Jazz Band
5th Period
Italian Musical Terms
Rest an interval of silence in a piece of music, marked by a symbol indicating the length of the
pause.
Rhythm a strong, regular, repeated pattern of movement or sound.
Rhythm Patterns a system of versification
Ritardando a gradual decrease in tempo
Rock a form of popular music that evolved from rock and roll and pop music during the mid
and late 1960s.
Rounda song which can be sung by two or more groups of people
Scale any set of musical notes ordered by fundamental frequency or pitch
Scientific Period a length of time in the 1900’s where music spread out into varying genres.
Second interval When a note is played that is a whole or half step up from an original note.
Semitone the smallest musical interval commonly used in Western tonal music.
Seventh Interval A note that is being played that is the farthest pitch from the original in the
twelve pitch system.
Sforzando when one plays a note with sudden, strong emphasis.
Sharp Sign "higher in pitch by a semitone (half step)," .
Sixteenth Note A note that lasts for a sixteenth of a measure.
Sixth Interval A note that is the sixth of the original.
Song A piece of music that is played.
Soprano the highest of the four standard singing voices
Staccatowith each sound or note sharply detached or separated from the others.
Staff a set of five horizontal lines and four spaces that each represent a different musical pitch
Stringed Instruments musical instruments that produce sound from vibrating strings
Synthesizer an electronic musical instrument, typically operated by a keyboard, producing a
wide variety of sounds by generating and combining signals of different frequencies.
Technique the ability of instrumental and vocal musicians to exert optimal control of their
instruments or vocal cords in order to produce the precise musical effects they desire.
Tempo the pace or speed at which a section of music is played.
Tempo Rubato expressive and rhythmic freedom by a slight speeding up and then slowing down
of the tempo of a piece.
Tenor a singing voice between baritone and alto or countertenor, the highest of the ordinary
adult male range.
Theme the trait of music that brings up emotions in people.
Theory of Music the study of the practices and possibilities of music.
Tiea curved line connecting the heads of two notes of the same pitch and name, indicating that
they are to be played as a single note with a duration equal to the sum of the individual notes'
values.
Timbre the character or quality of a musical sound or voice as distinct from it’s pitch and
intensity
Time Signature a notational convention used in western musical notation.
Time a written indicator that shows the number of beats per measure and the type of note that
carries the beat in a piece of music.
Tonality a musical system that arranges pitches or chords to induce a hierarchy of perceived
relations, stabilities, and attractions
Tone any sound considered with reference to its quality, pitch, strength, and source.
Tonguing the manipulation of the toungue in playing a wind instrument to interrupt the tone and
produce a staccato effect.
Treble Of or relating to the highest part in harmonized music; soprano
Trill to sing or play with a vibratory or quavering effect.
Trioa company of three singers or players.
Triple Meter a musical metre characterized by a primary division of 3 beats to the bar.
Triplet a group of three notes to be performed in the time of two ordinary notes of the same
kind.
UnisonThe performance of musical parts at the same pitch or at the octave.
Upbeat the upward stroke with which a conductor indicates such a
beat
.
Vibration a periodic motion of the particles of an elastic body or medium in alternately opposite
directions from the position of equilibrium when that equilibrium has been disturbed.
Voice Music intended to be performed by one or more singers,usually with instrumental
accompaniment
Volume A measure of the loudness or intensity of a sound.
Waltz dance music in triple meter, often written in 3:4 time.
Whole Note a note having the time value of two half notes or four quarter notes, represented by
a ring with no stem.
Wind Instrumenta musical instrument that contains a resonator in which a column of air is set
into vibration by someone blowing into a mouthpiece.
Woodwind musical instruments within the more general category of wind instruments.