AP Music Theory Terms - Q2

Picardy Thirdy

A major chord that occurs at the end of a piece in a minor key

Turn

A musical ornament consisting of the notes above and below a principal note and returning to the original note

ex. e—» f —» e —» d —» e

Mordent

A musical ornament that consists of a principal note, followed by the note immediately below or above it, and then returning to the principal note.

Glissando

A continuous slide from one pitch to another

Tremolo

A musical technique in which a performer plays an individual note or two alternating notes as fast as possible

Sentence

musical phrase; basic music idea

• must have a cadence

Sentence Structure

[ x —» x₁ —» series of fast runs —» cadence ]

A specific organization of musical ideas within a sentence, typically involving a musical idea (x), followed by a continuation (x1), a series of fast runs, and concluding with a cadence.

Period

A musical structure consisting of two phrases, the first ending in a weak cadence and the second in a strong cadence.

• question followed by an answer

• must have two cadences

Parallel Period

A type of period where the two phrases are similar in melody but differ in their endings, with the first ending in a weak cadence and the second in a strong cadence.

Contrasting Period

A type of period where the two phrases are contrasting in melody and differ in their endings, with the first ending in a weak cadence and the second in a strong cadence.

Double Period

a section of music that is made up of four phrases, with the first two phrases forming the antecedent group and the last two forming the consequent group

[phrase 1 (a)(weak Candace) —» phrase 2 (b)(strog cadance)]—» [phrase 3 (a’)(weak cadance) —» phrase 4 (b’) (strong cadance)]

Antecedent

A complete phrase that creates an expectation that is resolved by the subsequent consequent phrase

Consequent

A phrase that comes after an antecedent phrase and provides a conclusion or resolution