Music of the 20th Century 1-15

Melody

a line, or the tune, in music

Interval

the distance between any two pitches

Cadences

phrases that end in resting places

Phrases

the units that make up a melody

Rhythm

what moves music forward in time

Meter

marked off in measures, organizes the beats

Beats

the basic units in music

Syncopation

deliberate upsetting of the meter or pulse through a temporary shifting of the accent to a weak beat or an offbeat

Polyrythm

the simultaneous use of several rhythmic patterns or meters, common in twentieth-century music and certain African musics

**Harmony**

describes the vertical aspects of music: how notes (pitches) sound together

Chord

the simultaneous sounding of three or more pitches

Scales

a sequence of pitches

**Tonality**

principle of organization around a tonic, or home, pitch, based on a major or minor scale

**Dissonance**

combination of tones that sound discordant and unstable, in need of resolution

**Consonance**

concordant or harmonious combination of pitches that provides a sense of relaxation and stability in music

Chromatic Scale

melody or harmony built from many if not all twelve pitches of the octave; an ascending or descending sequence of half steps

Diatonic Scale

seven whole and half steps whose patterns form major and minor scales

Half Steps

smallest interval used in the Western system; the octave divides into twelve such intervals; on the piano, the distance between any two adjacent keys, whether black or white

Whole Steps

interval consisting of two half steps

Tonic Chord

the first note of the scale

Texture

the interweaving of melodic and harmonic elements in the musical fabric

Monophony

melody without accompaniment

Polyphony

texture resulting from combining two or more melodic lines

Imitation

melodic idea presented in one voice or part and related in another, each part continuing as others enter

Form

the organizing principle in music

Theme

a melodic idea in a large-scale work

Call and response

a repetitive style involving a soloist and a group

Improvisation

spontaneous creation or elaboration of music through performance

Movements

complete, self-contained part within a larger musical work

Strophic form

song structure in which the same music is repeated with every stanza of the poem

Tempo

the rate of speed, or pace, of the music

Dynamics

how loud the music is played

Timbre

the quality of a sound that distinguishes one voice or instrument from another

Chamber Music

ensemble music for up to about ten players, with one player to a part

Orchestra

any performing body of diverse instruments

A Capella

choral music performed without instrumental accompaniment

Jenny Lind

a Swedish opera singer, often called the "Swedish Nightingale". One of the most highly regarded singers of the 19th century, she performed in soprano roles in opera in Sweden and across Europe, and undertook an extraordinarily popular concert tour of the United States beginning in 1850

Rigoletto

an opera with music by Giuseppe Verdi

Opera

Music drama that is generally sung throughout, combining the resources of vocal and instrumental music with poetry and drama, acting and dancing, scenery and costumes

Opera Seria

tragic Italian opera

Opera Buffa

Italing comic opera, sung throughout

Bel Canto

elegant Italian vocal style characterized by florid melodic lines delivered by voices of great agility, smoothness, and pureness of tone

Singspiel

comic German drama with spoken dialogue; the immediate predecessor of Romantic German opera

Music Drama

Wagner’s term for his operas

Leitmotifs

basic recurring theme, representing a person, object, or idea

Gesamtkunstwerk

“a total work of art”; used by Richard Wagner

Ring of the Nibelung

a cycle of four German-language epic music dramas composed by Richard Wagner