Western heritage music

Rhythm

strong repeated pattern of sounds/movments

Texture

the relationship of melodic and (sometimes) harmonic elements with each other

Harmony

the sound of two or more notes heard simultaneously

Melody

the aesthetic product of a given succession of pitches in musical time, implying rhythmically ordered movement from pitch to pitch

Timbre

the character or quality of a musical sound or voice as distinct from its pitch and intensity

Consonance

a combination of notes which are in harmony with each other due to the relationship between their frequencies

Dissonance

a tension or clash resulting from the combination of two disharmonious or unsuitable elements.

Imitative

the repetition of a melody in a polyphonic texture shortly after its first appearance in a different voice.

Sacred

holy music

Secular

not subject to or bound by religious rule

Book of Psalms

the first book of the third section of the Hebrew Bible called Ketuvim, and a book of the Old Testament

Mass Ordinary

part of the Roman mass and comprises six chants whose texts remain the same through the year, namely Kyrie eleison, Gloria in excelsis Deo, Credo, Sanctus, Agnus Dei, and Ite, missa

Kyrie

the first sung prayer of the Mass ordinary

Gloria

a celebratory passage praising God the Father and Christ.

Credo

a setting of the Nicene Creed, is the longest text of a sung Mass.

Sanctus

a doxology praising the Trinity, an ancient Christian hymn of adoration sung or said immediately before the prayer of consecration in traditional liturgies

Agnus Dei

a setting of the "Lamb of God" litany

Mass Proper

consists of the Introit, Gradual, Alleluia or Tract, Sequence, Offertory, and Communion, all the variable portions of a Mass which are spoken or sung by the choir or the people.

Neume

a note or group of notes to be sung to a single syllable

Notation

visual record of heard or imagined musical sound, or a set of visual instructions for performance of music

Gregorian chant

the central tradition of Western plainchant, a form of monophonic, unaccompanied sacred song in Latin of the Roman Catholic Church

Monophonic

consisting of a single musical line, without accompaniment

Polyphonic

the simultaneous combination of two or more tones or melodic lines

Homophonic

characterized by the movement of accompanying parts in the same rhythm as the melody

Estampie

a usually textless, monophonic musical work of the late Middle Ages consisting of several repeated units that probably accompanied a dance

Troubadour

one of a class of lyric poets and poet-musicians often of knightly rank who flourished from the 11th to the end of the 13th century chiefly in the south of France and the north of Italy and whose major theme was courtly love

Trouvére

one of a school of poets who flourished from the 11th to the 14th centuries and who composed mostly narrative works (such as chansons de geste and fabliaux)

Trobairitz

Occitan female troubadours of the 12th and 13th centuries

Chanson

a music-hall or cabaret song, various eras of French song, from the monophonic chant of the Middle Ages to the polyphonic singing of the Renaissance

Formes Fixes

the three 14th- and 15th-century French poetic forms: the ballade, rondeau, and virelai

English Guise

Characteristic quality of early-fifteenth-century English music, marked by pervasive CONSONANCE with frequent use of HARMONIC thirds and sixths, often in parallel motion.

Franco-Flemish

the style of polyphonic vocal music composition in Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries, and to the composers who wrote it

Cantus Firmus

a pre-existing melody forming the basis of a polyphonic composition

Renaissance Humanism

a highly personal, emotional experience in which music interacts with the soul

Christian Doctrine

Music is made first of all to the Lord and only secondarily to each other

Triple-impression movable type

one impression for the staff lines, another for the notes, and another for the text

Single-impression movable type

a single vertical strip of music type is made up of five little dashes plus a music symbol, such as a note, a rest, or an accidental

Tablature/Intabulation

an instrumental notation indicating the string, fret, key, or finger to be used instead of the tone to be sounded

Motet

style of vocal composition that has undergone numerous transformations through many centuries

Madrigal

a form of secular vocal music most typical of the Renaissance and early Baroque periods

Word Painting

the musical technique of composing music that reflects the literal meaning of a song's lyrics or story elements in programmatic music

Anthem

a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group

Lute Song

a music style from the late 16th century to early 17th century, late Renaissance to early Baroque, that was predominantly in England and France

Monody

refers to a solo vocal style distinguished by having a single melodic line and instrumental accompaniment, Italian renaissance

Recitative

a style of delivery (much used in operas, oratorios, and cantatas) in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms and delivery of ordinary speech

Aria

A self-contained piece for solo voice, usually accompanied by orchestra

Intermedi

a musical work performed between the acts of a play or opera in Italy from the late 15th century through the 17th century including instrumental music and sometimes singing and dancing

Opera

a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers, a dramatic work in one or more acts, set to music for singers and instrumentalists