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Rhythmic Dictation | The Dot
The dot is a symbol in music which when placed next to a note or rest increases the rhythmic duration of that note by half of its original value.
For example, a half note on any staff position sounds for two full beats, and a half rest requires two beats of silence.
When a dot is placed next to a half note the duration of that note increases from two beats to three beats.
If a half note sounds for two beats and a dot adds half of that note's original value,
because half of two equals one
and two plus one equals three,