English for Music
Vocabulary
Contents
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| adagio | music | a composition played in adagio tempo (slowly and gracefully); "they played the adagio too quickly |
| arioso | music | a short recitative that is melodic but is not an aria |
| crescendo | music | a gradual increase in loudness |
| decrescendo, diminuendo | music | a gradual decrease in loudness |
| dominant | music | the fifth note of the diatonic scale |
| electric organ, electronic organ, Hammond organ, organ | music | an electronic simulation of a pipe organ |
| flourish, fanfare, tucket | music | a short lively tune played on brass instruments; "he entered to a flourish of trumpets"; "her arrival was greeted with a rousing fanfare |
| forte, fortissimo | music | with great loudness |
| larghetto | music | a composition or passage played in a slow tempo slightly faster than largo but slower than adagio |
| largo | music | a composition or passage that is to be performed in a slow and dignified manner |
| ligature | music | a group of notes connected by a slur |
| mediant | music | the third note of a diatonic scale; midway between the tonic and the dominant |
| music | music | the sounds produced by singers or musical instruments (or reproductions of such sounds) |
| piano, pianissimo | music | low loudness |
| preparation | music | a note that produces a dissonant chord is first heard in a consonant chord; "the resolution of one dissonance is often the preparation for another disonance |
| pyrotechnics | music | brilliance of display (as in the performance of music) |
| recapitualtion | music | the repitition of themes introduced earlier (especially when you are composing the final part of a movement) |
| register | music | the timbre that is characteristic of a certain range and manner of production of the human voice or of different pipe organ stops or of different musical instruments |
| registration | music | the sound property resulting from a combination of organ stops used to perform a particular piece of music; the technique of selecting and adjusting organ stops |
| release, tone ending | music | the act or manner of terminating a musical phrase or tone |
| resolution | music | a dissonant chord is followed by a consonant chord |
| roulade | music | an elaborate run of several notes sung to one syllable |
| scale, musical scale | music | a series of notes differing in pitch according to a specific scheme (usually within an octave) |
| segno | music | a notation written at the beginning or end of a passage that is to be repeated |
| sforzando | music | a notation written above a note and indicating that it is to be played with a strong initial attack |
| slur | music | a curved line spanning notes that are to be played legato |
| sounding board, soundboard | music | resonator consisting of a thin board whose vibrations reinforce the sound of the instrument |
| staff, stave | music | the system of five horizontal lines on which the musical notes are written |
| statement | music | the presentation of a musical theme; "the initial statement of the sonata |
| stop | music | a knob on an organ that is pulled to change the sound quality from the organ pipes; "the organist pulled out all the stops |
| subdominant | music | the fourth note of the diatonic scale |
| submediant | music | the sixth note of a major or minor scale (or the third below the tonic) |
| subtonic, leading tone | music | the seventh note of the diatonic scale |
| supertonic | music | the second note of a diatonic scale |
| swoop, slide | music | rapid sliding up or down the musical scale; "the violinist was indulgent with his swoops and slides |
| synthesizer, synthesiser | music | an electronic instrument (usually played with a keyboard) that generates and modifies sounds electronically and can imitate a variety of other musical instruments |
| tempo, pacing | music | the speed at which a composition is to be played |
| theme, melodic theme, musical theme, idea | music | melodic subject of a musical composition; "the theme is announced in the first measures"; "the accompanist picked up the idea and elaborated it |
| tie | music | a slur over two notes of the same pitch; indicates that the note is to be sustained for their combined time value |
| timbre, timber, quality, tone | music | the distinctive property of a complex sound (a voice or noise or musical sound); "the timbre of her soprano was rich and lovely"; "the muffled tones of the broken bell summoned them to meet |
| tonic, keynote | music | the first note of a diatonic scale |
| transposition | music | playing in a different key from the key intended; moving the pitch of a piece of music upwards or downwards |
| tremolo | music | a tremulous effect produced by rapid repetition of a single tone or rapid alternation of two tones |
| tuning | music | calibrating something (an instrument or electronic circuit) to a standard frequency |
| unison | music | two or more sounds or tones at the same pitch or in octaves; "singing in unison |
| value, time value, note value | music | the relative duration of a musical note |
| vibrato | music | a pulsating effect in an instrumental or vocal tone produced by slight and rapid variations in pitch |
| world premiere | music | the first public performance (as of a dramatic or musical work) anywhere in the world |