Bolded terms from chapters 1 - 10 Flashcards
Interval larger than that between two adjacent tones in the scale.
Leap
Mezzo-soprano
Female voice of fairly low range, though not so low as alto.
Adagio
Slow.
Computer music
Composition including sounds generated and manipulated by computer.
Quadruple meter
Pattern of 4 beats to the measure.
Thin stick used by many conductors to beat time and indicate pulse and tempo.
Baton
Widely used keyboard instrument of great range and versatility, whose sound is produced by felt-covered hammers striking against steel strings.
Piano
Symbol which notates a pitch one half step higher than the pitch that would otherwise be indicated – for example, the next higher black key on the piano.
Sharp sign (symbol is ♯)
Pattern of 3 beats to the measure.
Triple meter
Treble clef
Notation on a staff to indicate relatively high pitch ranges, such as those played by a pianist’s right hand.
Three-part form (A B A)
Form that can be represented as statement (A); contrast (B); return of statement (A).
Percussion instrument of definite pitch, made up of flat metal bars set in a frame and played by striking with small metal hammers.
Glockenspiel
Euphonium
Brass instrument similar in shape to the tuba and the baritone horn, with a higher range than the tuba’s, commonly used in bands.
Leap
Interval larger than that between two adjacent tones in the scale.
Characteristic way of using melody, rhythm, tone, color, dynamics, harmony, texture, and form in music.
Style
Definite pitch percussion instrument
Produces a tone.
Triad
Most basic of chords, consisting of three alternate tones of the scale, such as do, mi sol.
Instruments whose sound is produced by two narrow pieces of cane held between the player’s lips; these pieces vibrate when the player blows between them.
Double-reed woodwinds
Consonance
Tone combination that is stable and restful.
Single-reed woodwind instrument with a beak-shaped mouthpiece, cylindrical in shape with a slightly flared bell.
Clarinet
Moderately fast.
Allegretto
Tambourine
Percussion instrument of indefinite pitch, consisting of a skin stretched across a shallow cylinder, with small circular plates set into the cylinder which jingle when the skin is struck or the cylinder is shaken.
Dotted rhythm
Long-short rhythmic pattern in which a dotted note is followed by a note that is much shorter.
Triplet
In notation of rhythm, three notes of equal duration grouped within a curved line with the numeral 3, lasting only as long as two notes of the same length would normally last.
Smallest woodwind instrument, having the highest range; a smaller version of the flute.
Piccolo
Produces a noiselike sound.
Indefinite pitch percussion instrument
Tenor
Male voice of high range.
Snare drum; Side drum
Percussion instrument of indefinite pitch, in the shape of a cylinder with a stretched skin at either end. A “snare” of gut or metal is stretched below the lower skin and produces a rattling sound when the drum is stuck.
Grave
Very slow, solemn.
In notation of rhythm, three notes of equal duration grouped within a curved line with the numeral 3, lasting only as long as two notes of the same length would normally last.
Triplet
Performance of a single melodic line by more than one instrument or voice at the same pitch or in different octaves.
Unison
Percussion instrument of definite pitch, consisting of flat wooden bars set in a frame and played by striking with hard plastic or wooden hammers.
Xylophone
Wavy line attached to the stem on a note, indicating how long that note is to be held relative to the notes around it.
Flag
Presentation of a melodic idea by one voice or instrument that is immediately followed by its restatement by another voice or instrument, as in a round.
Imitation
Melody that serves as the starting point for an extended piece of music.
Theme
Accenting of a note at an unexpected time, as between two beats or on a weak beat. Syncopation is a major characteristic of jazz.
Syncopation
Allegro
Fast.
Slightly curved stick strung tightly with horsehair, used to play string instruments.
Bow
Words, usually at the beginning of a piece of music and often in Italian, which specify the pace at which the music should be played.
Tempo indication
Variation
Changing some features of a musical idea while retaining others.
Monophonic texture
Single melodic line without accompaniment.
Composition including sounds generated and manipulated by computer.
Computer music
Moderately loud.
Mezzo forte; mf
Woodwind instrument, usually made of metal, with a high range, whose tone is produced by blowing across the edge of a mouth hole.
Flute
Note
In notation, a black or white oval to which a stem or flags can be added.
Percussion instrument of definite pitch, with suspended metal tubes that are struck with a hammer.
Chimes
Becoming slower.
Ritardando
Interval between two adjacent tones in the scale.
Step
Xylophone
Percussion instrument of definite pitch, consisting of flat wooden bars set in a frame and played by striking with hard plastic or wooden hammers.
Keyboard instrument
Instrument – such as the piano, organ or harpsichord – played by pressing a series of keys with the fingers.
Very soft.
Pianissimo; pp
Instrument whose sound is produced, modified, or amplified by electronic means.
Electronic instrument
Quintuple meter
Pattern of 5 beats to the measure.
String instrument with a lower range than the violin and a higher range than the cello.
Viola
Unaccented pulse preceding the downbeat.
Upbeat
Emphasis of a note, which may result from its being louder, longer, or higher in pitch than the notes near it.
Accent
First, or stressed, beat of a measure.
Downbeat
Bow
Slightly curved stick strung tightly with horsehair, used to play string instruments.
Measure
Rhythmic groups set off by bar lines, containing a fixed number of beats.
Half step
Smallest interval traditionally used in western music; for example, the interval between ti and do.
Major key
Music based on a major scale.
As fast as possible.
Prestissimo
Allegretto
Moderately fast.
Shift from one key to another within the same piece.
Modulation
Notation showing all the parts of a musical ensemble, with a separate staff for each part, and with simultaneously sounded notes aligned vertically; used by the conductor.
Score
Dynamics
Degree of loudness or softness in music.
Largo
Very slow, broad.
Saxophone
Family of single-reed woodwind instruments.
Flat sign (symbol is ♭)
Symbol which notates a pitch on half step lower than the pitch that would otherwise be indicated – for example, the next lower key on the piano.
Changing some features of a musical idea while retaining others.
Variation
Cymbals
Percussion instrument of indefinite pitch, consisting of a pair of metal plates, played by striking the plates against each other.
Double-reed woodwinds
Instruments whose sound is produced by two narrow pieces of cane held between the player’s lips; these pieces vibrate when the player blows between them.
Accelerando
Becoming faster.
“Distance” in pitch between any two tones.
Interval
Tonic key; Home key
Central key of a piece of music, usually both beginning and ending the piece, regardless of how many other keys are included.
Short, detached manner of performing a melody.
Staccato
Double bass; Bass
Largest string instrument, having the lowest range of the string family.
Slow.
Adagio
Crescendo (symbol is < )
Gradually louder.
Part of the total range of an instrument or voice. The tone color of the instrument or voice may vary with the register in which it is played or sung.
Register
Vertical line on a note indicating how long that note is to be held relative to the notes around it.
Stem
Regular, recurrent pulsation that divides music into equal units of time.
Beat
System of electronic components that can generate, modify, and control sound; used to compose music and to perform it.
Synthesizer
French horn; Horn
Brass instrument of medium range, whose tube is coiled into a roughly circular shape and fitted with valves, commonly used in symphony orchestras and in bands.
Triple meter
Pattern of 3 beats to the measure.
Brass instruments of moderately low range, whose tube is an elongated loop with a movable slide, commonly used in symphony orchestras, bands, and jazz ensembles.
Trombone
Highest tone or emotional focal point in a melody or a larger musical composition.
Climax
Bassoon
Double-reed woodwind instrument, made of wood, having a low range.
Presto
Very fast.
Tone combination that is stable and restful.
Consonance
Interval twice as large as the half step; for example, the interval between do and re.
Whole step
Whole step
Interval twice as large as the half step; for example, the interval between do and re.
Instrument consisting of a bellows between two keyboards (piano-like keys played by the right hand, and buttons played by the left hand) whose sound is produced by air pressure that causes free steel reeds to vibrate.
Accordion
Two numbers, one above the other, appearing at the beginning of a staff or the start of a piece, indicating the meter of the piece.
Time signature; meter signature
Sharp or flat signs immediately following the clef sign at the beginning of a piece of music, indicating the key in which the music is to be played.
Key signature
Pattern of 7 beats to the measure.
Septuple meter
In notation, a set of five horizontal lines between or on which notes are positioned.
Staff
Sound
Vibrations that are transmitted, usually through the air, to the eardrum, which sends impulses to the brain.
Scale including all twelve tones of the octave; each tone is a half step away from the next one.
Chromatic scale
English horn
Double-reed woodwind instrument, slightly larger than the oboe and with a lower range, straight in shape with an egg-shaped bell.
Striking differences of pitch, dynamics, rhythm, and tempo that provide variety and change of mood.
Contrast
Woodwind insturment
Instrument whose sound is produced by vibrations of air in a tube; holes along the length of tube are opened and closed by the fingers, or by pads, to control the pitch.
Upbeat
Unaccented pulse preceding the downbeat.
Largest brass instrument, with the lowest range, commonly used in symphony orchestras and bands.
Tuba
Small fluctuations of pitch that make the tone warmer, produced in string instruments by rocking the left hand while it presses the string down.
Vibrato
Pitch range
Distance between the highest and lowest tones that a given voice or instrument can produce.
Flag
Wavy line attached to the stem on a note, indicating how long that note is to be held relative to the notes around it.
Family of woodwind instruments whose sound is produced by blowing into a “whistle” mouthpiece, usually made of wood or plastic.
Recorder
Accent
Emphasis of a note, which may result from its being louder, longer, or higher in pitch than the notes near it.
Cello; Violoncello
String instrument with a range lower than that of the viola and higher than that of the double bass.
Symbol used in notation of pitch to cancel a previous sharp or flat sign.
Natural sign (symbol is ♮)
Recorder
Family of woodwind instruments whose sound is produced by blowing into a “whistle” mouthpiece, usually made of wood or plastic.
Number of layers of sound that are heard at once, what kinds of layers they are, and how they are related to each other.
Musical texture
Becoming faster.
Accelerando
Concertmaster
Principal first violinist in a symphony orchestra.
Small wedge of plastic, leather, or quill used to pluck the strings of certain instruments, such as the guitar, koto, and harpsichord.
Plectrum (plural form is plectra)
Chord
Combination of three or more tones sounded at once.
Viola
String instrument with a lower range than the violin and a higher range than the cello.
Male voice of high range.
Tenor
Baritone horn
Brass instrument similar in shape to the tuba, with a higher range, commonly used in bands.
Counterpoint
Technique of combining two or more melodic lines into a meaningful whole.
Minor key
Music based on a minor scale.
Dissonance
Tone combination that is unstable and tense.
Vibrations that are transmitted, usually through the air, to the eardrum, which sends impulses to the brain.
Sound
Instruments whose sound is produced by a single piece of cane, or reed, fastened over a hole in the mouthpiece. The reed vibrates when the player blows into the mouthpiece.
Single-reed woodwinds
Music based on a minor scale.
Minor key
Female voice of high range.
Soprano
Glockenspiel
Percussion instrument of definite pitch, made up of flat metal bars set in a frame and played by striking with small metal hammers.
Style
Characteristic way of using melody, rhythm, tone, color, dynamics, harmony, texture, and form in music.
Complete cadence
Definite resting place, giving a sense of finality, at the end of a phrase in a melody.
Staccato
Short, detached manner of performing a melody.
Key; tonality
Central note, scale, and chord within a piece, in relationship to which all other tones in the composition are heard.
Percussion instrument of indefinite pitch, consisting of a triangular length of metal suspended from a hook or cord, played by striking with a metal rod.
Triangle
Vivace
Lively.
Incomplete cadence
Inconclusive resting point at the end of a phrase, which sets up expectations for the following phrase.
Very slow, solemn.
Grave
Fast.
Allegro
Combination of three or more tones sounded at once.
Chord
Combination of the treble and bass staves, used in keyboard music to encompass the wide range of pitches produced by both hands.
Grand staff
Organization of musical ideas in time.
Form
Ordered flow of music through time; the pattern of durations of notes and silences in music.
Rhythm
Melody that serves as the starting point for an extended piece of music.
Theme
Leader of a performing group of musicians.
Conductor
Brass instrument of medium range, whose tube is coiled into a roughly circular shape and fitted with valves, commonly used in symphony orchestras and in bands.
French horn; Horn
System of writing down music so that specific pitches and rhythms can be communicated.
Notation
Keyboard instrument, widely used from about 1500 to 1775, whose sound is produced by plectra that pluck its wire strings. The harpsichord was revived during the 20th century.
Harpsichord
Tone combination that is unstable and tense.
Dissonance
Plectrum (plural form is plectra)
Small wedge of plastic, leather, or quill used to pluck the strings of certain instruments, such as the guitar, koto, and harpsichord.
Computer
Tool used to synthesize music, to help composers write scores, to store samples of audio signals, and to control synthesizing mechanisms.
