Midterm Flashcards
a tempo
An directive to return to the original tempo after a deliberate deviation
accelerando
Gradually accelerating or getting faster. Abbreviated by accel.
adagio
A slow tempo marking between largo and andante
al fine
An indication to the performer to repeat sections of a composition either from the beginning (da capo), or from the dal segno symbol, to the place marked fine (the end of the composition)
allegro
A fast tempo marking between allegretto and vivace
andante
A moderate tempo marking between largo and moderato. This tempo typically has between 76 and 108 beats per minute.
animato
A directive to a musician to perform a selected passage of a composition in an animated or spirited manner.
arpeggio
Playing the notes of a chord consecutively (harp style). A broken chord in which the individual notes are sounded one after the other instead of simultaneously.
attack
The method or clearness of beginning a phrase; important part of articulation
break strain
A device used in marches and piano rags to introduce a contrast in style and break the flow of the composition with a loud and intense musical statement.
caesura
- Break or interruption in music, notated by two diagonal lines often refered to as railroad tracks. The break can be of any length at the discretion of the conductor.
cantabile
Singing or performing in a melodious and graceful style, full of expression.
chant
- A sacred song, usually harmonized in four parts to which scripture passages are set, part of the words being recited ad libitum, and part sung in strict tempo.
chorale
A hymn of the Lutheran church, usually written for four voice harmony.
coda
- The closing few measures of a composition, usually not a part of the main theme groups of the standard form of a composition, but a finishing theme added to the end to give the composition closure; in sonata form, the coda is anything that occurs after the recapitulation
con brio
A directive to perform the indicated passage with vivacity or spirit
con fuoco
A musical directive to the performer to play a particular passage with vehement energy, fire or fervid emotion.
concert band
An instrumental ensemble ranging from forty to eighty musicians or more, consisting of woodwind, brass and percussion instruments.
conducting patterns
Arm and hand movements by the conductor that create patterns to communicate to the performers the specific beat and meter of the music.
da capo
A directive to the performer to go back to the beginning of the composition. This directive is abbreviated: D.C.
dal segno
A mark in a composition which informs the performer to repeat a specific section of the composition marked by a dal segno sign. This directive is abbreviated: D.S.
embouchure
- The position of the lips and mouth when playing a wind instrument.
etude
A study or an exercise (typically a short composition) designed to train a musician technically as well as musically (1).
fermata
A notation marking directing the performer or ensemble to sustain the note of a composition affecting all parts and lasting as long as the artistic interpretation of the conductor allows. The fermata is marked above the note or rest to be held.
fine
An indication of where a composition ends when there is a repeat of some section of the composition in such a way as to make locating the ending confusing.
forte
A directive in music to perform the indicated passage loudly. Forte is typically notated by the letter “f”.
F clef (bass clef)
F clef is used to indicate pitches below middle C. The pitch “f” is indicated by placing a note on the 4th line.
G clef (treble clef)
A symbol located at the beginning of a staff to indicate the pitches of the notes placed on the lines and spaces of the staff.
grand/general pause
The general pause or the long pause serve the same function, and are identical in function to the fermata when used over a rest or barline. The function of these pauses is to create a silence for a period of time at the discretion of the performer (or conductor with an ensemble).
ictus
In music, the term ictus is used in conducting to denote the specific point in a visible pattern of beat points that articulates the pulse of the music to the ensemble. This is typically the lowest point in the conducting patterns.
interval
The distance between two pitches.
key signature
The sharp, flat, or natural signs placed at the beginning of a staff indicating the tonality of the composition.
key
A specific scale or series of notes defining a particular tonality. Keys may be defined as major or minor, and are named after their tonic or keynote. T
l’istesso tempo
The same tempo. An indication in a composition that directs that the beat remains constant when the meter changes.
largo
A slow and solemn tempo marking, having between 40 and 60 beats per minute.
legato
A directive to perform the indicated passage of a composition in a smooth, graceful, connected style, as opposed to staccato.
leger lines
The short, horizontal lines added to the top or the bottom of a staff for the indication of notes too high or too low to be represented on the staff proper.
maestoso
A directive to perform the indicated passage of a composition in a stately, dignified, majestic fashion.
march
A processional or military air especially suited to parades, processions, or martial affairs. It is generally written in 2/4, 6/8, or 4/4 time.
meno mosso
Less motion or with a slower tempo.
moderato
A directive to perform the designated passage of a composition in a moderate tempo; moderately, restrained.
non troppo
A directive to perform a certain passage of a composition “moderately” or combined with other directives to mean “not too much.”
octave
An interval spanning seven diatonic degrees, eleven semitones. An octave above C would be C. The frequency of a note one octave above another will have exactly twice as many Hertz as the frequency of the note an octave below it.
passacaglia
A continuous variation form. The basis for the form is a four bar ostinato over which variations are written in the other voices. It is similar to the chaconne and is moderately slow in triple meter.
pesante
A directive to a musician to perform a certain passage in a heavy, ponderous fashion, with importance and weight, impressively.
piu
Italian term for more. Typically used to modify tempo markings as in “più mosso” meaning “more motion.”
presto
A directive to perform the indicated passage of a composition very quickly.
rallentando
A directive to perform a certain passage of a composition with a gradual slowing of the tempo. The abbreviation is rall.
