MUSIC
TERM | MEANING
|
A cappella
| Vocal
performance devoid of instruments |
Acid Rock | Rock
music subgenre associated with psychedelic drugs and which originated in 1960s |
Adagio | Quite Slow |
Allegro | Fast |
Alto | Lowest female voice |
Baritone | Moderate range
male voice |
Bass
voice |
Low male voice |
Beat | Pulse or unit of rhythm |
Blues scale | A major scale involving flat third and seventh |
Beam | Straight line connecting
8th notes |
Cadence
| Chord
sequence at phrase ending and song/music ending |
Chord | 3 or more pitches sounding at the same time |
Common Time | 4/4 meter signature |
Crescendo | Gradually louder
|
Cut Time
| 2/2
meter signature |
Da
Capo (D.C.) |
A sign instructing to repeat from beginning |
Dal Segno (D.S.) | A sign instructing to repeat from sign |
Deceptive Cadence | Any chord other than tonic (I) chord is followed after dominant (V) chord in a
chord progression
|
Diminuendo
| Gradually
softer |
Do | Syllable denoting tonic
|
Dominant
| 5th
scale step |
Elegy
| Instrumental
lament for the dead |
Enharmonic
| Notes
occupying same position, e.g. G sharp and A flat |
Ensemble | Performance of all instruments/voices |
Etude | Musical piece mainly composed to improve technique
|
Fa |
Syllable
denoting subdominant |
Fine
| The
end in notation |
Forte (f.) | Loud |
Fortissimo (ff.) | Very Loud |
Glissando | Rapid slide through pitches |
Grace note | Ornamental note, which is printed in small type
|
Grave |
Very,
very slow |
Ground
Bass | Repeating
melody in the bass |
Half
Step | Smallest
interval |
Harmonic
Progression |
Chord progression |
Harmony | Simultaneously sounding notes |
Heavy Metal | Rock style with loud, distorted instrumental solos
|
Heptatonic
scale |
Seven note scale |
Idiophone | Instruments that produce sound from its material, e.g. cymbals and gong
|
Imitation
| Melody
repeated in different pitch level |
Improvise | Playing on spur of moment |
Interval | Relationship between 2 notes |
Jentele | Instruction to
perform a section in graceful manner |
Jete | Violinist skipping or bouncing bow on strings |
Jive | Form of blues popular in 1940s |
Jubilate | 100th
psalm in Holy Bible |
Kantele
| A
folk instrument belonging to psaltery family |
Kantor | Lutheran church music director |
Key | A specific scale with a common tonic |
Klein | Minor in interval
reference |
La
| Syllable
denoting submediant |
Largo
| A
very slow tempo |
Leading
note | 7th
scale step |
Legato
| Played
smoothly |
Major
scale |
Scale with half steps between 3rd & 4th and 7th & 8th
notes |
Mediant
| 3rd
scale step |
Melody
| Succession
of pitches in organised manner |
Mesto | Sad |
Mi | Syllable denoting mediant |
Minor scale | Scale with half steps between 2nd & 3rd and 6th
& 7th notes |
Mode | An octave where a series of notes are arranged according to its name scale. Mode examples are major &
minor scales and Gregorian modes.
|
Natural | Symbol cancelling a previous sharp or flat |
Nonet | Music piece for 9 instruments |
Notation
| Writing
music |
Notehead | Round part
of a note symbol |
Octave
| Interval
from a scale beginning and scale end, i.e. 8 notes |
Octet | Music piece for 8 instruments |
Operetta | Short musical drama |
Ostinato | Repeated phrase
|
Pentatonic
scale |
A musical scale with 5 notes |
Pitch | Frequency of a note determining high or low sound |
Poco a poco | Little by little
|
Presto |
Very
fast tempo |
Quadruple
meter |
Meter with 4 beats |
Quartet | Performance by 4 singers or musicians |
Quaver | 8th note |
Quintet | Performance by
5 singers or musicians |
Raga | Mode in Indian music |
Re | Syllable denoting supertonic |
Recital | A solo concert
|
Rhythm |
Aspect
of music concerning time |
Root | Main note of triad |
Scale | Successive notes of a key/mode |
Sol | Syllable denoting dominant |
Solmization | Syllables: Do,
Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Ti, Do |
Soprano | Highest pitched voice |
Staff | 5 horizontal lines for writing notes |
Tempo | Speed of beat in music |
Ti | Syllable denoting leading
note |
Triad
| 3
note chord showing root, 3rd and 5th notes |
Trill | Rapid alteration between one tone and another |
Tonic |
Keynote
of a scale |
Ukelele
| Small
guitar with 4 strings |
Una Corda | Instruction to use soft pedal of piano |
Unison | 2 pitches which are same |
Upbeat | Last beat of a
measure |
Veloce
| Instruction
to perform with speed |
Vibrato
| Fluctuation
of pitch of a note |
Viertel
| German
word for quaver note |
Voz
| Spanish
word for voice |
Waltz
| A
dance in triple meter |
Whole
Rest |
A pause having time duration of whole note |
Whole Step | Interval containing 2 half steps |
Whole Tone scale | Scale that has
whole tone notes (scale which has only 6 notes) |
Xilofono | Italian word for xylophone |
Xyl | Abbreviation for xylophone |
Xylophone | A percussion instrument
with wooded bars |
Xylorimba
| A
xylophone which has range of marimba |
Yodel | A genre of singing involving switching voice types and warbling |
Yue Qin |
Moon
mandolin used in China |
Zart | Instruction to perform tenderly and softly |
Zeloso | Instruction to perform with zeal |
Zither | Many stringed wooden
instrument |
Zu3
| Instruction
to perform by 3 musicians |
Zydeco | Cajun style of folk music |