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

  • allegramente [Italian] Cheerfully.
  • retransition In sonata-allegro form, the last part of the development which leads to the tonic of the main key and usually emphasizes it.
  • espressione [Italian] “Expression”.
  • difference tone A lower tone that is heard when two higher notes are played in such a way that the frequency of the difference tone is the difference of the frequencies of the other two notes.
  • tempo [Italian] Literally, “time”. The speed of a piece of music, usually reckoned by the rate of its beats.
  • patter song A comic song in opera and operetta, characterized by a moderately fast to very fast tempo with a rapid succession of rhythmic patterns in which each syllable of text corresponds to one note (there are few or no melismatic passages).
  • bergamasca [Italian] A kind of Renaissance clumsy rustic dance.
  • double trill A simultaneous trill on two notes, usually in the distance of a third.
  • concertino [Italian] The small group of solo instruments used in a concerto grosso in contrast to the whole body of the orchestra.
  • sacred music Religious or spiritual music, for church or devotional use.
  • dolente [Italian] Sorrowful.
  • overblowing A technique employed by woodwind players (flute players in particular) in which the player directs the flow of air to obtain a harmonic tone other than the fundamental.
  • eight note A note having the time duration of one eighth of a whole note.
  • clavier [French] Any keyboard instrument.
  • affettuoso [Italian] Tender, loving, affectionate.