Intermediate Rudiments Terms Flashcards
acciaccatura
A grace note/crushed note, played on the beat
Accelerando (accel.)
Gradually becoming faster
Accent
A stressed note; play this note louder than the dynamic marking indicates
Adagio
Very slowly; slower than Andante, but not as slow as Largo
Alla (all’)
In the style/manner of…
Alla Marcia
In the style of a March
Allegretto
Fairly lively (not as fast as Allegro)
Allegro
Lively, quick, bright (fast)
Andante
At a walking pace, moderately slow
Andantino
A little faster than andante
Animato, Animoso
Animated, spirited, lively
Assai
Much, very much
Ben, Bene
Well, much
Brillante
Brilliantly
Cantabile
In a singing style
Chord
Three or more pitches sounding at the same time
Colla, colle, (col, coll’)
With
Coll’ 8va
Play these notes in octaves
Con
With
Con brio
With vigour, spirit
Con espressione
With expression
Con grazia
With grace; in a graceful or elegant style
Con moto
With motion
Con pedale (con ped.) (Ped.)
With the damper pedal
Crescendo (cresc.)
Gradually becoming louder
Da Capo (D.C.)
Repeat from beginning
Da Capo al Fine
Repeat from the beginning and end at Fine
Dal Segno (D.S.)
Repeat from the sign
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Music-segno.png
Decrescendo (decresc.)
Gradually becoming softer
Diminuendo (dim.)
Gradually becoming softer
Dolce
Sweetly, gentle
E, ed
And
Enharmonic
Two notes that are spelled differently but sound the same (ex: F# is the enharmonic of Gb)
Espressivo (espress.)
Expressively
Fermata
Pause; hold this note (or rest) longer than its note value indicates
Fine
The end
Forte
Loud
Fortepiano
Loud, then immediately soft
Fortissimo
Very loud
Grave
Solemnly, slowly
Grazioso
Graceful
Larghetto
Rather slow (not as slow as Largo)
Largo
Very slow and broad (slower than Adagio)
Legato
Smoothly connected
Leggiero
Lightly, nimble and quick
Lento
Slow
Loco
As written (return to normal register). Normally follows 8va
Ma
But
Maestoso
Majestically
M.D. (Mano destra)
With the right hand
M.M.
Maelzel’s metronome. M.M. indicates the number of beats played per minute.
M.S. (Mano sinistra)
With the left hand
Marcato
Well marked, accented
Meno
Less
Meno Mosso
Less movement, slower
Mezzo Forte
Moderately loud (a bit softer than forte)
Mezzo piano
Moderately soft (a little louder than piano)
Moderato
At a moderate speed
Molto
Much, very
Non
Not
Non troppo
Not too much
Ottava (8va)
The interval of an octave
Pedale (ped.)
Pedal
Pianissimo
Very soft
Piano
Soft
Più
More
Più mosso
More movement, quicker
Poco
Little
Poco a poco
Little by little
Prestissimo
As fast as possible
Presto
Very fast
Quasi
As if, like, almost
Rallentando (rall.)
Gradually becoming slower
Repeat signs
Repeat the music between the repeat signs
Ritardando (rit., ritard.)
Gradually becoming slower
Rubato
A free, flexible tempo used to enhance musical expression that can speed up or slow down. “Robbed time”
Sempre
Always
Slur
A line drawn over (or under) two or more notes, indicating that they are to be played legato
Spiritoso
Spirited
Staccato
Play the notes short, separated or detached
Tempo
The speed at which the music is to be played
Tempo Primo (Tempo I)
Return to the original speed (usually follows a ritardando or rallentando)
Tenuto
Sustain the note for its full value
Tie
Hold for the combined value of both notes
Tranquillo
Calmly, quietly, tranquilly
Tre corde
“Three strings”, an indication to release the soft pedal on the piano
Troppo
Too much
Una corda
“One string”, an indication to depress the soft pedal on the piano
Vivace
Lively, spirited, brisk
a tempo
Return to the original tempo
Senza
Without
