Key Terms Flashcards
Classical era
period in western art music that dates from apporximate 1750-1820
Kappelmeister
geramn word for the person in charge of music making in a court or church
Singspiel
german language comic opera that contains spoken and sung parts
Coloratura
a style of operatic singing that requires vocal agility to execute rapid passages, often in a high range
Concert aria
an opera like aria but complsed for concert performance; usually written with a particular singer in mind
Action
a piano mechanism that transmits the movement of the player to movement of the keys and hammers
Fortepiano
the early version of the piano, with a smaller range and less volume than a modern piano
Strophic form
form in which each poetic verse is set to the same music
Sturm und Drang
a late 18th-century German literary movement characterized by works containing individualism and high emotion; a turning away from enlightenment rationalism
Lied
german word for song; in formal music study, usually refers to german art song
Concerto
multi-movement musical work in which one or two solo instruments are featured along with an orchestral accompaniment
Subscription concert
public concerts with paid admission, often held in a smaller venue; audience members would subscribe to a concert or series
Large-scale works
in music, refers to genres that require large numbers of performers (such as symphonies and opera); also refers to genres that are of significant length
Stile galant
style fashionable from the 1720s to the 1770’s, featuring song-like melodies, short phrases, and reduced harmonic vocabulary; a departure from the Baroque complexity
Libretto
the written story of an opera
Opera
musical genre in which singers and instrumentalisic in a staged dramatization of a story
Enlightenment
the historical period in Western thought and culture, stretching roughly from the mid-decades of the 17th century through 18th century; hierarchical systems replaced by systems professing freedom and equality for all
Salon
a regular gathering of distinguished guests; in music, often references a formal performance at a patron’s residence, palace or castle
Aesthetic experience
emotional and sometimes physiological response elicited by an aritistic work
Timbre
the characteristic quality of sound that distinguishes one voice or musical instrument from another; “tone color”
Form
the way in which sgments are structured in a unified whole; a “blueprint” for the structure of the piece
Melody
a sequence of single tones, usually unified in a system such as a key or mode; the “tune” of a work
Rhythm
the time-oriented organization of silence and sound
Harmony
two or more tones sounding simultaneously
Art song
a song written by a trained composer to convey a specific artistic idea, as in projecting the mood and meaning of a poetic text
Song
musical work that is sung and has lyrics
Word painting
in texted works, using musical gesture or elements to reflect movement and emotion in the text
Syncopate
to accent a note that falls between main beats
Backbeat
in pop music, a primary accent on the second and fourth beats of a four-beat measure
Liturgy
ritual for public worship; usually has a prescribed format
Kolisha
“the voice of woman”; a belief in Orthodox Judaism that women must not sing in the presence of men due to the potential to distract men in prayer
Schola cantorum
“singing school”; church-sponsored school for the teaching of ecclesiastical chant
Scriptoria
writing rooms used for copying manuscripts, writing, and studying, usually in a convent or manastery; associated with the preservation of musical manuscripts
Chant
monophonic liturgical song; sometimes referred to as “Gregorian” chant or plainsong
Monophonic
music having a single melody without accompaniment or harmonizing parts, as in chant
Office
liturgy of 8 prayer services i which pslams, readings, and prayers are recited or sung at specified hours
Mass
Roman church liturgy; also a musical genre or setting fro certain parts of this liturgy
Ordinary
Mass texts that remain the same on most days of the year; musical settings may change
Proper
mass texts that change according to specific days of the church calendar
Antiphon
type of chant sung before or after the recitation of a psalm in the Office; also associated with psalmody in the Mass
Responsory
a verse or set of verses used in the Office; often performed with soloist alternating with group
Through-composed
works in which new music is used for each section; as opposed to forms in which segments recur
Morality play
allegorical drama in which the characters personify abstractions, such as vice, virtue, and charity
Octave
notes spaced 8 tones apart; in Western music, this results in renaming the pitch “at the octave”
Dissonance
combo of tones that sounds unstable; sometimes considered harsh, or in need of resolution
Quarter tone
interval half the size of a half-step; the half-step is traditionally recognized as the smallest interval in Western music, thus the quarter-tone can be perceived as dissonant or even “out of tune” by people accustomed to Western tonal music
Chord
3+ pitches sounding simultaneously
Siren
half-human, half-animal female who tempts men via song
Courtesan
female court attendant who is educated or trained as a performer in multiple artistic and intellectual areas
Geisha
courtesan of the Japanese tradition associated with the performance of traditional Japanese art forms such as song and dance
Edo period
Japanese historical period from 1603 to 1868; associated with the development of many lasting Japanese artistic genres
Kabuki theater
dance theater of Japan that emerged in the Edo period; women were banned from this form of theater beginning in the early 17th century
Shamisen
a plucked, a 3-stringed instrument of Japan; associated with the geisha
Kouta
Japanese “short song” of 1-3 minutes’ duration, often with erotic, poetic text that is filled with metaphor; associated with the geisha tradition
Devadasi
from the Sanskrit “deva” or goddess, a girl or woman dedicated to a god who worships in the Indian temple
Troubadour
poet-composer of southern France in the 12th and 13th centuries
Courtly love
“fin’ amors” in Occitan; refined, unattainable love for one who is admired from a distance; associated with troubadour song
Chanson
the French word for “song”
Strophic form
form in which each poetic verse is set to the same music
Tenson
improvised and likely performed before an audience
Trobairitz
female poet-composer of southern France in the 12th and 13th centuries
Humanism
philosophy that emerged in the Renaissance in which ancient Greek and Roman culture inspired the study of human knowledge
Virtuoso
performer who possesses astounding technical skills
Homophonic
musical texture in which multiple lines move together rhythmically
Polyphonic
musical texture in which 2+ independent melodic lines sound simultaneously
Madrigal
Italian secular vocal genre that utilizes poetic texts; stylistic traits and number of voice parts change by historical period
Concerto Delle Donne
“group of laides,” professional female court singers
Musica reservata
music reserved for an elite, invited audience; often featured virtuoso performers; term used in the 16th and 17th centuries
Modal
music that is based on modes (sequences of whole and half-steps) other than major or minor
Tonal
related to major and minor scalar systems, as opposed to modal systems; in actual practice, a tonal musical work will be organized around a given note or key
Consonance
combo of tones that creates a sense of stability or calm
Doctrine of the affections
Baroque doctrine in which music was believed to elicit specific emotional responses such as sadness, anger, or joy
Affect
predominant emotion of an artistic work
Doctrine of ethos
ancient Greek belief that upheld music’s power to impact the soul of the listener
Prima prattica
“first practice”; referencing 16th-century text setting in which the music sometimes overshadows the text; sometimes associated with polyphone (men)
Seconda prattica
“secon practice”; referencing 17th-century text setting in which textual clarity takes precedence over music; associated with the monodic style (women)
Castrato
man who was castrated before puberty, resulting in the retention of a treble vocal range
Monody
style that features a vocal soloist with an instrumental accompaniment
Sacred madrigal
solo vocal work with a sacred text
Recitative
technique found in opera, oratorio and cantata in which the text is sung in a speech-like manner, as opposed to the lyrical aria style
Aria
lyric song for solo voice; also found in several large-scale genres, including opera and cantata
Ritornello
a short musical passage that returns throughout a work in the manner of a refrain
Libretto
the written story of an opera
Cantata
based on the Italian “to sing”; sacred or secular vocal work with performance forces ranging fro soloist, to chorus and orchestra
Agrement
French for “charm,” refers to an ornament in music, usually indicated by a written sign in the music
Classical era
period in Western art music that dates from approximately 1750-1820
Deconstruct
to take apart or examine in order to expose biases, flaws, or inconsistencies
Subscription concerts
public concerts with paid admission, often held in a smaller venue; audience members would “subscribe” to a concert or series
Salon
a regular gathering of distinguished guests; in music, often references a formal performance at a patron’s residence, palace or castle
Enlightenment
historical period in Western thought and culture, stretching roughly from the mid-decads of the 17th century through 18th century; hierarchical systems replaced by systems professing freedom and equality for all
Opera seria
Italian for “serious opera” as opposed to comic opera; dramatic opera of the 18th century
Large-scale works
in music, refers to genres that require large numbers of performers (such as symphonies and opera); also refers to genres that are of significant length
Stile Galant
style fashionable from the 1720s to the 1770’s, featuring song-like melodies, short phrases, and reduced harmonic vocabulary; a departure from Baroque complexity
Sturm und Drang
a late 18th-century German literary movement characterized by works containing individualism and high emotion; a turning away from Enlightenment rationalism
Fortepiano
early version of the piano, with a smaller range and less volume than a modern piano
Action
piano mechanism that transmits the movement of the player to movement of the keys and hammers
Voicing
adjustment of a piano’s tone quality; may be bright, dark, mellow, or rich
Singspiel
German-language comic opera that contains spoken and sung parts
Kappelmeister
German word for the person in charge of music-making in a court or church
Extra-musical work
musical work that contains non-musical references such as a story or program
Primary source
artifact that provides first-hand accounts of historical events or subjects; letters, diaries, and original music manuscripts are examples
Secondary source
document that has been interpreted by someone other than the direct source; in music, a newspaper review of a concert or a textbook are examples
Program music
instrumental work that tells a story or suggests a non-musical idea; may actually be associated with a written program, but sometimes only includes a suggestive title
Character piece
quasi-programmatic piece for piano that emerged in the 19th century and that suggested a mood or feeling via title or overall aesthetic; tended to be fairly simple in structure
Absolute music
music that does not seek to suggest a story or scene, but is concerned with formal construction; distinguished from program music
Sonata form
frequently found in the first movement of a sonata or symphony; usually consists of an exposition with contrasting segments, followed by a development of the opening material, and a recapitulation which returns to the original key or tonality
Theme and variation form
segmented form in which an original theme is first utilized and subsequent segments of the work vary the original theme via manipulation of musical elements such as rhythm and harmony
Experimental work or Experimental music
A 20th-century term associated with music that explores new and unusual sounds and compositional techniques
Serialism
an atonal compositional method that systematically orders musical elements according to a fixed series
Neoclassicism
a style that emerged in the early decades of the 12th century; featured form-driven structure, transparent texture, tonality, and lack of eta musical program
Vernacular
“of the people”; as opposed to the work of the educated elite
Motif
a short rhythmic or melodic idea that recurs in a work
Atonal
lacking a tonal center, or “key”
Avant-garde
a french military term, meaning to be in advance of others; in music, referst to those who lead the way to the artistic future, even at the expense of risk
Chance
music in which random procedures (such as coin tossing ) determine the outcome of a work
Polytonal
utilizes more than one key at once
Postmodernism
an aesthetic that reflects fragmentation, rejects boundaries between hhigh and low are, and is not opposed to embracing the passt; modernism rejects the old in favor of the new
Minimalism
artistic movement that used small elements of repeated material that evolved slowly over time; emerged in the 1960’s
Dissonant coutnerpoint
a compositional method in which two or more dissonant melodic lines are simultaneously combined
Tritone
a dissonant interval of an augmented fourth
Heterophonic
texture in which a melody is performed by two or more parts simultaneously, but with variation; for example, one part may be more ornamented than the other
Ululation
high pitched vocal sound with rapid movement of the uvula and tongue, performed by women to express emotion; traditionally used in the Middle East and parts of Africa, often for lifecycle rituals
Dalcroze eurhythmics
an approach to music education based on movement and dance
Symbolism
a late 19th century aesthetic popular in France and elsewhere, which embraced the musical sensuousness of sound and text; typical themes were mysticism and otherworldliness
Ostinato
a short musical pattern that persistently repeats
Bitonal
simultaneous use of two different keys
