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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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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Some random terms

  • chromaticism Use of tones extraneous to a diatonic scale (major or minor).
  • religioso [Italian] Religious, devout.
  • nonet A composition for nine instruments.
  • consonant A chord (or an interval) that is pleasing and harmonious to the ear.
  • half note A note that has half the duration of time of a whole note.
  • common chord A chord that appears in more than one key. Frequently used in modulation.
  • character piece Term used for a broad range of 19th century piano music based on a single idea or program.
  • stinger A chord at the end of a march that is used to punctuate the ending of the composition. The stinger is typically played by the entire ensemble on the last beat of the last measure of the composition and contains an accent.
  • pienezza [Italian] “Fullness”.
  • larghissimo [Italian] An extremely slow tempo, slower than largo.
  • instrument Any device used to create music.
  • word painting Musical depiction of words in text. Using the device of word painting, the music tries to imitate the emotion, action, or natural sounds as described in the text.
  • cantus firmus [Latin] “Fixed melody”, usually of very long notes, often based on a fragment of Gregorian chant that served as the structural basis for a polyphonic composition, particularly in the Renaissance.
  • chest voice The lowest register of the voice.
  • strathspey A lively Scottish dance in 4/4 time related to the reel. A characteristic of this dance is the peculiar rhythmic pattern of a dotted eighth note followed by a sixteenth, known as the Scotch snap.