| Term | Definition |
|---|
| dynamics | the volume of sound |
| inversion | reading or playing a melody or a twelve-tone series upsidedown |
| cadence | the notes or chords ending a section of music with a feeling of conclusiveness |
| crescendo | getting louder |
| diminuendo | getting softer |
| counterpoint | a complementary melody to the main theme |
| fortissimo | very loud |
| modulation | changing key within a piece |
| key | one of the twelve positions for the major and minor mode scales made possible by using all notes of the chromatic scale |
| idee fixe | a reacurring theme in music |
| beat | the regular pulse underlying most music |
| meter | a background of stressed and unstressed beats in a simple, repeating pattern |
| tempo | the speed of music |
| theme | the basic subject matter of the a piece of music. It can be a phrase, short motive, etc. |
| timbre | the sonorous quality of a particular instrument, voice, or combination of the two |
| rhythm | the aspect of music having to do with the duration of notes in time |
| program music | a piece of instrumental music associated with a story or other extramusical idea |
Combine with other sets
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