of numbers after the clef. The top number says how many beats are in each measure; the bottom say…
Whole Rest: Whole Rest in piano music. A whole rest is a small filled rectangle hanging below the fourth line of the staff. It means silence for a whole measure.
More in This Section
Accent: Accent in piano music. An accent (>) above or below a note means play that note louder than the ones around it.
