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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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

  • circular breathing Technique used by players of some wind instruments to produce a continuous tone without interruption. This is accomplished by breathing in through the nose while simultaneously blowing out through the mouth using air stored in the cheeks.
  • einfach [German] Simple.
  • progressive rock A subgenre of rock that reached its peak in the early 1970s and attempted to blend the visceral style of rock music with outside influences: classical, jazz, folk, and world musics, for example.
  • giubiloso [Italian] Jubilant.
  • common time 4/4 time.
  • fragmentation The technique of developing a theme by dividing it into smaller units; most common in the music of the Viennese Classicists.
  • spiritoso [Italian] Spirited, lively.
  • 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.
  • forefall An ascending appoggiatura.
  • ridicolo [Italian] Absurd, ludicrous, ridiculous.
  • choral prelude Short baroque organ composition in which a traditional melody is embellished.
  • double tonguing A technique used in playing the flute and brass instruments which allows notes to be played in rapid succession. It is achieved by rapidly forming the consonants “T” and “K” in quick succession.
  • rubato [Italian] “Robbed” time; the subtle pressing forward and holding back the tempo in performance.
  • timbre [French] The quality of a sound; that component of a tone that causes different instruments (for example a flute and a violin) to sound different from each other while they are both playing the same note.
  • amabile [Italian] Lovable, charming, amiable.