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Music Theory Terms: A Comprehensive Glossary, Quizzes of History of Music

Definitions for various terms related to music theory, including tone, pitch, scales, tonalities, timbre, harmony, consonance, dissonance, chords, articulation, dynamics, duration, rhythm, meter, tempo, melody, contour, motion, texture, monophony, heterophony, polyphony, fugue, countermelody, homophony, form, repetition, contrast, and variation.

Typology: Quizzes

2010/2011

Uploaded on 09/08/2011

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Tone

Note, Single sound

TERM 2

Pitch

DEFINITION 2

Highness or lowness of the note (flat vs. sharp

)

TERM 3

Octaves

DEFINITION 3

Same notes, different pitches

TERM 4

scales

DEFINITION 4

collection of sequence of notes played low to high, major and

minor

TERM 5

tonalities

DEFINITION 5

describe a tonal collection that a given piece of music is

based on/form backbone of piece of music (major, minor,

pentatonic)

keys

specific notes that a given scale or tonality is based (e major,

g minor)

TERM 7

timbre

DEFINITION 7

particular quality of a note, tone color (bright/dark,

clear/gravely)

TERM 8

Scoring (Instrumentation)

DEFINITION 8

instruments and/or voices involved and which parts

TERM 9

chordophones

DEFINITION 9

guitar, violin

TERM 10

aerophones

DEFINITION 10

flute, clarinet

membranaphone

drum

TERM 12

idiophone

DEFINITION 12

xylophone

TERM 13

harmony

DEFINITION 13

multiple tones played simultaneously

TERM 14

consonance

DEFINITION 14

pleasant

TERM 15

dissonance

DEFINITION 15

grating

chord

combination of 3 - 4 notes

TERM 17

articulation

DEFINITION 17

way one approaches a note, staccato = short, legato = long

TERM 18

dynamics

DEFINITION 18

intensity at which the note is played

TERM 19

fortissimo

DEFINITION 19

very loud

TERM 20

forte

DEFINITION 20

loud

mezzo forte

medium loud

TERM 22

mezzo piano

DEFINITION 22

medium soft

TERM 23

piano

DEFINITION 23

soft

TERM 24

pianissimo

DEFINITION 24

very soft

TERM 25

duration

DEFINITION 25

amount of time a note sounds (whole, half, quarter, eights,

and sixteenths

rhythm

combinations of varying durations of sound and silence,

produces one of a piece's most memorable features

TERM 27

beat

DEFINITION 27

regular pulsating of notes in music

TERM 28

meter

DEFINITION 28

pulsating beats grouped together into larger units of time

TERM 29

duple

DEFINITION 29

groups of two to four beats

TERM 30

triple

DEFINITION 30

groups of beats in three

tempo

speed of music

TERM 32

presto

DEFINITION 32

very fast

TERM 33

allegro

DEFINITION 33

fast

TERM 34

moderato

DEFINITION 34

medium speed

TERM 35

adagio

DEFINITION 35

slow

largo

very slow

TERM 37

melody

DEFINITION 37

consecutive ordering of rhythmed pitches that draws

attention to itself, conjuct + disjunct

TERM 38

contour

DEFINITION 38

pitches that rise and fall

TERM 39

motion

DEFINITION 39

change from one pitch to another

TERM 40

texture

DEFINITION 40

describes weaving together of various melodic and harmonic

lines in music

monophone

one sound, ex. chant

TERM 42

heterophony

DEFINITION 42

M embellished, gospel choir

TERM 43

polyphony

DEFINITION 43

multiple melodies, ex. orchestra

TERM 44

fugue

DEFINITION 44

same melody is played against self

TERM 45

countermelody

DEFINITION 45

dominant meoldy draws most of attention

homophony

dominant melody supported by various harmonies

TERM 47

form

DEFINITION 47

music's large scale construction

TERM 48

reptition

DEFINITION 48

"phrase" repeated at least once

TERM 49

contrast

DEFINITION 49

contrasting new material with phrases

TERM 50

variation

DEFINITION 50

alternation of phrases/melodies within a piece

phrases

smallest building blocks

TERM 52

sections

DEFINITION 52

multiple phrases pieced together in cohesive way

TERM 53

strophic

DEFINITION 53

AAAA

TERM 54

verse - chorus

DEFINITION 54

Verse 1 Chorus Verse 2 Bridge Chorus Chorus, ABACBB

TERM 55

binary

DEFINITION 55

two contrasting sections, AB, AABB, ABAB

ternary

can be reduced to three large scale sections, ABA, ABB

TERM 57

Compound

DEFINITION 57

Long, A(aba) B(cdc) A(aba)

TERM 58

Theme and Variation

DEFINITION 58

states theme, followed by variations of theme

TERM 59

Rondo

DEFINITION 59

Central theme returns throughout the piece, ABACABA

TERM 60

Sonata

DEFINITION 60

Compound ternary of ABA