sinfonia
a generic term for orchestral introductions to Italian operas in the 17th century, similar to an overture; eventually developed into the symphony
slur
a curved line above or below two ro more notes of different pitch; indicates that the pitches slurred together should be performed smoothly in a legato style
solfege
singing pitches by the syllables do, re, mi, fa, so, la and ti; used in learning to read notation by sight
sonata
an instrumental composition for a solo instrument or a solo instrument with accompaniment; usually in 3 or 4 movements
sonata form (or sonata-allegro form)
usually the form of the first movement in a sonata or symphony; consists of 3 main sections (exposition, development, recapitulation) and may have an introduction and a coda
soprano
a woman’s high singing voice
sostenuto
Italian: ” in a singing style”
spiccato
a bowing technique on stringed instruments in which the bow is bounced across the strings
spiritual
a religious folk song; often pentatonic
staccato
short, separated playing or singing; indicated by a dot above or below each note
staff
the five lines and four spaces upon which notes and rests are placed
statement
in theme and variations form, the opening presentation of the theme
stringendo
Italian: “moving more quickly”
style
1. the way in which a composition is performed 2. the features of a period of music history
subdominant
1. the fourth note of a scale 2. a three-note chord having the fourth note of a scale as its root
subito
Italian: suddenly
subject
the main theme in a fugue
suite
1. a set of pieces taken from a larger composition such as a ballet 2. a set of contrasting instrumental pieces
symphonic poem (or tone poem)
a programmatic, one-movement work for orchestra, inpsired by an extramusical idea
symphony
a major work for orchestra, usually in four movements
syncopation
accenting a weak part of a beat or a weak beat in a measure
synthesizer
an electronic device, usually with a keyboard similar to that of a piano, used to produce a variety of musical timbres
system
a set of staves, joined by a vertical line along the lefthand margin or printed music, that are performed at the same time by various voices or instruments
tempo
the speed of a piece of music; how quickly or slowly the pulse of a composition moves
tempo primo
an Italian term instructing a musician to resume the original tempo after a tempo change in a composition
tenor
a man’s high singing voice
tenuto
Italian: “held, sustained”
ternary
a musical form consisting of 3 sections
texture
the result of combining melody and harmony in different ways, such as melody alone (monophony), two or more melodies together (polyphony), and melody with an accompaniment (homophony)
theme
a melody upon which a composition is based
theme and variations
a composition in which the theme is played through and then is played in several different ways; for each variation, the composer changes the musical element of the theme
timbre (or tone color)
the special sound of a particular instrument or voice
time signature
a sign, usually at the beginning of a composition, that indicates the meter of a piece; the top number indicates how many pulses are in a measure, the bottom indicates what kind of note get one pulse
tonality
the arrangement of a composition around a given tonic or key
tone quality
the characteristics of the tone produced by a certain voice or instrument, similar to timbre
tone row
the arrangement of the twelve tones of a chromatic scale in a certain order; used as the basis for serial or twelve-tone compositions
tonic
the first note of a scale; the note around which the melody is built; the home tone
transpose
to write the same music in a different key by moving every pitch up or down the same interval