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

  • ut [Latin] The syllable first associated with the tonic of the key, now replaced by the syllable "Do" but still used in France. In the fixed Do system, this is always C.
  • minuet A 17th-century court dance in moderate triple meter, originating in France.
  • anacrusis One or more unstressed notes preceding the first downbeat in a bar.
  • corps [French] Literally, “body”. May indicate the body of an instrument or a company of performers.
  • concerto [Italian] A three-part musical work in which one solo instrument is accompanied by an orchestra.
  • polonaise [French] Stately Polish processional dance in triple meter.
  • mesto [Italian] Sad.
  • sheet music A generic term to mean any piece of paper with the notation of a composition printed on on it.
  • weniger [German] “Less”.
  • recitativo secco [Italian] Recitative accompanied only by continuo.
  • Cecilia [Italian] Saint honored as the patroness of music.
  • genre Term used to identify a general category of music that shares similar performance forces, formal structures and/or style.
  • Minnesinger [German] A poet or musician of the Minnesang tradition in Germany, active during the 12th through the 15th centuries.
  • lent [French] Slow.
  • ravvivando [Italian] Animating, brightening up; quickening.