Home | Vocal Music | Piano Music | Music Theory | General Music | About
Kaii Lee had combined several piano/keyboard method books and her life long music learning books to create this sequential music theory study for this website. This page is about all kinds of the Musical Terms. As a separate language, Western music has certain rules that from all composers to all performers that everyone agrees to follow for the sake of musical communication. This page will cover a lot of the musical terms, but may not cover all the musical terms. From time to time, a new sign may be added in the future. The Musical Terms are divided into the following categories: Articulation, Dynamics, Tempo Marks. By clicking on the other colored links at the bottom of this page, the other music theory topics can be found easily.
For more information, please contact Kaii directly: info@kafm.net
Musical Terms | Articulation | Dynamics | Tempo Marks | Repeat Signs | Compositional Techniques | Musical Forms
There are many Musical Signs in a music score. Some markings are simply words to describe how the music should be performed. When that happens, Musical Terms would be explained, if necessary. After all, music is a language of its own, even though, many of these markings are written in Italian.
Name |
Meaning |
Name |
Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appoggiatura | An appoggiatura is a musical ornament that consists of an added non-chord note in a melody that is resolved to the regular note of the chord | Opus | a separate composition or set of compositions by a particular composer, usually ordered by date of publication |
| Arpeggio | A production of the tones of a chord in succession and not simultaneously | Ostinato | A continually repeated musical phrase or rhythm |
| Atonality | Absence of, or disregard for, an established musical key in a composition | Parallel Major & Minor | Major keys and minor keys share the same Tonic note, such C Major and C Minor |
| Bitonality | The simultaneous occurrence of two tonalities in a composition | Più | More |
| Cantabile | Singing like | Più Mosso | More driven |
| Coda | Added ending | Poco | Little |
| Codetta | A brief conclusion, a dominant–tonic cadence at the end of the exposition that may be repeated several times for emphasis | Polytonality | Simultaneous use of two or more musical keys |
| Con | With | Relative Major & Minor | Major keys and Minor keys share the same Key Signature, such G Major and E Minor |
| Con Brio | With vigor, with brilliance | Robusto | Robust, sturdy |
| Con Fuoco | With fire | Scherzando | In sportive manner, playfully |
| Con Moto | With motion | Sempre | Always, throughout |
| Double Flat | Low the pitch by two half steps | Senza | Without |
| Double Sharp | Raise the pitch by two half steps | Smorzando | Dampening, decreasing |
| Dynamics | Variations in loudness and softness between notes or phrases in volume | Spiritoso |
Witty, funny |
| Enharmonic | Notes that are the same in pitch but have different names, such as F sharp and G flat | Sostenuto | A sustained or prolonged manner |
| Fine | The End | Sotto Voce | Under tone, less sound |
| Giocoso | Playful with humor | Syncopation | A temporary displacement of the regular metrical accent in music caused typically by stressing the weak beat |
| Gracioso | Gracefully | Tie | A curved line between two notes with the same pitch that joins their time values together so that they are sounded as if they were one note |
| Mano Destra | m.d., Right hand | Toccata | A keyboard music in a free style and characterized by full chords, rapid runs, and high harmonies |
| Mano Sinistra | m.s., Left hand | Tranquillo | Peaceful |
| Meno | Less | Tre Corde | t.c., Release the left or soft pedal of a piano |
| Meno Mosso | Less motion, slower | Trill | A musical ornament that the written note is alternated with the note one step above to prolong the sound |
| Molto | Very much | Turn | A musical ornament that the written note is surrounded by its upper and lower neighboring steps |
| Mordent | Musical ornament | Una Corda | Press down the left or soft pedal of a piano |
| Octave Signs | Indicate that a note/section/phrase or part of the music is to be played 8 pitches higher (8va) or lower (8vb) than as written |
The musical expressions can be marked as Articulation terms. Here are some examples.
Name |
Meaning |
Name |
Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Animato | Animated | Leggiero | Lightly, delicately |
| Articulation | A musical parameter that determines how a single note or other discrete event is sounded | Marcato | Marked, stressed |
| Damper Pedal Mark | A musical sign that indicates the sustain pedal (right) on a piano that when depressed it raises the dampers and permits the strings to vibrate and sustain the tones | Pesante | Heavily |
| Dolce | Sweetly | Phrase | A unit of musical meter that has a complete musical sense of its own, built from figures, motifs, and cells, and combining to form melodies, periods and larger sections |
| Doloroso | Painful, sadly | Simile | Similar |
| Espressivo | Expressively | Slur | A curved line that conveys playing a sequence of two or more notes without taking any pause in between them, or playing smoothly and connected |
| Fermata | Pause and hold | Staccato | Detached and separated |
| Legato | Connected, linked, smooth | Tenuto | To hold or sustain a note for its full length |
When it comes to Dynamics Terms, they go hand-in-hand with the Dynamic Signs. However, some Dynamics Terms have no specific Musical Signs. They are listed below.
Types of Dynamic Signs |
|---|
 |
Tempo Marks are Music Terms that indicate the speed of any song. Within one musical phrase, the speed of the music could be changed or modified slightly by the composer. In that case, it is not necessary to have a new Tempo Mark, but maybe use one of the following marks. However, with the complete changes within a piece of music, there could be more than one tempo marks in one song.
Name |
Meaning |
Name |
Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| A tempo | It translates to “in time” and means assuming the original speed |
Ritardando | rit., Delaying and gradually slowing down |
| Accelerando | accel., accelerating | Ritenuto | riten., slowing down immediately |
| Allargando | allarg., expanding and widening | Rubato | Free from time signature/meter by rushing or slowing the tempo, "stolen or robbed time" |
| Rallentando | rall., slowing down and spreading out | Vivo | Brisk, fast, lively |
Types of Tempo Marks (BPM = Beats per minute) |
||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Repeat Signs are used to save composers time of writing and save paper. Many musical forms require portions of music to be repeated. There are several ways to address that in the way the music is marked clearly as where the repeats are.
Types of Repeat Signs |
|
|---|---|
 |
1. The Repeat Signs have a right and a left side. If only a right side is present, the whole phrase /piece must be repeated again. 2. The Sign (dal segno) 3. First and Second Endings 4. Back to the "Top" then to "The End" 5. The Top (da capo) 6. Back to the "Sign" then to "The End" |
How to follow the Repeat Sign and the Endings |
|---|
 |
How to follow the Dal Segno Sign to Coda (Added Ending) |
|---|
 |
More Repeat Signs |
|
|---|---|
 |
To save time, and maybe ink, composers wrote one thick slash to represent a repeated beat. The music must be identical in rhythm and tonality. To repeat an identical measure or measures, the sign of {a dot-a thick slash-a dot} within a measure means to repeat the whole measure. For a two-measure pattern to be repeated, a sign of {a dot-two thick slashes-a dot} between two measures and on a bar line means to repeat two measures as indicated. |
There are many Compositional Techniques. Composers may choose to use any of, but not limited to, the following techniques to create a song. It is best to combine several of these techniques to create a master piece.
Name |
Meaning (with samples below) |
|---|---|
| Augmentation | To extend a musical idea by adding more note value to the motif, such as JS Bach's "Vom Himmel Hoch Variations" |
| Canon | One of the two or more parts will be the leading part while the other part(s) will enter the music a little later and complete the whole musical idea just like the leading part, such as JS Bach's Invention No. 2 |
| Diminution | A musical idea is shortened in rhythm, but still keep its melodic and harmonic integrity, such as JS Bach's "Art of Fugue" No.6 |
| Imitation | An Imitation appears after the main idea, but starting with a different pitch, such as |
| Motif | A fragment of a music phrase or a complete idea of music structure, such as the very first four notes of Beethoven's Symphony No.5 |
| Pedal Point | While a chord progression continues to move with the direction of the song, a long bass note will hold the music in a specific chord, mostly, the Dominant chord, prior to any cadence would complete the section of the music, such as Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata |
| Repetition | To repeat a music idea identically and consecutively, such as Chopin's Fantaisie-Impromptu, Op. 66 |
| Sequence | Two or more of the same music idea, but each following one is one step higher or lower than the original, such as Hanon's Exercises |
| Theme | A bigger idea than a Motif, usually a stand-alone idea that would be making a statement for the music, such as JS Bach's "Aria" in the Goldberg Variations |
Here are the music samples of the above mentioned Compositional Techniques.
Augmentation - JS Bach's Vom Himmel Hoch canonic variations, Var.5 |
|---|
 |
Canon - Johann Sebastien Bach's Invention No. 2, in C Minor |
|---|
 |
Diminution - JS Bach's "Art of Fugue", Fugue No.6 |
|---|
 |
Imitation - Johann Sebastien Bach's Sinfonia No.15, in B Minor |
|---|
 |
Motif - Beethoven's Symphony No.5, in C minor, First Movement, Motif |
|---|
 |
Pedal Point - Ludwig Van Beethoven's "Moonlight" Sonata, Op.27, No.2 in C-Sharp Minor |
|---|
 |
Repetition - Frederic Chopin, Fantaisie Impromptu, Op.66, in C-Sharp Minor |
|---|
 |
Sequence - Hanon: The Virtuoso Pianist No.1 |
|---|
 |
Theme - Johann Sebastien Bach's "Goldberg Variations" Theme, BWV 988 |
|---|
 |
There are many Musical Forms. Every song is written with a structure. The form of a song is only a part of a song, but a big part. The Music Forms are listed below.
| Type of Music Forms can be found by clicking on these links |
|---|
| Binary Form |
| Ternary Form |
| Dance Suites |
| Prelude & Fugue |
| Sonata Form |
| Rondo Form |
| Theme & Variations |
| Serialism |
The next topic in this Music Theory site is all about "Homophonic Style." Thank you for reading!
Music Theory that every musician could use and should know The Basics
Math in Music
More Math and Signs
Music Forms
Time Signatures Intervals Modulations Homophonic Style Polyphonic Style Diatonic & Chromatic Steps Transposition Contrapuntal Techniques Key Signatures Triads & Inversions Binary Form Primary Triads Augmented Sixth Chords Ternary Form Secondary Triads Traditional Compositional Tools Dance Suites Scales Seventh Chords Contemporary Compositional Tools Prelude & Fugue Secondary Dominant Musical Signs Sonata Form Cadences Rondo Form Modes Chord Progressions Musical Terms Theme & Variations Figured Bass & Basso Continuo Serialism For more information, please contact Ms. Lee at: info@kafm.net
Home | Vocal Music | Piano Music | Music Theory | General Music | About
All rights reserved
Copyright © 2024 Kaii & Friends Music.net