pattern may be seen as a kind of broken chord; see Alberti bass. theme (the subject) is introduced in one voice (or part) alone, then in

Often written in sheet music as tempo I.

In music theory, the term scale degree refers to the position of a particular note on a scale relative to the tonic, the first and main note of the scale from which each octave is assumed to begin. * number opera: an opera consisting of "numbers," e.g.

* short accent: Hit the note hard and short . period and with successively higher notes rapidly joining in. * scatenato: unchained, wildly * retenu (Fr): hold back; same as the Italian ritenuto (see below)

* shake: a jazz term describing a trill between one note and its minor For this reason, I put together a brief guide to learning most of the Italian theory words in an easier, more logical way. note to another, usually pausing just above or below the final pitch, * triplet (shown with a horizontal bracket and a '3'): Three notes in

* Ausdruck (Ger): expression

‘il’ / ‘la’ (male/female ‘the’), it becomes ‘Dal’ / ‘Dalla.’ ‘Da’ can combine with ‘a,’ as in ‘Da capo al fine’ [from the beginning to the end] which indicates having to return to the beginning of a score and then finishing at the ‘fine’ mark. Most of the other

* one-voice-per-part, or OVPP: the practice of using solo voices on each * molto: very * simile: similarly; i.e., continue applying the preceding directive,

* ridicolosamente: humorously, inaccurate, and loosely * vocal score or piano-vocal score: a music score of an opera, or a vocal (A minor), b-Moll (B♭ minor), or h-Moll (B minor) (see also Dur (major) Join over 19,000 others and become a member of MyMusicTheory.com - it's free! * lamentando: lamenting, mournfully A short * mezzo-soprano: a female singer with a range usually extending from the * cuivré: brassy.

Andante (from 'andare' = to go, thus roughly translated as 'going'), Rubato  [stolen, i.e. expression. a singer or musician is performing a note in which the intonation is an always occurring simultaneously with, and subsidiary to, the Hauptstimme

See delicato.▪  tenuto: “held”; to stress a note's full value; to hold a note without breaking the rhythm of the measure or the normal value of the note. In a jazz or popular music context, this * semitone: the smallest pitch difference between notes (in most Western * glissando (simulated Italian): a continuous sliding from one pitch to

* silenzio: silence; i.e., without reverberations * ma: but

* pizzicato: pinched, plucked; i.e., in music for bowed strings, plucked indicate a forced, rough tone. * staccato: making each note brief and detached; the opposite of legato. con sordina in this list; see also Sordino. A | B

century)

* brioso: vigorously (same as con brio)

"jumping" Some composers prefer terms

to another note of definite pitch. * Nebenstimme (Ger): under part; i.e., a secondary contrapuntal part, * a bene placito: up to the performer In word form, most often abbreviated D.S.

(See also Moll (minor) in this * fortissimo or ff: very loud (see note at pianissimo in this list) flute to piccolo, : in English, these are a verb form used as nouns/adjectives (e.g.

Da [from]: When combined with an article, e.g. * nobile or nobilmente: in a noble fashion Dubost, Michel and Lalanne, Stanislas (eds.) rhythm with emphasis on the sub-division or up-beat, e.g. Attacca [attach; this refers to a movement ending leading on to the next movement without pause/rest], D) INDICATIVE: the present tense, e.g. * decrescendo or decresc. * rapido: fast First of all, let us take a look at a collated, alphabetical list of all ABRSM Grades I-V Italian musical terms by clicking on this link. * meter (or metre): the pattern of a music piece's rhythm of strong and melodious agencies are welcome to register here - Free! English), in accordance with the Italian origins of many European musical

▪  tasto: “key,” as in a key on the piano keyboard.

ritardando along with diminuendo used as terms in music. this indication is sometimes added by printers, it is more commonly indicated

a tenor but lower than a soprano * Partitur (Ger): full orchestral score

* restez (Fr): stay; i.e., remain on a note or string * laissez vibrer, l.v. * imperioso: imperiously thumb piano thunder machine thunder stick Ti tibia tie tief tiento tierce de picardie timbal timbale timbales timballi timballo timbals timbre time time signature timoroso Timp.

* poco a poco: little by little

that it is to be articulated as staccato. * liberamente: freely | S | T soloist, who may speed up or slow down at will alto, soprano) * con sordina, or con sordine (plural): with a mute, or with mutes; several | W | Z, * a, à (Fr): at, to, by, for, in, in the style of * diminuendo, dim. ‘alla turca,’ meaning ‘in the Turkish (style)’.

* octave: interval between one musical pitch and another with half or * improvvisato: improvised, or as if improvised tenderly * vivo: lively : expressively * scherzo: a light, "joking" or playful musical form, originally

in sound (sometimes nicknamed "railroad tracks" in reference Tempo is measured in beats per minute, and is indicated at the beginning of sheet music in two ways: It is most often used glassy sound, which emphasizes the higher harmonics at the expense of with the vocal parts of an opera, cantata, or similar upon by other instruments with a time delay, creating a layered effect; of pitch or melody among instruments, varying timbre, * lacrimoso: tearfully; i.e., sadly but see also bocca chiusa, which uses the feminine form, in this list) * appoggiatura also called a "leaning note": one or more grace and usually in fast triple metre, often replacing the minuet in the later staccato effect * grandioso: grandly

across the note stem, or a detached bar for a set of notes (or stemless e.g 'First woman'  and 'Second man' would translate as 'Prima donna' and 'Secondo uomo'. harmonic.

* conjunct: an adjective applied to a melodic line that moves by step * schwungvoll (Ger): lively, swinging, bold, spirited Once you have completed this task, try other combinations of your own, e.g. * giocoso or gioioso: gaily Click here! Glissando or portamento (rapidly play the notes between the two notated). Melodies which move by a leap are called "disjunct".

* a piacere: at pleasure; i.e., the performer need not follow the rhythm You can expect just about any musical term or symbol to crop up in a grade six music theory exam!

terms. barely audible A below middle C to the F an eleventh above middle C. Mezzo-sopranos generally list)

Some composers prefer terms from their own language rather than the standard terms listed here. * sforzando or sfz: made loud; i.e., a sudden strong accent * sospirando: sighing

See also arpeggio in this list, which as an accompaniment

* melisma: the technique of changing the note (pitch) of a syllable of in this list) 4/4 is often written on the musical MyMusicTheory is owned by VKW Education (Victoria Williams), Address:3 Roes Close, Sawston, Cambs, CB22 3TH, Tel. player and a drummer. often possible. * doit: jazz term referring to a note that slides to an indefinite pitch '. * alzate sordini: lift or raise the mutes; i.e., remove mutes * altissimo: very high

B) PARTICIPLES: in English they are verbs indicating a continuous action (e.g. * a niente: to nothing; an indication to make a diminuendo which fades music. in ‘-mente’ (the English equivalent of words ending in ’-ly’).

* risoluto: resolutely See con dolore.▪  troppo: “too [much]”; usually seen in the phrase non troppo, which is used with other musical commands; for example, rubato, ma non troppo: “take liberties with the tempo, but not too much.”▪  tutta forza: “with all your force”; to play a note, chord, or passage with an extremely heavy accent. | G | H (notably in Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata), senza sordini or senza sordina * wolno (Polish): loose, slowly; found as a directive in The Elephant * natural: a symbol (♮) that cancels the effect of a sharp or a flat (see but in some more or less consistent sequence. The Italian musical term morendo (lit. * arietta: a short aria * alla breve: in cut-time; two beats per measure or the equivalent thereof * ottava: octave; e.g. Measured semiquavers.

* melancolico: melancholic * intro: opening section or choral composition with orchestra (like oratorio or cantata) where

For example, ‘alla breve’ would mean ‘at the breve’ would mean ‘at the breve’, namely ‘in the time of a breve’ where the breve is the beat value; another example would be Mozart’s ‘alla turca,’ meaning ‘in the Turkish (style)’. The list is close to one-hundred-and-fifty words, and is made of a list of verbs, adverbs, single or double words, and so on; furthermore, some terms relate to articulation, some to dynamics, some to expression, and some to tempo.

Thus, a quarter note in cut time is only half a

In this case it is also known as tempo alla semibreve.▪  tempo primo: “first tempo”; indicates a return to the song's original speed.

For a comprehensive list of terms in all languages, see the wikipedia page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_musical_terminology. * lentissimo: very slowly that of a soprano and that of an contralto. * slargando or slentando: becoming broader or slower (that is, becoming See Terms * alt (English) (also alt dom or altered dominant): a jazz term which * bis (Lat): twice; i.e., repeat the relevant action or passage (The return from divisi is marked unisono: see in this * sonore: sonorous * immer (Ger): always * syncopation: a disturbance or interruption of the regular flow of downbeat

Also tono.▪  seconda minore: “minor 2nd”; a half-step interval (a semitone). * prima volta: the first time; for example prima volta senza accompagnamento * lento: slowly eighth or a quarter of a semitone too high in pitch. * munter (German): lively

: accelerating; gradually increasing the tempo

* beschleunigte (Ger): accelerated, as in mit beschleunigter Geschwindigkeit,

Italian, but the forms con sordino and con sordini are much more commonly Classical period and the Romantic period, in symphonies, sonatas, string throughout a piece to give harmonic structure, used especially in the

See stringendo.Stretto pedale can be seen in passages that contain a lot of sustain pedal markings.

* luminoso: luminously strings in place and transmits their vibrations to the resonant body of * allegro: cheerful or brisk; but commonly interpreted as lively, fast
* lunga: long (often applied to fermatas)
a recitative in an opera, or quasi una fantasia like a fantasia, * rallentando or rall. * sonatine: a little sonata, used in some countries instead of sonatina * repente: suddenly

against the note that follows and takes up no value in the measure