Multilingual Music Glossary

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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

  • staccatissimo [Italian] A style of playing notes in a detached, separated, distinct manner that shortens the notated duration of the note in a more exaggerated way than normal staccato.
  • intermedio [Italian] In the Renaissance, a musical entertainment between the acts of a play.
  • attack The method of beginning a phrase.
  • formalism The tendency to elevate the formal aspects above the expressive value in music, as in Neoclassical music.
  • sprezzatura [Italian] A term used in 17th century Italy describing a free style of performing compositions that ignored strict tempo and rhythm, embracing freedom of tempo and expressiveness.
  • isorhythmic motet Medieval and early Renaissance motet based on a repeating rhythmic pattern throughout one or more voices.
  • gig A term commonly applied to a musical engagement of one night's duration only.
  • larghetto [Italian] A tempo not quite as slow as largo, usually around 60–66 BPM.
  • neoromantic A compositional style of the 20th century embodying the techniques and characteristics of the romantic period.
  • suite [French] A work made up of a series of contrasting dance movements, generally all in the same key.
  • gigue [French] A lively baroque dance in compound meter originating from the British jig, imported into France in the mid-17th century. It usually appears at the end of a suite.
  • gallant style A clear, elegant, uncomplicated style that arose in contrast to the more complex style of Baroque counterpoint.
  • vocal cords The vocal organs in the human being which produce sound.
  • un pochettino [Italian] A little bit.
  • capriccio [Italian] A piece of music, usually fairly free in form and of a lively character. The typical capriccio is fast, intense, and often virtuosic in nature.