# Phrases

A rhythm can be a conversation: one bar asks, the next answers. Leaving the answer out is how everyone knows it was there.

> Lesson 12 of 12.
>
> - You learn: To hear a rhythm as a question and an answer, and to count the silence as part of it.
> - Why now: It comes last because it is what the rest is for: once you can read and hold rhythms, you use them to talk to someone. It also shows that a rest has a length.
> - You need: Lesson 3: hits off the beat.

**Shave and a haircut**

    hits     x . x x x . x . . . x . x . . .

In notation: bar two begins with a quarter rest: the pause between the call and the answer. Seeing the rest on the page shows that the silence has a length.

1. Say it as words: “shave and a hair-cut”.
2. Clap only the words. Leave a gap for the rest.
3. Clap the answer, “two bits”, in the gap.
4. Play the first bar and stop. Feel the answer still waiting.

> The rest is part of the rhythm. A hit is a hit; the silence before the next one has a length too.

## Self-check

- Say and clap the whole phrase with the click
- Play the call and let someone else answer
- Make up your own two-bar call and answer from steps

## Play it on your instrument

- Drums: A fill is the answer to the groove's question: call, then a one-beat reply. (The one-beat fill)

All instruments: apply.html