Orchestra Final Exam Practice Flashcards

Vocabulary terms and definitions from the Orchestra Final Exam Guide covering dynamics, music theory, history, and string techniques.

Crescendo

Get louder

Ritardando

Get slower

mf

mezzo forte

Forte

loud

Staccato

spaced

p

piano

Fermata

hold the note

Accent

play the note heavily

Legato

long and smooth

Decrescendo

Get softer

Sharp (#)

Raise note $\frac{1}{2}$ step

Flat ($b$)

Lower note $\frac{1}{2}$ step

Order of sharps

F-C-G-D-A-E-B

Order of flats

B-E-A-D-G-C-F

Rule for finding the major key with SHARPS

Last sharp, letter after (G# $\rightarrow$ A)

Rule for finding the major key with FLATS

Second to last flat

Rule for finding the MINOR key from a MAJOR key

Go two letters BACK (B $\rightarrow$ g#)

Major key with ALL 7 sharps

C#M

Minor key with ALL 7 flats

abm

Interval measurement

half steps

Smallest interval

minor 2nd

Major vs Minor interval size

Major intervals are bigger than the equivalent minor interval

Major 2nd half steps

$2$ half steps

Perfect 4th half steps

$5$ half steps

Smallest distance between two different notes

half step

String instrument tuning rule

All are tuned in Perfect 5ths EXCEPT the bass

Root

The note a chord is based off of; the lowest note of a chord

Third

The note that decides whether a chord is Major or minor

Fifth

The note that decides whether a chord is diminished or Augmented

Arpeggio

When a chord is played one note at a time

Major chord spacing

Major 3rd, Minor 3rd

Minor chord spacing

Minor 3rd, Major 3rd

Augmented (+) chord spacing

Major 3rd, Major 3rd

Diminished chord spacing

Minor 3rd, Minor 3rd

Seventh chord

A chord that has more than 3 notes

Time signature TOP number

beats per measure

Time signature BOTTOM number

what note length gets the beat

COMMON TIME

$$4/4$$

CUT TIME

$$2/2$$

Baroque era

17th Century

Classical era

18th Century

Romantic era

19th Century

Modern era

20th Century

J.S. BACH

Baroque era

MOZART

Classical era

BRAHMS

Romantic era

VIVALDI

Baroque era

HANDEL

Baroque era

HAYDN

Classical era

HINDEMITH

Modern era

Tchaikovsky

Romantic era

Terraced dynamics

No crescendos/decrescendos; characteristic of the Baroque era

Concerto

A piece written for a soloist

Concerto grosso

A piece written for multiple soloists

Chamber music

Music written for a small group

Polyphonic

Multiple independent lines

Nationalism

Music style known in the Romantic era

Modern era orchestral characteristic

Extreme experiments in tonality

Symphony

Musical form popularized in the Classical era

Fugue

Musical form most popular in the Baroque era

Romantic era orchestra

Era known for having the largest orchestras

Frog

A part of the bow

Cello clef

Cellos usually read bass clef

Transposing instrument

An instrument that sounds differently than it reads, such as the bass

Soundpost

The wooden piece inside a stringed instrument that connects the top to the bottom

col legno

with the wood

Tenuto

long and smooth

sul tasto

over the fingerboard

sul ponticello

over the bridge

Endpin

A feature found on the cello