Multilingual Music Glossary

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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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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

  • animato [Italian] Animated or spirited.
  • affabilità [Italian] Literally, “affability”. A directive to perform with ease and elegance, in a pleasing and agreeable manner.
  • ictus [Latin] The instant when a beat occurs.
  • gioioso [Italian] “Joyful”.
  • intonation A term referring to the proper production of a tone so that it is exactly in tune.
  • crescendo [Italian] A directive to smoothly increase the volume.
  • pas de deux [French] An established item in ballet consisting of a dance performed by two dancers.
  • mute A mechanical device used with string and brass instruments to muffle the tone.
  • contralto [Italian] The lowest female voice.
  • just intonation Tuning system in which the notes are obtained by adding and subtracting natural fifths and thirds.
  • negligente [Italian] “Negligent”, unrestrained.
  • Ländler [German] A folk dance in 3/4 time which was popular in Austria, south Germany and German Switzerland at the end of the 18th century.
  • estampie [French] A type of early instrumental music of the 13th and 14th centuries, consisting of independent sections strung together.
  • octave Interval between two tones seven diatonic pitches apart; the upper tone vibrates twice as fast as the lower one.
  • cantata [Italian] A baroque genre for voice(s) and instruments based on a poem, including recitatives, arias, and sometimes choruses.