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

  • eilig [German] Hurried, hasty, speedy.
  • lointain [French] “Distant”, “faraway”.
  • fundamental The base note upon which a chord is built.
  • threnody A poem, a song, or an instrumental composition that expresses lament for the dead.
  • chromatic scale A scale consisting of all 12 semitones.
  • ricapitolazione [Italian] Recapitulation.
  • verse A single line in a metrical composition, e.g. a poem. However, the word has come to represent any division or grouping of words in such a composition, which traditionally had been referred to as a stanza.
  • secco [Italian] Literally, “dry”. A directive to perform in an unornamented, cold manner. It usually implies that the notes should be of short duration.
  • ornament Musical flourishes that are not necessary to carry the overall line of the melody (or harmony), but serve instead to decorate or “ornament” that line. Many ornaments are performed as fast notes around a central note.
  • parody A humorous or satirical composition which exaggerates the features of some other composition.
  • section A group of identical or similar instruments in an ensemble.
  • tonality The organization of a composition around a tonic.
  • Burgundian chanson Fifteenth century French composition, usually for three voices, some or all of which may be played by instruments.
  • mixolydian The Gregorian mode based upon the fifth tone of the scale. This mode, based on G, includes all the tones of the C major scale.
  • ancora [Italian] “Still”, as in “still more slowly”.