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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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

  • scherzo [Italian] Literally, “jest“. A composition in ABA form, usually in triple meter. Originally, in the early 17th century, the scherzo was a piece of lively, playful character, with animated rhythm.
  • volta subito [Italian] A directive to turn the page quickly.
  • mormorando [Italian] Murmuring.
  • yodel A style of singing or calling that involves switching the registers of the voice rapidly from head voice to chest voice (or falsetto and natural voice). Although this type of singing is typically associated with the high warbling of the Swiss and Tyrolean mountaineers, forms of yodeling can be found in several cultures, including African, Persian, and cowboy singers in the United States.
  • ledger line Short, horizontal line added to the top or the bottom of a staff for the reception of a note too high or too low to be represented on the staff.
  • 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.
  • pasticcio [Italian] A composition assembled from passages taken from numerous other sources by various composers.
  • duet A composition for two performers.
  • vite [French] Fast.
  • ober [German] Upper, higher.
  • Manualiter [German] Organ compositions that are to be performed on the manual alone, i.e. without the pedals.
  • più [Italian] “More”.
  • courante [French] A family of triple meter dances from the late Renaissance and the Baroque era.
  • envoi [French] A short final stanza of a ballade which serves as a summary or dedication.
  • labium [Latin] Literally, “lip”. The part of an edge-blown aerophone (such as a flute, recorder or whistle) that splits the air column.