Multilingual Music Glossary

# A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Hint: Don't worry about accents over letters, just skip them.

Found a word you don't know? No problem. Look it up in the Music Glossary!

We are currently providing explanations for 2484 terms from 12 languages, including English, Italian, French, German, Spanish, Dutch, Swedish, Finnish, Latin…

You may browse the glossary alphabetically, or directly search for a term by using the search box above.

If you are looking for a symbol, check out our Guide to Musical Symbols.

Please note: a music glossary is just like a dictionary. It contains explanations to musical terms. If you are looking for a piece, please go here instead: search tunes.

Some random terms

  • ronde [French] Lively Renaissance round dance or country dance associated with the outdoors, in which the participants danced in a circle or a line.
  • rest A symbol standing for a measured break in the sound with a defined duration.
  • theme group Several themes in the same key that function as a unit within a section of a form, particularly in sonata-allegro form.
  • troppo [Italian] Too much.
  • vocal cords The vocal organs in the human being which produce sound.
  • ballad In jazz and popular music, a short song in a slow tempo, usually with a romantic or sentimental text.
  • concert A public musical performance.
  • pivot [French] A chord that is placed in a transition between two keys, serving a different function in each key and providing smooth movement between them.
  • chest voice The lowest register of the voice.
  • dump A slow, melancholic old English dance, usually in 4/4 time.
  • religioso [Italian] Religious, devout.
  • cavatina [Italian] Originally, a short song of simple character, without a second strain or any repetition of the air. It is now frequently applied to a simple melodious air, as distinguished from a brilliant aria or recitative, and often forms part of a large movement or scena in oratorio or opera.
  • wind instrument Any instrument that produces sound by means of a column of air.
  • spiritual A style of music invented by Afro-American slaves. Spirituals are generally religious songs with elements of African rhythms, Biblical texts, and American accents. Usually the text is concerned with earthly tribulations and heavenly justice and reward.
  • envelope An acoustical term referring to the attack, steady state (or duration), and decay of a sound.