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 2433 terms from 12 languages, including English, Italian, French, German, Spanish, Dutch, Swedish, Finnish, Latin…

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Some random terms

  • pasticcio [Italian] A composition assembled from passages taken from numerous other sources by various composers.
  • 8va [Italian] A directive to perform an octave higher than written.
  • libretto [Italian] A “little book” that contains the complete text of an opera, oratorio, and so forth.
  • grunge rock Contemporary Seattle-based rock style characterized by harsh guitar chords; hybrid of punk rock and heavy metal.
  • lydian The church mode based on F, containing the notes of the C major scale, yet using F as the tonic.
  • thirty-second note A note having the time duration of one thirty-second of a whole note.
  • chord A set of three or more (according to certain definitions, even two) different notes that sound simultaneously.
  • quadrille [French] An early 19th century ballroom dance for four or more couples.
  • galliard [French] Lively triple-meter French court dance.
  • Ausdrucksvoll [German] Expressive.
  • malinconico [Italian] Melancholic.
  • 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).
  • canzone [Italian] Literally, “song”. An Italian or Provençal song or ballad. It is also used to describe a type of lyric which resembles a madrigal. Sometimes a composition which is simple and songlike is designated as a canzone, especially if it is by a non-Italian.
  • tertian harmony Term applied to harmony which is based upon the interval of the third.
  • rigaudon [French] A lively French dance, originally a folk dance but also a court dance and an instrumental form, in duple meter.