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

  • 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.
  • loure [French] A slow, dignified French dance of the 17th and 18th centuries usually in 3/4 or 6/4 time.
  • brace A symbol that looks like an archer's bow, used to connect two or more different staves that are to be played at the same time by the same instrument (e.g. a piano, a organ or a harp). This should not be confused with the bracket, that provides a visual connection between independent parts of a system.
  • 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.
  • mordent An ornament indicating that a note is to be played in a single rapid alternation with the note above or below.
  • walking bass In baroque music, a bass line that moves steadily in a rhythm contrasting to that of the upper parts.
  • tief [German] Deep, low.
  • sinfonia [Italian] A term brought into use in the late Renaissance with a variety of specific meanings, generally implying a composition similar to a canzona or a prelude. By the 18th century the term had a similar implication as the term sonata. During the 18th century it came to be used for a three movement composition, until it gradually took on the meaning of our modern term symphony.
  • perfect pitch The ability of certain people to identify a given pitch without reference to any other pitch.
  • andantino [Italian] A moderate tempo marking, which can be faster or slower than andante.
  • a cappella [Italian] Choral or vocal music performed without instrumental accompaniment.
  • quadruple counterpoint Counterpoint in four parts.
  • threnody A poem, a song, or an instrumental composition that expresses lament for the dead.
  • bore The diameter of the tube of a woodwind or brass instrument. The shape of the bore in part dictates the timbre or tone color of the instrument.
  • scena [Italian] A term used to describe the stage, scene or act of an opera. Also, a term for a set of vocal movements in a theatrical production, usually including a recitative, arioso, and aria.