Glossary of Musical Terms
Accidental – a sign used to show a temporary change in pitch of a note (i.e., sharp # , flat b , double sharp ! , double flat bb , or natural @ ). The sharps or flats in a key signature are not regarded as accidentals.
Ad lib –to be played at the performer’s own discretion.
Arpeggio – the playing of a chord in single note fashion.
Bar –A division of music occurring between two bar lines (also called a measure).
Bar line – a vertical line drawn across the staff which divides the music into equal sections called bars.
Bass – the lower regions of pitch in general.
Bass Clef – . the sign at the beginning of each staff indicating the position of the F note.
Chord – a combination of three or more different notes played together.
Chord Progression – a series of chords played as a musical unit (e.g., as in a song).
Chromatic scale – a scale ascending and descending in semitones, e.g., C chromatic scale:
D.C. al fine – a repeat from the beginning to the word fine.
Dot – a sign placed after a note indicating that its time value is extended by a half, e.g.:
Double Bar Line – two vertical lines close together, indicating the end of a piece, or section thereof.
D.S. al fine – a repeat from the sign (indicated thus V) to the word "fine".
Duration – the time value of each note.
Dynamics – the varying degrees of softness (indicated by the term piano) and loudness (indicated by the term forte) in music.
Eighth Note – a note with the value of half a beat in * time, indicated thus 5 (also called a quaver).
The eighth note rest indicating half a beat of silence, is written: j
Enharmonic – describes the difference in notation, but not in pitch, of two notes, e.g.:
First and second endings – signs used where two different endings occur. On the first time through ending one is played (indicated by the bracket Z); then the progression is repeated and ending two is played (indicated X).
Flat – a sign, (b) used to lower the pitch of a note by one semitone.
Harmonics – a chime like sound created by lightly touching a vibrating string at certain points along the fret board.
Harmony – simultaneous sounding of two or more different notes.
Improvise – to perform spontaneously, i.e., not from memory or from a written copy.
Interval – the distance between any two notes of different pitches.
Key – describes the notes used in a composition in regards to the major or minor scales from which they are taken; e.g., a piece "in the key of C major" describes the melody, chords, etc., as predominantly consisting of the notes C, D, E, F, G, A, and B – i.e., from the C scale.
Key signature – a sign, placed at the beginning of each stave of music, directly after the clef, to indicate the key of a piece. The sign consists of a certain number of sharps or flats, which represent the sharps or flats, found in the scale of the piece’s key, e.g.:
indicates a scale with F# and C#, which is D major or B major.
Lead in – same as pick-up.
Ledger lines – small horizontal lines upon which notes are written when their pitch is either above or below the range of the staff, e.g.:
Legato – smoothly, well connected.
Lyric – words that accompany a melody.
Major scale – a series of eight notes in alphabetical order based on the interval sequence; tone – tone – semitone – tone – tone – tone – semitone, giving the familiar sound; do re mi fa so la ti do.
Melody – a sequence of notes varying in pitch and duration, and having a recognizable musical shape.
Metronome – a device which indicates the number of beats per minute, and which can be adjusted in accordance to the desired tempo, e.g., MM (Maelzel Metronome) 3 = 60 indicates 60 quarter note beats per minute.
Natural – a sign (@)used to cancel out the effect of a sharp or flat. The word is also used to describe the notes A, B , C, D, E, F, and G; i.e., the Natural Notes.
Octave – the distance between any given note with a set frequency, and another note with exactly double or half that frequency. Both notes will have the same letter name, e.g.:
Pick – a small object (often of a triangular shape) made of plastic which is used to pick or strum the strings of a bass.
Pick-up – a note or notes occurring before the first complete bar. Also called a lead-in.
Pitch – the sound produced by a note, determined by the frequency of the air vibration. The pitch relates to a note being referred to as "high" or "low".
Plectrum – same as pick.
Repeat Signs – in music, used to indicate a repeat of a section of music, by means of two dots placed before a double bar line;
In chord progressions, a repeat sign C, indicates an exact repeat of the previous bar.
Rhythm – the aspect of music concerned with tempo, duration and accents of notes. Tempo indicates the speed of a piece (fast or slow); duration indicates the time value of each note (quarter note, eighth note, sixteenth note, etc.); and accents indicate which beat is more predominant.
Riff – a pattern of notes that is repeated throughout a song.
Semitone – the smallest interval used in conventional music. On bass, it is the distance of one fret.
Sharp – a sign (#) used to raise the pitch of a note by one semitone.
Staccato – to play short and detached. Indicated by a dot placed above the note.
Staff – five parallel lines together with four spaces, upon which music is written.
Syncopation – the placing of an accent on a normally unaccented beat, e.g.:
Tablature – a system of writing music which represents the position of the player’s fingers (not the pitch of the notes, but their position on the bass). A chord diagram is a type of tablature. Notes can also be written using tablature thus;
Each line represents a string, and each number represents a fret.
Tempo – the speed of a piece.
Ternary – a curved line joining two or more notes of the same pitch.
Time signature – a sign at the beginning of a piece which indicates, by means of numbers, the number of beats per bar (top figure), and the type of note receiving one beat (bottom figure).
Tone – a distance of two frets; i.e., the equivalent of two semitones.
Transcription – the process of changing music from one key to another.
Treble – the upper regions of pitch in general.
