A

Absolute Pitch
Ability to determine the exact pitch of a note as played on a musical instrument just by listening to it.

A Cappella
One or more singers performing without instrumental accompaniment.

A Tempo
To sing or play as per the original tempo of the song.

Accelerando
To gradually quicken the tempo of the song.

Accent
Rhythmically significant stress in a line of verse.

Accidentals
Any of various signs that indicate the alteration of a note by one or two semitones or the cancellation of a previous sign.

Accompaniment
Music that is played as background to a solo singer or lead instrumentalist.

Ad Libitum (Ad Lib; Latin)
At liberty; the performer decides how to sing or play the respective section or notes.

Adagio
Slow

Alto
Lowest female voice part in a choir group.

Allegro
Lively and quick.

Andante
At a moderate tempo.

Arpeggio
When the notes of a chord are played quickly, one after another. Usually used as an accompaniment for a song, for example, broken chords.

B

Bar
Unit of music contained between two bar lines; measure.

Baritone
Mid ranged male singing voice.

Bass
Lowest of the male singing voices.

Bass Clef
A symbol placed on the fourth line of a staff to indicate that the fourth line of the staff corresponds to the F next below middle C; F clef.

Beat
A basic unit of musical rhythm, a single stroke of a rhythmic accent.

Bridge
A transitional passage that connects two sections of a composition or song. Usually placed after the chorus of a song.

Broken Chord
A chord in which the notes are not played simultaneously at once, but in some consistent sequence. Notes are played either consecutively one after another, or two notes by two notes in a specific order.

C

Cadence
A musical term referring to a chord sequence that brings an end to a musical phrase.

Canon
A musical form where a melody or phrase is imitated by individual instruments or voice parts at various intervals of the song. The melody or phrase may be repeated backward, inverted, or even at various tempos.

Cantabile
Singable; song-like.

Capo
Head; the beginning.

Chord
Three or four notes played simultaneously in specific harmony.

Chord Progression
A series of chords played in succession.

Chorus’s
A group of singers; The main hook of a song that is repeated many times.

Chromatic Scale
A musical scale that includes all the notes within an octave, including sharps and flats. Total of 12 distinct notes within a chromatic scale.

Clef
A symbol at the beginning of the staff that decides the pitch of the notes on the staff. Most common clefs are the treble and bass clefs.

Crescendo
A musical term for dynamics direction; gradually getting louder.

Coda
Tail; closing section appended to a movement or song.

Coloratura
Coloration, ornamentation of a vocal line or phrase. Can also refer to a Soprano voice suited for such coloration or ornamentation.

Common Time
The time signature of 4/4; four beats per measure, each beat a quarter note (a crotchet) in length. 4/4 is often written on the musical staff as ‘C’.

Compound Time
Metrical time such that three beats are counted as one; each beat is divisible by three.

Contralto
Lowest female classical singing voice part.

Countertenor
Highest male classical singing voice part.

Crotchet
Quarter-note; one beat in duration.

D

D.S.
Dal Segno, often abbreviated as D.S., instructs a musician to repeat a passage starting from the sign.

Da Capo
To repeat from the beginning of the piece and ending on the final chord of the song.

Dal Segno
Repeat from the Dal Segno (D.S.) sign.

Dal Segno al Coda
Repeat from the D.S. sign and continue until directed to move to the Coda, a separate ending section.

Dal Segno al Fine
Repeat from the D.S. sign and end at the last bar of the song (Fine).

Decrescendo
Gradually getting softer (Same as Diminuendo).

Demi-semiquaver
One out of 32 parts of a Whole Note; 1/16th of a beat in duration.

Diminuendo
Gradually getting softer (Same as Decrescendo).

Dolce
Sweetly

Dominant
The fifth note of a musical scale.

Dynamics
Loudness or softness of a song. Also refers to the musical terms or symbols defining volume in a song.

Duet
Piece of music written for two vocalists or instrumentalists, involving parts to be sung or performed in harmony.

E

Eighth
An interval of a distance of eight notes. Also known as an Octave.

Encore
Additional song(s) or item(s) performed due to audience request, as indicated by resounding applause or noise, after the last song of a concert or performance. Can also refer to performing the relevant passage of a composition once more.

Enharmonic
Two notes that differ in name but refer to the same pitch. For example, C sharp and D flat.

Expressivo
To play or sing expressively.

Forte
Loud

Fortepiano
Loud then immediately soft.

Fortissimo
Very loud.

Fourth
An interval of a distance of four notes.

F

Falsetto
A weaker and more airy voice, usually in the higher pitch ranges.

Fermata
Finished, Closed; Usually referred to as a Pause. A rest or note is to be held for a duration that is at the discretion of the performer or conductor.

Fifth
An interval of a distance of five notes.

Fine
End of the song.

Flat
To diminish the respective note by one semitone.

Form
A musical term referring to the structure.

G

Glissando
Sliding quickly between two notes.

Grave
Serious and slow.

H

Harmony
Two or three tones played together that create a pleasant sound or musical effect, often to back up the melody or solo singer. Can also refer to the study of chord progressions.

I

Interlude
Instrumental music played between scenes in an opera or play. Can also refer to the music break in a song when the singer does not sing.

Interval
Distance in pitch between two notes.

Inversion
A chord that is not played with the root note at the bottom, but with the other notes of the chord taking the bass position.

K

Key
A system of tones and pitches based on the respective keynote.

Key Signature
The sharps and flats indicated at the beginning of a song, referring to the key of the song or piece of music.

L

Largo
Broadly, slowly.

Leading Tone
7th note of a musical scale.

Legato
To be sung or played smoothly.

Lento
Slowly

M

Major
One of two modes of the tonal system. Music that is written using the major key has a positive or happy character.

Measure
Period of a musical piece that indicates a complete cycle of the time signature; for example, in 4/4 time, a measure has four crotchet beats.

Mediant
The third note of a musical scale.

Medley
A musical term referring to sections of various songs that are performed one after another forming one complete song on its own.

Mezzo
Medium, Half.

Mezzo Forte
Moderately Loud.

Mezzo Piano
Moderately Soft.

Mezzo Soprano
The second highest female classical singing voice part, just below the Soprano voice.

Minim
Half-note; two beats in duration.

Minor
One of two modes of the tonal system. Music that is written using the major key has a negative or sad character.

Modulation
To transition to another key.

N

Natural
To return the note to its original pitch after it has been augmented or diminished by a sharp(s) or flat(s).

O

Octave
A musical term referring to two notes that are eight full tones apart, indicating the start and end of a scale.

Opera
Performance of a drama where words are sung to instrumental music and not spoken.

P

Passaggio
The parts of a singing voice where register transitions occur.

Pause
To suspend or stop momentarily.

Pedal
To engage the piano or keyboard pedal and cause the respective notes or chords to sound for a longer duration.

Pentatonic Scale
A musical term referring to a musical scale consisting of only five basic tones. Often used in Asian music.

Pianissimo
Very soft.

Piano
Softly, gently.

Pre-Chorus
The section of a song between the verse and the chorus

Presto
Very fast tempo.

Q

Quadruple Time
Measure consisting of four beats or pulses, with accents on the 1st and 3rd beats.

Quartet
A group of four musicians performing a piece of music consisting of four parts.

Quaver
One-eighth of a Whole Note; ½ a beat in duration.

Quintet
A group of five musicians performing a piece of music consisting of five parts.

R

Rallentando
Broadening of the tempo, becoming progressively slower. Similar to Ritardando.

Register
A section of the range of an instrument or a voice.

Repeat
To play a certain section again.

Rest
To stop playing or singing for the specific note duration.

Rit.
Abbreviation for Ritardando. Sometimes used for Ritenuto although less frequently.

Ritardando
The musical term for tempo direction; slowing down, decelerating.

Ritenuto
Held back, slower. Usually more so and also more temporarily than a ritardando. Ritenuto may apply to a single note, unlike ritardando.

Root
Principal note of a triad.

Root Position
Position of a triad and its notes where the root note is in the bass.

S

Scale
A musical term referring to successive notes of a key or mode that is either ascending or descending in a specific defined pattern.

Second
An interval of a distance of two notes.

Segno
Sign, usually used in Dal Segno (D.S.).

Semitone
Half of a tone; the basic pitch unit of the classical music system.

Semiquaver
One-sixteenth of a Whole Note; 1/8 of a beat in duration.

Seventh
An interval of a distance of seven notes.

Sharp
To raise the pitch of the specific note by one semitone.

Simple Time
Rhythm characterized by two or three beats or pulses to a measure.

Sixth
An interval of a distance of six notes.

Slur
A curve over certain note(s) indicating that the respective note(s) are to be played or sung smoothly.

Solo
To perform or sing alone.

Soprano
The highest female classical singing voice.

Staccato
To sing or play in a short or detached manner.

Staff
Five horizontal parallel lines on or between which musical notes are written, indicating their pitch or key.

Stave
Also means Staff.

Subdominant
4th note of a musical scale.

Submediant
6th note of a musical scale.

Supertonic
2nd note of a musical scale.

Sustain
To sing or play a specific note for a specified duration.

T

Tempo
Speed of a piece of music or a song.

Tenor
The 2nd highest male classical singing voice part.

Tessitura
The most comfortable singing range of a singer.

Third
An interval of a distance of three notes.

Tie
A musical term referring to a curved line over 2 notes that indicates that the note is to be held for the duration specified.

Timbre
Tone color and quality of sound that distinguishes an instrument or singer from another

Time Signature
The symbol at the start of a song or music score, indicating the number of beats to a measure or bar

Tonality
Sum of relations existing between the tones of a scale or musical system. Can also refer to the quality of tones.

Tone
Intonation, pitch, and modulation of a piece of music or song affecting the mood, expression, or feel.

Tonic
The first note of a musical scale, also called the keynote.

Treble
Highest part in harmonized music. Or, the highest pitch or range.

Treble Clef
A sign that indicates the G above middle C, placed on the second line of the staff; Also known as the G clef.

Triple Time
Time signature with three beats to the measure.

Triplet
Three notes played in the same amount of time as one or two beats.

Tune
A succession of musical notes, the melody for instruments or voices.

U

Unison
Various singers or instruments singing or playing the same note(s) together.

V

Verse
Section of a song usually at the start, leading to the chorus or pre-chorus.

Vibrato
Rapidly repeated slight pitch variation during a sustained note, to give a richer and more varied sound.

Vivace
Brisk, lively, and spirited.

Voce
Voice

Voice
One of two or more parts in polyphonic music. Voice refers to instrument parts as well as singing voice parts.

W

Whole Note
A whole note is equivalent to four beats or two half notes.

Whole Tone Scale
A musical term referring to a musical scale that consists of only whole-tone notes. This scale only has six basic notes.