Introduction to Music Appreciation Flashcards
Colors
When used in a musical context, refers to the unique, individual sounds of different instruments. For example, a violin has a very different tone color than a flute.
Composer
Someone who writes music. Often used to refer to someone who writes notated art music, but can include songwriters and electronic musicians as well.
Conductor
Leader of the orchestra.
Develop
Elaborate on a musical idea by changing different aspects of it.
Form
The structure of a musical composition.
Motive
A short musical idea that is elaborated upon. It may consist of just a few notes or be a part of a larger theme.
Musical aesthetics
A philosophical approach to the idea of beauty in music.
Musical parameters
Ways to measure the elements of music.
Music cognition
Research dealing with the essential mental processes involved in listening to music.
Musicology
The study of the historical and scientific aspects of music.
Music theory
The development of methods to analyze the elements of music and the study of the history of analysis.
Opus
Literally, means “work.” Opus numbers are used to catalogue a composer’s compositions, usually ascending in the order they were published.
Orchestration
Assigning different musical lines to different instruments or groups of instruments. One group might play the melody(the main theme of the piece, usually played in the upper register) while another the harmony (a series of notes that complement the melody, usually played in the middle register) and a third might be assigned the bass line (a repeated series of notes played in the lower register).
Repertoire
A collection of works available to perform. Also used to refer to the entire body of music that continues to be performed regularly.
Repetition
Repeating a motive or motivic elements.
Rhythm
A general term that refers to the way that music unfolds through time.
Score
Musical manuscript
Symphony
A large-scale orchestral work, usually in three or four movements.
Theme
Main musical phrase, usually a melody.
Variation
Changing rhythmic or melodic elements while maintaining the essential sense of an original motive.
