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

  • tanto [Italian] Much.
  • animato [Italian] Animated or spirited.
  • fortissimo [Italian] Very loud, louder than forte.
  • sonata-rondò [Italian] A form of a composition that displays characteristics of both the rondò and the sonata forms.
  • sight-singing The practice of singing a composition at sight, without previous preparation.
  • Hertz [German] The basic unit of measurement of frequency, definable as one cycle per second. Usually abbreviated “Hz”.
  • white noise Sounds containing every audible frequency at approximately the same intensity.
  • cotillion [French] A popular dance in the French Courts in the 18th and 19th century, that preceded the Quadrille style of dancing.
  • quarter note A note having the time duration of one fourth of a whole note.
  • chest voice The lowest register of the voice.
  • autograph A manuscript in the composer's own hand.
  • incalzando [Italian] In a pressing or chasing manner.
  • quadruple meter Metrical pattern with four beats to a measure.
  • andantino [Italian] A moderate tempo marking, which can be faster or slower than andante.
  • sonata [Italian] An instrumental genre in several movements for a soloist or an ensemble. The original usage for the term "sonata" implied a composition that was to be played rather than sung. Later, the term "sonata" came to be understood as a four movement piece: slow, fast, slow, fast, as was used in the church sonata (sonata da chiesa), or allemande, courante, sarabande, and gigue, as was used in the chamber sonata (sonata da camera). As the sonata developed, it became longer and adopted the sonata-allegro form for the first movement, which was generally fast. The following movement was generally somewhat slower, and the number of movements varied, but was generally about three.