Music Lit

Front 1

Sound

Back 1

Begins with the vibration of an object, such as a table that is pounded or a table that is plucked.

Front 2

PITCH

Back 2

The relative highness or lowness that we hear in a sound.

Front 3

Tone

Back 3

A sound that has a definite pitch.

Front 4

Interval

Back 4

The distance in pitch between any two tones

Front 5

Octave

Back 5

Interval between 2 tones in which the higher tone has twice the frequency as the lower tone.

Front 6

Pitch Range or Range

Back 6

The distance between the lowest and highest tones that a voice or an instrument can produce.

Front 7

Dynamics

Back 7

degrees of loudness or softness in music

Front 8

decrescendo

Back 8

gradually softer

Front 9

crescendo

Back 9

gradually louder

Front 10

Tone Color (Timbre)

Back 10

The quality that distinguishes instrument tones from each other; described by words like bright, dark, brilliant, mellow, and rich

Front 11

Voice

Back 11

the range depends on both physical makeup and training; an untrained ____ is usually limited to about 1/2 octaves.

Front 12

Western instruments are usually classified in 6 broad categories. What are they?

Back 12

String, Woodwind, Percussion, Brass, Keyboard, and Electronic

Front 13

String Instruments

Back 13

guitar or violin

Front 14

Woodwind instruments

Back 14

flute or clarinet

Front 15

Percussion Instruments

Back 15

bass drum or cymbals

Front 16

Keyboard Instruments

Back 16

organ or piano

Front 17

Electronic Instruments

Back 17

synthesizer

Front 18

Brass Instruments

Back 18

trumpet or trombone

Front 19

Register

Back 19

the part of an instruments total range in which its played.

Front 20

Conductor

Back 20

the person who coordinate the performers and shapes the interpretation of a musical position

Front 21

Baton

Back 21

a thin stick conductors hold in one hand to beat time and indicate pulse and tempo

Front 22

Concertmaster

Back 22

the principal first violinist in an orchestra; this person plays solo violin passages and coordinates the bowing of string instruments

Front 23

What forms the symphony orchestras string section?

Back 23

the violin, viola, double bass, and cello
- these all vary in tone color and size and range

Front 24

Violin

Back 24

smallest of the string instruments and has the highest range

Front 25

Double Bass (Bass)

Back 25

largest string instrument and has the lowest range

Front 26

Bow

Back 26

A slightly curved stick strung tightly with horsehair

Front 27

Pizzicato

Back 27

plucked string; the musician plucks the string, usually with a finger of the right hand.in Jazz, the double bass is typically played mainly as a plucked instrument, instead of using a bow.

Front 28

Double Stop

Back 28

Two notes at once; by drawing the bow against 2 strings, a string player can sound two notes at once.

Front 29

Vibrato

Back 29

The string player can produce a throbbing, expressive tone by rocking the left hand while pressing the string down. This causes small pitch fluctuations, which make the tone warmer.

Front 30

Tremolo

Back 30

The musician rapidly repeats tones by quick up-and-down strokes of the bow. This can create a sense of tension, when loud; or a shimmering sound, when soft.

Front 31

Harmonics

Back 31

Very high-pitched tones, like a whistle's, are produced when the musician lightly touches certain points on a string.

Front 32

Plectrum

Back 32

a small wedge used to pluck some instruments, without choosing to use a bow.
- usually used with a harp or guitar

Front 33

Harp

Back 33

the only plucked string instrument that has gained wide acceptance in the symphony orchestra

Front 34

Flute Family?

Back 34

Piccolo and Flute

Front 35

Clarinet Family?

Back 35

Clarinet and Bass Clarinet

Front 36

Oboe Family?

Back 36

Oboe and English Horn

Front 37

Bassoon Family?

Back 37

Basson and Contrabassoon

Front 38

Reed

Back 38

A thin piece of cane that is set vibrating by a stream of air. Majority of the wind instruments use this.

Front 39

Single-Reed Woodwinds

Back 39

Such as the clarinet and bass clarinet, this is fastened over a hole in the mouthpiece and vibrates when the player blows into the instrument.

Front 40

Saxophones

Back 40

Instruments that are used mainly in jazz and music for band

Front 41

Double-Reed Woodwinds

Back 41

Two pieces of cane are held between the players lips with these instruments.
EX. oboe, english horn, bassoon, and contrabassoon

Front 42

Mute

Back 42

Used by brass players to alter the tone color of their instruments by inserting this into the bell; these come in different shapes and are made of wood, plastic, or metal. The musician can veil or muffle the tone by fitting a clamp onto the bridge.

Front 43

What do percussion instruments of DEFINITE PITCH do?

Back 43

They produce tones
EX. timpani, glockenspiel, xylophone, celesta, chimes

Front 44

What do percussion instruments of INDEFINITE PITCH do?

Back 44

They produce noise-like sounds.
EX. snare drum, bass drum, tambourine, triangle, cymbals, gong.

Front 45

the Piano

Back 45

this instrument was invented around 1700. It produces sound through vibrating strings held under tension by an iron frame

Front 46

the Harpsichord

Back 46

important from about 1500 to 1775; has strings plucked by small wedges called plectra, controlled by one or two keyboards.

Front 47

the Pipe Organ

Back 47

most prominent from 1600 to 1750; it has a very wide range of tone color, pitch, and dynamics.

Front 48

Theme

Back 48

a melody used as the basis for a musical composition

Front 49

Beat

Back 49

a regular, recurrent pulsation that divides music into equal units of time

Front 50

Meter

Back 50

the organization of beats into regular groups; there are several types of these and they're based on the number of beats in a measure

Front 51

Measure

Back 51

A group containing a fixed number of beats

Front 52

Downbeat

Back 52

the first, or stressed, beat of the measure

Front 53

Duple Meter

Back 53

when a measure has 2 beats
Ex: Mary had a little lamb

Front 54

Quadruple Meter

Back 54

when a measure has 4 beats

Front 55

Variations

Back 55

Varied repetitions of the theme; provides both unity and variety, in keeping some elements of musical thought while changing others

Front 56

Rhythm

Back 56

The flow of music through time

Front 57

Meter Signature (or Time Signature)

Back 57

Shows the meter of a piece. It appears at the beginning of the staff at the start of a piece and consists of 2 numbers, one on top of the other.

Front 58

Triple Meter

Back 58

when a measure has 3 beats; Ex: America (Sweet Land of Liberty song)

Front 59

Upbeat

Back 59

an unaccented pulse preceding the downbeat

Front 60

Sextuple Meter

Back 60

has 6 rather quick beats to the measure; here, the downbeat is the strongest but the 4th beat is also stressed
Ex: Oh Give Me a Home Where the Buffalo Roam

Front 61

Quintuple Meter

Back 61

5 beats to the measure; here, the measure is divided into 2- and 3- beat groups ONE-2-3/ FOUR-5 or ONE-2/3-4-5

Front 62

Septuple Meter

Back 62

7 beats to the measure; just like with a quintuple meter, the measure is divided into 2- and 3- beat groups

Front 63

Syncopation

Back 63

the effect of when an accented note comes where we normally would not expect it; it occurs when an "off-beat" note is accented (when the stress comes BETWEEN the beats)

Front 64

Accent

Back 64

One way of emphasizing a note by playing it more loudly then the notes around it.

Front 65

Tempo

Back 65

the speed of the beat; the basic pace of the music

Front 66

Tempo Indication

Back 66

Usually given at the beginning of a piece.

Front 67

Accelerando

Back 67

Becoming faster

Front 68

Ritardando

Back 68

Becoming slower

Front 69

Largo

Back 69

very slow, broad

Front 70

Grave

Back 70

very slow, solemn

Front 71

Adagio

Back 71

slow

Front 72

Andante

Back 72

moderately slow, a walking pace

Front 73

Moderato

Back 73

moderate

Front 74

Allegretto

Back 74

moderately fast

Front 75

Allegro

Back 75

fast

Front 76

Vivace

Back 76

lively

Front 77

Presto

Back 77

very fast

Front 78

Prestissimo

Back 78

as fast a possible

Front 79

Notation

Back 79

A system of writing music so that specific pitches and rhythms can be communicated.

Front 80

Note

Back 80

an oval; its duration is indicated by whether it is black or white or has a stem and flags

Front 81

Staff

Back 81

A set of 5 horizontal lines.

Front 82

Ledger Lines

Back 82

Short, horizontal lines used to indicate if a pitch falls above or below the range, indicated by the staff

Front 83

Sharp Sign

Back 83

♯

Front 84

Flat Sign

Back 84

♭

Front 85

Natural Sign

Back 85

♮

Front 86

Clef

Back 86

Placed at the beginning of the staff to show the pitch of each line and space.

Front 87

Treble Clef

Back 87

Used for relatively high ranges such as those played by a pianists right hand

Front 88

Bass Clef

Back 88

Used for relatively low ranges, such as those played by a pianists left hand

Front 89

Grand Staff

Back 89

A combination of the treble and bass staves

Front 90

Middle C

Back 90

The C nearest to the middle of the keyboard

Front 91

Beam

Back 91

Horizontal lines connecting the flags of several 8th notes or 16th notes in succession, to facilitate reading the notes.

Front 92

Dotted Note

Back 92

Used to lengthen the duration of a tone and add rhythmic variety; adding a dot to the right of a note increases its duration by half.

Front 93

Dotted Rhythm

Back 93

Long-short rhythmic pattern in which a dotted note is followed by a note that is much shorter. This strongly emphasizes the beat.

Front 94

Tie

Back 94

An arc between 2 notes of the same pitch, indicating that the 2nd note should not be played, but should be added to the duration of the 1st note. Looks like a half moon sliver

Front 95

Rest

Back 95

A symbol to indicate the duration of silence in music. They are pauses and their durations correspond to those of notes.

Front 96

Step

Back 96

Small intervals between 2 adjacent tones in the do-re-mi scale (from do to re, re to mi, etc.)

Front 97

Leap

Back 97

Larger intervals between 2 adjacent tones in the do-re-mi scale (from do-mi)

Front 98

Climax

Back 98

Emotional focal point; often the highest tone of a melody

Front 99

Legato

Back 99

A smooth, connected manner of performing a melody.

Front 100

Staccato

Back 100

A short, detached manner of performing a melody.

Front 101

Sequence

Back 101

A repetition of a melodic pattern at a higher or lower pitch.

Front 102

Phrases

Back 102

Part of a melody

Front 103

Harmony

Back 103

Refers to the way chords are constructed and how they follow each other.

Front 104

Chord

Back 104

A combination of 3 or more tones sounded at once.

Front 105

Progression

Back 105

A series of chords.

Front 106

Consonance

Back 106

A stable tone combination.

Front 107

Dissonance

Back 107

An unstable tone combination.

Front 108

Resolution

Back 108

Progression from a dissonance to a consonance.

Front 109

Triad

Back 109

The simplest, most basic chord consisting of 3 alternate tones of the scale, such as do re mi.

Front 110

Tonic Chord

Back 110

A triad built on the 1st note of the scale (do); it is the main chord of a piece, the most stable and conclusive, and traditionally would begin and end a composition.

Front 111

Dominant Chord

Back 111

A triad built on the 5th note of the scale (sol); it is pulled strongly toward the tonic chord and it sets up tension that is resolved by the tonic.

Front 112

Cadence

Back 112

The progression from the dominant chord to the tonic chord; often used at the end of a phrase, melody, or an entire piece. It may be partial, setting up expectations, or it may give a sense of finality.

Front 113

Broken Chord

Back 113

When the individual tones of a chord are sounded one after another; also called arpeggio. The Star-Spangled Banner begins with this

Front 114

Keynote

Back 114

The central tone; can be any of the 12 tones of the octave

Front 115

Key

Back 115

Involves not only the central tone but also a central chord and scale.

Front 116

Scale

Back 116

Made up of the basic pitches of a piece of music, arranged in order from low to high or high to low.

Front 117

Tonality

Back 117

Another term for key

Front 118

Major Scale

Back 118

The familiar do-re-mi scale; it has 2 kinds of intervals in a specific pattern: the half step and the whole step

Front 119

the Half Step

Back 119

The smallest interval traditionally used in western music

Front 120

the Whole Step

Back 120

Twice as large as the half step

Front 121

Minor Scale

Back 121

Consists of 7 different tones and an 8th tone that duplicates the 1st an octave higher; but it differs from the ______ in its pattern of intervals, or whole and half steps. Here there is only a half step between the 2nd and third tones.

Front 122

Major Key

Back 122

When a piece of music is based on a major scale.

Front 123

Minor Key

Back 123

When a piece of music is based on a minor scale.

Front 124

Key Signature

Back 124

Consists of flat and sharp signs following the clef at the beginning of the staff; used to indicate the key of a piece

Front 125

Chromatic Scale

Back 125

The scale including all 12 tones of the octave; each tone is a half-step away from the next one.

Front 126

Modulation

Back 126

A shift from one key to another within the same piece.

Front 127

Home Key

Back 127

also called tonic key, its the central key of a piece of music, usually both beginning and ending the piece, regardless of how many other keys are included.

Front 128

Monophonic

Back 128

The texture of a single unaccompanied melodic line; means literally "one sound"

Front 129

Polyphonic

Back 129

the simultaneous performance of 2 or more melodic lines of relatively equal interest; means "many sounds"

Front 130

Counterpoint

Back 130

The technique of combining several melodic lines into a meaningful whole.

Front 131

Imitation

Back 131

Occurs when a melodic idea is presented by one voice or instrument and then restated immediately by another.

Front 132

Unison

Back 132

Performance of a single melodic line by more than one instrument or voice.

Front 133

Homophonic Texture

Back 133

When one main melody is accompanied by chords

Front 134

Form

Back 134

The organization of musical elements in time.

Front 135

Repetition

Back 135

creates a sense of unity

Front 136

Contrast

Back 136

provides variety

Front 137

Three-Part Form

Back 137

A form that can be represented as statement (A); contrast (B); return of statement (A).

Front 138

Two-Part Form

Back 138

A form that can be represented as statement (A) and counter statement (B).

Front 139

Style

Back 139

Refers to a characteristic way of treating the various musical elements: melody, rhythm, tome color, dynamics, harmony, texture, and form.