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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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

  • sono [Italian] Sound.
  • trio [Italian] A composition for three performers.
  • son [French] Sound.
  • assai [Italian] Much, very much.
  • grandioso [Italian] Majestic, grand, noble.
  • Requiem [Latin] A composition to honor the deceased.
  • binary form Two-part structure of music; usually each part is repeated.
  • dorian A mode used in Gregorian chant based upon the second tone of the major scale. In the key of C, the Dorian mode would be based on D, and would include D, E, F, G, A, B, C, D.
  • brace A symbol that looks like an archer's bow, used to connect two or more different staves that are to be played at the same time by the same instrument (e.g. a piano, a organ or a harp). This should not be confused with the bracket, that provides a visual connection between independent parts of a system.
  • recitative A flexible style of vocal delivery employed in opera, oratorio, and cantata and tailored to the accents and rhythms of the text.
  • penny whistle A folk wind instrument similar to the recorder, but usually made of tin. It generally has six finger holes, and is prominent in British and Irish folk music.
  • music Broadly speaking, sounds organized to express a wide variety of human emotions.
  • reprise [French] A shortened version of a major composition in a stage production used to reward the audience with a repeat of a popular melody. This is often used as a finale to a scene or an act.
  • lamentoso [Italian] Like a lament, plaintive.
  • repercussion The frequent repetition of the same sound. Also, the re-entrance of the subject and answer in a fugue following other material.