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Music vocab
music vocabulary liberal studies
56
Music
Undergraduate 2
09/08/2014

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Term
PITCH
Definition
how high or low a note is
Term
Interval
Definition
The difference between two pitches
Term
Rhythm
Definition
a strong, regular, repeated pattern of movement or sound
Term
Meter
Definition
A recurring pattern of stresses or accents that provide the pulse or beat of music.
Term
Tempo
Definition
The speed of the rhythm of a composition
Term
Syncopation
Definition
Deliberate upsetting of the meter or pulse of a composition by means of a temporary shifting of the accent to a weak beat or an off-beat
Term
Frequency
Definition
The number of vibrations per second of a musical pitch, usually measured in Hertz (Hz).
Term
Dynamics
Definition
The loudness or softness of a composition.
Term
Amplitude
Definition
The amplitude determines how loud a sound will be. Greater amplitude means the sound will be louder
Term
Tone color
Definition
The particular sound of an instrument or voice, as well as the performer's particular coloring of that sound. For example, the tone produced by a certain clarinetist could be said to be rich, dark, and mellow; this is the result of the natural sound of the instrument, combined with the performer's particular technique of playing.
Term
Orchestra
Definition
A group of musicians who perform on a variety of instruments.
Term
Melody
Definition
A tune; a succession of tones comprised of mode, rhythm, and pitches so arranged as to achieve musical shape
Term
Tonality
Definition
the color scheme or range of tones used in a picture. (major or minor scale)
Term
Scale
Definition
A series of notes in ascending or descending order that presents the pitches of a key
Term
Diatonic Scale
Definition
In music theory, a diatonic scale (or heptatonia prima) is an eight-note musical scale composed of seven pitches and a repeated octave.
Term
Chromatic scale
Definition
The chromatic scale is a musical scale with twelve pitches, each a semitone above or below another.
Term
Theme
Definition
The musical basis upon which a composition is built.
Term
motive
Definition
The motive is a rhythmic-melodic pattern that is used to build a phrase.
Term
Cadence
Definition
a sequence of notes or chords comprising the close of a musical phrase.
Term
Consonance
Definition
An accord of sounds sweet and pleasing to the ear as opposed to dissonance.
Term
Dissonance
Definition
Two or more notes sounded together which are discordant. SOUNDS HORRIBLE
Term
texture
Definition
In music, texture is the way the melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic materials are combined in a composition
Term
monophony
Definition
Music that is written for only one voice
Term
Polyphony
Definition
Musical piece sung with multiple voices. Each voice may move independently
Term
Homophony
Definition
A style of composition in which there is one melody, and all the voices and accompaniments move rhythmically together.
Term
Form
Definition
The structure of a composition, the frame upon which it is constructed. Form is based upon repetition, contrast, and variation.
Term
Modulation
Definition
The process of changing from one key to another.
Term
Genre
Definition
Style or manner of a musical composition.
Term
Middle ages
Definition
The music from a period of about 600 C.E. until about 1450 C.E. Sometimes the period is divided into two periods, the early middle ages (600-1100 C.E.) and the late middle ages or Gothic Period (1100-1450 C.E.).
Term
Plainchant
Definition
Plainchant, also called plainsong, is a form of medieval church music that involves chanting;Plainchant doesn't use any instrumental accompaniment, instead, it uses words that are sung. It was the only type of music allowed in Christian churches early on. In Christian tradition, it was believed that music should make a listener receptive to spiritual thoughts and reflections. This was why the melody was kept pure and unaccompanied.
Term
Sequence
Definition
A style of chant used in the Medieval Church. It was usually syllabic, and the text, which was in Latin, was wide-ranging and extensive. 2. A progression of chords which ends in a cadence.
Term
Divine Office
Definition
A series of eight services of the Roman Catholic Church performed throughout the day. The divine offices consisted of Psalms, hymns, lessons, responsories, and prayers.
Term
Pope Gregory I
Definition
Pope Gregory I, commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great, was Pope from 3 September 590 to his death in 604.
Term
Drone
Definition
An underlying bass note that is sustained throughout a music piece.
Term
Troubadour
Definition
One of a school of poets and musicians popular in southern France, Provence, and northern Italy between the 11th and late 13th centuries.
Term
strophic (form)
Definition
Song structure in which every verse (strophe) of the text is sung to the same musical tune.
Term
organum
Definition
Term referring to the earliest kind of polyphonic music. Organum developed from the practice of adding voices above a plain chant (cantus firmus); these added voices at first ran parallel to the plainchant at an interval of a fourth or fifth
Term
Notre Dame Oraganum
Definition
Term referring to the earliest kind of polyphonic music. Organum developed from the practice of adding voices above a plain chant
Term
Paraphrase
Definition
A paraphrase mass is a musical setting of the Ordinary of the Mass that uses as its basis an elaborated version of a cantus firmus, typically chosen from plainsong or some other sacred source.
Term
Syllabic
Definition
The style of chant which sets one note to each syllable of text
Term
Melismatic
Definition
Melisma, plural melismata, in music, is the singing of a single syllable of text while moving between several different notes in succession.
Term
Motet
Definition
A polyphonic vocal style of composition.
Term
Ars Nova
Definition
French musical style of the 14th century. The term is generally used to distinguish the music from the time period of c.1316 to the death of composer Guillaume de Machaut (1377) from the earlier musical style of the Ars antiqua. During the ars nova period, musical themes were transformed increasingly from religious to secular.
Term
Ars Antigua
Definition
Term used by 14th century composers to distinguish the French sacred polyphonic musical style of the 13th century (c. 1260 - 1320) from that of the ars nova (new art)
Term
Renaissance
Definition
That era of music covering the 15th through 16th centuries
Term
Mass
Definition
the central service of the Roman Catholic Church. In the middle ages, the Mass was chanted and was one of the chief sources of music of that period that survive to the present.
Term
Imitation
Definition
The repetition in a second voice or part of a theme, motif, or phrase presented by a first voice or part.
Term
Instrumentation
Definition
What it is that we are hearing. (Acapella, vocal, instrumental)
Term
Acapella
Definition
Voices only
Term
vocal
Definition
This term is used to refer to the voice as an instrumen. or a piece that is sung
Term
Declamation
Definition
A method of setting text or words to music where rhythms and pitches are used to enhance the meaning or sound of specific syllables of the text.
Term
Word Painting
Definition
Musical depiction of words in text. Using the device of word painting, the music tries to imitate the emotion, action, or natural sounds as described in the text.
Term
Madrigal
Definition
A vocal music form that flourished in the Renaissance, originating in Italy. The madrigal is generally written for four to six voices that may or may not be accompanied.
Term
Pavane
Definition
A Renaissance dance that took its name from the pavano, or peacock. The pavan is a slow, stately court dance in duple meter, popular throughout Europe; frequently the pavan was used as the first dance in a set of dances.
Term
Galliard
Definition
A lively Renaissance dance in triple meter usually following and complementing the pavane.
Term
JIG
Definition
A lively dance of the British Isles originating in the 15th century or earlier
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