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118 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
A capella
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choral music without instrumental accompaniment
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accidental
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a sharp, flat, or natural symbol before a note;
indicates a pitch from outside the specific scale |
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adagio
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slow tempo
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aerophone
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an instrument that creates sound by the vibration of a column of air
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allegro
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fast tempo
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alto
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a female woice with a range lower than soprano, or a high male voice
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andante
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moderate, walking tempo
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ballet
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musical form written to cincide with a story to be danced
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bar
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vertical line through the staff; marks a metrical division of music
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baritone
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a male voice with a range between a tenor and bass
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bar line
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a vertical line on the staff that separates one measure from the next
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bass
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a male voice with the lowest range
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bass clef
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a symbol that indicate that the 4th line from the bottom of a staff represents the pitch of F below middle C; also called an F clef
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beat
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the underlying pulse in music
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binary form
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the form of a piece that has 2 sections, AB
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bridge
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1) a linking passage
2) the part of a string instrument over which the strings pass |
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cadence
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a progression of notes or chords that gives the effect of closing a passage of music
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chanson
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French word for "song", used in reference to French polyphonic songs in midieval times and during Renaissance
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chorale
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a traditional German hymn
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chord
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a combination of 3 or more pitches played at once
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chordophone
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an instrument that produces sound via the vibration of a stretched string that is bowed, plucked, or struck
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chromatic scale
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a scale based on an octave of 12 semitones
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clef
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a symbol that designates the pitch range to be dispayed on the staff
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coda
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a passage at the end of a movement or composition that brings it to a formal close
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concerto
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a work that featured effects of contrast; now a work in which a solo instrument is contrasted with a larger ensemble or orchestra
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consonance
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refers to a combination of sounds that is smooth and harmonious
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continuo
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a bass accompaniment; numerals written underneath the notes indicate the kind of harmony to be played
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crescendo
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gradually increasing in loudness
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decrescendo
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gradually decreasing in loudness
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diatonic scale
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a scale using only the eight tones of a standard major or minor scale without chromatic deviations
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dissonance
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refers to combinations of sounds that are rough and inharmonious
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dominant
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the 5th step or degree of a scale
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downbeat
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the accented beat at the beginning of a measure
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dynamics
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the gradations of loudness in music
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electrophone
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an instrument that produces sound by electronic means
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equal temperament tuning
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based on a scale whose "steps" or degrees have equal intervals between them
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form
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the structure or organization of a piece of music
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forte
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loud
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fortissimo
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very loud
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frequency
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number of vibrations per second that create a sound; determines its pitch
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fugue
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composition or technique in which a melodic theme is subjected to melodic imitation
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galliard
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lively court dance in triple meter; popular in 16th and early 17th centuries; paired with the pavane
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Gregorian chant
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also called a plainsong; liturgical chants to Latin text used since the Middle Ages
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Harmonics
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overtones produced by a fundamental tone; sounds heard together when a sound is produced by a vibrating string or air column
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harmony
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the combo of more than one musical pitch at a time and the subsequent relationships between intervals and chords
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hertz
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unit of measure of frequency
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heterophony
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a texture in which several different versions of the same melody are played simultaneously
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homophony
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a texture with one melody and varied supporting accompaniment; parts generally move together
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homorythmic
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a texture in which the melody and the supporting parts perform similar rhythms
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idiophone
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an instrument that produces sound by being struck, plucked, rubbed, or bowed
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interval
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the distance between two pitches
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key
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the tonality and major or minor scale of a piece of music
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key signature
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group of flats of sharps placed on the staff at the beginnin of a piece; indicates tonality
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largo
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very slow
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leading tone
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7th degree of a scale; a semitone below the tonic, gives music a sense of leading back to the tonic
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leitmotif
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theme or musical idea that represents a character or concept in a dramatic work
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libretto
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the text of an opera or oratorio
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madrigal
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secular Renaissance composition of poetic text for several unaccompanied vocal parts
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major scale
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a scale in which the distance from the first to the third note is four semitones
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measure
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a metrical division of music; marked by bar lines
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melisma
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a succession of notes sung on one syllable
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melody
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a sequence of musical pitches with a recognizable shape or tune
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membranophone
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an instrument that produces sound when its stretched membrane is struck or rubbed
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meter
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the grouping of beats to a regular pulse
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mezzo forte
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medium loud
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mezzo piano
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medium soft/quiet
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mezzo-soprano
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a female voice with a range midway between soprano and alto
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minor scale
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a scale in which the distance between the first and third notes is 3 semitones
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monophony
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a texture with only one melody and no supporting accompaniment
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motet
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polyphonic choral work; from 13th to the 18th centuries; used by Roman Catholic Church
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movement
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a self-contained section of a larger musical work
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octave
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the interval between two notes of the same name
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opera
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sung drama that is set to music and has costumes and scenery and usually a secular theme
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opus
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Latin word for"work" that is used with a number to sequence and identify the work of a composer
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oratorio
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sung drama that is performed chorally with no costuming or scenery and has a religious theme
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organum
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a type of medieval polyphony with one or more voices added to a plainsong
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pavane
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slow court dance in duple meter popular in the 16th and early 17th centuries; paired with a galliard
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pianissimo
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very quiet/soft
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piano
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quiet/soft
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pitch
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the highness or lowness of a sound
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polymeter
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the simultaneous use of more than one meter
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polyphony
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a texture in which two or more melodic lines are combined
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polyrhythm
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the use of simultaneous contrasting rhythms
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presto
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very fast
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program music
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instrumental music that is narrative or descriptive of a nonmusical idea; eg. a painting
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reed
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flexible strip of cane into a the mouthpiece of certain instruments; or an instrument, such as an oboe, that is fitted with a reed
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resonance
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the amplification or prolongation of a musical tone produced by sympathetic vibration
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rest
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indicates a period of silence
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rhythm
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the organization of sounds and silences through time
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ritornello
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a recurring section in a piece of music
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rounded binary
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an extension of the binary form wherein the 1st section is repeated at the end
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rondo
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form that has a repeating 'A' section, which alterates with two or more contrasting sections
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scale
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a set of conjunct pitches withing an octave used for musical composition
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score
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the written form of a musical composition for several performers
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sonata
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a piece in several movements for a small ensemble, soloist with accompaniment, or solo keyboard
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soprano
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the highest female voice
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staff
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a set of five horizontal lines on and between which music is notated
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strophic
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refers to songs in which each stanza or verse is played/sung to the same music
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symphonic poem
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an orchestral piece based on a nonmusical idea
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symphony
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an extended orchestral work, usually in several movements
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syncopation
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the stressing of beats that are normally unstressed
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tempo
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the speed of a musical piece
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ternary form
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comprised of 3 sections, with the third being a repitition of the 1st (ABA)
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texture
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the manner in which linear musical parts are blended
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theme and variation
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one melodic idea is repeated with variations that may be rhythmic, melodic, harmonic
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through-composed
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each stanza or verse is set to different music so that there is no repeating section
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timbre
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the characteristic of instrumental and vocal sounds that make them distinguishable to the ear; tone color
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time signature
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the figures of the staff at the beginning of a piece that indicate its meter
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tonality
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the feeling of pull toward a particular tone, which is determined by the key of the music
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tonic
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the main note of a major or minor key
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treble clef
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a symbol that indicates that the 2nd line from the bottom of the staff represents the pitch of G above middle C; also a G clef
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triad
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a basic chord combining a beginning note and the 3rd and 5th notes above it
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12-bar blues
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a form of African American popular music
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verse-chorus
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a 2 part form with text changing in the verse section and repeated in the chorus section
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vivace
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quick, lively tempo
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word-painting
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a technique whereby the written text of a song is illustrated musically
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wind instruments
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also called aerophones; create sound via vibration of a column of air inside the instrument
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woodwinds
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flute, clarinet, saxophone
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