The breve appears in several different versions.
Sometimes the longa or breve is used to indicate a very long note of … See more

A note value may be augmented by adding a dot after it. This dot adds the next briefer note value, making it one and a half times its original duration. A number of dots (n) lengthen the note value by ⁠2 − 1/2 ⁠ its value, so … See more

Although note heads of various shapes, and notes with and without stems appear in early Gregorian chant manuscripts, many scholars agree that these symbols do not indicate different durations, although the dot is used for … See more

The British names go back at least to English renaissance music, and the terms of Latin origin had international currency at that time. Longa means 'long', and many of the rest indicate relative shortness. Breve is from Latin … See more