MU 324 Midterm Vocab Terms

genre

a category describing the type of musical presentation

duo/duet

a piece featuring a pair of performers

adagio

slow

encore

to repeat a well-received number because of audience cheers; also, the repetition itself

presto

very fast

ff (fortissimo)

very loud

pp (pianissimo)

very soft

andante

walking speed

opera buffa

"comic opera"; an Italia genre, at its prime during the eighteenth century

The Black Crook

(1866) an Extravaganza/Scenery show. Had chorus girls (chorus line) in skimpy costumes

Evangeline

(1874) the first U.S. "musical comedy." and the first U.S. show to have an entirely original score (Edward E. Rice)

West End

London's theater district, equivalent to New York's Broadway

minstrel shows

a genre featuring performers in blackface (whether black or white themselves) who presented a variety of visual and musical entertainments, often satirizing the lifestyle of African Americans

musical theater

a genre label for sung dramatic works, usually more commercial than opera

musical comedy

a genre presented in modern costume with believable dialogue and popular tunes

ensemble

a group of two or more performers; also a term for the kind of piece they perform

rehearsal pianist

a keyboardist who accompanies the singers (in lieu of the orchestra) during rehearsals

extravaganza (spectacle)

a lavish production emphasizing elaborate stage sets and mechanical marvels

minor mode

a less common type of scale, often used to convey a dark, somber mood

compound subdivision

a rhythmic device that divides each beat into three equal subpluses

lieto fine

a "happy ending," usually when applied to a story that traditionally does not end happily

Singspiel

a German-language genre with spoken dialogue

operetta

a comic genre, usually in German or English, often featuring skilled singers in a fanciful plot

chorus girls

a female member of a chorus line

non-standard form

a form with clear-cut repetition that does not follow a standardized pattern

revue

a mixed-bill presentation in which a set cast of performers present the various entertainments; sometimes the skits are organized around a specific theme, such as a satirical re-examination of the previous year's events

blues

a musical style that laments some unfortunate situation, using swing rhythms and blue notes

monophony/monophonic

a musical texture in which a melody is presented without any accompaniment

opéra-bouffe

a nineteenth-century French comic genre with an emphasis on social satire and dancing

star turn

a number designed to feature a performer's special abilities

aria

a number featuring a soloist, usually in an emotional moment; usually tuneful and memorable

verse-chorus form (aBaB etc.)

a pattern diagrammed as a-B-a-B-a-B and so on, in which the a verses have differing text (but the same melody) each time, while the B choruses repeat the melody and words. Originally, an actual chorus of voices song the chorus sections, while soloists sang the verses

strophic form (a a etc.)

a pattern of repetition diagrammed as a-a-a and so on

alternation form (a b a b etc.)

a pattern related to verse-chorus form, but one is which the "chorus" has new words each time, resulting in a diagram of a-b-a-b and so on

authorized

a performance that has received its creators' (or their agents') approval, and that pays the copyright owner(s) the proper royalty for the performance

song plugger

a person who promotes the items in a publisher's catalog

solo

a piece featuring a single performer

octet

a piece featuring eight performers

quintet

a piece featuring five performers

quartet

a piece featuring four performers

septet

a piece featuring seven performers

sextet

a piece featuring six performers

trio

a piece featuring three performers

binary form (2-part form)

a piece structured in two distinct and contrasting sections, which could be diagrammed as a-b. Once the b section begins, the a melody is not heard again

refrain

a portion of a song that reappears with the same melody and words, such as the chorus in a verse-chorus form

tryout tour

a preliminary trip to some out-of-town location, giving a new show a chance to play in front of paying audiences before facing New York critics

scenery show

a production combining elaborate stage sets and effects with operetta characteristics

Can-Can

a risqué French dance in which the chorus line performs high kicks while lifting their skirts

simple subdivision

a sensation that each beat of a piece of music can be divided into two equal half-pulses

Princess show

a series of musicals written for New York's Princess Theatre

conjunct

a series of notes that are only slightly higher or lower than each other, as if the pitches were moving up or down the rungs of a ladder

Broadway show

a show presented in one of the main venues of the New York theater district

star vehicle

a show written to showcase the talents of a particular performer

arioso

a singing style that is more tuneful than recitative, but not as rhythmically steady as an aria

interpolation

a song by another composer added to an original score

showstopper

a song, dance, or production number that is received so enthusiastically by an audience that their continues applause "stops" the show; sometimes the number must be enforced before the show can resume

recitative

a speech-like manner of singing, usually without any steady beat and with limited accompaniment

song form (a a b a) (popular) (32-bar form)

a structure diagrammed as a-a-b-a

rondo form (refrain, episodes)

a structure that can be diagrammed as a-b-a-c-a; it is a flexible form that can have additional repetitions of a (the refrain) or the episodes (b, c, etc.), but it should contain at least three a sections and at least two different episodes

vocal introduction

a sung prefatory passage that differs from the remainder of the song; often called the verse

fermata

a symbol that indicates that a note (or silence) should be sustained longer than usual

disjunct

a term describing a series of notes that seem to leap up or down between successive pitches

melismatic

a text setting in which a single syllabus is sung to many different musical pitches

syllabic

a text setting in which each syllable of the poetry is sung to a single note of music

homophony/ homophonic

a texture in which a melody is supported by a subordinate accompaniment

imitative polyphony

a texture in which one melody is used for successive, overlapping entrances, sounding much like a canon or round

non-imitative polyphony

a texture in which two or more different melodies are heard simultaneously

patter song (patter singing)

a type of singing in which the text is delivered very rapidly for comic effect

vaudeville

a type of stage entertainment consisting of many short, unconnected presentation ("turns") by a large array of performers depicting a wide variety of skills, many unrelated to music

ballad opera

an eighteenth-century satirical English genre with a spoken dialogue and new poetry set to old tunes

episodes

an element found in music that is a digression from the main structure of the composition [b, c, etc.]

orchestra

an ensemble of instrumentalists, usually performing accompaniment or introductory music

touring company

cast of actors assembled to bring a hit play to a succession of regional centers after the play has closed in a theatrical capital.

impresario

equivalent to the modern position of producer; the person who organizes the financing and staffing of a theatrical production, often retaining the power to make some of the creative decisions as well

allegro

fast

crescendo

grow gradually louder

diminuendo

grow gradually softer

vocal coda

instrumental music (vocal is sung) played at the end of a song, giving the piece a sense of conclusion

coda (postlude)

instrumental music played at the end of a song, giving the piece a sense of conclusion

introduction

instrumental music played at the start of a song, before the singing starts

interlude

instrumental music played in the middle of a song, without any singing

f (forte)

loud

miscegenation

mixed race marriage

moderato

moderate

original score

music composed for a specific show, not borrowed from a pre-existing source

through-composed

music written without any clear-cut repetition

piracy

performing a show without permission and without paying proper royalties

topical references

pertaining to or dealing with maters of current or local interest

ritardando

slow down gradually

Florentine Camerata

society of poets, composers, and aristocrats

p (piano)

soft

mf (mezzoforte)

somewhat loud

mp (mezzopiano)

somewhat soft

accelerando

speed up gradually

opera

strictly speaking, a genre term for an Italian-language theatrical presentation with continuous singing. The same genre label has often been applied to works in other languages and works with spoken dialogue

subito

sudden[ly]

medium (performing medium or performing forces)

the combination of instruments and voices needed for a particular work

Baroque Era

the era of Western art music spanning roughly 1600-1730/1750

Classic Era

the era of Western art music spanning roughly 1730/1750-1815

meter (time signature)

the grouping of beats in a piece of music

soprano

the highest singing voice of adult females (or castrated males)

advance [ticket sale]

the income derived from ticker sales before a show has opened

mode

the kind of scale used in a piece; the mode helps to determine the mood of a piece

tenor

the label for the highest naturally occurring male voice type

primo uomo

the leading man in an opera

prima donna

the leading woman in an opera

bass

the lowest male voice type

major mode

the most common type of scale, often conveying an upbeat or positive mood

Romantic Era/Romanticism

the musical era ranging from around 1815 to the end of the nineteenth century

chorus line

the non-featured performers of a production who sing and/or dance as a group

duple meter

the organization of steady beats into a strong-weak-strong-weak pattern

triple meter

the organization of steady beats into a strong-weak-weak-strong-weak-weak pattern

bows (curtain calls)

the performers' acknowledgment of audience applause at the end of a show

composer

the person who writes the music

librettist

the person who writes the poetry (or, in musical theater, the spoken dialogue)

choreography

the planned dance steps and movements

libretto

the poetry of an opera; later used to mean the spoken dialogue and general plot of musical theater

text setting

the relationship of notes to syllables in vocal music

tempo

the speed of a piece of music

form

the structure or pattern of repetition in a piece of music

alto

the term for a lower-pitched female voice

dynamic level

the volume at which music is performed

score

the written music contributed by a composer

property

theatrical subject matter; the source on which a dramatic story is based