Music Key Vocab (made by Izzie)

Pertaining to the notes of a major or minor scale

by semi-tones

harmonious agreement

harsh and disagreeable in sound

Long held or repeated note, usually on tonic or dominant

A pedal is a single note that is held on or repeated in, the bass

V-I sounds final and complete

I-V ii-V IV-V vi-V Sounds unfinished

Chord V followed by any chord except I. Sounds surprising.

IV-I sounds complete but not as strong, used for the amen at the end of hymns

The final chord of a piece of music in the minor key is changed to major.

Bright, triumphant sound

sad

chord V with added minor seventh.

a loud chord consisting of the only root note of the chord and the fifth, usually played on electric guitar

I, I, I, I, IV, IV, I, I, V, IV, I, I

A variation on the basic 12-bar blues progression with an extended pattern of chords. There is the same basic chord structure as the 12-bar blues with measure 9 and 10 repeated three times.

music based on a major scale

music based on a minor scale

music that lacks a tonal center; absence of key

Tonality based on modes (precursors of modern scales ‒ of several types, each with a different series of tones and semitones)

a five-note scale found often in folk music and non-Western music

a seven-note scale in which the third, fifth, and seventh pitches are sometimes flat, sometimes natural, and sometimes in between

a six-note scale each pitch of which is a whole tone away from the next

the technique of changing keys in the course of a single piece

when the beat naturally divides into two equal halves.

a time signature where the beat is dotted and sub-divides into groups of three, as in 6/8 which has two dotted crotchet beats, each of which comprises three quavers

a time signature where all the beats are the same length

Time signature where beats are grouped in uneven mixtures of two and three.

No discernable beat

temporary irregularity of time, lengthening some notes at the expense of others

very slow, solemn 20-40 BPM

slow 40-45 BPM

broad, 45-50 BPM

Stately 50-65 BPM

Rather slow 65-70 BPM

walking pace 70-85 BPM

moderate 85-100 BPM

moderately fast 100-110 BPM

fast, cheerful 110-130 BPM

fast and lively 130-150 BPM

very fast tempo 150-180 BPM

as fast as possible 180+ BPM

upbeat

a series of uniformly spaced beats

the action or process of making or becoming greater in size or amount

lessening; reduction in size

Feeling of two in triple time

dotted note is followed by one shorter, long-short pattern

A second dot represents half the value of the first dot, or a quarter of the original duration

three-note pattern that fills the duration of a typical two-note pattern

a syncopated musical rhythm in which a short, accented note is followed by a longer one.

A pause sign tells you to hold the note or rest for slightly longer than its written value.

the sense of an effect ("feel") of changing pattern in a propulsive rhythm or sense of "swing".

Placing a strong accent on the offbeats.

Off beat

a weak beat or any pulse between the beats in a measured rhythmic pattern

A beat where straight quavers are relaxed into a more triplet feel, similar to a swing rhythm.

Straight quavers are relaxed into a more triplet feel

An offbeat pattern created by the guitarist playing an 'upstroke'

reggae term, the effect created by playing chords in the left hand immediately before the off beat chords in the right hand on the keyboard

A group of three notes in two - the basic rhythm of salsa.

the use of two different rhythms together

conflicting rhythms are heard together

a rhythm that makes use of two or more different rhythms simultaneously each with different beats

a style of Brazilian music derived from samba but placing more emphasis on melody and less on percussion.

Brazilian dance with African influences

Salsa is a Latin dance, associated with the music genre of the same name, which was first popularized in the United States in the 1960s in New York City.

A Latin American dance performed at a moderately slow, walk-like tempo in 4/4 meter

A dance created in Cuba during the early nineteenth century that became popular in both Europe and South America. Its characteristic rhythm resurfaced in the Argentine tango and the cakewalk.

Creolized Cuban dance-music genre that essentially became the national dance of Cuba in the 1920s; important forerunner of the danzon-mambo and the cha cha cha. Closely identified with the charanga ensemble.

The national music and dance of the Dominican Republic.

A dance of Cuban origin, the name is onomatopoeic, derived from the rhythm of the güiro (scraper) and the shuffling of the dancers' feet, Originator: Enrique Jorrín in 1953.

a rhythmic dance with Spanish and African elements, originating in Cuba.

Sudden strong accent

smooth and connected

short and detached

having two or more independent but harmonically related melodic parts sounding together

in canon form

copying or following a model or example

Sections of music that are repeated again and again are loops. When lots of loops are played at the same time this is layered texture.

Sounding together

without musical instruments as accompaniment

smooth, connected melody that moves principally by small intervals

a melody that moves by leaps

A melody based on triads

The pitches of a chord played at different times so that the sounds are staggered.

music that is based on scales ascending and/or descending in pitch.

the playing of the tones of a chord in rapid succession rather than simultaneously

The notes used to move between notes found in the chord. Usually on weak beats.

a smooth gliding from one note to another

rapid slide up or down a scale

a short slide up or down to a main note

A slide from one note to another

a musical interval of two semitones

A recurring theme, subject or idea

Improvised singing used in jazz with nonsense lyrics and syllables

a performance given without prior planning or preparation

a minor interval where a major would be expected, used especially in jazz.

A rapid alternation between two adjacent notes