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

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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…

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Some random terms

  • religioso [Italian] Religious, devout.
  • precisamente [Italian] Precisely, exactly.
  • quadruplum [Latin] Polyphony having four voices. Also, the highest of these voices.
  • moto perpetuo [Italian] Literally, “perpetual motion”. A term used to describe rapidly executed and persistently maintained figuration.
  • parlando [Italian] “Speaking”.
  • penny whistle A folk wind instrument similar to the recorder, but usually made of tin. It generally has six finger holes, and is prominent in British and Irish folk music.
  • soul A style of composition developed in America in the 1960s conveying strong emotion. This style of music is characterized by dramatic delivery of the vocal line, commonly including wails, sighs, cries, falsetto, whispers, etc.
  • con semplicità [Italian] “With simplicity”.
  • sanft [German] Soft, mild, smooth.
  • technique The mechanical aspect of performing a composition.
  • transposing instrument Those instruments which are notated in one key on paper, yet sound another key when they are performed.
  • additive meter A pattern of beats that subdivide into smaller, irregular groups. It is common in Eastern European musics, and contemporary compositions attempting to emulate such a sound. For example, a time signature like 9/8, which is normally subdivided as 3+3+3, may be subdivided by the composer as 2+3+2+2 for musical effect.
  • parallel keys Two keys, one major and one minor, having the same tonic.
  • glee An English part song for three or more voices originating in the 17th century.
  • etwas [German] “Somewhat”.