orchestra vocab: 6th-12th

pizzicato

pluck the string

arco

use your bow

solo

piece for 1 person/ 1 person playing

ensemble

a piece for a group of players/ a group of musicians playing

crescendo

gradually get louder

decrescendo

gradually get softer

scale

a series of consecutive notes ascending and descending that starts and ends on the same note

half step

smallest musical increment

whole step

2 half steps

dynamics

range of sounds

piano

softly

forte

loud

mezzo

medium

allegro

fast, happy tempo

andante

slow, walking tempo

ritardando

gradually get slower

tempo

speed of music

ledger lines

lines extending from the staff

tie

a curved line that connects 2 or more notes of the same pitch

slur

a curved line that connects 2 or more notes of different pitches

simile

same style as previous

cantabile

singing style

dolce

sweetly

rallentando

gradually get slower

fermata

hold a note/rest until director indicates

adagio

slow tempo

fine

end

divisi

divide chord between players

accidental

a sharp, flat, or natural not included in the given key signature

luftpaus

lift and pause

con

with

senza

without

sordino

mute

da capo

from the beginning

dal segnore

from the sign or symbol

coda

tag

moderato

moderately

al fine

through, to the end

syncopation

stressing the weak, off beats

andantino

slightly faster/slower than andante

molto

much

piu

more

a tempo

back to original tempo

accelerando

gradually get faster

GP (grand pause)

whole orchestra stops playing

poco

little

sul

on/near

trill

fastest oscillation between 2 notes

enharmonic

2 notes that sound the same but have different spellings

ponticello

bridge

tasto

fingerboard

maestoso

majestically

agitato

agitated

expressivo

expressive

subito

suddenly

presto

very fast tempo

tranquillo

tranquil

tonic

1st scale degree

dominant

5th scale degree

duet

2 players playing; a piece for 2 players

volta

time/turn

tutti

everyone plays

niente

fade to nothing

allargando

stretched passage

tenuto

stress/stretch the note

sempre

throughout, always

morendo

gradual decrescendo dying away

largo

very slow

pesante

heavy

cadenza

an elaborate flourish or showy passage

glissando

slide between 2 notes

interval

distance between pitches

tacet

don’t play

major scale

scale that follows WWHWWWH

meno

less

mosso/moto

motion

turn

embellishment of secondary tone that revolves around primary tone

grace note

embellishment that precedes/succeeds primary tone

leading tone

7th degree

non troppo

not too much

con brio

with vigor/zeal

con fuoco

with fire

attaca

continue to next section without pause

prima

first

leggiero

light and delicate

grazioso

gracefully

assai

very

stringendo

to press forward

sforzando

second degree accent

scherzando

playful

adagietto

slightly slower/faster than adagio

mediant

3rd scale degree

submediant

6th scale degree

hemiola

three against two

natural minor scale

scale that follows WHWWHWW

harmonic minor scale

natural minor scale with raised 7th degree

melodic minor scale

natural minor scale with raised 6th and 7th degrees ascending and natural minor descending

gusto

with zest

con calore

with warmth

giocoso

joyful/boisterous