Glossary Flashcards
Sudden modulation in the middle of a piece
Abrupt modulation
Speed up the tempo
Accelerando (accel.)
A type of articulation that tells you to emphasise or stress a note
Accent
A type of ornament that’s played by squeezing in a note between the main note. It’s a type of grace note.
Acciaccatura
A note that doesn’t belong to the home key of a piece, indicated by a sharp, flat or natural
Accidental
The part of the music that’s not the main melody
Accompaniment
Play at 66-76 beats per minute. Slightly faster than largo and larghetto
Adagio
Played in an agitated way
Agitato
A pattern played in the bass part that goes root, fifth, third, fifth
Alberti bass
A choir made up of two groups of sopranos and two groups of altos
All-female choir
A choir made up of trebles, altos, tenors and basses
All-male choir
Play in a March style
Alla marcia
Slow down the tempo slightly and play more broadly
Allargando
120-168 bests per minute. Quick and lively
Allergo
The name given to the C clef when the middle point is on the middle line of the stave. Often used for viola parts
Alto clef
Voice that sings roughly from the F below middle C to the F at the top of the treble clef stave
Alto voice
Another name for plagal cadence
‘Amen’ cadence
Play in a romantic, loving way
Amoroso
An unaccented beat at the start of a phrase
Anacrusis
76-108 beats per minute. Walking pace
Andante
Short polyphonic choral piece performed in Protestant churches
Anthem
A type of ornament that clashes with the accompanying chord, then moves to a note of the chord. It’s a type of grace note
Appoggiatura
Go back to the original tempo
A tempo
song for a soloist in an opera
aria
the notes of a chord played in succession
arpeggio
directions telling the performer how the piece should be played
articulation
music that’s not written in a key
atonal
increasing the note lengths in a tune to form a new version of it. the opposite of diminution
augmentation
an interval that’s one semitone larger than a major or perfect interval
augmented interval
a type of melodic decoration that’s one note higher than the notes either side (which are the same)
auxiliary note
a type of slushy pop song, or 15th century song that tell a story
ballad
a male voice that sings the top part of the bass range and the bottom part of the tenor range
baritone voice
clef used for low instrument and voices
bass clef
male voice that sings roughly from the F below the bass clef to the E above middle C
bass voice
a note that changes pitch slightly. it sounds a bit like a wobble
bent note
a large jazz band
big band
type of musical structure where the music has two distinct sections
binary form
chord played by sounding all notes at once
block chord
the flattened notes used in a blues scale
blue note
a major scale with flattened third, seventh and sometimes fifth
blue scale
band with brass and percussion sections
brass band
a chord that’s played as a series of separate notes
broken chords
a type of clef that can move up and down on the stave. its middle point is middle C
C celf
pair of chords used to finish off a phrase
cadence
a short melody followed by an answering phrase
call and response
play the music so it sounds very calm
calmato
like an oratorio, but uses words from books or poems
cantata
a type of dance from the 17th century that uses a ground bass
chaconne
music for small groups, originally written to be performed in people’s houses
chamber music
orchestra with small string and percussion sections, and one or two of each wind and brass instrument
chamber orchestra
a group of singers
choir
hymn for a choir
chorale
two or more notes played at the same time
chord
different ways of playing chords
chord figurations
a series of chords. another name for a harmonic ________
chord progression
a group of singers, that support the soloists, all sing together
chorus
notes used as melodic decoration that don’t belong to the home key
chromatic decoration
13-note scale using all the notes in an octave
chromatic scale
diagram showing how all the keys relate to each other
circle of fifths
small group with clarinet, two violins, viola and cello (not five clarinets)
clarinet quintet
music composed in Europe in the late 18th and early 19th century
classical
swirly thing at the start of a piece of music that helps you figure out how high or low a note is
clef
section at the end of a piece that’s a bit different from the rest and finishes it off nicely
coda
for sting players- play the instrument with the wooden bit of the bow
col legno
time signature where each main beat can be split into three little ones
compound time
play with the bow. the opposite of pizzicato
con arco
play with a mute
consordino
piece for a soloist with an orchestra
concerto
bossy individual who stands at the front of an orchestra waving their hands or baton to keep everyone in time
conductor
where the melody is smooth - there aren’t big jumps between the notes
conjunct
nice sound that you get when notes that fit together are played at the same time. also called concordance
consonance
another word for polyphonic
contrapuntal
when two parts move in opposite directions. it is a polyphonic
contrary motion
male singers who sing within the female vocal range
counter-tenors
extra tune played at the same time as the main theme to keep it interesting
countermelody
get louder gradually
crescendo
when two different rhythms that don’t fit together are played at the same time
cross=rhythm
note that lasts for one beat
crotchet
start again from the beginnning
da capo/D.C.
go back to the beginning and play all the way through till you get to the sign that says fine.
cal capo al fine
star again from the sigh
da segno/D.S.
higher tune sung or played at the same time as the main melody and harmonising with it
descant
section in sonata form where ideas are developed
development
notes used as melodic decoration that belong to the home key
diatonic decoration
an interval that’s one semitone smaller than a minor or perfect interval
diminished interval
a triad made up of two minor thirds
diminished triad
get quieter gradually
diminuendo
decreasing the note lengths in a tune to form a new version of it. the opposite of augmentation
diminution
when there are big jumps between the notes in a melody. the opposite of conjuct
disjunct
horrible sound that you get when notes that don’t fit together are played at the same time. also called discordance
dissonance
disc jockey. chooses which tracks to play on the radio or at a club
DJ
play sweetly
dolce
fifth note in a major or minor scale
dominant
cord V with an added 7th. Written V7
dominant 7th chord
when a dot is added to a note, it increases its length by half its value
dotted note
you get a double bar line at the end of a piece or section of a piece
double bar line
symbol that tells you to play a note two semitones lower
double flat
symbol that tells you to play a note two semitones higher
double sharp
like the oboe that are played by blowing down two reeds
double-reed instruments - woodwind instruments
playing two notes at the same time on a string instrument
double-stopping
when two different instruments or voice play exactly the same tune at the same time
doubling
symbol for string players telling them to bow from the end when they hold the bow
down bow
a long, held-on note, usually in the bass
drone
a type of sequencer that plays built-in drum sounds
drum machine
a piece for two players or two singers
duet
