Key
the major or minor mode of a composition
Major
a diatonic scale with half steps between E + F (3 and 4) and B + C (7 and 8)
Minor
a diatonic scale with half steps between D + E (2 and 3) and G + A (5 and 6)
Chromatic Scales
the western scale in which the octave is divided into 12 half steps
Duple Meter
Duple Meter
Rhythm
organization of sounds and durations of pitches and silences
Weak Beats (Duple Meter)
2 and 4 beat
Strong Beats (Duple Meter)
1 and 3 beat
Strong Beats (Triple Meter)
1 and 4 beat
Triple Meter
3 beats per measure
Compound Meter
subdivide beats into smaller grouping of 3
Weak Beats (Triple Meter)
Weak Beats (Triple Meter)
Allegro
fast
Andante
moderately slow
Adagio
slow
Lento
Slow
Dynamics
loudness or softness of a pitch
p
“piano” soft
mp
"mezzo piano" half soft
mf
“mezzo forte” half loud
f
“forte” loud
ff
"fortissimo" very loud
"fortissimo" very loud
Verse-Refrain Form
(AABA) one or 2 lines repeated at the beginning or end of the verse tying song together
Melismatic
(text setting) several notes sung to one syllable of text
Syllabic
(text setting) one syllable of text has one note
Responsorial
soloist answered by a choir
Moderato
moderately
vertical combinations of pitches to produce chords
pp
"pianissimo" very soft