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

  • loco [Latin] A directive to play in the normal playing position; it cancels any previous direction to play in an unusual position, like all'ottava.
  • buffo [Italian] Comic, humorous.
  • guerriero [Italian] Martial, warlike.
  • chart Colloquial or jazz term for a score or arrangement.
  • portamento [Italian] Literally, “carrying”. In singing or playing continuous-pitch instruments, the technique of gliding from one note to another without actually defining the intermediate notes: a smooth sliding between two pitches.
  • virelai [French] A Medieval and Renaissance form of French poetry and song, written in an ABBA form with a courtly text.
  • facile [Italian] “Easy”.
  • Noël [French] Christmas.
  • con amore [Italian] “With love”, lovingly.
  • habanera [Spanish] Moderate duple meter dance of Cuban origin, popular in the nineteenth century. It is based on a characteristic rhythmic figure.
  • canticle A sacred hymn or song.
  • wind ensemble An instrumental ensemble consisting of woodwind, brass and percussion instruments.
  • perdendo [Italian] Losing volume.
  • double whole note A note twice as long as a whole note. Mainly used in pre-1650 music.
  • strophic form Song structure in which every stanza of the text is sung to the same musical tune.