Music Theory Final Exam ALL TERMS

staccato

play the note short and detached; space between notes

accent

play the note louder, with a special emphasis

sforzando

a sudden, strong accent

tenuto

somehow make that note special, whether it is shorter, softer, stronger, emphasized

fermata

hold thhe note longer than its normal value (approx. twice the normal duration)

marcato

accented legato (connected but emphasized)

legato

smooth, connected

major scale formula

W W H W W W H

ties

curved line that connects two notes of the same pitch, indicating that they should be played as one note.

slurs

legato line that indicates notes should be played smoothly without re-articulation

whole note

4 beats

half note

2 beats

quarter note

1 beat

eighth note

½ beat

sixteenth note

¼ beat

duple

two beats per measure/ or divides the measure into two beats

triple

three beats a measure

whole rest

4 beats rest

half rest

2 beats rest

quarter rest

1 beat rest

eighth rest

½ beat rest

sixteenth rest

¼ beat rest

translating to alto/tenor clef

middle c in the middle of the staff

common time

time signature where each measure has four beats, with a quarter note receiving one beat (4/4)

perfect 5th (P5)

an interval between two notes that are seven half steps apart (only one that doesn’t apply is B to F (which is a diminished 5th))

diminished/flattened 5th (C°)

an interval also called a tritone, consisting of six half steps (or 3 whole)

augmented 5th (C+)

an interval that is made up of eight half steps (or 4 whole stels)

tritone

diminished 5th used interchangeably

enharmonic equivalent

refers to two notes that sound the same but are written differently. (C# and Db)

major 2nd

an interval consisting of two half steps (one whole step)

minor 2nd

an interval consisting one half step

major 3rd

an interval consisting of four halfsteps (two whole steps)

minor 3rd

an interval made up of two notes consisting of three half steps

major chord construction

• take the root note

• add a major third interval above

• a perfect fifth interval above the root,

minor chord construction

• root note

• add a minor third

• perfect fifth

diminished chord construction

• root note

• minor third above it

• diminished fifth

augmented chord construction

• root note

• major third interval

• augmented fifth interval above the root

triad

A chord with three notes that can be set as thirds because their pitches work together

bar line v. double bar line

• single vertical line in music that separates measures

• two bar lines placed close together indicate a significant change in the music like the end of a section or a key change

root note

The fundamental pitch that establishes the key, scale, or chord's tonality

key signature pneumonic

sharps: father charles goes down and ends battle (and flipped for flats)

key signature

a set of sharp, flat, or natural symbols that indicate the key of a piece of music

courtesy accidental

are used to remind the musician of the correct pitch if the same note occurs in the following measure.

presto

very fast

allegro

fast

moderato

moderate

andante

slowish but moving along

adagio

slow

grave

extremely slow, somber

assai

enough

ma non troppo

but not too much

fortissimo

very loud - ff

forte

loud - f

mezzo forte

moderately loud - mf

mezzo piano

moderately quiet - mp

piano

quiet - p

pianissimo

very quiet - pp

cresc./crescendo

growing (louder)

dim./diminuendo

diminishing, getting quieter

sforzando

forcing it

chromatic scale

composed of minor seconds w/ 12 pitches

whole tone scale

composed of major second w/ 6 pitches

D.C.

Da Capo

D.S.

Repeat from the sign

Fine

the end

Coda

an added ending

1st (first) ending

A section of music played the first time through a repeated passage. It is usually marked with a bracket and a number "1" above the measure. After playing the first ending, the musician returns to the beginning or a repeat sign.

2nd (second) ending

The alternate ending played after repeating a section of music. Instead of going back to the first ending, the musician skips it and plays the measures under the bracket marked with a number "2," continuing forward in the piece.

perfect fourth (P4)

5 half steps and is made up of four staff positions

tonic

(1st scale degree) – The "home" note of a key

supertonic

(2nd scale degree) – One step above the tonic

mediant

(3rd scale degree) – Midway between the tonic and dominant;

subdominant

(4th scale degree) – One step below the dominant

dominant

(5th scale degree) – The second most important note after the tonic

submediant

(6th scale degree) — Midway between the subdominant and tonic;

leading tone

(7th scale degree in major and harmonic minor scales) – A half step below the tonic; creates tension that resolves to the tonic

compound meter

where each beat is divided into three equal parts

• 6/8, 9/8, 12/8

alto clef

middle section is in the middle of the staff

tenor clef

middle section not in the middle of the staff

simple meter

time signatures where the beat can be divided into two

• 2/4. 3/4, 4/4

Scale Degree mneumonic

Tigers Sometimes Make Some Delicious Sweet Lemonade

double sharp

diminuendo

decreasing in volume

secondary dominant

a dominant functioning chord making you believe (or actually) that it will slip into another key

5 dominant functioning chord

V, V7, vii°, vii°7, viiø7

viiø7 construction

Root + minor 3rd + diminished 5th + minor 7th

vii°7 construction

Root + minor 3rd + diminished 5th + diminished 7th

minor 7th

two half steps below an octave

diminished 7th

three half steps below an octave, one less than a minor 7th

diminished 5th

6 half steps above the root.

minor 2nd (m2)

1 half step above the root

major 2nd (M2)

2 half steps above the root

minor 3rd (m3)

3 half steps above the root

major 3rd (M3)

4 half steps above the root

perfect 5th

7 half steps above the root.

chromatic scales

scale composed of all half steps (minor 2nd); includes all 12 notes within an octave

whole-tone scales

scale composed of all whole steps (major 2nd); includes 6 notes

duple meter

beats grouped in twos; Each measure has 2 beats (or a multiple of 2, like 4)

• 2/4 (2 quarter notes per measure)

• 4/4 (4 quarter notes per measure — still duple because it's 2 groups of 2)

triple meter

beats grouped in 3; each measure has 3 beats

• 6/8, 3/4, 9/8

triplets

divides a beat (or note value) into 3 equal parts instead of the usual 2.

• Normally, a beat divides into 2 equal parts (e.g., two 8th notes per quarter note).

• A triplet fits 3 notes into the space where you'd normally only hear 2.

• takes up more space