| Term | Definition |
|---|
| léger | light, lightly (french) |
| lentement | slowly (french) |
| modéré | at a moderate tempo (french) |
| mouvement | tempo: motion (french) |
| vite | fast (french) |
| bewegt | agitated, excited (german) |
| langsam | slow (german) |
| mässig | moderate, moderately (german) |
| mit Ausdruck | with expression (german) |
| sehr | very (german) |
| schnell | fast (german) |
| ad libitum (ad lib.) | at the liberty of the performer |
| agitato | agitated |
| allargando (allarg.) | broadening, becoming slower |
| arco | resume bowing after a pizzicato passage (for string instruments) |
| attaca | proceed without break |
| comodo | at a comfortable easy tempo |
| con fuoco | with fire |
| con grazia | with grace |
| con sordino | with mute |
| dolente | sad |
| giocoso | humorous, jocose |
| grandioso | grand, grandiose |
| largamente | broadly |
| l'istesso tempo | the same tempo |
| martellato | strongly accented, hammered |
| mesto | sad, mournful |
| morendo | dying, fading away |
| pesante | weighty, with emphasis |
| pizzicato | pluck the string instead of bowing (for string instruments) |
| prima (fem.) | first; the upper part of a duet (fem) |
| pimo (mas.) | first; the upper part of a duet |
| ritenuto | suddenly slower, held back |
| scherzando | playful |
| secondo, seconda | second: second or lower part of duet |
| semplice | simple |
| sforzando (sf, sfz) | a sudden strong accent of a single note or chord |
| sonore | sonorous |
| sostenuto | sustained |
| sotto voce | soft, subdued, under the breath |
| strepitoso | boisterous, noisy |
| stringendo | pressing, becoming faster |
| subito | suddenly |
| tacet | be silent |
| tutti | a passage for the entire ensemble |
| vivo | lively |
| volta | time ( ie: prima volta = first time) |
| volti subito (v.s.) | turn the page quickly |
| Triad | a chord consisting of a root, 3rd, 5th |
| 7th | a chord consisting of a root, 3rd, 5th, 7th |
| quartal chord | a chord built on a series of 4th |
| polychord | a combination of two or more different chords |
| cluster | a chord consisting of at least three adjacent notes of a scale |
Combine with other sets
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