Cadence - A chordal
or melodic progression which occurs at the close of a phrase, section,
or composition, giving a feeling of repose; a temporary or permanent
ending. The most frequently used cadences are perfect, plagal, and
deceptive.
Cadenza - a solo passage, often virtuosic,
usually near the end of a piece, either written by the composer or
improvised by the performer.
Caesura - A sudden silencing of the sound;
a pause or break, indicated by the following symbol: //
Calmo, calmato - Calm.
Cambia - A direction found in scores to
change tuning or instruments.
Camminando - Following easily and gently.
Canon - The strictest form of imitation, in
which two or more parts have the same melody but start at different
points.
Canonic - A term used to describe a
polyphonic style of music in which all the parts have the same melody
but which start at different times.
Cantabile - In singing style.
Cantata - Baroque
sacred or secular choral composition containing solos, duets, and
choruses, with orchestral or keyboard accompaniment.
Carol - The term was derived from a
medieval French word, carole, a circle dance. In England it was
first associated with pagan songs celegrating the winter solstice. It
then developed into a song of praise and celebration, usually for
Christmas.
C clef - A clef 
usually centered on the first line (soprano clef), third line (alto
clef), fourth line (tenor
clef), or third space (vocal tenor clef)
of the staff. Wherever it is centered, that line or space becomes
middle C.
Chance music - Aleatoric music.
Chorale - Hymn-like song, characterized by
blocked chords.
Chord - A combination
of three or more tones sounded simultaneously.
Chromatic -
Ascending or descending by half steps.
Chromatic scale - A scale composed of 12
half steps.
Circle of fifths - The succession of keys
or chords proceeding by fifths.
Classical - Music conforming to certain
form and structure. Usually music composed during the period 1770-1825.
Clef - A symbol placed at the beginning of
the staff to indicate the pitch of the notes on the staff. The
most commonly used clefs in choral music are the G, or treble, clef 
and the F or bass clef 
.
On the keyboard, all the notes above middle C are said to be in the G
clef; all the notes below middle C in the F clef.
Coda - Closing section
of a composition. An added ending.
Col, coll', colla - With or
"with the."
Common time - 4/4 meter.
Complete cadence -
I-IV-V-I progression.
Composer - A person who creates (composes)
music.
Con - With.
Con brio - With spirit; vigorously.
Con calore - With warmth.
Concert - A public performance of music.
Concert grand piano - The largest of the
grand pianos, usually about nine feet long.
Concertino - A short concerto. The group of
soloists in a concerto grosso.
Concert master - First chair violinist in
an orchestra.
Concerto - A piece for a soloist and
orchestra.
Concert pitch - The international tuning
pitch -- currently A 440 or 442. The pitch for non-transposing (C)
instruments.
Conducting - The directing of a group of
musicians.
Conductor - The person who directs a group
of musicians.
Con intensita - With intensity.
Conjunct - Pitches on successive degrees of
the scale; opposite of disjunct.
Con moto - With motion.
Consonance - Intervallic relationships
which produce sounds of repose. Frequently associated with octave,
third
and sixth intervals; however,
fourths and fifths may be sounds of
consonance, as in both early and 20th-century music.
Consort - A 17th-century term for
instrumental chamber ensembles and for the compositions written for
these ensembles.
Con spirito - With spirit.
Contra - The octave below normal.
Corda, corde - String.
Countermelody - A vocal part which
contrasts with the principal melody.
Counterpoint - The technique of combining
single melodic lines or parts of equal importance.
Crescendo - 
Gradually louder.
Cue - Indication by the conductor or a
spoke word or gesture for a performer to make an entry. Small notes that
indicate another performer's part. Music occurrence in a film.
Cut time - 2/2
meter.
Da capo, D. C. -
Return to the beginning.
Dal - "From the," "by
the."
Dal segno, D. S. - Repeat from the sign 
.
Frequently followed by al Fine.
Damper pedal - On pianos, the pedal that
lifts the dampers from the strings.
Deceptive cadence - Chordal
progression dominant (V) to a chord other than the expected
tonic.
Decrescendo - 
Gradually softer. Synonymous with diminuendo.
Degree - One of the eight consecutive
tones
in a major or minor scale.
Delicato - Delicately.
Di - Of, with.
Diminished - The term for an
interval which
has been decreased from the major by two half steps and from the
perfect
by one half step, e.g. c-a
, diminished
sixth, or
c-g
, a diminished fifth. Also used for a
triad
which has a minor third and a diminished fifth, e.g. c
,
c-e
, g
.
Diminuendo, dim - Gradually softer.
Synonymous with decrescendo.
Diminution - The shortening of note values;
the opposite of augmentation.
Dirge - A piece that is performed at a
funeral or memorial service.
Disjunct - The term used to describe
intervals larger than a second; the opposite of conjunct.
Dissonance - Sounds of unrest, e.g.
intervals of seconds and sevenths; the opposite of consonance.
Divisi, div - An indication of divided
musical parts.
Do - The first degree of the
major scale.
Dolce - Sweetly.
Dolcissimo - Very sweetly.
Doloroso - Sadly; mournfully.
Dominant - The fifth
degree of the major or
minor scale. Also, the term for the triad built on the
fifth degree,
labelled V in harmonic analysis.
Double bar - Two vertical lines placed on
the staff to indicate the end of a section or a composition. Also, used
with two dots to enclose repeated sections.
Double flat - 
A
symbol for lowering pitch one step.
Double sharp - 
A
symbol for raising pitch one step.
Double tonguing - On flute and brass
instruments, the technique of rapidly articulating notes by using the
front and the back of the tongue in alternation (t-k-t-k-t-k).
Down beat - The first beat; given by the
conductor with a downward stroke.
Down bow - In the violin family, drawing
the bow downward from its frog. The symbol is: 
.
Du - "From the," "of
the."
Duet - A piece for two performers.
Duplet - 
A group
of two notes performed in the time of three of the same kind.
Dynamics - Varying degrees of loud and
soft.
E - Italian word meaning "and."
Eighth - Octave.
Eighth note/rest - A note/rest half the
length of a quarter note and an eighth of the length of a whole note. 
Encore - To repeat a piece or play an
additional piece at the end of a performance.
Enharmonic - A term used to describe notes
of the same pitch which have different names, e.g. c
and d
, f
and g
.
Espressivo - Expressively.
Esuberante - Exuberant.
Fa - In solmization, the fourth
degree of
the major scale.
Fanfare - A prelude or opening, a flourish,
usually played by brass instruments.
Fasola - A system of solmization used in
17th- and 18th-century England and America. Fa, so, and la were given to
both c-d-e and f-g-a, with mi used for the seventh
degree.
Fermata - Hold; pause 
.
Festivo, festoso - Festive; merry.
Fifth - The fifth degree of the diatonic
scale. Also, the interval formed by a given
tone and the fifth tone
above or below it, e.g. c up to g, c down to f. Intervals of the fifth
may be perfect (corresponding to major),
diminished, or augmented.
Finale - The last movement of a symphony or
sonata, or the last selection of an opera.
Fine - The end.
First ending - One or more measures which
occur at the end of the stanza or stanzas. It is usually indicated: 
Fixed do - The system of solmization in
which c is always do.
Flat - 
A symbol
which lowers the pitch of a note one half step.
Form - The design or structure of a musical
composition .
Forte - 
Loud.
Fortissimo - 
Very
loud.
Full score - An instrumental score in which
all the parts for the instruments appear on their own staves in standard
instrumental family order.
Fourth - The fourth degree of the diatonic
scale. Also, the interval formed by a given tone and the fourth tone
above or below it, e.g. c up to f; c down to g. Intervals of the fourth
may be perfect, diminished, or augmented.
Fz - Forzando or forzato. Synonomous with
sforzando (sf or sfz).
Gig - A job for a musician.
Giocoso - Playful.
Giubilante - Exultant, jubilant.
Glissando - Gliss. The rapid scale achieved
by sliding the nail of the thumb or third finger over the white keys of
the piano. Glissando is commonly used in playing the harp. For bowed
instruments glissando indicates a flowing, unaccented playing of a
passage.
Grandioso - Grandiose, majestic.
Grand pause - A rest for the entire
ensemble.
Grand piano - A piano with a winglike shape
and a horizontal frame, strings, and soundboard.
Grand staff, Great staff - The G and
F clef staves together make the grand (great) staff.
Grave - Slow, solemn.
Grazia - Grace. Con grazia, with grace.
Grazioso - Graceful.
Grosso, grosse - Great, large.
Half step - The
interval from one pitch to the immediately adjacent pitch, ascending or
descending, e.g. c-c
; e-e
;
b-c. The smallest interval on the keyboard.
Harmony - The sounding of two or more
tones
simultaneously; the vertical aspect of music.
Hemiola - The term applied to time values
in the ration of 3:2, e.g. three half notes in place of two dotted half
notes.
Homophony, Homophonic - Musical
texture which is characterized by chordal
support of a melodic line.
Impressionism - A musical movement of the
late 19th and early 20th centuries. Inspired by the French impressionist
painters, the movement had its impetus in the music of Debussy and
Ravel.
Instrument - Any device that produces a
musical sound.
Instrumentation - The art of composing,
orchestrating, or arranging for an instrumental ensemble.
Interval - The difference in
pitch between
two tones.
Inversion - As applied to music the term
may be used in both melody and harmony. Melodic inversion: an exchange
of ascending and descending movement, e.g. c up to f in descending
becomes c down to g. Harmonic inversion: the position of the chord
is changed from root position (root on the lowest pitch) to first
inversion, with the third, or second inversion, with the
fifth in the
lowest voice. An example: root position c-e-g; first inversion e-g-c;
second inversion g-c-e.
Ironico - Ironical.
Key signature - The
sharps or flats placed
at the beginning of the staff to denote the scale upon which the music
is based.
La - In solmization, the sixth
degree of
the major scale. Also, the first degree of the relative minor scale,
e.g. a is the sixth degree, or la, in the C major scale and the first
degree of the a-minor scale.
Lacrimoso - Tearful, mournful.
Lamento - Mournful, sad.
Langsam - Slow.
Largamente - Broadly.
Larghetto - Slower than largo.
Largo - Very slow.
Leading tone - The seventh
degree of the
major scale, so called because of its strong tendency to resolve upward
to the tonic.
Ledger lines - Short lines placed above and
below the staff for pitches beyond the range of the staff.
Legato - Smooth, connected.
Leggiero - Light; graceful.
Lento - Slow; slightly faster than
largo,
slower than adagio.
Liberamento - Freely.
Linear - Melodic; horizontal lines.
Ma - But. Used with other words, e.g. lento
ma non troppo, slow but not too slowly.
Maestoso - Majestically.
Major - The designation for certain
intervals and scales. A key based on a major scale is called a major
key. The pattern for the major scale is:
| whole |
whole |
half |
whole |
whole |
whole |
half |
| step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
Major chord - A triad
composed of a root, major third, and
perfect fifth.
Mancando - Fading away
Marcato - Emphasized, heavily accented.
Measure - A group of
beats containing a primary accent and one or more
secondary accents, indicated by the placement of bar lines on the staff.
The space between two bar lines.
Medesimo - The same.
Mediant - The third
degree of the major or
minor scale. The triad built on this
degree is labeled iii in the major
scale, III in the natural minor scale, and III+ in the
harmonic minor scale.
Medieval - The period prior to the Renaissance, c. 500-1450, marking the music of the early Christian
church.
Melody - In general, a succession of
musical tones. It represents the linear or horizontal aspect of music.
Meno - Less.
Meno mosso - Less motion.
Meter - The structure
of notes in a regular pattern of accented and unaccented beats within a measure, indicated at the beginning of a composition by a meter
signature.
Meter signature - The numbers placed at the
beginning of a composition to indicate the meter of the music, e.g. 
.
The upper number indicates the beats in a measure; the lower number
tells what kind of a note will receive one beat.
Metronome - Invented by Maelzel in 1816,
the instrument is used to indicate the exact tempo of a composition. An
indication such as M.M. 60 indicates that the pendulum, with a weight at
the bottom, makes 60 beats per minute. A slider is moved up and down the
pendulum to decrease and increase the tempo. M.M. 
=
80 means that the time value of a quarter note is the equivalent of one
pendulum beat when the slider is set at 80.
Mezzo - Half, Medium
Mezzo forte - 
Medium loud.
Mezzo piano - 
Medium soft.
Mi - In solmization, the third
degree of the major scale.
Middle Ages - European historical period
between roughly A.D. 500 and 1450.
Middle C - The note C in the middle of the
Grand staff, and near the middle of the paino.
Minor - The designation for certain
intervals and scales. A key based on a minor scale is called a minor
key. The three types of minor scales include natural, hormonic, and
melodic, which is used infrequently in choral music. The patterns for
natural and harmonic scales are:
|
natural: |
whole |
half |
whole |
whole |
half |
whole |
whole |
|
|
|
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
|
|
harmonic: |
whole |
half |
whole |
whole |
whole |
1-1/2 |
half |
|
|
|
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
steps |
step |
|
melodic:
|
(ascending): |
whole |
half |
whole |
whole |
whole |
whole |
half |
|
|
|
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
|
|
(descending): |
whole |
whole |
half |
whole |
whole |
half |
whole |
|
|
|
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
step |
|
Misterioso - Mysteriously.
Mit - With.
Mode - Any scalewise arrangement of
pitches; more generally, the term refers to the patterns upon which
medieval music was structured, the patterns which preceded the
development of major and minor
scales and tonality.
Moderato - Moderate speed.
Modern - Music written in the 20th century
or contempory music.
Modulation - The process of changing from
one key to another within a composition.
Molto - Very. Used with other terms, e.g.
molto allegro.
Mordent - "Biting." An ornament
consisting of an alteration (once or twice) of the written note by
playing the one immediately below it (lower mordent), or above it
(upper, or inverted, mordent) and then playing the note again.
Morendo - Gradually decreasing in volume;
dying away.
Mosso - Rapid. Meno mosso, less rapid.
Piu
mosso, more rapid.
Motive - A short melodic or rhythmic
pattern.
Moto - Motion. Con moto, with motion.
Movable Do - The system of solmization in
which do changes to accommodate the key, e.g. in the key of C major, do
is c; in E
major do is e
.
In the key of a minor do is c (relative major); in the key of c minor do
is e
(relative major).
Music - The organization of sounds with
some degree of rhythm, melody, and
harmony.
Music theory - The study of how music is
put together.
Nach - After (as "in the manner
of"); behind.
Nachtmusik - "Night music." A serenade.
Natural - 
A musical
symbol which cancels a previous sharp or flat.
Neumatic - One style of chant in which two
to four pitches occur on one syllable; in contrast to melismatic and
syllabic.
Non - No; not.
Nonharmonic tones - A designation for
tones
outside the harmonic structure of the chord. Two
frequently used examples are the passing tone and the appoggiatura.
Non troppo - Not too much. Used with other
terms, e.g. non troppo allegro, not too fast.
Notation - A term for a system of
expressing musical sounds through the use of written characters, called
notes.
Note - The symbol which, when placed on a
staff with a particular clef sign, indicates pitch.
Nuance - Subtle variations in tempo,
phrasing, dynamics, etc., to enhance a musical performance.
Octave - The eighth tone above a given
pitch, with twice as many vibrations per second, or below a given pitch,
with half as many vibrations.
Octet - A piece for eight instruments or
voices.
Open fifth - A triad without a
third.
Open strings - Strings are not stopped,
fingured, or fretted.
Opus, Op - The term, meaning work,
is used by composers to show the chronological order of their works,
e.g. Op. 1, Op. 2.
Orchestra - A large group of musicians made
up of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments.
Orchestration - The art of writing,
arranging, or scoring for the orchestra.
Ornamentation - Note or notes added to the
original melodic line for embellishment and added interest.
Ornaments - Melodic embellishments, either
written or improvised.
Ossia - "Or." Indicating an
alternative passage or version.
Ostinato - A repeated melodic or rhythmic
pattern, frequently appearing in the bass line.
Ottava - Octave.
Ottava alta - (8va) An octave higher.
Ottave bassa - (8va or 8vb) An octave
lower.
Overtones - The almost inaudible higher
tones which occur with the fundamental tone. They are the result of the
vibration of small sections of a string (instrument) or a column of air.
Other general terms for overtones are partials and harmonics.
Overture - The introductory music for an
opera, oratorio or ballet. A concert overture is an independent work.
Pacato - Calm, quiet.
Passing tones - Unaccented notes which move
conjunctly between two chords to which they do not
belong harmonically.
Pausa - A rest.
Pensieroso - Contemplative, thoughtful.
Percussion family - Instruments made of
sonorous material that produce sounds of definite or indefinite pitch
when shaken or struck, including drums, rattles, bells, gongs, and
xylophones.
Perfect - A term used to label
fourth, fifth, and octave
intervals. It corresponds to the major, as given to
seconds, thirds, sixths, and
sevenths.
Perfect cadence -
The chordal progression of dominant to
tonic, in a
major key V-I, in minor V-i.
Perfect interval - Interval of an
octave, fifth, or fourth without alteration.
Perfect pitch - The ability to hear and
identify a note without any other musical support.
Pesante - Heavy.
Petite - Little.
Peu a peu - Little by little.
Phrase - A relatively short portion of a
melodic line which expresses a musical idea, comparable to a line or
sentence in poetry.
Pianissimo - 
Very
soft.
Pianississimo - 
Very, very soft; the softest common dynamic marking.
Piano - 
Soft.
Pianoforte.
Pianoforte - "Soft-loud." A
keyboard instrument, the full name for the piano, on which sound is
produced by hammers striking strings when keys are pressed. It has 88
keys.
Picardy third - The term for the raising of
the third, making a major triad, in the final chord
of a composition which is in a minor key. The practice originated in c.
1500 and extended through the Baroque period.
Pitch - The highness or lowness of a
tone,
as determined by the number of vibrations in the sound.
Piu - More. Used with other terms, e.g. piu
mosso, more motion.
Pizzicato - "Pinched." On string
instruments, plucking the string.
Plagal cadence -
Sometimes called the "amen" cadence. The chordal
progression of subdominant to tonic, in a
major key IV-I, in minor iv-i.
Poco - Little. Used with other terms, e.g.
poco accel., also, poco a poco, little by little.
Poco ced., Cedere - A little slower.
Poco piu
mosso - A little more motion.
Poi - Then or afterwards, e.g. poi No. 3,
then No. 3.
Postlude - "Play after." The
final piece in a multi-movement work. Organ piece played at the end of a
church service.
Prelude - "Play before." An
introductory movement or piece.
Premiere - First performance.
Prestissimo - Very, very fast. The fastest tempo.
Presto - Very quick.
Primo - First.
Principal - Instrumental section leader.
Prologue - An introductory piece that
presents the background for an opera.
Quarter note/rest - A note/rest one half
the length of a half note and one quarter the length of a whole note. 
Quartet - A piece for four instruments or
voices. Four performers.
Quasi - Almost. Used with other terms, e.g.
quasi madrigal, almost or as if a madrigal.
Quintet - A piece for five instruments or
voices. Five performers.
Rallentando, rall - Gradually
slower. Synonymous with ritardando.
Range - The gamut of pitches, from low to
high, which a singer may perform.
Rapide - Rapidly.
Re - In solmization, the second degree of
the major scale.
Recital - A performance by one or more
performers.
Refrain - A short section of repeated
material which occurs at the end of each stanza.
Relative major and minor scales - Major and
minor scales which have the same key
signature.
Renaissance - The period c. 1450-1600.
Repeat - The repetition of a section or a
composition as indicated by particular signs.
Repeat of a section: 
Repeat from the beginning: 
Also D.C., repeat from the beginning and D.S.,
repeat from the sign.
Resonance - Reinforcement and
intensification of sound by vibrations.
Rest - A symbol used to denote silence.
Rhapsody - A free style instrumental piece
characterized by dramatic changes in mood.
Rhythm - The term which denotes the
organization of sound in time; the temporal quality of sound.
Rinforzando - A reinforced accent.
Risoluto - Resolute.
Ritardando, rit - Gradually slower.
Synonymous with rallentando.
Ritenuto - Immediate reduction in tempo.
Ritmico - Rhythmically.
Roll - On percussion instruments, a
sticking technique consisting of a rapid succession of notes: 
Romanticism - The period c. 1825-1900.
Root - The note upon which a
triad or chord
is built.
Root position - The arrangement of a chord
in which the root is in the lowest voice.
Round - Like the canon, a song in which two
or more parts having the same melody, starting at different points. The
parts may be repeated as desired.
Rubato - The term used to denote
flexibility of tempo to assist in achieving expressiveness.
Rudiments - On drums, the basic sticking
patterns.
Ruhig - Quiet.
Run - A rapid scale passage.
Rustico - Pastoral, rustic, rural.
Sanft - Soft, gentle.
Sans - Without.
Scale - A succession of
tones. The scale
generally used in Western music is the diatonic scale, consisting
of whole and half steps in a specific order.
Scherzo - "Joke." A piece in a
lively tempo. A movement of a symphony, sonata, or
quartet in quick
triple time, replacing the minuet.
Schnell - Fast.
Score - The written depiction of all the
parts of a musical ensemble with the parts stacked vertically and
rhythmically aligned.
Secco - "Dry." Unornamented.
Second - The second degree of the diatonic
scale. Also, the interval formed by a given
tone and the next tone above
or below it, e.g. c up to d, or c down to b. Intervals of the second may
be major, diminished, or augmented.
Section - A division of a musical
composition.
Segno - "Sign." 
Sehr - Very.
Sehr leise beginnend - Very soft in the
beginning.
Semitone - A half step.
The smallest interval on the keyboard.
Sempre - Always. Used with other terms,
e.g. sempre staccato.
Semplice - Simple.
Senza - Without. Used with other terms,
e.g. senza crescendo.
Septet - A piece for seven instruments or
voices. Seven performers.
Sequence - The repetition of a melodic
pattern on a higher or lower pitch level.
Serenade - A love song or piece, usually
performed below someone's window in the evening.
Sereno - Serene, peaceful.
Seventh - The seventh
degree of the
diatonic scale. Also, the interval formed by a given
tone and the
seventh tone above or below it, e.g. c up to b, or c down to d.
Intervals of the seventh may be major, minor,
diminished, or augmented.
Seventh chord - When a
seventh (above the root) is added to a triad (root,
third, fifth), the
result is a seventh chord, e.g. the dominant triad in the key of C
major, g-b-d, with the added seventh becomes g-b-d-f and is labelled V7.
Sforzando, Sfz, Sf - Sudden strong accent
on a note or chord.
Sharp - 
A symbol
which raises the pitch of a note one-half step.
Sheet music - An individually printed song,
most often for voice, piano, guitar,or a combination of the three. Any
printed music.
Shifting meter - The changing of meter
within a composition. Synonymous with changing meter.
Simile - An indication to continue in the
same manner.
Sin' - Until.
Sinistra - Left hand.
Sino - Until.
Six-four chord - The
second inversion of a triad, made by placing the
fifth of the chord in
the lowest voice, e.g. C
is g-c-e.
Sixteenth note/rest - A note/rest half the
length of an eighth note and a sixteenth the length of a whole note. 
Sixth - The sixth degree of the diatonic
scale. Also, the interval formed by a given
tone and the sixth tone
above or below it, e.g. c up to a, or c down to e. Intervals of the
sixth may be major, minor, diminished, or augmented.
Sixth chord - The
first inversion of a triad, made by placing the
third of the chord in
the lowest voice, e.g. C6 is e-g-c.
Skip - Melodic movement of more than one
whole step.
Slur - A curved line placed above or below
two or more notes of different pitch to indicate that they are to be
performed in legato style.
Smorzando - Fading away.
Soave - Sweet, mild.
Sognando - Dreamily.
Sol - In solmization, the fifth
degree of
the major scale.
Solmization - The term for the use of
syllables for the degrees of the major
scale: do, re, mi, fa, sol, la ti,
do. The minor scale (natural) is la, ti, do, re, mi, fa, sol, la.
Solo - To perform alone or as the
predominant part.
Sonata - An instrumental piece, often in
several movements.
Sonatina - A short sonata.
Sostenuto - Sustaining of tone or
slackening of tempo.
Spiccato - On string instruments, a bowing
technique wherein the bow is bounced on the string at moderate speed.
Staccato - Detached sounds, indicated by a
dot over or under a note. The opposite of legato.
Staff - The most frequently used staff has
five horizontal lines, with four spaces, upon which the notes and other
musical symbols are placed.
Stanza - A selection of a song, two or more
lines long, characterized by a common meter, rhyme, and number of lines.
Stesso - Same.
String instrument family - Instruements
with strings that produce sound when plucked, bowed, or struck.
Strophic - A term used to describe a song
in which all the stanzas of the text are sung to the same music. The
opposite of through-composed.
Subdominant - The
fourth degree of the
major or minor scale. Also, the name of the
triad built on the fourth
degree of the scale, indicated by IV in a major key and by iv in a minor
key.
Subito
- Suddenly.
Submediant - The sixth
degree of a major or
minor scale. Also, the name of the triad built on the sixth degree of
the scale, indicated by VI in a major key and by vi in a minor key.
Sul - On the.
Supertonic - The second
degree of the major
or minor scale. Also, the name of the
triad built on the second degree
of the scale, indicated by II in a major scale and iio in a
minor scale.
Sur - On, over.
Suspension - The use of a nonharmonic tone
to delay the resolution of a chord, frequently as
it occurs in a cadence.
Svelto - Quick, light.
Symphony - A piece for large orchestra,
usually in four movements, in which the first movement often is in
sonata form. A large orchestra.
Syncopation - Accent
on an unexpected beat.
Tanto - Much, so much.
Tempo - The rate of speed in a musical
work.
Tempo primo - Return to the original tempo.
Teneramente - Tenderly.
Tenor clef - The C clef
falling on the fourth line of the staff.
Tenuto, ten - Hold or sustain a note longer
than the indicated value, usually not as long a duration as the fermata.
Ternary form - Three-part form in which the
middle section is different from the other sections. Indicated by ABA.
Terraced dynamics - The Baroque
style of using sudden changes in dynamic levels, as opposed to gradual
increase and decrease in volume.
Tertian harmony - A term used to describe
music based on chords arranged in intervals of
thirds.
Tessitura - The general pitch range of a
vocal part.
Texture - The term used to describe the way
in which melodic lines are combined, either with or without accompaniment.
Types include monophonic, homophonic, and polyphonic, or contrapuntal.
Theme - The musical subject of a piece
(usually a melody), as in sonata
form or a fugue. An extramusical
concept behind a piece.
Theme and variations - A statement of
musical subject followed by restatements in different guises.
Theory - The study of how music is put
together.
Third - The third degree of the diatonic
scale. Also, the interval formed by a given
tone and the third tone
above or below it, e.g. c up to e, or c down to a. Intervals of the
third may be major, minor, diminished, or augmented.
Through-composed - A term used to describe
a song in which the music for each stanza is different. The opposite of
strophic.
Ti - In solmization, the seventh
degree of
the major scale. Also called the leading
tone.
Tie - A curved line over or below two or
more notes of the same pitch. The first pitch is sung or played and held
for the duration of the notes affected by the tie.
Time signature - Synonymous with meter
signature.
Tonality - The term used to describe the
organization of the melodic and harmonic elements to give a feeling of a
key center or a tonic pitch.
Tone - A note; the basis of music.
Tone clusters - The simultaneous sounding
of two or more adjacent tones.
Tonguing - On wind instruements,
articulation with the tongue.
Tonic - The first note of a key. Also, the
name of the chord built on the first degree of the
scale, indicated by I in a major key or i in a
minor key.
Tono - Tone, key, pitch.
Tosto - Quick.
Tranquillo - Tranquilly; quietly; calm.
Transposition - The process of changing the
key of a composition.
Tre - Three. Used with other terms, e.g. a
tre voci, in three parts.
Treble clef - The G clef 
falling on the second line of the staff.
Triad - A chord of
three tones arranged in thirds, e.g. the
C-major triad c-e-g, root-third-fifth.
Trill, tr - A musical ornament
performed by the rapid alternation of a given note with a major or
minor
second above.
Triple meter - Meter based on three beats,
or a multiple of three, in a measure.
Triplet - 
A group
of three notes performed in the time of two of the same kind.
Troppo - Too much. Used with other terms,
e.g. allegro non troppo, not too fast.
Turn - 
A musical
ornament characterized by the rapid performance of a given note, the
major or minor second above and below, and a return to the given note.
Tutti - All. A direction for the entire
ensemble to sing or play simultaneously.
Twelve-tone technique - A system of
composition which uses the twelve tones of the chromatic
scale in an arbitrary arrangement called a tone row or series. The row
may be used in its original form, its inversion, in retrograde, and in
the inversion of the retrograde. The system was devised by Arnold
Schoenberg in the early 20th century.
Una corda - Soft pedal.
Unison - Singing or playing the same notes
by all singers or players, either at exactly the same pitch or in a
different octave.
Un peu - A little. Used with other words,
e.g. un peu piano.
Un poco - A little.
Upbeat - One or more notes occurring before
the first bar line, as necessitated by the text for the purpose of
desirable
, (an augmented fifth,) or
c-d
, (an augmented 
.