Tercek Dictionary 13 Texture

Front 1

Alberti Bass

Back 1

A stereotypical accompaniment pattern commonly played on a keyboard instrument with the left hand. Chords of the alberti bass are played as arpeggios, or broken chords.

Front 2

Canon

Back 2

Strict counterpoint in which each voice exactly imitates the previous voice at a fixed distance.

Front 3

Canonic

Back 3

Music that employs the counterpoint style found in a canon, music that uses imitation.

Front 4

Chordal Accompaniment
(Accompaniment)

Back 4

The additional but subordinate music used to support a melodic line.

Front 5

Contrapuntal

Back 5

Any music that contains two or more voices heard simultaneously.

Front 6

Counterpoint

Back 6

The art of combining two or more melodies to be performed simultaneously and musically. In counterpoint, the melody is supported by another melody rather than chords.

Front 7

Imitation

Back 7

The repetition in a second voice of a part of a theme, motif, or phrase presented by a first voice or part.

Front 8

Imitative Polyphony

Back 8

Polyphony where each voice imitates the previously sounded voice.

Front 9

Non-Imitative Polyphony

Back 9

Polyphony (two or more independent melodic lines) that doesn't use imitation between voices.

Front 10

Countermelody

Back 10

A second but subordinate melodic line sometimes found in music which has a melody and an accompaniment.

Front 11

Fugal Imitation

Back 11

Imitation that occurs in a fugue, which is a form of composition popular in, but not restricted to, the Baroque era in which a theme or a subject is introduced by one voice and is imitated by other voices in succession.

Front 12

Heterophony
(Heterophonic)

Back 12

The practice of two or more musicians simultaneously performing slightly different versions of the same melody.

Front 13

Homophony
(Homophonic)

Back 13

A style of composition in which there is one melody and all the voices and accompaniments move harmonically together.

Front 14

Chordal Homophony

Back 14

In chordal homophony, there is distinct melody with chordal accompanying harmony that all move in the same rhythmic pattern.

Front 15

Chordal Texture
(Homorhythmic)

Back 15

See Chordal Homophony.

Front 16

Melody with Accompaniment

Back 16

In a piece of music where there is more than one voice, or where harmony is present, the melody is the dominant tune of the composition.

Front 17

Instrumentation

Back 17

The art of arranging a composition for performance by an instrumental ensemble where the composer makes all the decisions pertaining to instrument assignments within the score.

Front 18

Brass

Back 18

The family of wind instruments which are made of brass or silver tubes (either cylindrica bore or conical bore) that flares into a bell at the end, have cupped mouth pieces similar to that of a trumpet, and usually have valves and slides.

Front 19

Continuo

Back 19

A bass part that is continuous.

Front 20

Percussion

Back 20

Instruments that are sounded by striking, shaking, plucking, or scraping. All instruments, such as bells, fall into this category.

Front 21

Rhythm Section

Back 21

The performers of the percussion instruments of an ensemble. Generally this term is applied to jazz ensembles.

Front 22

Strings

Back 22

Any musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings.

Front 23

Melody

Back 23

Rhythm and pitches so arranged to achieve musical shape.

Front 24

Monophony
(monophonic)

Back 24

Music that is written for only one voice or part is said to be monophonic.

Front 25

Obbligato

Back 25

An accompanying, yet very important part of the music that should not be omitted, such as a countermelody.

Front 26

Ostinato

Back 26

A short melodic, rhythmic, or harmonic pattern that is repeated throughout an entire composition or some part of it.

Front 27

Polyphony
(polyphonic)

Back 27

A style of composition that has many voices, each with its own melody, thus creating a texture of sound. (Two or more independent lines)

Front 28

Register

Back 28

A division of the range of an instrument or singing voice. Defined by a change in the quality of the sound between a lower range and an upper range.

Front 29

Soli, Soli

Back 29

A single performer or a passage that is to be performed by a single performer or section.

Front 30

Tessitura

Back 30

The general range of a composition (usually vocal) or of a particular voice of a composition.

Front 31

Tutti

Back 31

A directive to perform a certain passage of a composition with all the instruments together.

Front 32

Walking Bass

Back 32

Term used in Baroque music for a bass line that moves steadily in a rhythm contrasting to the upper parts.