Musical Concepts - National 4 Flashcards
Anacrusis
The notes which appear before the first strong beat of a musical phrase.
It sounds as an upbeat.
Accelerando
Getting gradually faster.
Andante
Moving Along. Moderate Pace. Not too slow.
A tempo
Back to the previous tempo.
Baroque
Music written between 1600 - 1750. The harpsichord is prominent in Baroque music.
Backing vocals
Singers who support lead singer(s), usually by singing in harmony in the background.
Bass (voice)
The lowest male voice.
Bass Drum
The largest drum on the drum-kit player with a foot pedal.
Bass Guitar
Usually a 4 string guitar that produces deep sounds.
Brass Band
A band comprising of Brass and Percussion.
Brass instruments
A family of instruments made from metal with a mouthpiece. (Trumpet, Trombone)
Cadenza
A passage of music which allows soloists to display their technical ability in singing or playing an instrument.
A cadenza is usually found in the first movement of a concerto.
Broken chord
The notes of a chord are player separately.
Canon
Strict imitation. After one part starts to play or sing a melody, another part enters shortly afterwards with exactly the same melody.
Change of key
A move from one key to another key.
Compound time
The beat subdivides into groups of three.
Concerto
Work for solo instrument and orchestra.
e.g. A flute concerto is written for solo flute and orchestra.
Drone
- One note held on or repeated in the bass.
2. The low-pitched pipes of a bagpipe which accompany a melody.
Distortion
An electronic effect used in rock music to colour the sound of an electric guitar.
Dotted rhythm
A short note followed by a longer one.
Imitation
When the melody is immediately copied into another part. It does not need to be an exact copy.
Jig
A fast dance in compound time usually with two or four beats in a bar. (Nellie the Elephant)
Major
The music sounds in a major, happy sounding key.
Mouth music
Gaelic nonsense words sung in imitation of the sound of bagpipes as an accompaniment to dancing.
Muted
Using a device that reduced the volume or alters the sound of an instrument.
Octave
The distance between a note and the nearest note with the same name. e.g. (C-C)
Opera
A drama set to music with soloists, chorus, acting and orchestral accompaniment.
Ornament
An ornament decorates a melody by adding short, extra notes.
Pan Pipes
Pipes which are graded in size and are bound together.
Pedal
Short for pedal point. A note which is held on or is repeated continuously in the bass beneath changing harmonies.
Pentatonic scale
Any five note scale. Particularly used in Scottish and Celtic folk music.
Percussion
The orchestral family where instruments are played by striking, hitting or shaking.
Ragtime
It features a strongly syncopated melody against a steady vamped accompaniment. Often played on a piano.
Rallentando
Getting gradually slower.
Rapping
Spoken or chanted, rhyming lyrics.
Reggae
A style of music from Jamaica in the 1960s.
e.g. Bob Marley
Romantic
Music written between 1810-1900.
Scale
A series of notes played ascending or descending by step.
Scots ballad
A slow Scottish song which tells a story.
Scat singing
Nonsense words and sounds are improvised by the singer. Used mainly in Jazz singing.
Scotch snap
A very short accented note before a longer note.
Simple time
The beat subdivides into groups of 2 or 4.
Strathspey
A Scottish dance with four beats in a bar and usually featuring the Scotch snap.
Strings
The orchestral family of instruments which has strings.
Swing
A Jazz style which started in the 1930s.
Syncopation
Strongly accented notes playing off or against the beat.
Ternary
A B A. A form where the first section is repeated at the end.
Theme and Variation
A popular structure of writing music where the composer writed a main theme and then uses this to create variations.
They may change the rhythm, harmony or decorate the original melody.
Tonality
The key. (Major, Minor)
Woodwind
Instruments which produce sounds by blowing across a hole against an edge or through a single or double reed.
Verse and Chorus
Popular structure used for writing songs.
Vamp
A rhythmic accompaniment with a bass note played on the beat and a chord off the beat creating an oom pah effect. Usually played on a piano or guitar.
(Also a member of an insanely awesome boy band! :P )
