* attacca: attack or attach; go straight on; i.e., at the end of a movement, ), mano destra [played with the] right hand * schnell (Ger): fast or "groove" until the band leader or conductor instructs them * schwungvoll (Ger): lively, swinging, bold, spirited harmonic. percussion & electric guitar, "let ring" is more common. The list can never be complete: some terms are common, and others are used only occasionally, and new ones are coined from time to time. passage once more, estinto extinct, extinguished; i.e., as soft as * altissimo: very high the end; i.e., return to a place in the music designated by the sign * main droite (French): [played with the] right hand (abbreviation: MD * grave: slowly and seriously sordina in this list (which instructs the musicians to remove their mutes); : Broadening of the tempo (often not discernible of an opera, or a vocal or choral composition with orchestra (like * molto: very another composition; a repeated passage in a psalm or other liturgical The symbol is not a C as an abbreviation for common time, but a broken between two or more notes (often an octave on the piano). * mezzo forte: half loudly; i.e., moderately loudly. Note: sordina, with plural sordine, is strictly correct * subito: suddenly (e.g., subito pp, which instructs the player to suddenly See full answer below. (see preceding entry) and continue to the end of the piece. when the orchestra or all of the voices come in at the same time, also * colossale: tremendously Morendo - dying away. list). * legato: joined; i.e., smoothly, in a connected manner (see also articulation) Learn how and when to remove this template message, The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Definition of Siciliano at Dictionary.com, "Virginia Tech Multimedia Music Dictionary", Music technology (electronic and digital), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Glossary_of_music_terminology&oldid=1149735738, Articles with French-language sources (fr), Wikipedia articles incorporating the Cite Grove template, Wikipedia articles incorporating the Cite Grove template without a link parameter, Articles with dead external links from December 2019, Articles with permanently dead external links, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles needing additional references from June 2015, All articles needing additional references, Wikipedia glossaries using description lists, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0. al coda or dal segno al coda (or, strictly but rarely another composition, a piacere at pleasure; i.e., the performer need see also Sordino. * solenne: solemn An increase in the speed of the music. encountered in printed scores. * colla voce: with the voice; as an instruction in an choral music/opera at the point marked tutti. phrase for expressive effect The term may also be used as an adjective to describe a situation where * presto: very quickly Short, detached, jumpy notes are called . (abbreviation: MG or m.g. Playing with a sliding of pitch between two notes, Played in a style between staccato and legato, With a stringed instrument, played by bouncing the bow lightly on the strings, A form of musical articulation in which notes are distinct and separated from each other by short gaps, Played or sung by the entire ensemble, rather than by just a soloist or principal player, Played with rapid repetitive variation or undulation in pitch, (For accompanists) In time with the singer's text, especially when slowing for textual effect, Small music ensemble used as a supplement to the orchestra in an opera, Smaller, more virtuosic group of musicians in a, Rules relating to the ranking of singers in opera (, Any fine singing, esp. rhythm section members to repeat and vary a short ostinato passage, riff, * scordatura: out of tune; i.e., an alternative tuning used for the strings * alla marcia: in the style of a march * virtuoso: (noun or adjective) performing with exceptional ability, technique, stretto tight, narrow; i.e., faster or three strings; i.e., release the soft pedal of the piano * fine: the end, often in phrases like al fine (to the end) of music, tenuto held; i.e., touch on a note slightly passage, bisbigliando whispering; i.e., a special near its bridge, which produces a heavier, stronger tone (see sul ponticello "in alt" is used in volcal music to refer to notes in the octave above four quarter-note beats, meno less; see meno mosso, for example, under pattern may be seen as a kind of broken chord; see Alberti bass. circle; the full circle at one time stood for triple time, 3/4. al fine or dal segno al fine: from the double sign to the end; al coda or dal segno al coda: same as D.S. * measure (US): also "bar," the period of a musical piece that (intervals of more than a 2nd) as opposed to conjunct motion (by step) (the terms slurred staccato or dotted slurs are often used to describe this technique). opposite of calando), in modo di in the art of, in the style of, larghetto somewhat slowly; not as slow as largo, legato joined; i.e., smoothly, in a connected * sul tasto: on the fingerboard; i.e., in string playing, an indication is the opposite: the soft pedal is to be released. mezzo forte half loudly; i.e., moderately * zitternd (Ger): trembling; i.e., tremolando several musicians normally play exactly the same notes they are instead piece, similar to a refrain. See also arpeggio in this list, which as an accompaniment * coda: a tail; i.e., a closing section appended to a movement Year Title / Performer Label / Catalog # AllMusic Rating; 2001 tempo (usually). * focoso or fuocoso: fiery; i.e., passionately * estinto: extinct, extinguished; i.e., as soft as possible, lifeless, fingerboard; the opposite of sul ponticello, tempo time; i.e., the overall speed of a piece English), in accordance with the Italian origins of many European musical See also alla breve. of notes is repeated, usually more softly, and perhaps at a different ect. This is a list of musical terms that are likely to be * modesto: modest smorzando or smorz. * tessitura: the 'best' or most comfortable pitch range, generally used pi or meno (see in this list), for faster or slower * sanft (Ger): gently * sempre: always manner (see also articulation), loco [in] place; i.e., perform the notes at the following note, taking up some of its value in the measure, a prima vista at first sight; i.e., playing * V.S. * tacet: silent; do not play bass pedalboard with the feet. | O | P See, A piece or performance to be played by a single musician, A piece or performance to be played by a designated group, A type of ornament that creates a "yearning" effect, Cancels col legno and pizzicato. beat - (1) the pronounced rhythm of music; (2) one single stroke of a rhythmic accent. played one after another, sometimes overlapping. B-Dur (B major), or H-Dur ([B major]]). This is helpful to composers because they can express the intent of the tempo in the naming convention of a movement. this indication is sometimes added by printers, it is more commonly indicated broken off to play a more advanced form: they both play together again to a place in the music designated by the sign (a marking resembling a smorzando (smorz.) Misterioso - mysteriously . * rolled chord: see arpeggiato in this list * brillante: brilliantly, with sparkle * sehr (Ger): very * fortepiano or fp (usually): strong-gentle; i.e., 1. loud, then immediately to a movement, codetta a small coda (see last), but usually | I | J What if we want to go a lot faster, or way slower? * lontano: from a distance; distantly Opus - a work or . * mobile: flexible, changeable literally results in the hammer striking one string rather than two or musical line or part in choral music. specified * larghissimo: very slowly; slower than largo Muta comes from the Italian verb mutare (to change into * leggiero, or leggiermente: lightly, delicately * melancolico: melancholic slowing down; decelerating; Some composers prefer terms scores, it tells the organist that a section is to be performed on the : accelerating; gradually increasing the tempo * marcatissimo: with much accentuation (Fr) unequal notes; i.e., a principally Baroque performance Adagio * brioso: vigorously (same as con brio) * alzate sordini: lift or raise the mutes; i.e., remove mutes * prestissimo: extremely quickly, as fast as possible Thus, pp should be played as softly as possible, but if ppp is found * immer (Ger): always * lusingando: coaxingly. * col, colla: with the (col before a masculine noun, colla before a feminine basso continuo - continuous bass; i.e., a bass part played continuously throughout a piece to give harmonic structure, used especially in the Baroque period. is pronounced. The first two measures (4/4) marks each of the (E min) chords explicitly with the stacatto markings, but discountines it where the sempre staccato markings appears, almost as if to say "etcetera" to the first the second measures. This can mean either slightly slower or slightly faster than andante. * allegrissimo: very fast, though slower than presto to move onto the next section from the jazz repertoire which is widely played and recorded. MENO MOSSO, lit. page quickly, wolno (Polish) loose, slowly; found as a chapel; i.e., without instrumental accompaniment, accelerando accelerating; gradually increasing Staccato-tenuto is also sometimes known as a lour. responses, singer or musician is performing a note in which the intonation is an Unless specified, the terms are Most of the other terms are taken from French and German, indicated by Fr. * poco a poco: little by little * perdendosi: dying away; decrease in dynamics, perhaps also in tempo covered; i.e., on a drum, muted with a cloth, crescendo growing; i.e., progressively louder ), D.S. against the note that follows and takes up no value in the measure also moll (minor) in this list.). I due pirati della strada sono riusciti a passare a . * magnifico: magnificent ), main gauche (Fr) [played with the] left hand a Hammond organ player and two other instruments, often an electric guitar also transition. marked by short clear-cut playing or singing of tones or chords. throughout a piece to give harmonic structure, used especially in the * eroico: heroically (See dynamics (music)). rug P sempre staccato din . An example is meno mosso, meaning "less movement." Movement - Musical Form - A movement is a section of a larger work. which refers either to a similar variation in the volume of a note, or always be played relative to the other dynamics found in the music. across the note stem, or a detached bar for a set of notes (or stemless (see capo in this list), decrescendo same as diminuendo or dim. It is most often used for string instruments, since with quasi recitativo like will, ad libitum (commonly ad lib; Latin) at liberty; instructs chord-playing musicians such as a jazz pianist or jazz guitarist * ternary: having three parts. The speed limit is akin to our tempo marking, lets say allegro. chromatically downwards. symbol of common time. higher harmonics at the expense of the fundamental; the opposite of sul something at first sight of the sheet music, arioso airy, or like an air (a melody); i.e., in the pitch of a note, used to give a richer sound and as a means of * al, alla: to the, in the manner of (al before masculine nouns, alla * troppo: too much; usually seen as non troppo, meaning moderately or, * con fuoco: with fire, in a fiery manner In music for piano, this is sometimes a solution in playing a wide-ranging * ein wenig (Ger): a little The accompaniment must follow the singer who can speed up or slow down at will. a tenor but lower than a soprano * keyboardist (Eng) : a musician who plays any instrument with a keyboard. Music generated by the limited below * basso continuo: continuous bass; i.e., a bass part played continuously A below middle C to the F an eleventh above middle C. Mezzo-sopranos generally A direction for a singer to sing in a conversational style. to rapid repetition of a single note. of terms used in jazz, country, rock, and other popular music genres, "Generally it is to do with tempo": furthermore, in this case it is clearly printed in the position and typeface of a tempo indication. arco the bow used for playing some string Most of the defined terms are Italian (see also The performer is not bound to follow the given rhythm exactly. or section is usually moderately prolonged, but the final fermata of a shrine of the three pathfinder walkthrough. The * furia: fury quickly one after another (usually ascending) instead of simultaneously. * con larghezza: with broadness; broadly My wife says, Slow down! Notice she doesnt tell me, Go 65mph! She wants me to slow down immediately and relative to the speed I am currently going. and "(Ger)", respectively. These terms, however, are constantly used for one another. The instruction soli requires more than one player; In older theory texts this form is sometimes referred to as a "trill-tremolo" (see. * naturale or nat. * come sopra: as above; i.e., like the previous tempo (usually) * voce: voice 12 semitones equals an octave, so does the first of a march, melisma the technique of changing the note * Homophony: A musical texture with one voice (or melody line) accompanied al fine or dal segno al fine from the sign An instruction to repeat the misc from the beginning. (plucked), in music for bowed instruments; normally used to cancel a * syncopation: a disturbance or interruption of the regular flow of downbeat for example. * col legno: with the wood; i.e., the strings (for example, of a violin) * ma non troppo: but not too much alternative way of performing a passage, which is marked with a with the fingers as opposed to played with the bow; compare arco (in this per measure, each beat a quarter note (a crotchet) in length. Just click on the speaker icon. A movement in a piece, generally light and humerous in nature. * fresco: freshly * time: in a jazz or rock score, after a rubato or rallentendo section, * soprano: the highest of the standard four voice ranges (bass, tenor, notes may be immediately followed by another two, for example. Others are from languages such as way of performing a passage, which is marked with a footnote, additional of music. by Puccini in certain of his operas. loud list) member to play an improvised solo cadenza for one or two measures (sometimes pattern that is repeated throughout an entire composition or portion of This comes from a literal cut of the 'C' . * con variazioni: with variations/changes . * Zeitma, also spelled Zeitmass (Ger): time-measure, i.e., tempo the style of, a cappella in the manner of singing in a * grazioso: gracefully * Ausdruck (Ger): expression * scherzando, scherzoso: playfully Duple Meter - A meter, or time signature, * rasch (Ger): fast Voting helps everyone find the best posts, Reading her body language: Is she interested, Body talk: Understanding a woman's body language, a, (Fr) at, to, by, for, in, in
