Estampie
Medieval French Dance, characterized by paired couplets.
Drone
A non melodic or harmonic tone; a steady note that provides a base.
Monophony
An unaccompanied melodic line
Homophony
A melodic line accompanied by chords.
Non imitative counterpoint
Two melodies that serve each other and are equal and independent.
Imitative Counterpoint
Two melodies that start at different times and go back and forth
Antiphony
Two or more instrumentive groups that are homophonic of themselves going against each other.
Madrigal
1. Most popular late renaissance secular vocal genre.
2. Composer set poem to music as vividly as possible.
3. Great variety of musical textures.
4. Italian, but later popular in England.
A Capella
Voices without any instrumental accompaniment.
Word Painting
Using musical techniques to emphasize a point in the text of music.
Canzonetta
Vocal, but may/not have an instrumental accompaniment. Secular, light, popular style. Strophic poem usually about love.
Chitarrone
Droning, Medieval guitar instrument that is strummed.
Basso Ostinato
A bass melody that is repeated over and over with melodic stuff over it.
Rondo Form
ABACA; always returning back to the A.
Antecedent Phrase
Goes with consequent phrase: ends on half cadence, usually follows with consequent phrase.
Consequent Phrase
Strong ending: usually goes with antecedent phrase.
Etude
A piece used to solve a technical difficulty.
Character Piece
A 1 instrument piece used to depict a certain mood. Used heavily by Romantics.
Ternary Structure
ABA
Celesta
A keyboard like instrument that strikes bells. Modern, adds a surreal effect. Used by Bartok.
Night-music Style
Eerie dissonances providing backdrop to melodies. Bartoks favorite. Scary night. Uses hungarian scales and rhythms. Arch form.
Dixieland Combo
DruG ClaP TTT. First jazz combo. Theme is established, everyone takes a solo, theme comes back. First jazz group. Organized into upper melody and backup melodie groups.
Heterophony
The sounding of a melody and it’s variants simultaneously. Jazz.
Carnatic
Southern India.
Hindustani
Northern India.
Sitar
Two gourds connected by long neck. Allows for heavy syncopation and improvisation found in Ragas. Usually takes lead instrument. Played by a guru that takes on an apprentice.
Tambura
Lute like thing held upright. 4 strings tuned to 1 and 4/5 and their octaves. Apprentice plays drone. Not a lead instrument.
Tabla
2 tuned drums, a larage and small. Skilled musicians duel with sitar or jaltarang. Rhythms based of tala. Pitch determined by moving fingers up and down drum.
Jaltarang
Set of porcelain bowls tuned by amount of water in them. In semicircle around musician and struck with bamboo sticks. Musician improvises off Raga main tones to start and eventually keeps steady melody.
Raga
Melodic framework of Indian music. 1st beat not necessarily emphasized, but all performers arrive at it to show harmony of universe.
Slendro
Indonesian pentatonic scale where all tones are equally apart through the use of microphones.
Pelog
Indonesian scale with 7 + octave tones. Space between 3+4 and 7+1. Dissonances.
Chordophone
Produces sound by vibrating strings.
Aerophone
Produces sound through vibrating column of air.
Membranophone
Produces sound through stretched membrane.
Idiophone
The material of itself vibrates. Struck, rubbed, shaken, etc. Bongos table etc. Made of all kinds of crazy substances.
Metallophone
Idiophones made of metal.
Gamelan
Indonesian orchestra that varies in size. Each instrument is handcrafted for the gamelan. Includes gender, saron, gongs, drums, suling and rebab.
Gender
Creepy as fuck sounding instrument; out of tune xylophone that usually plays the lead. Plays the music in traditional puppet shows, also scary as fuck. Struck with water buffalo mallets. Can play backup or lead.
Saron
Lower sounding gender, usually plays slower sounding melodies.
Erhu
Violin like instrument with strings suspended in midair. Easy to bend pitches. Originally a solo instrument, but bigger ones allow for concertos.
Pipa
Lute like Chinese instrument. 4 strings. Frets of bamboo and ivory. Plucked with fingernails or plectra. Can solo or duet.
Pentatonic scale
5 note per octave scale, made popular in Asian music.
Sheng
Dying phoenix instrument. Organ thing you play like a harmonica. Produces simultaneous pitches. 1st organ. Resembles bird with folded wings.
Call and response
Melody, followed by improvisation on melody.
Wiik
Recorder like Ghanan instrument that has limited range.
Gulu
Drums, cylindrical, allow for advanced syncopation.