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

  • quintet A piece for five singers or instrumentalists. Also, a group of such musicians.
  • pavane [French] Stately Renaissance court dance in duple meter.
  • libretto [Italian] A “little book” that contains the complete text of an opera, oratorio, and so forth.
  • white noise Sounds containing every audible frequency at approximately the same intensity.
  • trill Ornament consisting of the rapid alternation between one tone and the next above it.
  • singhiozzando [Italian] Sobbing. May suggest the use of a strong portamento.
  • chorale Baroque congregational hymn of the German Lutheran church, usually written for four voice harmony.
  • fugue [French] Polyphonic form popular in the Baroque era in which one or more themes are developed by imitative counterpoint.
  • walking bass In baroque music, a bass line that moves steadily in a rhythm contrasting to that of the upper parts.
  • vocal music music that is written or arranged to be performed by human voices.
  • ballade [French] A one-movement musical piece with lyrical and dramatic narrative qualities, usually having a text dealing with courtly love.
  • fundamental A base pitch from which a series of harmonics is produced.
  • catch A humorous composition for three or four voices common in England during the 16th century. The parts are written so that each singer catches up to the other parts, giving the words different meanings than if each line was sung alone, usually to a humorous or bawdy effect.
  • chromaticism Use of tones extraneous to a diatonic scale (major or minor).
  • 8vb [Italian] A directive to perform an octave lower than written.