way of performing a passage, which is marked with a footnote, additional * rolled chord: see arpeggiato in this list the tempo, acciaccatura crushing; i.e., a very fast grace a double segno entries of the subject in different voices; by extension, similar closely * broken chord: A chord in which the notes are not all played at once, * coda: a tail; i.e., a closing section appended to a movement have a darker vocal tone than sopranos, and their vocal range is playing, an indication to bow (or sometimes to pluck) over the Opus - a work or . meno : less (meno mosso = less movement; a little slower) m.d. a quarter note (a crotchet) in length. list), for faster or slower respectively in this list) More than three ps (ppp) or time or 2/2, 2/4, 4/4). For a general, non-specific list of terms, see, List of Italian musical terms used in English, "List of Italian musical terms used in English", Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_Italian_musical_terms_used_in_English&oldid=1147048498, Sung with no (instrumental) accompaniment, has much harmonizing, A short solo performed by a secondary character in the opera, An instrumental or vocal piece suggesting a battle, A florid solo at the end of a performance, A lively piece, free in form, often used to show musical skill, A work for one or more solo instruments accompanied by an orchestra, A short concerto; the solo instrument in a concerto, A Baroque form of concerto, with a group of solo instruments, A musical composition or idea typified by improvisation, A short connecting instrumental movement an intermezzo, A work containing the words to an opera, musical, or ballet, A drama set to music for singers and instrumentalists, An opera with a serious, esp. originally and usually in fast triple time, often replacing the minuet See also con sordina, senza sordina, in this list. violin and other bowed instruments by bouncing the bow on the string, * amoroso: loving Molto means very, and poco means a little. same as medley or, sometimes, fantasia echo effect, encore (Fr) again; i.e., perform the relevant sordino is used. * bridge: Transitional passage connecting two sections of a composition, where the basic unit of pulse of the music recurs in groups of 2 (cut noun); (see next for example) and for brass instruments, mutes are inserted in the bell); compare senza 1) A passage may be performed freely. * vivo: lively * presto: very quickly See dynamics. manner (see also articulation), loco [in] place; i.e., perform the notes at the * dolente: sorrowfully, plaintively A direction to make the melody stand out. * brio: vigour; usually in con brio Articulations of stress not follow the rhythm strictly, appoggiatura a grace note that "leans" on the * Jazz standard (or simply "standard"): a well-known composition a Hammond organ player and two other instruments, often an electric guitar a scalar passage or riff to "fill in" the brief time between for example. Thus, a quarter note in cut time is only half a * wenig (Ger): a little, not much dim. , interspersed with other sections: ABACA is a typical structure or ABACABA Transitional passage connecting two sections of a composition, or between two A sections (e.g., in an A/B/A form). * deciso: decisively seen in Baroque-era music where two instruments share the same copy of Submit your glossary or dictionary for publishing at TranslationDirectory.com, Glossary of jazz and popular musical This should not be confused with a dot after a note which alters its value. In music for piano, to such elaboration, col pugno with the fist; i.e., bang the piano In a jazz or popular music context, this Octave leaps are not uncommon in florid vocal music. contrapuntal part, always occurring simultaneously with, and subsidiary * sipario: curtain (stage) * col, colla: with the (col before a masculine noun, colla before a feminine * piacevole: pleasant * accelerando, accel. * marziale: in the march style * contralto: encompasses a complete cycle of the time signature, e.g., in 4/4 time, four voice ranges (bass, tenor, alto, soprano) The most common modifiers youll see are piu, meaning more, and meno, meaning less. * sul tasto: on the fingerboard; i.e., in string playing, an indication Saint-Sans, Zeitmass, also spelled Zeitma (Ger) perform very softly, even softer than piano. It is also used as an umbrella term for a quick-paced electronic lyrical phrases, the lines of melody, or between two sections | S | T Duple meter is historically associated with * sul ponticello: on the bridge; i.e., in string playing, an indication The speed limit is akin to our tempo marking, lets say allegro. * notes ingales (Fr): unequal notes; a principally Baroque performance * sotto voce: in an undertone i.e. This can mean either slightly slower or slightly faster than andante. A direction, which, like Pi lento, generally occurs in the middle of a movement, the latter term properly being used where the whole movement is already a slow one, and the former in a quick movement. * colla parte: with the soloist; as an instruction in an orchestral score * schleppen (Ger): to drag; usually nicht schleppen ("don't drag"), Notated and executed like common time (4/4), except with the beat lengths is no chord being played, and no implied harmony of a march, melisma the technique of changing the note Sometimes, the special musical meanings of these phrases or (especially) a soprano voice that is well-suited to such elaboration ); also may be found in combination with other terms : marked; i.e., with accentuation, execute every note dies away (this only works with instruments which cannot sustain a note) Nebenstimme, in altissimo in the highest; i.e., play or sing * ausdrucksvoll (Ger): expressively note to another, usually pausing just above or below the final pitch, they both play together again at the point marked tutti. example, of a violin) are to be struck with the wood of the bow; also from one melodic note to another (an effective glissando). play the note slightly shorter (Fr): allow the sound to continue, do not damp; i.e., the contrapuntal line of primary importance, in opposition to * simile: similarly; i.e., continue applying the preceding directive, perform tremolo with the bow by rapidly moving the bow while the arm is tenderness); (see also col, colla, above), con amore, or (in Spanish and sometimes in Italian) con amor * con moto: with motion applied to a passage appended to a section of a movement, not to a Classical period and the Romantic period, in symphonies, sonatas, string * dolcissimo: very sweetly Standard Tempo Marks (listed in order from slowest to fastest) music, depress the soft pedal, altering, and reducing the volume of, is repeated throughout an entire composition or portion of a composition * vif (Fr): Quickly, lively * drop: jazz term referring to a note that slides to an indefinite pitch * come sopra: as above; i.e., like the previous tempo (usually) to split the playing of the written simultaneous notes among then sliding quickly to that pitch. interpreted as lively, fast, alto high; often refers to a particular range The majority of musical terms are in Italian, so this page has quite a long (abbreviation: MD or m.d. at considerable length, calando lowering; i.e., getting slower and value in the measure, accompagnato accompanied; i.e., with the but see also bocca chiusa, which uses the feminine form, in this list) execution of a piece of music. Most of the terms are Italian (see also Italian musical terms used in This is a list of musical terms that are likely Dan, hurry up! No need to specify my exact speed, but she knows we need to get a move on! further information; and compare portamento in this list. accompaniment ), On a piano, played with the soft pedal depressed, On a piano, played with the soft pedal depressed (, A sweeping glide from one pitch to another used for dramatic effect, A series of notes played with a smooth connection between them. is a slight undulation in pitch. staff as . * appassionato: passionately * schneller (Ger): faster : dwindling; i.e., with gradually decreasing volume hold the note for its full value * devoto: religiously "at first sight"); i.e., (to Morendo - dying away. Need more translation jobs from translation agencies? by chords; also used as an adjective (homophonic). D. Note: does not mean "mute", for which con sordina or con a kind of broken chord; see Alberti bass. * bass: the lowest of the standard four voice ranges (bass, tenor, alto, * a cappella: in the manner of singing in a chapel; i.e., without instrumental p. ROBERT E. LEE H.s. * allargando: broadening, becoming a little slower each time * capriccioso: capriciously, unpredictable, volatile * sign: see segno * arpeggiato: a way of playing a chord: starting with the lowest note, * ternary: having three parts. stretto tight, narrow; i.e., faster or note indicates that it is to be sounded staccato. * aber (Ger): but * segue: carry on to the next section without a pause rhythm with emphasis on the sub-division or up-beat, e.g. music. * encore (Fr): again; i.e., perform the relevant passage once more the entire ensemble has a rest of indeterminate length, often as a dramatic Note: Please use an up to date browser to play the audio (e.g. The list can never be cuivr automatically : very little flute to piccolo, * intimo: intimately The other common languages for musical terms are German bowed string instrument near its bridge (see sul ponticello in this passage once more, estinto extinct, extinguished; i.e., as soft as * subito: suddenly (e.g., subito pp, which instructs the player to suddenly Spiritoso e staccato, a tempo moderato p r resc. an * calando: falling away, or lowering; i.e., getting slower and quieter; passage, bisbigliando whispering; i.e., a special to responses, instruments, in fact it results in striking two rather than three Agtato Var.XIX Ossia dim. * tre corde or tc (or sometimes inaccurately tre corda): three strings; Note: sordina, with plural sordine, is strictly correct Italian, but the by Puccini in certain of his operas. Most of the other defined * giocoso or gioioso: gaily with the bow, as opposed to pizzicato (plucked), in music for bowed instruments; * triplet (shown with a horizontal bracket and a '3'): Three notes in * stretto: tight, narrow; i.e., faster or hastening ahead; also, a passage (simulated Italian) a continuous sliding from one pitch to in at the same time, also seen in Baroque-era music where two Often used to indicate a simpler version of a difficult passage. * tempo: time; i.e., the overall speed of a piece of music View this answer. i.e., rallentando. gap or pause in this list) Indicates that an instrument has a special role and is essential. * retenu (Fr): hold back; same as the Italian ritenuto (see below) (The return from divisi is marked unisono: see in this barbaro - barbarous. tempo giusto in strict time | Q | R in tempo as well. (4/4), except with the beat lengths doubled. repeated, | C | D mezzo-soprano * gustoso: with happy emphasis and forcefulness. See dynamics. Allegro and "(Ger)", respectively. unlike ritardando, apply to a single note), roulade (Fr) a rolling; i.e., a florid vocal VS (volti subito) turn suddenly; i.e., turn the An instruction to string players to pluck the strings, rather than bow * pausa: rest playing the by orchestral members in pencil as a reminder to quickly turn to the next part played continuously throughout a piece to give harmonic structure, also transition. pi or meno (see in this list), for faster or slower term usually refers to the double bass. more largo or more lento) In other words, it refers to slowing things down with a slower tempo and. dwindling; i.e., with * sanft (Ger): gently When a slur is placed between two notes with the same pitch, this is called a . as a drop in dynamics, and very often in tempo as well quarters of a circle with a vertical line through it, which resembles between two or more notes. dim. broken chord a chord * MG: see main gauche cresc. A rapid, measured or unmeasured repetition of the same note. and eighth (hence "oct"ave) note in a major or minor scale. imitative passages in other compositions * assai: very * mezzo piano: half softly; i.e., moderately softly. shaking; i.e., a rapid repetition of the same note, or an "Generally it is to do with tempo": furthermore, in this case it is clearly printed in the position and typeface of a tempo indication. M.M - Maelzels metronome. (see preceding entry) and continue to the end of the piece. * organ trio: in jazz or rock, a group of three musicians which includes volta senza accompanimento (the first time without accompaniment), primo or prima (the feminine form) first, quasi (Latin and Italian) as if, almost, rallentando or rall. sordina in this list (which instructs the musicians to remove their mutes); The symbol is not a C as an abbreviation for common time, but a broken * barbaro: barbarous (notably used in Allegro barbaro by Bla Bartk) gradually decreasing volume (same as decrescendo), divisi or div. pressing forward or acceleration of the tempo (that is, becoming stretto, pitch written (generally used to cancel an 8va direction), maestoso majestically, in a stately fashion, main droite (Fr) [played with the] right hand Gngige Abkrzungen sind in Klammern angegeben. play the note with an upbow or upstroke * con brio: with spirit, with vigour sometimes like a sudden crescendo, but often applied to a single note, rit. when combined with other terms, not too much, such as allegro [ma] non orchestral or choral score when the orchestra or all of the voices come hastening ahead; also, a passage in a fugue in which the contrapuntal . The instruction soli requires more than one player; accompaniment patterns. - or ten. * tempo primo, tempo uno, or tempo I (sometimes * affettuoso, affettuosamente, or affectueusement (Fr): with affect (that An increase in the speed of the music. three. notes). immediately soft (see dynamics), or 2. an early pianoforte, fortissimo as loudly as possible (see note at allegro ma non troppo ("not too joyful") Meno: less: Comes before other terms, such as meno mosso ("less moved/agitated") Subito: suddenly, quickly: Comes before or after other terms; e.g. * en dehors (Fr): prominently * moto: motion; usually seen as con moto, meaning with motion or quickly used frequently in harp music, occasionally in piano or percussion. | I | J * deest: from the Latin deesse meaning absent; placed after a catalogue Most of the other terms are taken from French and German, indicated by Fr. * codetta: a small coda, but usually applied to a passage appended to Slower than marked, or slower than you played the bit before. This is helpful to composers because they can express the intent of the tempo in the naming convention of a movement. glassy sound, which emphasizes the higher harmonics at the expense of These terms, however, are constantly used for one another. This comes from a literal cut of the An instruction to string players to use the bow. * en retenant (Fr): slowing or artistry longer than usual, but without generally altering the note's value * ritardando, ritard., rit. * velocissimo: as quickly as possible; usually applied to a cadenza-like * sognando: dreamily themselves. Unless specified, the terms are weak beats | O | P Presto The performer is not bound to follow the given rhythm exactly. of the piece (after an accelerando or ritardando, etc. Generally refers to a persistently repeated rhythmic or melodic figure. Music generated by the limited notes may be immediately followed by another two, for example. symphony may be prolonged for twice its printed length or more for dramatic eg: allegro ma non troppo = quick but not too quick, eg: alla misura = in strict time; senza misura = in free time. chromatically upwards. * rapido: fast Used to cancel an 8va direction. * arco: the bow used for playing some string instrument; i.e., played Largo (with liveliness), con amore (with tenderness); (see also col, colla, List of definitions of terms and concepts used by professional musicians. following entries. which refers either to a similar variation in the volume of a note, or conventions. and usually in fast triple metre, often replacing the minuet in the later * precipitato: precipitately * espressivo or espr. Sometimes, the special musical meanings of these phrases differ from the original or current Italian meanings. crescendo then diminuendo, The list can never be complete: some terms are * alt (English) (also alt dom or altered dominant): a jazz term which pattern that is repeated throughout an entire composition or portion of D.S. If you plug in "allegro" into nearly any online metronome, youll find that you almost universally are set to a tempo of 120 beats per minute. Most of the other B-Dur (B major), or H-Dur ([B major]]). When you first learn about tempo, youre usually confronted with tempo markings like allegro or andante, which typically are prescriptive in regards to the intent of the composer. * V.S. (see barely audible They may follow singly one above * decrescendo or decresc. [1] He completed the work in 1951. * con (gran, molto) espressione: with (great, much) expression or m.g.) movement of a solo concerto or aria (also in works for chorus). un, uno, or una one, as for example in the masculine nouns, alla before feminine), alla breve two minim (half-note) beats to a orchestral instruments can have their tone muted with wood, rubber, metal, length * Klangfarbenmelodie (Ger): "tone-color-melody", distribution * solo, plural soli: alone; i.e., executed by a single instrument or voice. al coda or dal segno al coda (or, strictly but rarely Capo: a key-changing device for guitars and banjos; * flat: a symbol () that lowers the pitch of a note by a semitone. at least Explorer 9, Firefox 21, Chrome, etc.). 2. head; i.e. * malinconico: melancholy the instrument. * adagio: at ease; i.e., play slowly ), A chord with the notes spread out in time (rather than sounded simultaneously), Continuous bass accompaniment by chordal instrument(s) and bass instrument(s) (see figured bass. to their appearance) presto possible = as fast as possible, (Prima; Primo) e.g. several musicians normally play exactly the same notes they are instead Piu mosso. al coda) and continue to the end of the piece con sordina in this list; see also Sordino. If I, as a composer, were to write a multi-movement work that features an allegro section, youd have a pretty good idea about the character of this movement. manner of execution are left to the performer WARNING! possible, lifeless, fermata finished, closed; i.e., a rest or note per measure, each beat a quarter note (a crotchet) in length. * canon or kanon (Ger): a theme that is repeated and imitated and built * niente: "nothing", barely audible, dying away Originally, a musical greeting performed for a lover, A musical cryptogram, using coded syllables as a basis for the composition, A composition for one or two instruments in, A genre of operas with scenarios based on contemporary everyday life, A bassoon, a woodwind instrument played with a double reed, A stringed instrument held in the arm, such as a violin or viola, A stringed instrument held between the legs. * peu peu (Fr): little by little note (see vibrato). * lentissimo: very slowly mosso, meter (or metre) the pattern of a music piece's * arpeggio: like a harp; i.e., the notes of the chords are to be played or plastic devices (for string instruments, mutes are clipped to the bridge, vocal score or piano-vocal score a music score two instruments are to play in unison after a solo passage for one of Unless specified, the terms are Italian or English. * rubato: robbed; i.e., flexible in tempo, applied to notes within a musical See Terms * furia: fury have a darker vocal tone than sopranos, and their vocal range is between comodo comfortable; i.e., at moderate speed, con with; used in very many musical directions, * chiuso: closed; i.e., muted by hand (for a horn, or similar instrument; * cuivr: brassy. symbol of common time. musical This convention can be horn in F to horn in Bb; or a change of tuning, e.g. Comes after other terms; e.g. * smorzando or smorz. ritardando along with diminuendo in this list) * sordina, sordine (plural): a mute, or a damper in the case of the piano. * medley: piece composed from parts of existing pieces, usually three, Largo e staccato simile Allegro e staccato Hornpipe a l' Inglese poco a poco cresc. But shes about to deliver a baby and time is of the essence. tempo (usually). * Homophony: A musical texture with one voice (or melody line) accompanied * arietta: a short aria phrase for expressive effect note stem, or a detached bar for a set of notes (or stemless notes). on a drum, muted with a cloth music * grandioso: grandly loud (notably in Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata), senza sordini or senza sordina as col legno, sul tasto, sul ponticello, or playing in harmonics * double stop: the act of playing two notes simultaneously on a melodic D.S. $8 per month (paid per year), Use the search bar to look for terms in all glossaries, dictionaries, articles and other resources simultaneously. * ut (Fr): first note of the series ut, re, mi, fa, sol, la, si, in fixed-doh tutti all; i.e., all together, usually used in * estinto: extinct, extinguished; i.e., as soft as possible, lifeless, slowing down; decelerating; * altissimo: very high * spiccato: distinct, separated; i.e., a way of playing the violin and dim. * antiphon: a liturgical or other composition consisting of choral responses, * scherzando, scherzoso: playfully * lent (Fr): slowly * piano or p (usually): gently; i.e., played or sung softly (see dynamics) with the fingers as opposed to played with the bow; compare arco (in this * assez (Fr): enough, sufficiently * lamentoso: lamenting, mournfully noun, colla before a feminine noun); (see next for example), col legno with the wood; i.e., the strings (for Calls for a bowed instrument's strings to be struck with the wood of the bow (rather than drawn across with the hair of the bow). or articulation other than that implied by the time signature; specifically, Generally it is to do with speed/tempo. instead of simultaneously. (See also Moll (minor) in this (as if the time signature were, for example, 2/4). of primary importance, in opposition to Nebenstimme * vibrato: vibrating; i.e., a more or less rapidly repeated slight alteration in the pitch of a note, used to give a richer sound and as a means of * solenne: solemn tuning used for the strings of a string instrument, sforzando or sfz made loud; i.e., a sudden a tenor but lower than a soprano them. singer or musician is performing a note in which the intonation is an note as if it were to be accented, marcia a march; alla marcia means in the manner - a tempo a tempo Var.V111 nt./ dim. * con fuoco: with fire, in a fiery manner music style. used to mean slightly slower than andante) to a movement, codetta a small coda (see last), but usually eighth or a quarter of a semitone too high in pitch. the accompaniment is reduced to two staves and adapted for playing on * vamp till cue: a jazz, fusion, and musical theatre term which instructs an abbreviation for ritardando[1][2][3][4]; * glissando (simulated Italian): a continuous sliding from one pitch to is an indication to gradually slow down and soften the notes until nothing is heard; a diminuendo that fades very slowly, often accompanied by a very gradual ritardando. * eco: the Italian word for "echo"; an effect in which a group * insistendo: insistently, deliberate * calore: warmth; so con calore, warmly respectively, moto motion; usually seen as con moto, meaning return from divisi (see in this list). This convention can be extended; the more ps that are written, * sur la touche (Fr): sul tasto : expressively encompasses a a measure has four quarter-note beats divided; i.e., in a part in * rinforzando (rf, or rinf. : slowing down; decelerating; opposite of accelerando pizzicato direction, assez (Fr) enough, sufficiently; sometimes used * MD: see mano destra and main droite * giusto: strictly, exactly, e.g. note that is "crushed" against the note that follows and takes up no is, with emotion); see also con affetto rapidly playing the same or two alternating notes * ziemlich (Ger): fairly, quite, pretty, or rather Examples of staccato in a sentence, how to use it. crescendo then diminuendo, on a long held note, . above) (usually more so but more temporarily than a ritardando, and it may, A dot above or below a note tells you to play it short and detached. * ravvivando: quicken pace * morendo: dying; i.e., dying away in dynamics, and perhaps also in tempo the original tempo. a female singer with a range usually extending from the A In music for piano, this is sometimes a solution in playing a wide-ranging strings.) * adagissimo: very, very slow : accelerating; gradually increasing the tempo quasi recitativo = like a recitative. pianissimo or pp (usually) very gently; i.e., closely spaced in pitch forming a scale for example con allegrezza (with liveliness), con amore (with should be played as loud as possible, but if fff is found later in the Carried (i.e. Dubost, Michel and Lalanne, Stanislas (eds.) and blues and in a variety of non-Western musical cultures. hardware of video game computers uses a similar technique to create a * con sordina, or con sordine (plural): with a mute, or with mutes; several * arioso: airy, or like an air (a melody); i.e., in the manner of an aria; In music terms, "poco meno mosso" means a little less motion. from the jazz repertoire which is widely played and recorded. * Bartk pizzicato: a term which instructs string performers to play a
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