Mus202

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the notes of a melody held for longer, usually double, than their normal duration

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augmentation

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the most fully developed procedure of imitative counterpoint, in which a theme is stated successively in all voices of the polyphonic texture, tonally established, continuously expanded, opposed and reestablished; also a work employing this procedure

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fugue

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consists of an entry of the subject or answer, in each voice in turn, until the specified number of voices is achieved

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exposition

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a short melody or theme with well-defined characteristics, establishing the tonic key and ending with a melodic cadence; the initial statement is unaccompanied

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subject

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the subject transposed up a 5th or down a 4th into the dominant key area

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answer

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a modulating passage usually built out of a motive or motives from the subject or countersubject, and frequently written in sequence; it does not contain an entry of the subject or answer

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episode

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in a fugue, the imitative treatment of the subject at a different interval of time than is employed in the initial exposition

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stretto

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gradual slowing down of tempo

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ritardando

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a short musical pattern that is persistently repeated

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ostinato

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a continuous, sustained tone on one or more fixed pitches, usually sounding below the melody

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drone

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stereotyped motives or patterns (“figures”) that are ornamental in character

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figuration

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becoming softer

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diminuendo

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a rapid reiteration of a single note or chord

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tremolo

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(It. “all”) a passage for the full orchestra or full performing force

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tutti

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the character of a sound, as distinct from its pitch; the quality of sound that distinguishes one instrument from another

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timbre

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a chord whose pitches are sounded successively rather than simultaneously

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arpeggio

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a standard instrumental ensemble for chamber music consisting of a first and second violin, a viola and a cello; also the genre of music, usually in three or four movements, composed for this ensemble

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string quartet

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the combination of two or more melodic lines; the linear consideration of melodic lines sounding together; the technical principles governing such consideration

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counterpoint

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a type of counterpoint in which the voices or lines frequently use imitation

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imitative counterpoint

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the most fully developed procedure of imitative counterpoint, in which a theme is stated successively in all voices of the polyphonic texture, tonally established, continuously expanded, opposed and reestablished

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fugue

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consists of an entry of the subject or answer, in each voice in turn, until the specified number of voices is achieved

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fugal exposition

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a short melody or theme with well-defined characteristics, establishing the tonic key and ending with a melodic cadence; the initial statement is unaccompanied

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subject

Front 23

the subject transposed up a 5th or down a 4th into the dominant key area

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answer

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the counterpoint that accompanies the first entry of the answer and is used regularly with the subject or answer throughout the fugue

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countersubject

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a repetition of a musical motive at successively higher or lower degrees of the scale

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sequence

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the process of inverting the musical intervals in a theme or melody; a melody that ascended by step, now descends by step, and so on

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inversion

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an instrumental genre in which a soloist plays with and against a larger orchestra

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concerto

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the performer plucks the strings of the instrument with their fingers rather than using the bow

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pizzicato

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a showy passage for the soloist appearing at the end of the movement in a concerto; it usually incorporates rapid runs, arpeggios, and snippets of previously heard themes into a fantasy-like improvisation

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cadenza

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elaborate ornamentation or embellishment, including running passages and trills, common in 18th- and 19th-century singing

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coloratura

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lyrical, songlike portions where the emotions of characters are examined; arias are written in a set form and accompanied by the full orchestra

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aria

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the text of an opera

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libretto

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a type of musical style midway between speech and song which imitates the rhythms and inflections of speech (ordinary or impassioned) and seeks the regions of the voice used in various states of emotion

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recitative

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all of the lines of melody are exactly the same but begin and end at different times

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canon or round

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music consisting of a single line or melody without an accompaniment that is regarded as part of the work itself

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monophony

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the general pattern of sound created by the elements of a piece of music; the way in which different musical sounds are combined

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texture

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music in which melodic interest is concentrated in one voice or part that is provided with a subordinate accompaniment

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homophony

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all parts move together, forming a succession of chords

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chordal homophony

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solo voice with chordal accompaniment

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song texture

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music that simultaneously combines several lines, each of which retains its identity as a line to some degree

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polyphony

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this term also denotes a combination of two or more melodic lines but it refers more to the technical principles governing the linear consideration of melodic lines sounding together (i.e., the rules for writing polyphony)

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counterpoint

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when a symbol is placed on a staff it indicates a certain pitch; in speech or writing, notes of music are referred to by the names of the first seven letters of the alphabet

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note

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the relative position (high or low) of a musical sound, depending on its frequency (rate of vibration); the faster the vibrations, the higher the pitch

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pitch

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a sound with a definite, consistent pitch

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tone

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a group of five equidistant horizontal lines on which notes are placed in such a way as to indicate pitch; successive notes written on lines and spaces from lowest to highest represent rising pitch

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staff

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an interval formed by two statements of the same pitch

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unison

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the distance between any two pitches

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interval

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two pitches with the same pitch names (eight notes apart) and the higher of whose frequencies is twice the lower

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octave

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a collection of pitches arranged in an ascending or descending group; the overall sound of this collection is the result of the pattern of half steps (the smallest interval in use in the Western music tradition) and whole steps (twice the size of a half step) that make up the scale

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scale

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a unit of music

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phrase

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a melodic or harmonic configuration that creates a sense of repose or resolution

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cadence

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the relationship of tones as they sound simultaneously

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harmony

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three or more pitches sounded simultaneously

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chord

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the most important note in the a hierarchy of notes present within every chord

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root

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an interval (two notes) that sounds pleasing and stable together

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consonance

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an interval that sounds unpleasing and unstable

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dissonance

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the speed at which music is performed

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tempo

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the pattern in which a steady succession of rhythmic pulses is organized

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metre

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the regular pulse of the music

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beat

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the pattern of movement in time; the controlled movement of music in time

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rhythm