Music Chapter 1,2,3,4,5

diatonic half step

a semitone spelling that uses different letter names for the two pitches (D and Eb)

meter signature

a sign that appears at beginning of piece, after clef and key signature, that indicates meter type (duple, triple, or quadruple) and beat division (simple, compound); also called time signature

note head

a small oval used to notate a pitch on the staff. hollow note heads normally represent a longer duration than filled note heads.

metrical accent

an emphasis on a note resulting from its placement on a strong beat

whole step (whole tone)

an interval that spans two adjacent half steps

medium tempos

andantino, andante, moderato, adagio

slurs

arcs that connect two or more different pitches; affect articulation, but don't change duration of pitches. played smoothly or sung in one breath or on one syllable

duplet

in compound meter, a division of the beat into two, instead of three, equal parts

syncopation

created when an expected accent is displaced - moved to another beat or part of a beat by dots, ties, rests, dynamic markings, or accent marks

half step (semitone)

distance between a pitch and the next closest pitch on keyboard

interval

distance between two pitches

rest

duration of silence

triplets

3-part division of a beat in simple meter piece. counted "1 la li"

musical alphabet

A,B,C,D,E,F,G, which are used to name musical pitches

upbeat

the beat that precedes a downbeat; named for the upward lift of the conductor's hand (aka Anacrusis)

middle c

C4; C located at the center of the piano keyboard

anacrusis

a beat that precedes a downbeat, sometimes shown in an incomplete measure. Also called upbeat or pickup

beam

a line that connects two or more note stems within a beat unit

descending contour

a melodic line that generally goes down, from higher pitches to lower ones

chromatic half step

a semitone spelling that uses the same letter for both pitches (D and D#)

flag

a short arc attached to the right side of a note stem, at the opposite end from the note head; each flag divides duration of a note in half (ex: a 16th note has two flags and is half of an eighth note, which has one flag)

pitch

a single musical sound in a particular octave or register

accidentals

a symbol that appears before a note to raise or lower its pitch chromatically, without changing its letter name Ex: flat (b), sharp (#), natural, double flat(bb), double sharp (x)

bar line

a vertical line, extending from the top of the staff to the bottom, that indicates the end of a measure

bar lines

a vertical line, extending from top of staff to bottom, indicates end of a measure

increasing tempo (gradually faster)

accelerando

faster tempos

allegro, vivace, presto, pretissimo

solfege

allows sight reading/singing without piano (Do,Re,Mi, Etc)

natural

an accidental that cancels a sharp or flat

flat (b)

an accidental that lowers a pitch by one half step without changing its letter name

double flat (bb)

an accidental that lowers a pitch two half steps without changing its letter name

sharp (#)

an accidental that raises a pitch a half step without changing its letter name

double sharp (x)

an accidental that raises a pitch two half steps without changing its letter name

stem

attached to a note. goes up or down. represents a single musical sound (pitch)

bass clef

clef positioned on a staff to indicate F; its two dots surround the F3 line (F clef)

treble clef

clef positioned on a staff to indicate G by means of the end of its curving line; it circles the line that represents G4 (G clef)

dynamic level

degree of loudness in performance. extends from pop (very soft) to fff (very loud)

enharmonic

different names for same pitch (Eb and D#)

rhythm

durations of pitch and silence (notes and rests) used in a piece

ledger line

extra lines drawn through the stems and note heads to designate a musical pitch located above or below the staff.

beat subdivisions

further division of beat division into 2 parts; ex: a quarter note in simple meter divides into 2 eighth's and subdivides into 4 sixteenth's

slower tempos

grave, largo, larghetto, adagio

meter

grouping and division of beats in regular, recurring patterns

measure numbers

help find location in piece; numbers above staff

register

highness or lowness of a pitch or passage; particular octave in which a pitch sounds

tempo

how fast or slow music is played

articulation

how pitch is sounded

two-beat triplets

in simple meter, division of half note into 3 equal quarter notes

augmentation

lengthens durations of a rhythm, often by doubling them

beam(ed)

line that connects two or more note stems within a beat unit

staff

made up of 5 lines and 4 spaces. notes written on it.

changing meter

meter that changes from measure to measure

compound meter

meter where the beat divides into three and subdivides into sixes. the top number of compound meter signatures is 6, 9, or 12

simple meter

meter where the beat divides into twos and subdivides into fours. top number of simple meter signature is 2,3,or 4

compound duple

meter with 2 beats in a measure, each beat divided into 3

compound triple

meter with 3 beats in a measure, each beat divided into 3

compound quadruple

meter with 4 beats in a measure, each beat divided into 3

symmetrical meter

meter with beat units of equal duration

asymmetrical meter

meter with beat units of unequal duration. these irregular beat lengths are typically (though not always) created by five or seven beat divisions grouped into unequal lengths such as: 2 + 3 or 2 + 3 + 2

quadruple meter

meter with four beats in each measure

triple meter

meter with three beats in each measure

duple meter

meter with two beats in each measure

note

most basic symbol. written as a small oval either black or hollow, attached to stem. representation of a musical sound. position indicates pitch. stem, beam, or flag indicates duration.

ascending contour

musical line that generally goes up, from lower to higher

score

musical notation that shows various symbols that represent musical sounds.

letter name

name for a particular pitch, employing letters A-G, that corresponds to its place on the staff or musical instrument

swung eighths

practice where a rhythm notated with even 8th notes is performed unevenly, with more time allotted to first 8th and less to second in each pair

dot

rhythmic notation that adds half of a note's own value to its duration (ex: the duration of a dotted half note = a half note plus a quarter note)

decreasing tempo (gradually slower)

ritardando

contour

shape of a melody; motion up and down. include ascending, descending, arch, wave, and V shape

eighth rest

silence represented (by 7 with a thick dot at tip); duration equivalent to sixteenth note; (1 and count)

sixteenth rest

silence represented by (double 7 thing); duration is equal a sixteenth note -- 1 e and a 2 e

whole rest

silence represented by (down hat) hanging below 4th staff line; equal in duration to two half notes (is 4 counts)

quarter rest

silence represented by (squiggle); (1 count); equivalent to a quarter note

half rest

silence represented by (up hat) sitting on top of 3rd staff line; equal in duration to a half note; (2 counts)

ties

small arcs connecting note heads of 2 identical pitches, which may have same or different durations. it makes first note sound as long as 2 notes durations added together; 2nd note isn't played separately. if an accidental is applied to first note of a tie, continues through tie's duration

conducting patterns

specific pattern, one for each meter, that conductors outline by moving their arms in the air to help keep performers playing together in time

whole note

stemless hollow note head (o); 4 count duration (equivalent to two half notes)

sixteenth note

stemmed filled note head with two flags or beams; 1 e and a 2 e count; 2 sixteenth notes equivalent to one eighth note

quarter note

stemmed filled note head; 1 count; equivalent to two eighth notes

eighth note

stemmed filled note head; 1and count; equivalent to two 16th notes

half note

stemmed hollow note head; 2 counts; equivalent to two quarter notes

accent

stress given to a note or some other musical element that brings it to the listener's attention. Can be created by playing louder or softer, using a different timbre or articulation, speeding up or slowing down, or slightly changing rhythmic durations

clef

symbol on the far left of a staff that shows which pitch (and octave) is represented by each line and space.

octave equivalence

the concept that pitches eight steps apart (sharing the same name) sound similar

octave

the distance of 8 musical steps; the interval size 8. the particular part of the musical range where a pitch sounds (C4 is a C in a particular octave)

beat unit

the duration assigned to the basic pulse

downbeat

the first beat of a measure, which has the strongest accent or emphasis; named for the downward motion on the conductor's hand

beat

the primary pulse in musical meter. Normally represents an even and regular division of musical time

beat division

the secondary pulse in musical meter; beats may be divided into two parts (simple meter) or three parts (compound meter)

rhythm clef

two short, thick, vertical lines at beginning of a single-lined staff; used to notate unhitched percussion parts

grand staff

two staves, one in treble clef and one in bass clef, connected by a curly brace; used in piano music

measure

unit of grouped beats; beginning and ending with bar lines