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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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

  • espressione [Italian] “Expression”.
  • grandioso [Italian] Majestic, grand, noble.
  • lai [French] A song form composed in northern Europe, mainly France and Germany, from the 13th to the late 14th century.
  • stretto [Italian] A directive to quicken the tempo.
  • refrain [French] A verse which repeats throughout a song or poem at given intervals.
  • moresca [Italian] An exotic Renaissance dance simulating a battle between the Moors and the Christians.
  • Leichen-musik [German] Funeral music.
  • hautbois [French] Oboe.
  • Rinaldi numbers A numbering system identifying compositions by Antonio Vivaldi.
  • duration The length of time that a note is sounded or a rest (silence) is observed.
  • loure [French] A slow, dignified French dance of the 17th and 18th centuries usually in 3/4 or 6/4 time.
  • canto [Italian] Literally, “singing”. The highest vocal part in choral music.
  • pantomime Theatrical genre in which an actor silently plays all the parts in a show while accompanied by singing.
  • dump A slow, melancholic old English dance, usually in 4/4 time.
  • goliard song Medieval Latin-texted secular song, often with corrupt or lewd lyrics; associated with wandering scholars.