BASIC MUSIC GLOSSARY
unaccompanied vocal music
gradually get faster
an emphasis placed on a note
a slow tempo , but not as slow as largo
a little slower than allegro
lively, fast
a low female voice
walking tempo
a song for a solo singer and orchestra
a chord whose pitches are heard
successively
an adaptation of a musical composition from
one medium to another
one who reworks preexisting musical compositions
clarity and distinct rendition in musical performance
return to the preceding tempo
the absence of a tonal center
performing music as nearly as possible the way it was performed at the
time it was created
accents on beats 2 and 4
music with no visual or logical source
a large instrumental ensemble consisting of wind
and percussion instruments
harmony which is created by four male voices; bass ,
baritone ,
lead (has the melody ), and tenor
(who sings higher in pitch than the melody)
the male voice between bass and tenor
vertical dividing line between measures on the musical
staff
a period of music between 1600 and 1750
a low male voice
a steady pulse, a unit of time
two part form ; AB
the story and the dialogue of a musical
wind instruments who derive their sound from lip vibrations transmitted
through cup shaped mouthpieces
a connective part of a musical composition ;
the "b" section of AABA song form; a support to raise the strings of a
stringed instruments
a stage presentation which combines the four fine arts of visual art, music,
drama, and dance
a breathing break; termination of a musical phrase
a solo section in an improvisatory
style
an exuberant dance with syncopated rhythms
that may represent an early form of jazz
question and answer pattern in which a soloist leads
and group responds
a musical form that uses exact imitation
a kind of fox trot with a characteristic syncopated
rhythm , probably named for the city in South Carolina
a jazz score
a hymn tune
simultaneous combination of at least three different pitches
art music of any culture ; distinguished from folk ,
jazz
or popular music
European music of the Classical Period; 1750 - 1825
the symbol indicating pitch designations for the lines
and spaces of the staff
"tail"; a concluding section of a musical composition
a cadence which ends on the tonic
a person who creates musical works
a musical work or the craft of making a musical work
a multimovement composition (usually three movements )
for solo instrument or instruments and orchestra
the director or leader of a musical group
stepwise movement in the melody
absence of tension or discord in music
music or art that is current
the shape of a melody or its rise and fall
low female voice; same as alto
the combining of melodic lines
the technique of combining melodic lines to create
a polyphonic texture
the liberty artists take when interpreting another artist's work
gradually get louder
a merging of styles
the customs, ideas, tastes, and beliefs acquired from a person's background;
the sum total of one's lifestyle
gradually get softer
the section of sonata form in which thematic
reworkings and modifications occur
the tones of a major or minor
scale
gradually get softer
melody formed by leaps rather than by steps
discord in music, suggesting tension
the accented first beat in a
measure
a long sustained note; usually in the lower part
putting all the elements of sound; dialogue, sound effects, and music onto
one soundtrack
composition for two performers
beats grouped into sets of two (strong-weak)
the loudness or softness of a musical passage
a group of musicians performing together; the quality of togetherness
music that is performed between acts of a staged production
the opening section of a sonata form in which
the main thematic material is given its first complete statement
a hold
concluding movement or passage in a musical work
symbol that lowers a pitch by one half step (b)
uncomplicated music that speaks of everyday matters, the first popular
music
musical design; incorporating repetition and contrast, unity, and variety
loud
very loud
an American ballroom dance dating from about 1915 that became the basis
for most subsequent dance steps in duple time
a polyphonic composition
consisting of a series of successive melody imitations
a general type or kind of music
a sliding movement from one pitch to the other
a type of religious popular music sung largely in
black churches
the combined treble and bass clefs
a repeated bass line over which melodic variations
occur
the closest pitch above or below any given pitch
the ability to invent a vocal line that will compliment a melody
as one is singing
vertical blocks of different tones which sound simultaneously
musical texture that occurs when performers play
or sing the same melody simultaneously, but in different
ways
a texture in which a melody
is supported by chords
a repeated motive that accompanies the words to the
title of a popular song
a strophic song sung within a religious service
by the congregation
the restatement in succession of identical musical material in two or more
parts
spontaneous musical invention
music that occurs in connection with a drama
a resting point at the end of a musical phrase that
does not sound complete, because the pause is on the dominant seventh chord
the distance in pitch between two notes
a style of American dance music originated in the
South by black Americans; it is characterized by strong, prominent meter ,
improvisation ,
and dotted, or syncopated patterns
a fast dance of the 1940s to swing music
the tonality of a composition
designation of sharps and flats at the beginning of a composition to indicate
its tonality
very slow
smooth articulation
the author of the libretto
the complete book of words for an opera , oratorio ,
cantata, operetta, or musical
moving one's lips to music that has been prerecorded
the writer of lyrics
the words of a song
a non religious vocal form in several parts
scale built as follows: two whole steps , half
step , three whole steps, half step
chord built on a major third (bottom) and minor third
(top)
an Afro Cuban dance in 4/4 time with heavy accents
on two and four
music with a steady beat in 2/4, 4/4, 6/8 time, suitable
for a parade or procession
a Mexican instrumental ensemble consisting of violin,
trumpet, and various guitars
the division of beats into set groups; a measure is
denoted by a bar line
a melody in which each syllable of text is set to
several pitches
a succession of musical tones
the organization and grouping of musical beats
medium
medium loud
medium soft
one who sings in the lower part of the soprano range
scale built as follows: whole step ,
half
step , two whole steps, half step, two whole steps
chord built on a minor third (bottom) and major third
(top)
a slow French dance in triple meter
changing meter
based on a diatonic scale
other than major or minor
moderate tempo
changing from one key to another in a composition
a single melodic line with no accompaniment
a short, distinctive musical pattern used by composers
as a building block
one part of a larger musical composition ; like
a chapter of a book
the particular feeling conveyed by a performance
the distinct manner or character of musical
expression
a person who judges the quality of a musical performance
a mark that cancels a sharp or flat
a contemporary type of meditative, mostly
instrumental music
a style of contemporary art music that relies
on dramatic effects
a subordinate melody above a main melody
an interval of eight pitch names; twelve half
steps
emphasis on the weak beats in a measure
a staged drama sung with orchestral accompaniment
work; a number indicating the order in which compositions
were composed
a large vocal work similar to an opera ; but it is
neither staged nor acted out
the process of scoring for an orchestra
a large musical ensemble consisting of string, woodwind, brass, and percussion
instruments
a rhythmic or melodic passage
that is repeated continuously
an extended orchestral introduction to an opera ,
ballet, or similar type of musical presentation
a five tone scale
the ability to discern musical characteristics
instruments that derive their sound from being shook or struck
a complete musical idea
very soft
soft
the highness or lowness of sound based on frequency of vibration
plucking the string with the finger rather than bowing
a rapid dance in duple meter
a texture in which several melodies
sound at the same time
American music that has wide appeal; commercial
very fast
four voices or instruments
five voices or instruments
a style of American popular music , most often for
piano, in which the syncopated melody
conflicts with the steady duple meter
The distance between the highest and lowest pitches
the section of a sonata form that is basically
a repetition of the exposition
a speech like style of singing used in opera , oratorio ,
and cantata
a chorus (melody and text) that is repeated at intervals
in a song, especially following each verse
the high, middle, or low section of the vocal or instrumental range
the period in Western Europe from 1400-1600; the style
of music from this period
an inventory of compositions mastered and performed
by a musician or ensemble
a Mass for the dead
the succession of a dissonant sound to a consonant
sound
a ballroom dance based on the Afro Cuban rumba
the organization of music in time
gradually slow down
a style of American popular music originating in
the mid 1950s which featured guitars and driving rhythms
with accents on the offbeats
music written from 1825 - 1910 in which composers were inspired to express
emotion through their music
an instrumental form based on an alternation between a repeated section
and contrasting episodes; e.g. ABACA etc.
a composition in which the same melody
is started at different times and sounded together
"robbed time"; the free treatment of meter in a performance
a visual or spoken joke which is varied and repeated throughout a show
religious music
a type of Latin American dance music with jazz influences
an Afro Brazilian dance in duple meter
that is faster and jazzier than the tango
or rhumba
a sequence of tones arranged in rising pitches
a style of vocal jazz improvisation
in which nonsense syllables are used to imitate the sound of a musical
instrument
a movement in triple meter ;
usually the third movement of a sonata , symphony
or quartet ; introduced by Beethoven to replace the
minuet
a notation showing all the parts of a musical composition
composing music expressly for film or TV
music without religious associations
repetition of a melodic idea at a higher or lower
pitch
a symbol that raises a pitch by one half
step (#)
a composition for one performer
a multimovement composition for solo
instrument, or instruments and keyboard accompaniment
a large form consisting of exposition ,
development , and recapitulation ;
sometimes also including an introduction and/or coda
ternary form (ABA or AABA)
the highest female voice
a form of rhythm and blues
a strip along the side of the film which contains optical coding of sound
music that comes from a visual source
a religious song of the American Negro
to determine which scenes in a film should have music
played in a detached or separated manner, as opposed to legato
a set of five lines and four spaces on which music is notated
the verse of a text
a polyphonic texture in
which the imitating voices overlap
using the same melody for each verse
of a song
the particular character of a musical composition ,
performance or historical period
a type of Big Band jazz of the late 1930s and 1940s
roughly from 1935 to 1945
a setting of text in which each syllable is sung to one pitch
a work in several movements for orchestra
accents which go against the steady beat
an Argentinean dance in duple meter
with long, gliding steps
the mechanical (motor) skill required to sing or play an instrument
the speed of the music, based on the beat
a high pitched male voice
a three part form , ABA
dynamic changes which occur suddenly, without gradual
transition
the general range of a melody ,
considering the most commonly used pitches , not the
highest and lowest extremes
the character of the different layers of the horizontal and vertical sound
a melody that assumes importance in the development
of a composition due to its continued use
a musical form in which a theme is stated, then varied
in a succession of musical statements
a setting of a text which uses different music for each stanza
of a poem
the distinctive tone quality of a sound
the pitch that is the tonal center, which is the tonic
the first pitch of a diatonic
scale
an arrangement of a piece of music for
a voice, instrument, or ensemble other than that
for which it was originally written
the quick repetition of one or two pitches
a chord of three tones
a work or movement for three instruments or voices
everyone together
a weak beat preceding the downbeat
a stanza
a slight wavering or pulsating of a tone in singing or playing an instrument
a performer of extraordinary technical and expressive capabilities
the distance between the highest and lowest pitches
one can sing
different portions of the vocal range ; i.e.
high, low etc.
a nineteenth century dance in triple meter
the distance of two half steps in the same direction
a scale in which all the intervals
are whole steps
a musical illustration of the meaning of a word or phrase
