Orchestra Vocab Grades 6-12

simile

in same style as previous

cantabile

singing

grave

as slow as possible

rallentando

gradually slower

fermata

hold note/rest till conductor indicates

sordino

mute

mezzo

medium

da capo

from the beginning

dal segnore

from the sign

coda

tag

molto

much

piu

more

poco

little

sul

on/near

gusto

with zest

agitato

agitated

sonata

multi-movement piece for piano/soloist with equal difficulty

subito

suddenly

tutti

all play

niente

fade to nothing

allargando

stretched passage

tenuto

stretch/stress on note

sempre

always

morendo

dying away

pesante

heavy

cadenza

brilliant solo passage

glissando

slide between 2 notes

luftpaus

lift and pause

meno

less

mosso

motion

non troppo

not too much

con brio

with vigor

con fuoco

with fire

leggiero

lightly

grazioso

gracefully

scherzando

playful

sforzando

second degree accent

assai

very

stringendo

press forward

adagietto

slightly slower and faster than adagio

semplice

simple

anacrusis

pickup before piece

mordent

single alternation between primary and adjacent tone

l'istesso

same tempo

comodo

comfortably

ossia

floating alternate measure

a piacere

at the soloist's discretion

giocoso

joyful