BS Exam Flashcards
Allegro
A direction to play lively and fast.
Beat
The unit of musical rhythm.
Cadence
A sequence of chords that brings an end to a phrase, either in the middle or end of the composition.
Chorale
A hymn sung by the choir and congregation often in unison.
Chord
Three or four notes played simultaneously in harmony.
Clef
In sheet music, a symbol at the beginning of the staff defining the pitch of the notes found in that particular staff.
Coda
Closing section of a movement.
Da Capo
In sheet music, and instruction to repeat the beginning of the piece before stopping on the final chord.
Dissonance
Harsh, discordant, and lack of harmony. Also a chord that sounds incomplete until it resolves itself on a harmonious chord.
Duet
A piece of music written for two vocalists or instrumentalists.
Étude
A musical composition written solely to improve technique. Often performed for artistic interest.
Flat
A symbol indicating that the note is to be diminished by one semitone
Grave
Word to indicate the movement or entire composition is to be played very slow and serious.
Grazioso
Word to indicate the movement or entire composition is to be played gracefully.
Harmony
Pleasing combination of two or three tones together in the background while a melody is being played. Harmony also refers to the study of chord progressions.
Interval
The distance in pitch between two notes.
Key signature
The flats and sharps at the beginning of each staff line indicating the key of music the piece is to be played in.
Legato
Word to indicate that the movement or entire composition is to be played smoothly.
Natural
A symbol in sheet music that returns a note to its original pitch after it has been augmented or diminished.
Overture
Introduction to an opera or other large musical work.
Piano
An instruction in sheet music to play softly. Abbreviated by a “p”.
Presto
A direction in sheet music indicating that the tempo is to be very fast.
Rhythm
The element of music pertaining to time, played as a grouping of notes into accented and unaccented beats.
Sharp
A symbol indicating the note is to be raised by one semitone.
Slur
A curve over notes to indicate that a phrase is to be played legato.
Staff
Made up of five horizontal parallel lines and the spaces between them on which musical notation is written.
Adagio
A tempo having slow movement; restful at ease
Tonality
The tonal characteristics determined by the relationship of the notes to the tone.
Triad
Three note chord consisting of a root, third, and fifth.
Vivace
Direction to performer to play a composition in a brisk, lively, and spirited manner.
Accelerando
A symbol used in musical notation indicating to gradually quicken tempo.
Chromatic scale
Includes all 12 notes of an octave.
Dynamics
Pertaining to the loudness or softness of a musical composition. Also the symbols in sheet music indicating volume.
Fermata
To hold a tone or rest held beyond the written value at the discretion of the performer.
Forte
A symbol indicating to play loud.
Grandioso
Word to indicate that the movement or entire composition is to be played grandly.
Intonation
The manner in which tones are produced with regard to pitch.
Key
System of notes or tones based on and named after the key note.
Measure
The unit of measure where the beats on the lines of the staff are divided up into two, three, four beats to a measure.
Phrase
A single line of music played or sung. A musical sentence.
Pitch
The frequency of a note determining how high or low it sounds.
Staccato
Short detached notes, as opposed to legato.
Tempo
Indicating speed.
Time signature
A numeric symbol in sheet music determining the number of beats to a measure.
Tone
The intonation, pitch, and modulation of a composition expressing the meaning, feeling, or attitude of the music.
Toneless
Unmusical, without tone.
Tuning
The raising and lowering of a pitch of an instrument to produce the correct tone of the note.
Tutti
Passage for the entire ensemble or orchestra without a soloist.
