1, 2, 3, Rest
Playing a rest on a guitar can get highly creative as you experiment, not just with the timing, but how you cut the music and kick back in. At first when you start playing these are more like a suggestion as you play things all over the place. But with some targeted practice you will see how and why these are really important for making your songs develop feeling. Sometimes you will let it ring sometimes you let it rest. To be technical a rest is when you pause for a set amount of time with no notes playing – these come in all the same timings as notes (quarter, eight, sixteenth, etc). Have a look at the support material found at – https://7minutemusic.com/time/level-2/1-2-3-rest/ and make sure you have your timing down with these two – https://7minutemusic.com/time/level-1/1-4-notes/, https://7minutemusic.com/time/level-2/1-8-notes/.
Backing Track – A minor to E minor
Count your rest out loud
Use a metronome to practice
Practice using quarter note rests
Level 2 Progress
Play through the Am scale (2 octave) adding a rest in on the 4th beat.
Play the Am scale (1 octave) adding a rest in on the 3rd note
Strum the Em chord in a down, down, rest, down rhythm. Change to the Am chord.
Strum the Dm – down, rest, down, up, Am – down, down, rest, up
Play Em in 8th notes with a rest on the 4th note at 120 BPM (down, up, down, rest, down, up, down, up)