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

  • legatissimo [Italian] Very legato, extremely smooth and connected.
  • opera A drama set to music, usually sung throughout, originating in 17th-century Italy.
  • blues African-American music genre, characterized by simple repetitive structures and by the use of the blues chord progressions and the blue notes.
  • treble The highest part of a polyphonic composition.
  • con mala grazia [Italian] Ungracefully, awkwardly.
  • chromaticism Use of tones extraneous to a diatonic scale (major or minor).
  • French model A flute with pointed French-style arms and open-hole finger keys, as distinguished from the plateau style with closed holes.
  • moto [Italian] Motion, movement.
  • agitato [Italian] Agitated, excited, restless.
  • largo [Italian] A slow and solemn tempo marking, usually around 40–60 BPM.
  • retardation A slowing down of the tempo.
  • soave [Italian] Soft, sweet, gentle.
  • terzetto [Italian] A three-voice compositional form of the 18th century, usually short, which may or may not be accompanied.
  • cantabile [Italian] Songful, in a singing style.
  • oral transmission Preservation of music without the aid of written notation.