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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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

  • quodlibet [Latin] A humorous composition that contains snatches of popular melodies and texts presented concurrently or consecutively.
  • anacrusis One or more unstressed notes preceding the first downbeat in a bar.
  • grosso [Italian] Large, great, grand.
  • MIDI Acronym for “Musical Instrument Digital Interface”; technology standard that allows networking of computers with electronic musical instruments.
  • quadrille [French] An early 19th century ballroom dance for four or more couples.
  • intermedio [Italian] In the Renaissance, a musical entertainment between the acts of a play.
  • ripieno [Italian] The notes added when realizing the figured bass of a basso continuo.
  • mezza voce [Italian] Literally, “half voice”. A directive to perform in a quiet or restrained manner.
  • assai [Italian] Much, very much.
  • transposition Shifting a melody up or down in pitch, while keeping the same relative pitches.
  • ronde [French] Lively Renaissance round dance or country dance associated with the outdoors, in which the participants danced in a circle or a line.
  • mambo [Spanish] Dance of Afro-Cuban origin with a characteristic quadruple-meter rhythmic pattern.
  • heavy metal Rock style that gained popularity in the 1970s, characterized by simple, repetitive ideas and loud, distorted instrumental solos.
  • chromatic scale A scale consisting of all 12 semitones.
  • fortississimo [Italian] Extremely loud, louder than fortissimo.