Musical Terms with Definitions for Hall of Fame Artist
Allegrezza - Cheerfully, joyfully
Anacrusis - Italian word for a pick-up note
Atonality - Modern harmony that intentionally avoids a tonal center (has no apparent home key)
Bitonality - Modern music sounding in two different keys simultaneously
Con Sordino - With mute
Dal Segno al Fine - From the sign to the finish
Dolce - Sweet; con dolcezza: with sweetness
Elegy - In the form of a lament
Energico - Energetically
Fantasia - A piece not adhering to any strict musical form: can also be used in con fantasia: With imagination
Forza - Force; con forza: with force
Forzando - Forcefully accented
Grace Note - An extra note added as an embellishment and not essential to the harmony or melody
Grave - A very slow tempo (BPM/25-45)
Grazioso - Graceful
Hook - A musical idea, often a short riff, passage, or phrase, that is used in popular music to make a song appealing and to “catch the ear of the listener”
In Alt - Octave above the treble staff
Leggiero - Light or light-hearted
Magnifico - Magnificent
Martellato - Hammered out
Meno - Less
Meno Mosso - Less motion, slower
Pastorale - In a pastoral style, peaceful and simple
Patter Song - A song characterized by a moderately fast to very fast tempo with a rapid succession of rhythmic patterns in which each syllable of the text corresponds to one note. The lyric of a patter song generally features tongue-twisting text with alliterative words and other consonant, or vowel sounds that are intended to be entertaining to listen to a rapid speed. (Alliteration - repetition of identical initial consonant sounds in successive or closely associated syllables within a group of words. Example: “potential power play” or “Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.”)
Pausa - Rest
Pesante - Heavy, ponderous
Piu - More
Piu Mosso - More motion, faster
Prima or Primo - First
Rapido - Fast
Recapitulation - One of the sections of a movement written in sonata form. The recapitulation occurs after the movement's development section, and typically presents again the musical themes from the movement's exposition.
Riff - A repeated chord progression or refrain
Ritornello - A recurring passage
Segue - “It follows” / to be carried on to the next section without pause
Sextet - A musical composition for six singers or instrumental performers or a group of six performers
Sforzando - (sfp) Strong attack and then immediately soft
Sonatina - A little sonata
Sonoro - With full sound
Sotto Voce - In an undertone; quietly
Sordina - A mute or a muted tone
Spinto - Pushed
Spirito - Spirited
Syllabic - One syllable sung to each note
Stringendo - Gradually faster
Tessitura - The “best” or most comfortable pitch range, generally used to identify the most prominent/common vocal range within a piece of music
Troppo - Too much; usually seen as non troppo, meaning not too much
Vamp - Improvised accompaniment, usually a repeating pattern played before next musical passage
Veloce - Fast
Vittorioso - Victorious
Voce - Voice