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Music Theory Terms: A Comprehensive Glossary, Quizzes of History of Music

Definitions for various terms related to music theory, including tone, pitch, scales, tonalities, timbre, harmony, consonance, dissonance, chords, articulation, dynamics, duration, rhythm, meter, tempo, melody, contour, motion, texture, monophony, heterophony, polyphony, fugue, countermelody, homophony, form, repetition, contrast, and variation.

Typology: Quizzes

2010/2011

Uploaded on 09/08/2011

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TERM 1
Tone
DEFINITION 1
Note, Single sound
TERM 2
Pitch
DEFINITION 2
Highness or lowness of the note (flat<lowered> vs. sharp
<raised>)
TERM 3
Octaves
DEFINITION 3
Same notes, different pitches
TERM 4
scales
DEFINITION 4
collection of sequence of notes played low to high, major and
minor
TERM 5
tonalities
DEFINITION 5
describe a tonal collection that a given piece of music is
based on/form backbone of piece of music (major, minor,
pentatonic)
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Tone

Note, Single sound

TERM 2

Pitch

DEFINITION 2

Highness or lowness of the note (flat vs. sharp

)

TERM 3

Octaves

DEFINITION 3

Same notes, different pitches

TERM 4

scales

DEFINITION 4

collection of sequence of notes played low to high, major and

minor

TERM 5

tonalities

DEFINITION 5

describe a tonal collection that a given piece of music is

based on/form backbone of piece of music (major, minor,

pentatonic)

keys

specific notes that a given scale or tonality is based (e major,

g minor)

TERM 7

timbre

DEFINITION 7

particular quality of a note, tone color (bright/dark,

clear/gravely)

TERM 8

Scoring (Instrumentation)

DEFINITION 8

instruments and/or voices involved and which parts

TERM 9

chordophones

DEFINITION 9

guitar, violin

TERM 10

aerophones

DEFINITION 10

flute, clarinet

chord

combination of 3 - 4 notes

TERM 17

articulation

DEFINITION 17

way one approaches a note, staccato = short, legato = long

TERM 18

dynamics

DEFINITION 18

intensity at which the note is played

TERM 19

fortissimo

DEFINITION 19

very loud

TERM 20

forte

DEFINITION 20

loud

mezzo forte

medium loud

TERM 22

mezzo piano

DEFINITION 22

medium soft

TERM 23

piano

DEFINITION 23

soft

TERM 24

pianissimo

DEFINITION 24

very soft

TERM 25

duration

DEFINITION 25

amount of time a note sounds (whole, half, quarter, eights,

and sixteenths

tempo

speed of music

TERM 32

presto

DEFINITION 32

very fast

TERM 33

allegro

DEFINITION 33

fast

TERM 34

moderato

DEFINITION 34

medium speed

TERM 35

adagio

DEFINITION 35

slow

largo

very slow

TERM 37

melody

DEFINITION 37

consecutive ordering of rhythmed pitches that draws

attention to itself, conjuct + disjunct

TERM 38

contour

DEFINITION 38

pitches that rise and fall

TERM 39

motion

DEFINITION 39

change from one pitch to another

TERM 40

texture

DEFINITION 40

describes weaving together of various melodic and harmonic

lines in music

homophony

dominant melody supported by various harmonies

TERM 47

form

DEFINITION 47

music's large scale construction

TERM 48

reptition

DEFINITION 48

"phrase" repeated at least once

TERM 49

contrast

DEFINITION 49

contrasting new material with phrases

TERM 50

variation

DEFINITION 50

alternation of phrases/melodies within a piece

phrases

smallest building blocks

TERM 52

sections

DEFINITION 52

multiple phrases pieced together in cohesive way

TERM 53

strophic

DEFINITION 53

AAAA

TERM 54

verse - chorus

DEFINITION 54

Verse 1 Chorus Verse 2 Bridge Chorus Chorus, ABACBB

TERM 55

binary

DEFINITION 55

two contrasting sections, AB, AABB, ABAB