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

  • légèrement [French] Lightly.
  • expression The blend of feeling and intellect brought to a performance by the performer.
  • soprano [Italian] The highest female voice.
  • Minnesinger [German] A poet or musician of the Minnesang tradition in Germany, active during the 12th through the 15th centuries.
  • heftig [German] Vehement, boisterous.
  • woodwind quintet Standard chamber ensemble consisting of one each of the following: flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon and French horn (not a woodwind instrument).
  • mixolydian The Gregorian mode based upon the fifth tone of the scale. This mode, based on G, includes all the tones of the C major scale.
  • leggiero [Italian] Light, delicate.
  • Werke ohne Opuszahl [German] “Works without opus number”. A catalogue prepared in 1955 by Harry Halm and Georg Kinsky, listing all of the compositions of Ludwig van Beethoven that were not originally published with an opus number, or survived only as fragments. The abbreviation is also used sometime to refer to works without opus by other composers.
  • 8vb [Italian] A directive to perform an octave lower than written.
  • flageolet [French] A simple recorder with four finger holes, popular in the 17th century in England.
  • scat singing A vocal jazz style that consists of improvised nonsense syllables sung to an an improvised melody, usually over an instrumental accompaniment.
  • adirato [Italian] Angry, wrathful.
  • inflection Small alteration of the pitch by a microtonal interval.
  • zeloso [Italian] Zealous, keen, earnest.