MUS 125 - Aural Skills Vocabulary

Arpeggios

the notes of a chord played in succession, either ascending or descending

Articulation

in music refers to a composer's ability to place a note in a specific place to create accent or emphasis.

Cadence

a rhythmic, melodic, or harmonic change that occurs at the end of a phrase. It's often a two-chord progression.

Chord Progression

a succession of chords moving forward in a purposeful fashion

Compound Meter

Meter in which each beat is subdivided into three rather than two.

Dictation

what is written down as someone plays or performs it

Downbeat

First beat of the measure, the strongest in any meter.

Dynamics

Degrees of loudness or softness in music

Half Steps

Smallest interval used in the Western system; the octave divides into twelve such intervals; on the piano, the distance between any two adjacent keys, whether black or white. Also semitone.

Harmony

the simultaneous combination of notes and the ensuing relationships of intervals and chords

Interval

The distance between two notes

Key Signature

sharps or flats placed at the beginning of a selection indicating its key

Melodic Contour

the general direction and shape of a melody

Melody

a sequence of single notes that is musically satisfying.

Meter

is the organization of beats into regular patterns, or measures, that define how the music moves through time:

Pitch

a tone's experienced highness or lowness; depends on frequency

Pulse

a regular, recurring beat that acts as the foundation for the rhythm

Rhythm

A strong, regular, repeated pattern of movement or sound.

Scale

is a sequence of notes ordered by pitch, or frequency

Sight Singing

reading and singing music at first sight

Simple Meter

Grouping of rhythms in which the beat is subdivided into two, as in duple, triple, and quadruple meters.

Solfege

a system used for teaching sight-singing (Do-Re-Mi)

Staff

the 5 lines and 4 spaces on which music is written

Tempo

speed of music

Time Signature

a musical notation indicating the number of beats to a measure and kind of note that takes a beat

Tonic

first note of a scale

Triad

a chord in music that consists of three notes from the diatonic scale: the root, third, and fifth.

Upbeat

the last beat in a bar that comes before the downbeat

Whole Steps

two half steps

Dominant

the fifth note of a diatonic scale, or the triad built on that note: