Year 9 Core Vocabulary

Question 1

Timbre

Answer 1

The quality or colour of sound that makes one voice or instrument different from another.

Question 2

Keyboard

Answer 2

A musical instrument such as a piano, organ or synthesiser.

Question 3

Djembe

Answer 3

A drum of West African origin.

Question 4

Duration

Answer 4

How long or short notes are.

Question 5

Pulse

Answer 5

The beat / heartbeat of the music.

Question 6

Rhythm

Answer 6

Musical patterns made up of notes of different durations / lengths.

Can be played on a pitched or unpitched instrument.

Question 7

Ostinato

Answer 7

A musical pattern that repeats (can be pitched or unpitched).

Question 8

Pitch

Answer 8

How high or low a musical sound is.

Question 9

Melody

Answer 9

Another word for tune, created by playing notes one after another.

Question 10

Staff/ Stave

Answer 10

The five lines that music is written down on.

Question 11

Sharp

Answer 11

A symbol (#) which raises a note by a half step (or semitone) when put in front of it.

Question 12

Flat

Answer 12

A symbol (b) which lowers a note by a half step (or semitone) when put in front of it.

Question 13

Dynamics

Answer 13

How loudly or quietly to play a piece of music.

Question 14

Forte

Answer 14

Italian word for “loud” (shortened to f).

Question 15

Piano

Answer 15

Italian word for “quiet” (shortened to p).

Question 16

Tempo

Answer 16

The speed of a piece of music.

Question 17

Adagio

Answer 17

Italian word for “slowly”.

Question 18

Allegro

Answer 18

Italian word for “fast”.

Question 19

Structure

Answer 19

The way a piece of music is built by combining different sections

(eg. intro-verse-chorus in a pop song).

Question 20

Call and Response

Answer 20

A question and answer phrase.

e.g. “Have you got a Djembe? Yes I have”.

Question 21

Texture

Answer 21

Thick or thin. How many layers of music there are.

Question 22

Thick and Thin Textures

Answer 22

Music can be described as having a thin texture (only one or two musical layers) or a thick texture (many musical layers).

Question 23

Tonality

Answer 23

The tonality of a piece of music is often either major or minor.

Question 24

Musical Mood

Answer 24

Different pieces of music can be described as having a different mood, often depending on whether the tonality is major or minor.

Question 25

Music Technology

Answer 25

The use of computers or other hardware/software to create and edit musical sounds.

Question 26

Audio

Answer 26

Sound that has been recorded.

Eg, “I have recorded my vocal part as an audio track”.

Question 27

Orchestra

Answer 27

Name given to a musical group / ensemble made up four families: strings, woodwind, brass and percussion.

Question 28

Quaver

Answer 28

A note that lasts half a beat. They are often found in pairs to make up a whole beat.​

Question 29

Crotchet

Answer 29

A note that lasts for one beat.

Question 30

Minim

Answer 30

A note that lasts for two beats.

Question 31

Semibreve

Answer 31

A note which lasts for four beats.

Question 32

Scale

Answer 32

A group of notes in a particular order.

e.g. C Major Scale:

C D E F G A B C

Question 33

Treble Clef

Answer 33

A clef used in sheet music for notes higher in pitch than middle C.​

Question 34

Bass Clef

Answer 34

A clef used in sheet music for notes lower in pitch than middle C.​

Question 35

Crescendo

Answer 35

Italian word for “getting louder”.​

Question 36

Diminuendo

Answer 36

Italian word for “getting quieter”.​

Question 37

Accelerando

Answer 37

Italian word for “getting faster”.​

Question 38

Ritenuto

Answer 38

Italian word for “slowing down”.​

Question 39

Binary Form

Answer 39

A piece of music with two contrasting sections, often called A and B.

Question 40

Major Keys

Answer 40

Music is usually either major or minor. Music in a major key is based around major scales and tends to sound happier.​

Question 41

Primary Triads

Answer 41

The three most commonly used chords in any given key.

In C Major these are C, F and G. They are also known as chords I, IV and V (or 1, 4 and 5).​

Question 42

Mash-up

Answer 42

A piece of music created electronically (using software such as Audacity) where different pieces are cut and pasted together.​

Question 43

Remix

Answer 43

An arrangement or new version of an existing song or piece of music, created using technology.